.the FABulous life of kobe bryant.

I came across this amazingly well written article by ESPN the magazine's columnist Rick Reilly. It made me smile while reading it because I could picture his experience in my mind... as if I was right there with him. These are the types of articles that I look up to. For your reading pleasure, please enjoy it below~ and BTW, a job well done Mr. Reilly.

It's 49 miles from Kobe Bryant's house in Orange County to Staples Center and yet, even in a Ferrari, it takes him 10 hours and 16 minutes.

What takes him so long? You're about to ride shotgun and find out:

7:15 a.m. Nearly $140 into a cab ride from my place, a security gate opens at the end of a very swank cul de sac to reveal Kobe Bryant, father of two, standing in front of seven vehicles—the Ferrari, the Range Rover, the Escalade, the Bentley Coupe, the two-door plastic Fred Flintstone car, the training-wheels bike and the tricycle smashed into a bush.

"You ready to go?" he asks. "I hate to be late."

I have a bag and nowhere to put it, since the Ferrari is basically a 503-horsepower engine with two seats. So he takes two helmets out of the trunk and puts the bag in.

Helmets for a car? Uh-oh.

7:21 a.m. I immediately spill my coffee in the $300,000-plus Ferrari, but how was I supposed to know he'd demonstrate its 0 to 60 mph in 3.1-seconds right at the very moment I was about to sip my delicious venti mochachino?

Trying to wipe up the puddle with my sock without him noticing and trying to be heard over the Ferrari's throaty roar, I nearly yell my interview:

Me: Why are we leaving so early for a 6:30 Clippers game?

Bryant: "Game day. Lots to do."

Me: Why does a Los Angeles Laker live clear down in Weeds suburbia?

Bryant: "It's peaceful. It's a better place to bring up kids. Nice people down here."

Me: What's the fastest you've ever driven this thing?

Bryant: "We're about to find out."

Me (to self): Did I ever complete my will?

Of course, the 11-time All Star doesn't always drive to work. Sometimes he has one of his off-duty, armed, Lakers-provided, police officers take him in a customized van so he can watch scouting DVDs and ice his feet and knees. (He ices them for 20 minutes three times a day. The man spends more time in ice than Ted Williams.) Occasionally, though, he charters a helicopter. "Sometimes, there's just things you cannot miss."

Like?

"Like my daughter's soccer game. Because what if I miss her first goal?"

Can't say I ever choppered into one of my daughter's soccer games, but still.

Bryant, 30, has been known to get up earlier than many barn owls to conduct his famously brutal workouts. One time, Larry Drew II—who now plays at North Carolina—asked to shadow him on one.

"OK," Kobe said. "Pick you up at 3:30."

But 3:30 came and went and Kobe never showed. Then, at 3:30 the next morning, he was ringing Drew's doorbell.

"You ready?" Kobe asked.

"I like to just get up and get it done," he explained to me, "then I'm back home and nobody's even up. Haven't missed a thing."

7:30 a.m. Bryant pulls the yellow Ferrari up to a massive OC health club and leaves it. This will happen many times today, leaving the car right in front of buildings. Gods do not park.

Today is a Sunday and it's bothering him that he'll have to miss coloring with his girls—6 and 2—watching Ariel in The Little Mermaid for the 1,003rd time with his girls and going to Disneyland with the girls. But he's obsessed with winning the 2009 NBA title, which means he's committed to his boys. He wants to be as chiseled as possible for the coming playoff pounding. That's why it's no surprise we're met by Tim Grover, Michael Jordan's genius strength and conditioning coach.

Grover puts Bryant through a game-day workout like I've never seen. (Warning: If you don't want to feel like a complete jelly-filled donut, don't read this next part.) Among a dozen other drills, Bryant does suicide push-ups. At the top of the pushup, he launches himself off the mat so hard that both his feet come off the ground and his hands slap his pecs. He does three sets of seven of these. This makes me turn away and whimper softly.

8:35 a.m. Bryant wheels the asphalt-eating Ferrari onto the 405 North and begins answering my questions about this remarkable comeback he's making in America, in basketball and in his life, which would be fascinating, if it weren't for the 70 mph-circus going on all around us.

