#this is brady knowing exactly what tim's going to try fight him about and trying to mitigate it
Text
Hearts and Heroes
Summary: Fans and YouTubers from all around the world come together to help fight against a great evil that invades everyone’s dreams, known as the Terrorlings. Join Brandy and her team as they team up to help fight the Leader of the Terrorlings and help save their friend and mentor, Markiplier.
This is based on the fan-made game in the Markiplier Community known as Hearts and Heroes.
TW: Mild Gore, Violence, Fran Bow Game, Hospital, Asylum, Nightmares, Anxiety, Mention of depression
Guest Staring: @weirdmixofweirdness as Nora Weird
Chapter 1: Dream Warrior
(Brandy’s House)
Brandy sat at her computer wiping tears from her face from laughing so hard, as the video of Markiplier Makes Pancakes wrapped up. She was so glad the Markiplier Makes video ended up in her Recommended. After a busy weekend like this, it was nice to sit back and just relax a bit. That and Brandy really needed the laugh. Her lacrosse practice didn’t go so well, but she was starting to feel a bit better now. After getting ready for the night and turning off her computer. Brandy headed off to bed ready for some goodnight sleep. Not knowing the adventure that awaits her.
(The Manson):
When Brandy woke up, she found herself lying on a - couch? That didn’t make any sense. Why would she be on a couch? Looking around, Brandy realized that she wasn’t’ in her house anymore. She was in someone else’s home, but where? Brandy got up and decided to explore, maybe she can find someone and get to the bottom of this.
The more Brandy explored the house the more it seemed familiar to her somehow. She just couldn’t put her finger on it, but Brandy knew this place looked familiar to her. It wasn’t until she came across a hallway full of portraits but the faces looked like a giant ex was painted on them.
A portrait of a Chef. “I thought I told you to stay outta my Kitchen!”
A portrait of a Butler. “The Master will be so displeased!”
A portrait of a Woman in a Fortune-teller Room. “I won’t force this on you. You have a choice.”
A portrait of a Mayor. “Life is our’s to choose.”
A portrait of a Colonel. “Life needs a bit of madness.”
And a portrait of an Actor. “Life is to live it to the fullest.”
*Same snake, different skin.*
Brandy entered the Kitchen and didn’t find anyone, but wait? Is that? Brandy goes over to the Island where a tiny box is sitting and smiling at her. “Huh? No way! Tiny Box Tim!”
“Hiya!” Tiny Box Time greeted.
Then there was a flash of light and someone else was standing in front of Brandy but was behind Tiny Box Tim. “Well, hey there, Tiny Box Tim. How’s my little biscuit doing? Thanks for notifying me that she’s here!”
“Huh? Whoa! You’re Markiplier!”
“Hi. Listen, I know you have a lot of questions and I’ll try to explain everything as best as I can. But right now, we need to get someplace safe.”
“Someplace safe? I don’t understand. Aren’t I just dreaming?”
“You are. I am too. It’s a bit complicated and I promise that I’ll explain everything, as best as I can.” Mark held out his hand, palm up, gesturing for Brandy to take the first step.
“Um, okay.”
(Markiplier Hub)
Brandy stepped forward next to Mark and the next thing that Brandy knew. She, Mark and Tiny Box Tim was all being teleported somewhere. “Whoa. Okay, feeling a little dizzy. Okay, now can I know where I am?”
“Yeah, it takes a little getting used too. And to answer your question, this is basically, home base for people like us. You, me, and many others were chosen to fight against the Terrorlings.” Mark started to explain.
“The what?” Brandy asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Hear me out on this, alright? I’ll try to explain as best as I can. Terrorlings are basically dream-like demons that feed off negative emotions. Anger, jealousy, grief, sadness, anxiety, uncertainty, and fear. They can only affect people’s dreams as of right now, but the damage they can cause is very real. And if they grow strong enough, I'm afraid their darkness will begin to seep into the awaking world.”
“That doesn’t sound good!” Brandy said getting a little on edge. She can only imagine what that might be like.
“Yeah, it’s definitely not good. But that’s why we’re here to help. This is the Hub or as some people like to call it the Markihub.”
Brandy gave one of her, “Yeah, right” looks at that. “So, what do we do here?”
“Well, people here train for battling the Terrorlings. They can also gather supplies and meet up with their teammates before missions. Then, when the third shift bell rings, a portal will open to take you to the person that needs to be saved. Speaking of, there’s the first bell! You’ve still got a lot to do, but I’ll help you get up to speed. Follow me to the training room.”
Brandy followed Mark to the Training Room, and her mouth fell open. The Training Room looked more like a dojo! Training Dummies were set up, different training weapons, and protections when using real weapons during training. And so many other people were also training as well. Brandy partnered up with Mark and he showed Brandy the ropes that will be her in her first mission. After some time, Mark said that Brandy wasn’t too bad for the first in training and showed her the Army. Mark stayed outside, claiming that the guy in there made him a bit uneasy.
“Good evening ladies and gentlemen, reader and all other configurations of being, my name is Wilford Warfstache and this is my weapon shop! I’m in charge of very sharp objects. Ready to choose your class? Wilford Warfstache takes no crap from anybody!” Wilford told Brandy.
“My class?” Brandy asked, confused.
Wilford then went on to explain the different classes that people here in the dream world can take. The different weapons they will have and the different training opportunities as well. But Brandy had to choose carefully. It was first to come first serve and all sales final after that! Brandy decided on Warrior since that’s what she would normally choose if this was an RPG Game.
After exploring the Markihub a bit more, trying to figure out where everything is, and the layout of the place. Brandy decided to find Mark. She’s still very confused about a lot of things, and Mark did promise that he would explain everything. Here’s hoping.
“You ready?” Mark asked.
“I think so,” Brandy said.
“Great. Now I’ll try to explain things more, especially since I promised to explain everything as best as I can. Every person has their own Terrorlings. In the dreams, they can manifest themselves into entities that are familiar to the victim. They invade the person’s head, causing the victim’s dreams to become nightmares, attacking them, and slowly eating away at their sanity. Our job is to go into their dreams and save them before the Terrorlings do too much damage.” Mark explains.
Bong.
“There isn’t much time left before the portal opens. And there’s a couple of things you need to do before heading out. Sometimes, I like to do a quick send-off before the start of a shift. It can get tough out there, so a few words of encouragement are always good. What you want to do and I’ll help show you, is to equip before you head on out. That way you’re fully prepared and have a better chance at fighting the Terrorlings.”
Brandy quickly equipped her armor and Mark showed her how to secure her sword when not in use. “Okay, I think I’m ready to go, but I still don’t know exactly what I’m going to be doing out there. I mean, I’ve hit people with a lacrosse stick before, but I never really been in a fight before.” Brandy confessed. She was really nervous about botching her first mission and completely messing it up.
“Don’t worry, new recruits face easier enemies on their first missions. Even though everyone’s dreams are different, we try to make sure no one is going in facing enemies that they can’t handle. Tonight you’re going to help a college student who’s been going through a tough time. Their adopted father has been put in jail and their classmates have been really laying it on them. They're starting to feel like a burden and their anxiety has been going through the roof, even having a few depression episodes. Here, things like anxiety can take form as Terrorlings. They start out small, but they can pile up over time and can cause some major harm. Along, with the depression episodes. The Terrorlings can probably do a lot of damage if we don’t try to help them out.”
