How is everyone’s weekend going? Thanks for spending a portion of it with the Six.
Today’s Six includes articles on a start up basketball league paying teenagers fat contracts, continued Covid incompetence, up close and personal on the life of a hotel housekeeper, and a bear attacks an inflatable reindeer (of course, we have accompanying video!)
Let’s proceed with the holiday Six.
The Colossal Failure Of The Virus War.
This week has been one of the strangest of 2021 as it pertains to Covid. Shouldn’t we be long past “adaptive pauses” and “virus protocols?” Why are schools going remote and sports leagues cancelling games? If there is ever a time for us as a country to adopt a “Long Covid” strategy, this is it. The virus ain’t going anywhere. Let’s treat it as such and stop overreacting to every positive test (I could write 1,000 words on the insane testing policies still in place but I’ll save that for a future TKR article). Perfect timing for one of my favorite Substack authors, Jordan Schachtel, for one of his take down pieces on the mammoth failure of the War on Covid.
Teenagers Getting Six Figures To Leave Their High School Hoops Team.
The professionalization of amateur sports is one of the most interesting stories of our times and will be the rest of the decade. This piece, via The NY Times Magazine, takes a fascinating look inside Overtime Elite, which is almost effortlessly recruiting young phenoms with fat salaries, viral stardom and—perhaps—a smoother pathway to greater riches and fame in the National Basketball Association.
We’ve all stayed in hotels (and motels) at some point in our lives. Someone had to clean the rooms, change the sheets, bedding, etc. Those folks are largely invisible; except for when we may catch the cart with cleaning supplies in the hallway on our way out. But just who are these people who clean rooms all day? AFAR with an interesting piece exploring the life and work of a hotel housekeeper.
Lorne Michaels Still Lives For Saturday Night.
I have clearheaded childhood memories of staying up late and watching Eddie Murphy do hilarious skits on “Saturday Night Live” (Mr. Robinson’s Neighborhood my personal fav). The Washington Post profiles the founder and still executive producer of SNL, Lorne Michaels, on this super-fun trip to Studio 8H in New York City, the “claustrophobic kingdom” of SNL’s legendary creator and show runner Lorne Michaels, whom as the WP writes, is “all wires and wigs and wheels and lumber, craftsmanship and ego, raw nerves and unresolved daddy issues.”
Top 100 Baseball Books Ever Written.
We like our lists here at the Six, and many thanks to Esquire for putting together one I’ve been waiting for—that of baseball books. Some of the most enjoyable reading experiences I’ve had are stories about baseball, especially authors that teach us about our nation’s rich history through the lives of the memorable characters that played a game that has spanned almost two centuries of time. This is a good list that does include terrific books like “The Summer Game” by Roger Angell and “Lords of the Realm” by John Helyar but somehow excluded David Halberstam’s “The Teammates” or “October of 1964.” Not sure what to pick? Can’t go wrong with any baseball book by Halberstam or Angell.
Bear Attacks Inflatable Reindeer.
How cool is it this time of year to drive around whichever city, town or village you reside and see all the holiday decorations and lights? A leisurely twilight drive puts us all in the spirit of the holidays. Imagine driving down the road, listening to your favorite Christmas songs on satellite radio, only to witness what happened on an otherwise tranquil-looking block in Northern California. The video’s more charming than chilling, actually, but no more “reindeer games” for this inflatable Rudolph.
Have a great rest of your weekend everybody. Thanks for reading as always and have a terrific holiday. We’ll return again in 2022.
Have a suggestion for the Sunday Six? Send email to jon@jonjkerr.com