People are pulling up next to us and waving. And screaming. And taking pictures with their cell phones. And honking. And craning back in their seats to see. And not watching the road. And getting too damn close. And Kobe doesn't seem to see any of it.

"Life is really good now," he's saying.

Kobe! Kill 'em tonight! Yeeeeaaahhh bbbboy!

"And it's funny. A lot of these companies who dumped us during the [sexual assault] trial [in which all charges were dropped] are calling us now asking us to come back. And I just kind of smile and go, 'No. No, thanks, homie. We're good.' But that hurt, dude. To just be dropped like that. It hurt."

The guy in the Toyota Tundra is signaling that he wants an autograph.

"But my wife and I, we toughed it out. She and I, we got through it. We're going to be celebrating our … "

Two morons are motioning to me that they'd like Kobe to get off at the next exit and take a picture with them.

" … eight-year anniversary together. And when I think about how I almost lost it, the family and everything … "

I can read their lips: "Dude! Please?!"

" … I'm just very thankful and blessed. It was really close there for awhile."

Even a Weekly Shopper reporter would follow that answer up with, "What do you mean?" But a knucklehead in a Ford truck is trying to cut in front of us so his buddy can take a picture out of the back window, so I ask, "Do you ever wreck on this commute?"

"No," he says with a grin, "but one time, this one guy was looking back and hit the guy in front of him. Not hard or anything, but he definitely hit the guy. It was kinda funny."

With all that chaos, I can't really vouch for the accuracy of all this, but I'm pretty sure Bryant says:

• He's taken up golf. Played Pelican Hill the other day with Maris Valainis, who played Jimmy Chitwood in Hoosiers.
• If I weren't in the car, he'd be listening to Lil Wayne, Jay-Z or Biggie Smalls.
• He loves marketing and advertising. In fact, he conceived and wrote a Carl's Jr. poster, which featured Jerry West, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and himself, and the slogan: "They Who Endure, Conquer."
• He and his wife, Vanessa, have no nannies.
• Most sports talk radio makes him nauseous.
• He's addicted to Discovery Channel, loves to spear fish, and reads New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman.
• He has no plans to opt out of his contract at the end of this season, but "you can never absolutely say no, right?"
• His daughters speak a mix of English, Spanish and Italian.
• He'd like to have a boy.

Forty minutes, 37 missed quotes, and 118 gawkers later, we've gone the 43 miles from the health club in OC to the Lakers' practice facility in El Segundo, right near LAX, for shootaround. He pulls up to the spot in front of the door, gets out of the car and doesn't lock it. It's all I can do not to get on my knees and kiss the ground.

12:03 p.m. After his two hours of shooting and stretching, we're off to a downtown hotel, where Kobe will ice, shower, sleep, eat (it's always the same: chicken, rice and broccoli), watch scouting DVDs and make calls until it's time to go. This time we're following one of the off-duty cops, who's driving the gray van.

"Why are we following the cop?" I ask.

"Because I need my jug to ice," he says.

"So why don't we take it ourselves?" I ask.

"Won't fit."

Do you love it? His ice jug gets a police escort.

"What if you can't sleep at the hotel?" I ask as he leadfoots it up the 110 North. "What do you do? Walk around downtown L.A.?"

He laughs and looks at me like I just landed from the planet Nimrod.

"Uh, no. I can't walk around LA. There are fans and then there are LAKER fans. LAKER fans are, like, 10 times more into it than regular fans."

Example: One time, he met a man who had the exact same tattoos as him. Literally, the exact same tattoos, down to the size, color, font, style, even the names of his daughters, his wife, the Bible verses, the crown, everything. And this was in Ohio.

"I mean, what do you say to something like that?" he says, still amazed. "I'm like, 'Wow.' And then I whispered to my security guy, 'Get his social security, OK?'"

12:14 p.m. Four security guards are waiting for us at the hotel. We leave the Ferrari AND the van out front, go through a side entrance, up a freight elevator, to a suite that's waiting for him. What does he pay for use of the suite for a full season? Zippo! "I just take care of them with playoff tickets."

Does the man ever see the inside of his wallet?