“So, I go into someone’s dream and fight these . . . Terrorlings?” Brandy asked. Now, she was getting really nervous about this.
“Yep, and once they’ve been rescued, the exit portal will appear to take you back to the hub.”
“And . . . What if I . . . fail?” That was one of Brandy’s biggest fears. Failing. Not just failing a test or something, but actually failing someone. Failing at helping someone. Failing at something in life. Brandy prides herself at being a really good student and yes, she has a lot of sass and tries her best to be a good friend. But failing, at being a good friend, a good daughter. It always made Brandy nervous that she might not be good enough.
“You’ll do great. I know you can do it. You were chosen for a reason.”
“If you say so,” Brady says, feeling a little confident now. “Then, is it about time to start?”
“Yeah! Let’s get going!”
As the third bell was about to toll, everyone gathered at the entrance where the portal will appear. And as usual, everyone started talking among themselves, while Mark tried to get everyone’s attention. A lot of people just did this knowing that, it would annoy Mark, it was kinda a thing that everyone did every now and then.
“Okay, now that I have your attention!” Mark starts off awkwardly. “We all know why we’re here. There are dark things out there threatening the well-being of good people. But we’re here to stop them. Each and every one of us has something in your heart that can shine through that darkness and let you reach out to others. Some of you were saved, others were chosen. Chosen by what?
Well to be honest . . . I have no freaking idea. I’ve been doing this for a few years now and I still haven’t been able to figure it out. But that doesn’t mean I’m gonna stop fighting. Every night the darkness attacks, but our numbers continue to grow with every person saved. Helping people is what I’m all about. So, I’m taking this chance to do just that. I want you all to know that even though things will get rough out there, I believe in you and I know you can do it! And if it gets too much for you, just know that we’re all here for you and you can always ask for help.”
Bong.
“One more thing for the new people. You, see that heart everyone has on their sleeves? It’s the mark of a hero. Not everyone you save will have one, but if they do, it means they’ll be joining our ranks in the fight against the Terrorlings. Alright, everyone! Good Luck out there!”
The portal opened and everyone went through. Talking to themselves or giving each other a last-minute pep talk. Mark came to where Brandy was standing. “Let’s go!”
“Hang on second,” Brandy said. “You said that each person had to be saved from the Terrorlings, right?” Mark gave her a nod. “Then what about me? I wasn’t being attacked when you came and got me. I was literally in a . . . House? Mansion?”
“Well like I said, sometimes people get chosen. That’s what happened to me too. I don’t know how this works, but it’s just one of those things where you get the chance to do some good and you’ve just gotta take it.”
“I guess that makes sense. It’s kinda like donating to a charity or tutoring someone right?”
“Well, sorta. If that helps you understand a bit better.”
“Hey, man. I got enough sass on my own. I don’t need any more from you.” Brandy said, crossing her arms. “Anyway, I guess we should get going. Here goes nothing!”
“You’ve got this!”
(Oswald Asylum)
“Whoa! So, we’re in someone else’s dream right?” Brandy asked looking around. Oh, damn. Where the hell are they? Is this some kind of hospital? Great, she hated hospitals!
“Yep! We should hurry and try to find them before the Terrorlings do.”
“Are you going to stick with me through my whole shift?”
“Ah, sick of me already? I’ll stay with you for as long as I can, but I have to eventually get back to my own objectives.” Mark then looked around and suddenly his expression changed upon recognizing their surroundings. “Oh, great I know where we are.”
“Wait, you do? Where are we then?”
“This will certainly be an interesting first mission for ya.” Both Mark and Brandy suddenly heard someone scream and came, barreling down the hall. With what looked to be zombie-like skeletons chasing them. “Looks like they need our help. Let’s go!”
The person ran right by them and locked themselves in a room. The Terrorlings start to taunt and scratch at the door. Laughing and calling out to the person that was trapped in this nightmare.
“You’re Dad’s a criminal!”
“He could have killed so many people just using his talent!”
“He’s Dark’s puppet! And you’ll be next! You’ll be serving him, and no one will take you seriously.”
“Not even the writer of this fanfic!”
=========
“Huh?! How did - Wait, are these guys breaking the fourth wall here?” The writer of this fanfic says to absolutely no one. “Okay, that must have been a typo! Come on, I’m not even writing Wilford, the Host, the Author, or Darkiplier in this story yet and you guys are breaking character and the fourth wall already?!”
The writer of this story goes back to what she was writing and hopes to whatever Creator Power that is out there, that there won’t be any more breaking character or the fourth wall.
I guess she doesn’t know us, characters from the Markiplier Community, too well, do she?
“I’m going to pretend that I don’t see that and will continue to write this story the way I intended on writing it”
Okay. 👼
“Thank You! Now, where was I? Oh yes. The person runs into a room locking the door behind them.”
========
(Oswald Asylum)
The person ran right by them and quickly locked themselves in a room. The Terrorlings start to taunt and scratch at the door. Laughing and calling out to the person that was trapped in this nightmare.
“Hey, jerks! Over here!”
The Terrorlings turned around and their smiles grew to an ear to ear grin. They came over to where Brandy and Mark were standing and were ready to fight. Brandy quickly grabs her sword and swings it around. It was a bit heavy but it fit her perfectly as far as her body type. Mark brought his staff and was ready to kick some ass. The Terrorlings went after Brandy and Mark and the fight was on! It was three against two. Two of the Terrorlings, Brandy guests were the stronger ones, went after Mark and the Terrorling that Brandy got either wasn’t as skilled, as strong as the others or this Terrorling thought that Brandy would be slim pickings.
Brandy would be the first to admit to that she was by far any kind of fighter, but that didn’t mean that she wasn’t going down without a fight. As the fight went on, it was clear that Brandy was a newbie, but holding her own. The Terrorling did manage to get some good shots on Brandy but Brandy was able to block a lot of the Terrorling’s attacks and was able to get some shots in as well. Brandy briefly saw Mark successfully battling two Terrorlings at once, and hoped that she would be able to get to that level.
Right now, that got someone they need to save. Brandy blocked the Terrorling’s attacks and was able to get one final blow. What shocked Brandy the most was, one point the Terrorling was standing right there, then the next moment, Brandy was staring at a pile of ash. Brandy quickly went to check on Mark only to see that he as well had two piles of ash.
“The Terrorlings become ashes when defeated. Then they regenerate and go after other people here in the dream world,” Mar explained upon seeing Brandy’s shocked and confused look.
“I guess that makes sense. We should get to the person we’re trying to save.” Brandy headed to the room where they saw the person ran into.
Mark tried the door. “Locked. Hello? Anyone in there? You can come out now! We’re here to help you.” Mark tried calling out to them and even lightly, knocked on the door. No one answered.
“I think I can help with this,” Brandy said. She then pulls out a few bobby pins from her hair and quickly put them together. Then she goes over to the locked door and tries to pick the lock. It takes Brandy a few tries and luckily it’s an old fashion lock. “Walla! The door is now open!” Brandy opened the door, letting Mark go first, with a small bow. Mark just smiled and shook his head fondly.
