It’s finally happened. The day that Michael Jordan entered the Basketball Hall of Fame it happened. The first request by a child as to “Was MJ that good?” has come to pass.
Top 5 DVD purchase ever
Now it didn’t happen directly (this may surprise you, but I don’t spend a lot of time with children) it happened through my friend Tank, a 5th-6th grade teacher in Austin.
I think you’ve said you have a jordan highlight movie. could I borrow it. i’ve got some sports fans who have read some books on jordan, but don’t know.
trying to enlighten some minds. :-)
First off, it’s teachers like Tank that make America great. Second of all, of course they are going to see my Ultimate Jordan Set!
One of the great sports memories of my life was watching the Bulls v. Jazz II at a house on Hay Lake in Minnesota. No one else in my family seemed to care, but these were the waining moments of Jordan. Could he go out on top? Like a freakin’ supernova?? Yes. Yes he could.
Or so we thought. Not three years later Mr. Jordan is wearing a jersey, not of red and black, but of many a ridiculous shade, he was a Wizard.
I admit his time with the Wizards had some highlights. But, this clearly was no longer the dominant player it once was. I started thinking about what kids who were forming their first basketball memories at these moments would remember about MJ, “A heavier guard with a good smile, and a hell of a fade away turnaround” would be the best case scenario. I longed for his retirement so that no other young minds would be tainted with this faux-jordan.
Around this same time, the Simpsons was reaching it’s apex. It had already been on the air for 9 years (a long time for a sitcom, cartoon or not) and was beginning to show signs of aging. At 13, even I could sense the increasing dullness of the wit and blandness of the story telling. Also, at 13, my entire living memory could be charted by the Simpsons. It sounds pathetic, but if the one thing I counted on as the steady comic feed in my life dried up, what was I to do? Most of season 10 I sat through with tight lips and a furrowed brow, but after the first 3 episodes of season 11, I quit. Cold Turkey. I haven’t watched a full episode that aired past November 7, 1999. Over the years I’ve dipped my toes in the water, but couldn’t stand the temperature longer than 3-4 minutes.
Once at a party, I went back and forth with a girl i barely knew, naming every character
What can young kids these days possibly think of the Simpsons? They either love it, and we are all doomed due to their stupidity, or they think it’s an ok show, nothing to write home about. I am sad for the second group that doesn’t deserve to be treated with such blase humor.
The Jordan and Simpsons phenomenon are similar despite the fact that the motivations that drove them differed. MJ was a man whose life was defined but competition and thought he needed it for meaning. The Simpsons are still powered by a money making franchise that churns on despite the forgotten ideals the product once stood for. For me, the similarity is the asterisk next to the memory. “MJ was the best player ever, sans wizards years.” “The Simpsons is a comedic masterpiece up to season 9..”
Eventually, like the kids in Tank’s class, the asterisk is all anyone remembers, that or nothing at all. I’m not sure which is worse.
My kids will know of the double 3-peat and the Mono-rail, I can promise you that.
PS. I was going to include weezer as a third example in this comparison, but the scar from that wound has yet to heal. I’m just glad I didn’t get that tatoo…..
Michael Jordan and the Passing of Time.
It’s finally happened. The day that Michael Jordan entered the Basketball Hall of Fame it happened. The first request by a child as to “Was MJ that good?” has come to pass.
Top 5 DVD purchase ever
Now it didn’t happen directly (this may surprise you, but I don’t spend a lot of time with children) it happened through my friend Tank, a 5th-6th grade teacher in Austin.
First off, it’s teachers like Tank that make America great. Second of all, of course they are going to see my Ultimate Jordan Set!
One of the great sports memories of my life was watching the Bulls v. Jazz II at a house on Hay Lake in Minnesota. No one else in my family seemed to care, but these were the waining moments of Jordan. Could he go out on top? Like a freakin’ supernova?? Yes. Yes he could.
Or so we thought. Not three years later Mr. Jordan is wearing a jersey, not of red and black, but of many a ridiculous shade, he was a Wizard.
I admit his time with the Wizards had some highlights. But, this clearly was no longer the dominant player it once was. I started thinking about what kids who were forming their first basketball memories at these moments would remember about MJ, “A heavier guard with a good smile, and a hell of a fade away turnaround” would be the best case scenario. I longed for his retirement so that no other young minds would be tainted with this faux-jordan.
Around this same time, the Simpsons was reaching it’s apex. It had already been on the air for 9 years (a long time for a sitcom, cartoon or not) and was beginning to show signs of aging. At 13, even I could sense the increasing dullness of the wit and blandness of the story telling. Also, at 13, my entire living memory could be charted by the Simpsons. It sounds pathetic, but if the one thing I counted on as the steady comic feed in my life dried up, what was I to do? Most of season 10 I sat through with tight lips and a furrowed brow, but after the first 3 episodes of season 11, I quit. Cold Turkey. I haven’t watched a full episode that aired past November 7, 1999. Over the years I’ve dipped my toes in the water, but couldn’t stand the temperature longer than 3-4 minutes.
Once at a party, I went back and forth with a girl i barely knew, naming every character
What can young kids these days possibly think of the Simpsons? They either love it, and we are all doomed due to their stupidity, or they think it’s an ok show, nothing to write home about. I am sad for the second group that doesn’t deserve to be treated with such blase humor.
The Jordan and Simpsons phenomenon are similar despite the fact that the motivations that drove them differed. MJ was a man whose life was defined but competition and thought he needed it for meaning. The Simpsons are still powered by a money making franchise that churns on despite the forgotten ideals the product once stood for. For me, the similarity is the asterisk next to the memory. “MJ was the best player ever, sans wizards years.” “The Simpsons is a comedic masterpiece up to season 9..”
Eventually, like the kids in Tank’s class, the asterisk is all anyone remembers, that or nothing at all. I’m not sure which is worse.
My kids will know of the double 3-peat and the Mono-rail, I can promise you that.
PS. I was going to include weezer as a third example in this comparison, but the scar from that wound has yet to heal. I’m just glad I didn’t get that tatoo…..