Hornets! Hornets!

Happy so-called Hump Day. It has been raining like a mofo for the last few days, with no signs of letting up anytime soon. So I'm in marathon taper mode, which for you non-runners means I've completed my longest run (21.4 miles on Sunday) and am now ratcheting the mileage down until race day in a little over two weeks. Despite some tightness in my left leg that had bothered me last week, I felt great during my run Sunday. Very encouraging. Last night, I played hockey for the last time until after the race and was glad to escape unscathed; in fact, I scored four goals and had a lot of jump in my legs. A guy who used to skate with us was training to run Boston and separated his shoulder the week before the race; he ran anyway, but was in serious pain.

Whoop! There it is:

• I haven't seen a lot of full games for various reasons, but I have been lucky to catch some exciting playoff hockey. The other night, I watched New Jersey seemingly win game 2 over Carolina by scoring a goal with 20 seconds left in the third period; Carolina came back and tied it up with three seconds left and then scored the game-winner 18 seconds into overtime. Meanwhile, Buffalo, San Jose and Anaheim are all leading their series. I hope Anaheim doesn't win for the simple reason they're called the Mighty Ducks, but they're playing really well and the tourney seems wide open.
• There's already speculation that Jeb Bush may run for president. Would the American people vote for a third Bush? Hell, anything's possible at this point. Yeesh.
• Three years after the Rhode Island club fire that killed 100 concertgoers, the guy who lit the pyro that started the fire was sentenced to four years in jail. Doesn't seem like much, huh?
• So can someone explain to me why anyone gave a rat's ass about David Blaine's stupid submerging stunt? How is this related to magic in any way, other than creating the illusion of spectacle? I'd rather watch competitive eaters gorge themselves on SPAM cutlet subs.