When Mark and Brandy entered the room, both of them found the room to be completely empty besides the bare essentials. A bed, a window with the currents on the floor, and a dresser, that was it. The person who ran in here was gone. They must have ran, off somewhere, but where is the question?
Beep, beep, beep.
“Oh, sorry. I have to go now. But as I was about to say earlier I know which this is,” Mark explained after looking at his watch. “This is Fran Bow. I think once you find the person we’re looking for, and head to the end of the maze you should be good. Just be careful, and whatever you do, don’t take the red pills!”
“Will do Mark!” Brandy assured.
After Mark disappeared through the portal, Brandy decided to look around. What better way to figure out who she needs to find then look around the room she’s in. Plus, Brandy didn’t remember watching the playthrough of Fran Bow so this is completely new to her. Looking around the room (didn’t take that long) Brandy found a file of the person she was looking for.
Patient’s Name: Nora Weird
Parent/Parental Guardian: Adopted Father Author Fischbach
Case: Patient Nora Weird is the adopted daughter of the Author, one of the oldest Egos of Mark Fischbach (YouTuber Markiplier) and one of the deadliest ones. After her adopted father had been arrested and taken in by Jackieboy Man, Nora has been severally bullied. And started to show signs of possibly having the same powers as her adopted father.
Patient believes that she is not “real” and is trying to find a “Creator” to use their powers to become “real.” If not treated and suppress these powers, then it is theorized that she too, will be as powerful and insane as her adopted father.
Powers: Being able to write things down in a story and then narrates the story. The story and/or characters become real.
‘Oh, wow!’ That was the first thing that Brandy thought when she read that. Wait, did they just say that one of Mark’s Ego’s is her “Adopted Father?” Okay, this nightmare is more confusing than anything else. How can one of Mark’s older Egos be Nora’s adopted father? The Author isn’t real. Brandy was here in Nora’s nightmare to help her, so Nora’s a real person like her. Like Mark. Alright, so this file must be made up and is mixing things up, to try and drive Nora over.
‘Hang in there Nora. Help is on the way.’ Brandy thought to herself as she headed out of the room. Time to explore the hospital, maybe someone will be able to help her find Nora.
======
Tagging: @weirdmixofweirdness, @isa-ghost, @septic-dr-schneep, @nightfuryobsessed, @fischyplier, @dezzydynamite, @kangaroo-roux, @shadowsinyoursoul, @marshmallowmischief, @juju-on-that-yeet, @m4delin, @stained-puppet, @10th-no-name-person
#markiplier#writersofmark#heartsansheroes#markiplier fanfic#fanfic#heartsandheros blue#guest star#nora weird#the narrator#weridmixofweirdness#fangame#markiplier fangame#okay i finally got this out#next chapter will out soon#i hope#let me know what you think in the comments#angst#whump#tw anxiety#tw mention of depression#tw hospital setting#tw asylum setting#tw nightmares#mild gore#violence
32 notes
·
View notes
Text
Stereotypes
I’m sick of them. I’m sick to death of them. If I see one more show, movie, or book with a stereotype of a minority in it, I will scream and pretend that piece of garbage doesn’t exist. If you have to add a commonly used adjective to your minority to describe it (one you’ve seen used previously), you are writing a stereotype. I have dropped show after show after show because of this. At this point I just watch silly videos online, because almost every show has this, with the exception of The Flash, because that show is apparently being written by people who actually interact with minorities. The story line may be a little hackneyed, but the minority characters are gold. And people need to take a page from its book, because fucking hell it’s beautiful.
If I can watch a movie/show or read a book with a minority, and predict exactly how they will behave, that thing will be dead to me.
Example: I was so excited to read a Christopher Moore book. Super excited. I’d heard so many good things about Lamb. Everybody I knew loved it. Well, I wanted to read a horror story, and he had written a horror comedy called A Dirty Job. This book was set in San Fran’s Chinatown district. The main character, a white male, was written with some depth (goofy, beta male stupidity, but some depth). His lesbian sister was written as just that. Her entire story line revolved around her being a lesbian. Not her as a person, but just her as a lesbian. Okay, I said, and continued on. His Chinese landlady spoke in broken English, stole his many pets to eat them, and screamed in Cantonese at him. His female Russian neighbor constantly talked about fighting bears. The one black guy in the book, who could also sense the dead, always dressed like a pimp, is called “Minty Fresh”, and pretends to be gay to lure in gay men to buy all his Cher albums. Also, the main character is constantly “talking black” to him. He’s also super physically strong. His creepy fellow shop keeper is constantly searching for “desperate Filipina girls” on dating websites and fetisizes them. There’s some ugly “trans humor” attached to it that makes me cringe. And the women are all fuckpuppets. One of the female souls gets attached to her breast implants.
Do you see the problem here? I will never read another fucking book by this author, because the method by which he wrote his minority characters was stunningly bad. Not all black men have to be big, burly pimps dressed in pimp suits. Not all Asian people “eat dog”. I guess he was trying to throw you off the scent with the Russian lady and “wrestling bears”, but fuck man, you don’t make something better by doubling down on it. And if you’re trying to comment on stereotypes, you have to subvert them in a well-written way. This author does not do that in the least. All he needed was the sexed up, saucy Latina character with her big hips and “feisty attitude”. Thank god there was no “sassy Black woman”, or the many, many stereotypes depicting Black women as either whores, mammies, or non-sexed magical characters for the main character’s benefit (though Minty did come off as a bit of a magical negro character to help guide the story line). Also, if the main character hadn’t been portrayed as a “beta male”, I’m sure there would have been some white savior complex a la every main white male character Hollywood throws in with a bunch of minority characters.
“Oh, stop talking down about white people! That’s just racist!”
Well, I am talking about minority stereotypes and the inherent racism therein, so it makes sense to talk about the opposite problem, y’know? You can’t improve upon a problem without talking about the problem. Also, stop getting cringey when somebody talks about white characters and their juxtaposition with minority characters in pieces of entertainment. The troupes are already proven and they are well-worn. Besides, I’m talking about representation, and it matters. White characters get amazing representation with depth, personality, romance, wants, goals, dreams, and hopes for their future. All I want is to see is that with minority characters, which rarely happens unless it’s written by a minority. And then if it’s a movie, expect a slave narrative, which I pretty much will not watch (#nomoreslavenarratives).
Example: While I did enjoy the movie Logan (went to the theatre and everything), its WSC was off the scales. I still enjoyed it, but why? And if anybody rolls their eyes at me mentioning this, just take a look at the way Hollywood furthers this standard. Avatar, The Help, The Blind Side, The Last Samurai, Dangerous Minds, etc. Hell, martial arts films made by Hollywood have a straight up complex when it comes to the Asian master who teaches the non-Asian to fight and be the best there ever was. I can direct you to Iron Fist, the Netflix show that does this, but everybody says, “Hey man, that was the original story!” Okay, but that’s actually not better. The fact that this has been going on forever doesn’t make it excusable. The movie Man of Tai Chi doesn’t exactly endear me to the concept, either. And I won’t even go into everything wrong with that horrific Dragonball movie.