5:03 p.m. I get a call on the phone in my room and it's the cop, sounding urgent. "Mr. Reilly? Kobe is going to need to leave in exactly one minute. He was mistaken as to the start of tonight's game. Can you be expedited down here immediately?"

"Uh, well, yeah, I can expedite."

"Good. Much appreciated. Kobe doesn't like to be late."

So I've heard.

Turns out he thought it was a 7:30 start. "I'm such an idiot," he admits. "I do this all the time."

The drive to Staples is going to be a very expedited three minutes, so I have a lot of ground to make up.

How bad do you want this title?

"Beyond your comprehension," he says. "I'm obsessed. It keeps me awake at night."

Can this team do it?

"Yeah, we can do it. We're better equipped this time. Last time (in the finals) we ran into a buzzsaw. That Celtics team was hungry. And not just hungry, but full of hungry veterans."

How long do you want to play?

"I'd love to play until I'm 40, but I'm not sure anybody would want me then. Put it this way: I'll play as long as they'll let me."

As a couple in a red Hyundai shrieks, "Kobe! Kobe! Take care of us tonight!" he turns into the players' gate, where a guy with a mirror on a pole checks under the Ferrari for bombs. I'm terrified what they'll find.

Excuse me, Mr. Bryant? There seems to be mochachino leaking from your car?

He pulls it right up front, hops out, and immediately there's a still photographer and a mini-cam taking our picture as we walk. I try to get away, but he yanks me back into the shot. "Just mean mug it," he whispers. He wears the expression of a mafia don on the way to a trial. I try it, but I can't pull it off. I look like a man suffering upper gastro-intestinal blockage.

I try to say goodbye and thanks, but he's on the phone to his daughters, going "Ciao, bella!" as he walks into the locker room.

It's 5:31 p.m. The Kobe Kommute is over. He's still got the game to go. (The Lakers will defeat the Clippers, 88-85, with Bryant scoring 18 points on 5-for-15 shooting—proving that, occasionally, Kobe DOES miss things.) As for me, I'm so exhausted, there's only one thing I want to do.

Go somewhere quiet and watch Ariel.

What did I tell you? The guy can write, huh? Go Lakers! -c

.knock you down. [keri hilson]

It's been a while since I've posted a video of the week so I owe you a good one. This song features not 1 but, 3 talented artists. I love this collaboration, I hope you do too. Enjoy~ :)

.have a heart.

I am more than shocked and disappointed at the news of what transpired between a Dallas police officer and Texans running back Ryan Moats on March 18, 2009. What happened in front of the hospital where his mother-in-law lay dying of cancer was unbelievable. Shame on Officer Robert Powell who showed no compassion for human life and obviously had no common sense in a matter that truly was "life or death". Here's the full scoop, courtesy of ESPN.com: Officer delayed NFL player as his relative died. The video in the article is worth watching...you won't believe your eyes.

.blah.

It's 8:30 on a Monday evening. As I sit here in front of my computer with a warm cup of freshly homemade Starbucks (with a splash of my favorite Italian Sweet Cream); I have a confession.

I'm in a sports slump at the moment and I'm not proud of it.

I'm sure you may have wondered where in the world I've been. I don't have an excuse really. I can't use "traveling for work" as a reason because I've been home since my return from the NBA All-Star Weekend in February. And for whatever reason...here we are, surrounded by a ton of sports headlines and I've been M.I.A.

Hmmm, let's see. March Madness is here and I haven't blogged about it once. Manny finally signed with the Dodgers and I'm too burnt out on the subject to give you my insight. LT signing with the Chargers made me feel some enthusiasm but oddly enough it wasn't enough to boil over into my blog. Even today, Lance Armstrong goes for a tumble and breaks his collar bone and I've got nothing to say except, "ouch!"

For this my friends, I do apologize.

With all due respect, I am not saying that I am tired of sports. That's actually NOT the case AT ALL. I think the truth of the matter is, I've had too many non-sports related things going on in my life and it's causing somewhat of an anxiety/stressed/depressed feeling in my mind. No requests for pity here; I'm just trying to get you to see where I'm coming from. Ok, now I'm rambling. I will tell you though that the one semi-sports related topic that has been on my mind for the last several weeks is this. My thoughts and deepest prayers are still with the families of Marquis Cooper, Corey Smith, and William Bleakley who never returned home to their families after a day out to sea. This story was one that broke my heart.