And so you know I’m not pulling this out of my ass.
http://feministfilm.tumblr.com/post/6608112156/a-brief-list-and-analysis-of-white-savior-films
All I’m saying is this: I just want to see some realistic depictions of minorities in Hollywood and beyond. I’m sick of the stereotypes. I’m sick of being super excited to watch or read something, only to be hit over the head with stereotypes anytime a minority is introduced. And I’m also sick of people refusing to even write minorities in lead parts, because they don’t want to offend or have “tokens”. As Tim Burton put it, “Nowadays, people are talking about it [diversity] more ... things either call for things, or they don’t. I remember back when I was a child watching The Brady Bunch and they started to get all politically correct. Like, OK, let’s have an Asian child and a black. I used to get more offended by that than just… I grew up watching blaxploitation movies, right? And I said, that’s great. I didn’t go like, OK, there should be more white people in these movies.”
First of all, lol. This is why I haven’t watched a Tim Burton film since he fucked up Sweeney Todd. Second, “a black”? Blaxploitation films? Oh man. Third, minorities aren’t just people you sprinkle in stories for the sake of diversity. If you have a diverse group of friends, they aren’t there just because you “sprinkled them in”. You have them because you like them and what they bring to the table as human beings. You have friends from different backgrounds, because you have things in common. It’s those commonalities that cause you to come together and experience life. Why people who write these scripts and screenplays and books seem to completely forget the real people they know in real life when they put pen to paper is beyond me. If you have black friends, are they are sexless mammies who are magical negroes that merely exist in your life to further your story? Are they all thieves or pimps or gangstas who have at some point involved themselves in criminal activity? Do the young black women you know all resort to drugs or having a bunch of kids for child support or welfare? Are they turning tricks? Are the guys all players who fuck women and leave them with kids? Are the black women in your life all neck-swiveling Shaniquas who wag their fingers and eat fried chicken and talk about “oh no you didn’t!”
I certainly hope none of the people I know who write would try to shove me in any of those boxes, because I don’t fit in any of them. I’m childless, in a long term relationshipand have hopes and dreams and a love of creativity, writing, and books. I also have mental illnesses that affect my ability to be social and end up staying at home all day trying to parse my own reality while struggling with existential dread and nihilism. I have the type of personality that would never be attributed to a black woman in many scenarios. I’m not strong and independent--I’m a sad, depressed girl with anxiety issues who spends her time fumbling through life while trying to be successful and artistic. That black girl never gets written, and it’s a shame. That Korean/Chinese/Filipino/Indonesian girl never gets written. That Latina girl never gets written. That Indian girl never gets written. Same with minority guys. That guy, as a minority, never gets written, and I know so many going through the same ups and downs as me.
Minority characters are fucking human. When I see us get written as humans in a movie or show or book, I inhale it and support it with all my might. I will stan for these things. I get excited about them. I tell everybody about any piece of entertainment that does this and does it right. And if you don’t know how to do it (I’m looking at you, again, Hollywood), then just write a character and make them a minority second. Again, take a page from The Flash, who does this marvelously. They wrote people first, and minorities second. Did they have some slip ups (the absent mother who becomes a drug addict arc for Iris West), yes. And it was stupid. Did they make up with it with Iris’s brother in a way when they introduced Kid Flash? Absolutely, and his character is awesome. He was a little hotheaded at the beginning, but when they found his voice and disposed of certain stereotypical aspect (illegal drag racing), it was much better. And really? Even the drag racing played into him becoming Kid Flash due to his motivation for speed. Even the mild stereotypes made some sense. He’s a college student now with a job and a loving family, and that makes me so happy. Why can’t more shows and movies do this? Why is this so hard? Joe West is a hard-working detective in the show and a black father who supports his kids. He doesn’t have some edgy past with drugs and other crap. He’s just ... amazing. Why is that so hard?
Why is this so hard to comprehend? I’m not complaining to be controversial or aggressive or mean or hateful (though many will obviously see that, regardless of how politely I structure my argument simply because I am mentioning race). I’m complaining about it because I am none of these stereotypes, nobody I know or love are these stereotypes, and nobody I’m around are purely and only these stereotypes. Whether or not you choose to believe that “stereotypes come from somewhere”, those same stereotypes can be found in any group of people. So why are they only attributed to some and not others? Or, if they are attributed to others, why do those others get to redeem themselves while the minorities who have these stereotypes don’t? That’s where my frustration lies.
#stereotypes#Hollywood just doesn't get it#why I hate most entertainment#writing#mini rant about stereotypes and minorities
1 note
·
View note
Link
Episode 33 of the Science of Happiness Podcast from the Greater Good Science Center, featuring Tim Ryan in conversation with Dacher Keltner.
Episode 33: Trying Compassion on Capitol Hill
15:16
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: Recently in my own campaign for re-election I had an opponent who was just bashing me for not doing anything and never got anything done for the area and all this stuff. This kid fly in from New York – he hadn’t been in the area for 10 years – and then he comes in and he starts lobbing bombs at me for not doing enough. I’m like, “Wait a minute. I’ve been here in the foxhole for 15 years, where you been?” You know, that kind of thing.
I took it personally. You know the Buddhist story about, if someone’s shooting an arrow at you, don’t be there? Well my ego was there so I got hurt. And I was like, ‘Well, how dare you question me?’ You know?
I think anger was the initial feeling that I had, and then you work your way through that and then you get a little deeper understanding of where the other person is coming from. And that ultimately gets you to some level of compassion for them and an understanding of, ‘Alright. Let it go. Everything’s going to be fine. Make your arguments, tell people what you’ve done. Don’t judge this kid. He’s gotten you focused now. So thank you for that. And, you know, let’s go.’
DACHER KELTNER: Democratic Congressman Tim Ryan has had his fair share of political opponents since first winning election to the House of Representatives in 2002, representing Northeastern Ohio. In today’s political climate what has kept him going is mindfulness
He’s on the House Appropriations Committee and has also created the Quiet Time Caucus in the House of Representatives, where members of Congress and staff meet regularly to meditate. He sums up this work in A Mindful Nation. It’s a book about how to reduce stress and capture the spirit of the United States.
On each episode of our show we have a happiness guinea pig try out a science-based practice to increase kindness, connection and happiness – even around our opponents. This week, we’re honored to have my friend Congressman Tim Ryan on our show. Tim, thanks so much for joining us on the Science of Happiness.
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: It’s so great to be reconnected with you.
DACHER KELTNER: I want to ask you about how you discovered mindfulness and started to build meditation into your political life. How’d that go?
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: I went on a five-day retreat right after the 2008 election and that blew the top off my head. And I’ve been meditating ever since.
DACHER KELTNER: When you started to integrate mindfulness into your life as a political presence in our country, how did it change your thinking about politics, about our country, about your constituents?
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: It’s got me focused on the fact that we’ve got to figure out how to come together. Just seeing things disintegrate before our very eyes is really frustrating. So it helps me kind of stay on task, stay focused on that. It helps with focus and then, you know, not judging. I mean, it’s really been helpful for me just to not judge. It’s so easy to slip into that mode. ‘The other side’s stupid and the other side’s wrong. And they’re’—you know, on and on. We could live in that space forever.
It’s so easy to slip into that mode. ‘The other side’s stupid and the other side’s wrong. And they’re’—you know, on and on. We could live in that space forever.
DACHER KELTNER: Tim, you’re at that life where you’ve got your hands full—you’re a parent of three kids, including your youngest, Brady, who’s just four years old. And you’re also navigating your work on the Hill, and your home life, and being on the campaign trail. How in the world do you keep up a mindfulness practice going?
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: What I try to do is is really try to carve out time every day and I’ve been really trying to do the breathing techniques before before I start my meditation. Because it seems to get my mind in a place where I can really just drop in. And so I’m normally now doing 10, 15 minutes of breathing before I even start with kind of sitting in silence.
DACHER KELTNER: So Tim, you did the compassion meditation, which is a practice begins with cultivating feelings of compassion for someone we really care about, and then it transitions to cultivating that same feeling towards somebody we have conflict with, or actually an enemy. What you do is, you first find a comfortable place to sit, you relax. There’s actually a guided meditation on the Greater Good in Action website that walks you through it.
DACHER KELTNER: You continue to focus on your breath for two minutes, noticing the sensations in your body while you breathe. Then you picture someone who is really close to you. And then you notice what physical sensations around your heart. Then notice how this love makes your heart feel. So Tim, who did you think about in this first step of the Compassion Meditation?
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: I would think of Brady, who’s just, you know, love of our lives and just the immediate pure connection to joy. Just warmth and relaxation. And it’s almost real to the extent, you know, you just sit there with your eyes closed. It’s almost like the dude’s right there.
DACHER KELTNER: Did you see his face?
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: Oh, yeah. Just big, smiling, shit-eating grin on his face that just just cracks me up, and so to kind of connect to that when you’re not with him is just amazing. And so just—yeah, that was great.
DACHER KELTNER: With Brady, first you sort of walk through these phrases or say them in your mind about wishing Brady happiness and freedom from suffering and the like?
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: You know, may you be peaceful. CMay you have love, and feel love. CMay you have joy. I don’t know if I followed exactly what the phrases are but you know, my version of that which I think is important, to kind of make sure you make it your own.
DACHER KELTNER: And then you think about that same person and it gets a little trickier—you focus your attention on a time when that individual was suffering emotionally or physically. What did that feel like in your heart?
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: Very real, real pain. You’re empathizing with him. Whether he’s sick, or hurt himself, or got his feelings hurt. If you sit there and you focus on that. It’s real. And that’s the goal, is how do you try to you know feel the pain? That’s how you connect.
DACHER KELTNER: Compassion for children, especially our own, can be easy; it’s hardwired in us by evolution. But we’re not as great at showing compassion towards ourselves. The next step in the Compassion Meditation is to think about a time in your own life where you were feel suffering, and then you share that love and compassion you felt for your son Brady with yourself. How did if feel to orient the compassion towards yourself?
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: I haven’t done that in a long time. And it’s almost like just accepting that you have pain in your heart from wherever it came from. And that was very relaxing almost because you didn’t have to like fight and pretend like you’re tough guy. And so it was very decompressing and I was like, ‘Okay, I don’t have to pretend like I’m the only human being who’s made it through forty-five years of my life without being heartbroken.’ You know, you just kind of sit with it. You realize how that pain helped you in some way, develop in some way. Got you where you are in some way because it’s a lot of times that heartbreak’s a big motivator.
It’s almost like just accepting that you have pain in your heart from wherever it came from. And that was very relaxing almost because you didn’t have to like fight and pretend like you’re tough guy. And so it was very decompressing and I was like, ‘Okay, I don’t have to pretend like I’m the only human being who’s made it through forty-five years of my life without being heartbroken.’
DACHER KELTNER: The next move then is to think about a neutral person who you don’t have strong feelings, positive or negative, and you start to direct some compassion towards that person. Who was that?
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: Well, I won’t give the name, but a family member. [laughter]
DACHER KELTNER: You have a neutral person in your family? I can’t believe it!
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: Yeah, well, I mean, they’re not all neutral. [laughter] You begin to see what you bring to this neutral experience that sometimes isn’t so neutral. So, you know, you got up first like, ‘I’m neutral with that guy,’ and then it’s like you’re in a little bit and you’re like, ‘Maybe I’m not neutral. Maybe there’s something there.’ [laughter]
But, you know, wishing them to not have suffering and wishing them joy and peace and love. So that was kind of a nice transition into some of the more complicated relationships.
DACHER KELTNER: Yeah. Next comes the hardest part, where you practice the Compassion Meditation where you really focus your attention on somebody you don’t like. You’re in conflict with, who’s insulted you, who’s caused problems in your life.
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: You’re taking on emotions that—you’re not afraid of them, you’re not trying to push them down. That’s the same kind of thing like, OK, breathing in the negative emotion or the negative thought and, you know, as a tough guy, old football player quarterback I’m like, ‘Yeah, bring that fear in here! I’ll breathe you right in, baby!’ [laughter]
DACHER KELTNER: Chew it up and spit it out! Take that!
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: Yeah like, “You’re not going to control me!” I kind of I really like that because I think we have a tendency, unwittingly, to really stuff that stuff down and really try to ignore it. And so to breathe it in and face it.
DACHER KELTNER: Take it on.
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: Yeah, you take it on and then it helps you with conflict outside of the practice, obviously, which I’m assuming is the whole purpose here of all this, is not to just do it when you’re on the cushion, but applying it.
What’s powerful about this practice, and it’s not just the wishing them well in so many different ways, but it’s also I think understanding like why they are like they are and how like the negativity that you feel about them comes and stems from some negativity that they got from somewhere else. And they are, in some ways, perpetuating that. And then the practice is really about letting go of all that energy and it’s almost a forgiveness practice in so many ways.
DACHER KELTNER: Yeah, yeah. Finally, you open up the practice to the entire world, wishing happiness and joy and love and the absence of suffering for all human beings. Who did you think about?
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: One of the committees I sit on is the committee that funds the Defense Department. And our operation’s intimately connected with everybody in the world. And to really see the suffering in these places—the whole issue now is caravans coming to the United States, about the wall and all this other stuff. And the reality of it is there are a couple countries in Central America where there’s so much pain, there’s so much suffering. And parents getting shot if they try to protect their kids. And so it got so bad where people, the best option for parents is to pay somebody to take their kid and run them through the desert through Mexico and try to get to the United States. When you think about compassion for all the world, my mind kept going to these countries and these families that are there that are experiencing so much pain and how we are intimately connected with the problems that are happening in that country. And the real compassionate move would be to try to stabilize it ahead of time so it doesn’t get to that point
DACHER KELTNER: Tim, now that you’ve tried compassion meditation, do you think there is room for something like this on Capitol Hill? Especially in our political climate?
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: Whether it’s a compassion meditation or just straight, you know, slowing down. You know, I was just on a joint interview with the Republican colleague of mine. He said, “The problem around here is nobody listens to each other.” And these practices are inherently teaching you how to deeply listen. And that is going to be the trick of us getting out of this mess that we’re in right now, is for us really to start listening to each other. And having compassion for each other I mean, if someone has a view on how to fix something that’s not your view on how to fix something, you know, they have a reason why they think that way. But if you really sit down and your intention is to solve a problem, you will get there, if that’s what you want. And that starts with listening.