*sigh*~ With that said, today I've decided to talk about something other than sports for a slight change. It's something that I happen to love (and I'm sure I can speak for most gals out there).

PURSES!

Yup, that's right PURSES. For you guys that want to stop reading...fine. But you might want to understand a thing or two about why girls have a passion for purses.

So, any fashion-minded girl who looks to enhance her style can always turn to a cute purse. You see, it's a statement. A way to tell someone: look what I've got on my arm and yes, it belongs to me. It's no secret girls carry a number of different things everywhere they go. Some common finds in my own purse would be:

• wallet
• makeup bag
• sunglasses case
• iphone
• keys
• ipod (sometimes)
• a pen
• gum/candy

Right there you can see the need for a purse, right? So, if a girl has to carry her essentials anywhere and everywhere, why not make it as stylish as possible? Now, you may wonder why some girls want to carry more pricey bags than others? It's simple. Look at it like this...it's like a car. Some people drive a Honda and some people drive a BMW, it's a preference just like a purse. The other awesome thing about a cute purse is that you can use it with more than one outfit. It can even make a so-so outfit look like so much more! To prove my point, check out these comparisons:

So guys, the next time you think a purse is a waste of money...think again! It's one of the best accessories a girl can have. And ladies, one sidenote: it's ok to want different wallets to coordinate with different purses. Just don't forget to grab your ID when you are switching them out. :)

Love,
Peace,
& Handbags,
-c

.81 it is.

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y.— For Bills fans filling out their programs: Yes, folks, T.O. will be No. 81.

The Buffalo Bills said Thursday that newly signed receiver Terrell Owens will be getting his familiar number, and that second-year receiver James Hardy will be switching to No. 84.

Hardy, the team's second-round draft pick out of Indiana last year, wore No. 81 during his rookie season. It's unclear whether Hardy will be compensated by Owens to switch numbers. In the past, veteran players joining new teams have been known to pay for or provide compensation for the right to switch numbers.

Owens has worn No. 81 throughout his NFL career, but wore No. 80 in college at Tennessee-Chattanooga.

Associated Press

.that was quick~.

T.O. will be playing with the Buffalo Bills to be sure he can pay for his bills (if you know what I mean). :op Haha, ok that was silly I know but I had to make light of what could possibly be T.O.'s last stop in the NFL. I hope this isn't the case but since he signed a 1-year deal and he isn't getting any younger, the future remains to be seen. The great news for T.O. is this deal gives him more money this year with the Bills than he would have earned if he was still a Cowboy. Nice work Drew!

So, I was wrong in my thought process. No chance he’ll be back in a 49ers jersey next year after signing his 6.5 million dollar contract with Buffalo. I’ll be honest, seeing him in a Bills hat and envisioning him in a Bills uniform next season is definitely going to take some getting used to. After all, he’s always been that high profile kind of guy, wanting to play for the most high profile teams.

But, after watching his press conference when the official announcement was made that he was indeed going to Buffalo, it dawned on me how many people in the media just can’t stand him. Granted he has had his share of on-and-off the field issues. Of course there is the outspoken attitude and emotional side of T.O. that the ESPN world loves to magnify. Then, there was the “accidental overdose/possible suicide” incident that had people wondering if he’d gone off the deep end.

My take is that the guy knows he’s had chance after chance to prove the media wrong. And to date, it seems that no matter what positive he does—all we really hear about is the negative. I say give T.O. a break. Let the guy have some breathing room and let him be who he is because if anything, he’s being real. What’s so wrong with yelling on the sidelines—doesn’t that show passion for the game? Would he receive the same criticism if he was sitting on the sidelines laughing and joking around while his team trails on the scoreboard? And quite frankly, if I had his skills as a Receiver, I’d want the ball a ton more too. Listening to him speak at the Bills press conference showed me a relaxed T.O. who I think is misunderstood. The way he spoke sounded very genuine to me. I do believe he is hurt and sad to have been cut from the Cowboys but he’s moving on and proving to everyone that all he wants to do is what he loves—and that is play football.