DACHER KELTNER: Tim, we are honored to have you on the Science of Happiness and grateful for the bold work you’re doing out in the world.
CONGRESSMAN TIM RYAN: Awesome, man. Thank you so much. Keep up the great work.
DACHER KELTNER: We live in politically tense times. The polarization between blue and red, or Democrats and Republicans, has really increased. Makes it hard to connect with and to humanize the people who are on the other side of ideological disputes. The real test of compassion is to see how it works in these kinds of contexts. I love how Congressman Tim Ryan is trying to bring the practices of compassion and mindfulness to Capitol Hill. This isn’t just about good intentions—there’s actually solid science behind it.
Helen Weng is an expert in the science behind the benefits of training ourselves to be more compassionate. In one recent study, she randomly divided people into two groups.
One group was told to think about a specific experience in their lives differently so that they felt less upset and stressed. The other group listened to the audio of the compassion meditation 30 minutes a day for two weeks.
HELEN WENG: After two weeks we found that the people who learn compassion were more generous in an economic exchange task to a stranger. They witnessed an unfair economic exchange that a stranger went through, and they were more willing to spend their own money—and it came out of their study payment—to help out that person they didn’t even know.
And then we found changes in the brain that corresponded to how generous they were. So in the brain scanner we showed them pictures of people suffering before and after the two weeks and asked them to evoke a sense of compassion towards those people who were suffering. And the more changes we saw in empathy networks, the more generous they were to strangers.
So basically, the more they could change their brain to be more empathic—while regulating, right, you have to be less distressed in response to someone suffering and also focus on their well-being—the more it actually change their behavior. What I like to say is that although you’re attending to things internally when you’re meditating, for some people it can actually change how you act towards people on the outside. So it’s internal to external transformation.
Produced by the Greater Good Science Center and PRI. Episode 33 of the Science of Happiness Podcast by the Greater Good Science Center, featuring Tim Ryan in conversation with Dacher Keltner.
The post Trying Compassion on Capitol Hill appeared first on Mindful.
0 notes
Text
Ho-Hum Pats Win; Patriots Jaguars Preview
By Michael Vallee
Welcome to NFL groundhog day. The Patriots win their division; the Patriots get a bye; the Patriots yawn their way to another easy breezy lopsided, barely-break-a-sweat home divisional blowout of yet another not-yet-ready-for-primetime team. Raise your hand if you’ve heard this narrative before. With their 35-14 win last week over the Tennessee Titans the Patriots, once again, kicked off their playoff season by dispatching an overwhelmed opponent that offered little in the way of talent or resistance as New England cruised to their record seventh consecutive AFC Championship.
It was every bit as effortless as the score suggests.
The Patriots are 11-1 under Belichick in the divisional round coming off a bye. While this implies dominance, this divisional game wasn’t always as easy as that record suggests. The closest of these games might have been the first, when the Patriots beat the Raiders in the now infamous “Tuck Game” in the ‘01 playoffs. After that there was a close frigid win over the Titans, a matchup against Peyton Manning’s Colts and their record-setting offense, and even in the undefeated year of ‘07 the Patriots were locked in a one-score game in the 4th quarter against the Jaguars.
Then of course came the bloodbath in 2010 when the Patriots lost handedly to a Jets team they had beaten 45-3 just six weeks earlier. It was one of the worst losses of the Belichick era as New England entered the ‘10 playoffs as prohibitive favorites to win it all. It also ushered in the so-called “Tomato Can” era where the divisional game transformed from an early challenge to a glorified scrimmage.
Since 2011 the Patriots have played in seven consecutive divisional playoff games coming off a bye and they have coasted to a 7-0 record. In those seven games the average point spread was -10 and the average margin of victory was 17. The NFL lined‘em up and the Patriots knocked’em down. Their opponents provided less resistance than Donald Trump’s nutritionist. And nobody knew this more than Brady, who produced 21 touchdowns in these games to just four interceptions, posting a QB rating of 103.
The only test in that stretch came in 2014 when they twice had to rally from 14 down to beat the Ravens 35-31 in arguably the best game ever played at Gillette Stadium. The rest of the time it was the Patriots toying with the likes of the overrated Andrew Luck and the overwhelmed Tim Tebow.
However, those blowouts didn’t exactly serve the Patriots well going forward. After that tough Ravens victory New England went on to win their 4th Super Bowl title, revealing a distinct pattern. In the years when the Patriots faced a challenge in the divisional round (‘01 Raiders, ‘03 Titans, ‘04 Colts, ‘14 Ravens and ‘16 Texans) they would eventually win the Super Bowl. In the years when they waltzed their way past some half-ass opponent (‘11 Broncos, ‘12 Texans, ‘13 Colts, ‘15 Chiefs) they inevitably came up short.
Coincidence? Perhaps, but if sports history has taught us anything it’s that competition is a good thing for a team. All of this reminds me of the 1991 UNLV Runnin’ Rebels who dominated college basketball and coasted into the Final Four undefeated. Their Final Four opponent, the Duke Blue Devils, played in the most competitive conference in the country, the ACC. On that day their prior competition served them well as Duke beat UNLV in a close game that they were simply better prepared for because of the schedule they played.
Beating up on an inferior opponent teaches you very little about your team and in no way prepares you for a tough road ahead. Sometimes it can even have an opposite effect, pumping a team full of overconfidence. It’s in the close battles where you truly learn what your roster is made of. A fighter reveals a lot more about himself in a 12-round brawl than he does in a first round knockout.
The Patriots will try to break that pattern this year as they attempt to win their 6th Super Bowl title. They can take some solace in knowing that past dynasties have also cake-walked through the divisional round and gone on to win the championship. The Cowboys dominated the league from 1992-1995, winning three championships in four years. During those four years the Cowboys won their four divisional round games by an average of 20 points. The 80s Niners also rolled through the divisional round in each of their four Super Bowl years, also winning by an average of 20 points. Landslide wins in the divisional round obviously doesn’t preclude you from winning a Super Bowl, but so far for the Patriots it’s been a bad omen.
In the end was it a win last Sunday for the Patriots? Yes. Did we learn anything new about New England? No. Was it entertaining? Barely. Is it their fault that the best the NFL can muster for a second round playoff opponent is a crappy 9-7 Titans team lead by one of the lowest rated QBs in the NFL and a coach that was days away from being fired? Absolutely not. But now amateur hour is over and the real challenge begins: the challenge of beating a team that might actually put up some resistance. A team led by such dynamic names as Blake Bortles and Doug Marrone. On second thought, see you in Minnesota.
Patriots Jaguars Preview:
How the Jaguars can win: It’s not easy to make a case that Jacksonville will walk into Foxboro and beat the New England Patriots but if they pull off the upset here’s how it might happen:
The key to beating the Patriots in the Brady/Belichick era has always been the defense. Unless your last name is Manning or Rodgers your just not winning a playoff shootout against Brady. A quick scan of the Patriots worst playoff losses shows a relatively simple pattern - stop Brady and you have a shot. In New England’s playoff losses to the Giants (‘07, ‘11), the Broncos (‘13, ‘15), the Jets (‘10) and the Ravens (‘09, ‘12) combined, Brady posted just a 73.6 QB rating and the Patriots averaged just 16.1 points.
Of course stopping New England is easier said than done, so how does Jacksonville pull it off? For starters you need a team with the talent and stones to play a lot of tight man-to-man. Brady abuses zone coverage, just ask the Steelers. The good news for the Jaguars is they boast one of the best cornerback tandems in the league in Pro Bowlers Jalen Ramsey and A.J. Bouye. If you can take away New England’s short to mid-range bread-and-butter, and prevent them from moving the chains on 3rd down, you can frustrate Brady and the offense. Then it’s time to attack.
The Jaguars are loaded up front with Calais Campbell, Malik Jackson and Yannick Ngakoue combining for 34.5 sacks. If Jacksonville can take away the Patriots short passes and force Brady to hold the ball longer the Jaguars defensive front could thrive. And if Jacksonville is smart they will be aggressive and not just rely on the front four to generate pressure. There is a misperception that you can’t blitz Brady but if you have the horses to cover on the back end, well-timed and well-disguised blitzes, particularly up the middle, can be effective against New England.
This is also essential for the psyche of the young Jaguars. If Brady is carving them up early it will suck the life right out of them and demoralize their inexperienced roster. By the third quarter they will be staring at the game clock waiting for the pain to end. But if they can get some early three-and-outs, and end a couple of those drives with sacks, then things could go in the other direction. The cocky aggressive Jaguars will see their confidence swell, and their are few things scarier in the NFL Playoffs than a talented defense that thinks it can’t be stopped. If that happens then New England will find themselves in a rock fight and they better hope Matt Patricia’s defense is up to the challenge.
The X-factor for the Jaguars defense is Gronk. I can’t recall watching a Patriots playoff game where Gronk is dominating the middle of the field and New England loses. If he is ripping off 15 and 20-yard gains down the seam Jacksonville is in for long afternoon. The Jaguars have to make stopping #87 their top priority, and they have to deploy any and all methods to do it. Chip him at the line, double-cover him, disguise coverages, hold him, grab him, punch him - they must try anything and everything or he will bury them (again, ask the Steelers). And if all else fails don’t be afraid to give all-world cornerback Jalen Ramsey the assignment of stopping Gronk. He has the size, speed and confidence to take on the Eric Berry role that has been effective in the past.
A lot will be made of the importance of getting that physical bull, Leonard Fournette, cranking and crafting a game plan that mitigates Blake Bortles from screwing everything up. But those are minor sub-plots. This game comes down to one matchup: a 40-year old soon-to-be-MVP quarterback vs. the number one pass defense in the NFL, and if the Jaguars lose that matchup, it’s going to be a long day at Gillette.
Curb Your Enthusiasm: There is no denying the talent that Jacksonville has on the defensive side of the ball but a closer look indicates their lofty status as a dominant top two defense was significantly aided by a soft schedule. The Jaguars 18 games featured opponents with an offense ranked 20th or worse and in the six games where they faced an offense that wasn’t among the dregs of the league they allowed 27.1 points per game, including two 40+ games in the last month against Jimmy G’s niners and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Additionally their 55 sacks were dramatically inflated by the 20 sacks the registered in two games started by Tom Savage and Jacoby Brissett.
The Phantom Menace: Can someone explain to me why so much of the pregame coverage has been devoted to the mysterious “Coughlin Factor”. Jaguars president, Tom Coughlin, was a great head coach and had a lot of success against Belichick and the Patriots, but this idea that he is Brady’s kryptonite has been wildly overblown. Yeah, I get it, the Giants beat the Patriots twice in the Super Bowl but it wasn’t as if Coughlin devised some magic defensive riddle to stop Brady. Much of this reputation is tied to the ‘07 Super Bowl when Coughlin’s Giants shocked the football world by ending the Patriots undefeated season. Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t that game come down to the simple fact that the Giants stout defensive line dominated a Patriots O-Line that had its worst game of the year? Credit Coughlin for having his team ready to play but there wasn’t a lot of Xs and Os genius behind that win.
How they were built: With the Jaguars pulling off a massive one-year turnaround, going from 3-13 to 10-6, it has a lot of people asking, “How did they do it?” While the hiring of Doug Marrone and smart drafting helped, surprisingly it was free agency that keyed their success. NFL free agency is usually fool’s gold. For every success story there seems to be a dozen Albert Haynesworths and Adalius Thomases. But Jacksonville bucked that trend the last two years and rebuilt their defense behind massive contracts to Campbell, Jackson and Bouye.
Attack Mode: If the Patriots are smart they won’t make the mistake the Steelers made and allow Blake Bortles to get comfortable. The Steelers registered zero sacks on Bortles last week and played the majority of the game on their heels, allowing Bortles and the Jaguars offense to dictate the action. Jacksonville has no weapons in the passing game and Matt Patricia would be wise to unleash the dogs on the aerially-challenged Bortles and take the risk of Allen Hurns beating them.
Stupid is as stupid does: Gotta love the stories surfacing from Pittsburgh that show just how unprepared mentally the Steelers were for the rematch against Jacksonville. My favorite is Le’Veon Bell tweeting the following late Saturday night, “I love round 2s...We’ll have two round 2s in back-to-back weeks….” Hey, why get a good night’s rest before your first playoff game when you can instead stay up late and piss off your opponent. And this was after Bell had blown off Saturday’s walk-through, showing up with just five minutes left in practice. Additional reports have multiple coaches and players showing up late the day of the actual game. Is this the NFL playoffs or spring practice at Kent State? And the disciplinary result of these transgressions? Nothing. Zippo. Do you think Dion Lewis would play if he blew off practice the day before a game and then trashed his opponent on Twitter later that night? It amazes me Tomlin still has a job as he looks more and more like Marvin Lewis with a better roster.
Perhaps most amazing is that the Jaguars curb-stomped the Steelers earlier in the year. For normal teams that would be a wake up call but apparently there is nothing normal about the Tomlin Steelers. Pittsburgh’s arrogance confounded their opponents who released these gems in response, “I was wondering why they were so confident,” said Ramsey. “We stomped their ass last time and we knew we was going to do the same this time.” Linebacker Myles Jack was equally puzzled by the Steelers bravado, “It was like they had...amnesia...or something. I don’t know if they just forgot and thought that didn’t happen but it happened…”
Jacksonville Jag-offs: Let’s end on a humorous note. A few years ago an enterprising Jaguars fan devised Jacksonville’s own version of the steelers Terrible Towel and came up with the “Jag Rag”. Yup, that actually happened. I would love to watch YouTube videos of every guys reaction when they first heard the name Jag Rag. Sadly, the Jag Rag is no longer available for purchase, providing the NFL with a big sigh of relief while disappointing anybody with a sense of humor.
0 notes
Text
Boston Sports News 10/9-10/12
Tom Brady and Gronk not in full stride
Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski were limited today in practice, a day after not participating in team drills.
Nate Solder was also removed from the injury report after returning. He missed yesterday’s workout for non-injury reasons.
Here is the full report.