Lastly, I give props to his agent Drew Rosenhaus. As usual, the media didn’t take him seriously that there were indeed teams interested in T.O. and that he’d have a deal in place within a week of T.O. being cut. A part of me is glad that things are working out for T.O. and I hope that he does well with the Bills. There is one thing that resonated most with me during T.O.'s press conference. It’s when he said, “God has a plan for me”. That right there is why I’m going to continue to cheer for T.O. and actually watch the Bills just to see him play.

Love,
Peace,
& 81,
-c

P.S. I wonder if he’ll still wear #81? Right now Rookie James Hardy has #81. I’m thinking we can expect a business transaction to take place—unless he pulls a Kobe and switches to a totally new number. Hmm.

.the T.O. saga.

T.O. is no longer a Dallas Cowboy and unlike some Sportscasters, I AM surprised. I did not believe Jerry Jones would let his pride and joy Terrell Owens go. Maybe QB Tony Romo told Head Coach Wade Phillips that it is impossible to play with T.O. going forward. Maybe TE Jason Witten felt he couldn't be himself on the field knowing T.O. would be on the sidelines hoping for a botched Romo-to-Witten play. Maybe Offensive Coordinator/Assistant Head Coach Jason Garrett gave Jerry Jones an ultimatum, T.O. goes or I go. Maybe they needed to place the blame of a horrible season on a specific person? Who really know what went on. What I can say with confidence is that in the end, he had to make a choice between his flesh and blood son Cowboys VP Stephen Jones and his adopted son Owens. In some situations you’ve got to go with family over your pride and for Jerry Jones; this was one of those situations.

After the news broke that T.O. had been cut, Jerry Jones stated, "In the aftermath of the season, we talked about change. Some of what is changing involves the process and some of it involves people. This is a decision that was made based upon consideration for an entire team. We will move on now with a new team—a new attitude—and into a new stadium. The evaluation process and the prospect for change will continue at every level of the organization.”

Wonder what that last sentence means—more changes to come at other “levels”? Hmm.

How did T.O. take it you wonder? To the disappointment of Sports Analysts and Reporters everywhere, T.O. did not come through with a ranting response or a press conference to vent, he merely released a stand-up guy statement. He thanked Jones, head coach Wade Phillips and the Cowboys’ organization. He said, “thank you for the opportunity to be a member of the team for the past three years. Big thanks to the fans—you've been awesome!” Owens added. “I look forward to the upcoming season and continuing to play in the NFL.”

Later, more news from the T.O. camp came from his infamous agent, Drew Rosenhaus. He indicated in a text message today (to ESPN) that his client won't be out of work for too long. He says, “There are several teams that are interested in signing Terrell. I have been in negotiations with these teams. I will not identify the teams at this time. Terrell and I expect to have a deal in place by the end of next week if not sooner.”

Here are a few teams I think T.O. will end up (in no particular order):

· Baltimore Ravens
· Kansas City Chiefs
· Tennessee Titans
· Oakland Raiders
· Detroit Lions
· Minnesota Vikings
· Jacksonville Jaguars

Here's a thought. Wouldn't it be bittersweet to see him sign with the San Francisco 49ers? With Michael Singletary at the helm of the team and the prospect of a new or rookie quarterback who will need a reliable receiver—it doesn’t see too far fetched. Plus, the Bay area loves T.O. and since he started with the 49ers, how awesome would it be see him full circle and make some history with the very team that drafted him? I think it would be very interesting, especially if the 49ers somehow ended up with Vick as their QB. Ok, I know it's a long shot but ANYTHING can happen in football and you know it's true!

All in all, I'm proud of T.O. for taking this like a man and being optimistic about his chances of playing for another team. I'm not going to lie, I happen to like T.O. and am a fan of his. He's an awesome and exciting player on the field. I have faith that he can be that humble, dedicated and appreciative guy he once was. The 4th time could be the charm and if I had my way, he'd be in a Chargers uniform next year. ;) Haha, we’ll just have to wait and see.

Get your popcorn ready, -c