Did not participate:
CB Eric Rowe (groin)
Limited:
QB Tom Brady (left shoulder)
RB Rex Burkhead (ribs)
RT Marcus Cannon (ankle)
CB Stephon Gilmore (ankle)
TE Rob Gronkowski (thigh)
LB Dont’a Hightower (knee)
LB Elandon Roberts (ankle)
WR Matthew Slater (hamstring)
http://www.espn.com/nfl/team/_/name/ne/new-england-patriots
Danny Ainge has respect for IT
Danny Ainge said yesterday that he loves Isaiah Thomas, even if the Celtics president of basketball operations tamped down his feelings long enough to include the beloved player in the August trade for Kyrie Irving.
And the now-Cleveland Cavaliers guard clearly isn’t in a forgiving mood, as evidenced by his interview with Sports Illustrated’s Lee Jenkins. Thomas said that though his eventual return to Boston with the Cavaliers will be “all love,” that affection won’t be extended to the man who traded him as part of a league-shaking package for Irving.
Ainge was asked if Thomas’ desire to remain a Celtic was a compliment to the organization.
“He was a great Celtic and I think everybody who watched him play and was in the locker room with him knows how great he was. He’ll be part of Celtic history forever.”
Thomas also told Jenkins of a text he received from Brad Stevens after the trade, with the Celtics coach saying, “I’ve been looking at this wall for five hours trying to figure out what to say to you.”
Last night, Stevens, when asked about Thomas’ vow not to talk to Ainge, said, “I’m sure Isaiah knows how I feel about him and how Danny feels about him.”
Smart on clock
Ainge said he has held conversations, as opposed to negotiations, with Marcus Smart’s agents regarding a rookie contract extension. If the sides don’t reach agreement by Monday night’s deadline, Smart will become a restricted free agent next summer.
Asked if more talks could be forthcoming, Ainge said, “That doesn’t mean anything more than I’m not going to talk about it. I love Marcus. He’s had a great training camp, had a great summer, and I look forward to him having the best season of his career.”
Smart, however, isn’t sure what Ainge means by “conversations.” He knows what he hasn’t heard.
“Danny called us today and said he would get back to us, but we haven’t talked about anything — no numbers, nothing,” Smart said. . . .
Cavaliers star LeBron James’ status for next Tuesday’s opener against the Celtics is up in the air thanks to a sprained left ankle. James didn’t practice yesterday and was ruled out of Cleveland’s preseason finale tomorrow night at Orlando.
Morris joins in
The Celtics pulled out a 108-100 win against the Charlotte Hornets after first blowing a 22-point lead in the exhibition finale.
In his first run in a C’s uniform, Marcus Morris scored seven points on 3-for-6 shooting in 11 minutes off the bench. He’s in a role slightly foreign to his wing-oriented career as a smallish power forward.
“I feel it’s better for me because there’s really no pressure on me. I’m just out there playing,” Morris said. “Not really worried. It ain’t like it’s my first game ever in the NBA. But the start of the season is very important, so I wanted to be ready to get off to a good start.”
Stevens stayed with his starters longer than in the previous three exhibition games, with Irving (16 points, 10 assists, 7-for-11 shooting) dazzling the sparse road crowd with his hesitation dribble, Al Horford (15 points, 6-for-7 shooting, eight rebounds) logging his usual seamless game and Gordon Hayward (13 points, 5-for-13) heating up after a slow start. The C’s shot 50 percent (16-for-32) on 3’s, with nine players hitting at least one.
http://www.espn.com/nba/team/_/name/bos/boston-celtics
The Bruins are sliding
The Bruins clearly need to do a much better job of scoring goals, and at keeping pucks out of their own net.
In the opener of a three-game Western trip and the immediate rematch of their one-sided loss to the Colorado Avalanche in Boston on Monday, the B’s generated a scant nine shots-on-goal in the first 40 minutes, with only a Brad Marchand score to show for it, in a 6-3 loss to the talented young Avs.
“I have no words for that,” said Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara. “(It was) not a very good game, obviously. We were not on the puck, with the puck, under the puck, just not good enough all over the ice. We have to go and play better. It’s up to use that we fix it.”
The B’s did stage a third-period surge to storm back with 14 shots on goal. Tim Schaller scored at the net-front to cut the deficit to 4-2. The Torey Krug kept digging in close on a power play with 7:03 left to make it 4-3.
But a pair of empty-nets goals by the Avs’ iced the win, taking back-to-back wins against the B’s.
“We didn’t really get anything going,” said B’s goalie Tuukka Rask. “We woke up when it was 4-1, but that was too late. Sometimes it just happens that the heads are not there. For my part, I actually felt good. But then the last two (goals), I got caught a half-step too deep (in the net) and they beat me.
“If we want to take some points out of that game, I have to be standing on my head. I just couldn’t made those last two saves.”
The Avs have a slew of talented snipers, who got open looks from close range. But the B’s could have used another save or two from Rask. He stopped 22-of-26 shots before being replaced for the third period by Anton Khudobin. In five periods, Rask allowed seven Colorado goals.
Highly motivated in their home opener after a successful 2-1-0 trip, the Avalanche came out playing very hard and dominated the first half of the period. After 12:25 of play, the B’s had just one forgettable shot, having been pinned in their zone most of the time.
But despite their quick 8-1 edge in shots, the lone goal for the Avs was by rookie Alexander Kerfoot, the former four-year Harvard star, at 8:18. His first career goal wasn’t exactly a highlight film gem. He skated in front of the net, a wrist shot from out high by Tyson Barrie bounced off him and tumbled high over Tuukka Rask into the net.
“I really don’t know how it went in,” said Kerfoot. “It just banged off me.”
The Bruins played better in the second half of the period, and knotted the score at 17:06 on Marchand’s snap from the right circle high to the far side past goalie Semyon Varlamov.
The scoring play began with center Ryan Spooner nudging a puck out into neutral ice. Marchand worked hard to shrug off a rather half-hearted backcheck by Matt Duchene, found some skating room down the right side and put his shot precisely where he wanted it.
There was a rather uneventful fight early in the first period — Matt Beleskey vs. Mark Barberio — and a much better heavyweight bout in Period 2. The Avs didn’t like it when Adam McQuaid shook up Tyson Jost with a crosscheck. And when McQuaid came out of the box, he found a waiting dance partner in 6-foot-5, 230-pound Russian Nikita Zadorov. McQuaid gave him a solid whipping.
That might have been the B’s second period highlight, as the Avalanche scored three times to go up 4-1.
One minute in, Krug made a bad decision to step up and try to keep a puck in the Colorado end. He didn’t but did allow a 2-on-1 Avs breakout. Nathan MacKinnon set up Nail Yakupov’s one-timer in the right circle and he ripped the shot past Rask.
At 12:37, with McQuaid in the box for that crosscheck, the Colorado power play clicked. MacKinnon fed Sven Andrighetto and his quick forehander from the left hash flew past Rask’s glove into the far side.
Then at 15:43, a turnover deep in the B’s zone by defenseman Kevan Miller was quickly turned into a goal from the right circle by Duchene for the 4-1 lead.
Through two one-sided periods, the B’s were outshot, 26-9, as they generated little offensively.
Of course, the Bruins are dealing with the absence of forwards Patrice Bergeron, David Backes and Noel Acciari, all key pieces in the puzzle. But they need more from the guys still here.
http://www.espn.com/nhl/team/_/name/bos/boston-bruins
0 notes
Last Seen Blogs
