Cal Coxswain Provides A Voice On And Off The Water

An inspirational rowing story is all I need to grab my attention. Jill Costello, the coxswain for the Cal women's team is battling stave IV lung cancer. This article from the San Francisco Chronicle has the details about her upbeat attitude, desire to compete with her team despite the illness, and her proactive approach to battling the disease. There is an interesting point in the article by John Crumpacker (that name can't be real can it?) about how lung cancer research does not get a lot of funding because it has the negative association with smokers. Costello and 25 percent of women are nonsmokers who have the disease.

Most people think coxswain's just sit at the front of the boat and yell "stroke". I cannot tell you how much this quaint explanation bothers rowers, let alone coxswains. As Costello's coach put it "A cox is part psychologist, part coach, part cheerleader, part drill sergeant. A good cox can have a positive effect. A cox is more of a cerebral athlete."

Best wishes to Costello and although this article came before Cal competed in the NCAA Rowing Championships and they came up short, the story is a great read. We always hear about a person's courageous battle with cancer, but Costello is an example of a person determined to make the battle count.

Full speed ahead for Cal cox [SFGate]

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Mr. Green Banks $1 Million

I am an admitted Jeopardy fan. I watch the show every chance I get and have even tried out for it. Alas I only made the 2nd round of the tryouts but it is a longtime goal to make the show. Jeopardy just got finished with its $1 million celebrity tournament. Normally the celebrity versions are a breeze, allowing entertainers that are not normally known for their scholarly prowess to compete and win money for their favorite charity. However, since the prize so great and the celebrities they invited had all performed well on the show previously, the questions were a little more difficult. I also had a rooting interest. Michael McKean was one of the finalists, going up against Cheech Marin and Jane Curtin. Now most people know McKean from Spinal Tap and his most recent projects like A Mighty Wind and Best in Show. He also was on SNL for awhile. For me, his most indelible role will always be as Mr. Green in Clue.

I used his given weapon, the lead pipe, as the basis for my NFL "lock" picks in 2008. I did this mostly as a mocking of the use of the term lead pipe locks, but also because I have an unhealthy obsession with the movie Clue. So needless to say I was rooting hard for McKean to win. If I ever met Michael the first thing I would want to talk about is Clue,and I'm sure that there are little or no people that would do the same.



McKean won the title and preserved his perfect record on Jeopardy(which includes Rock and Roll Jeorpardy). His $1 million prize money goes to the International Myeloma Foundation. In its own words,

The International Myeloma Foundation is the oldest and largest myeloma organization, reaching more than 195,000 members in 113 countries worldwide. A 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life of myeloma patients and their families, the IMF focuses in four key areas: research, education, support, and advocacy. To date, the IMF has conducted more than 200 educational seminars worldwide, maintains a world-renowned hotline, and operates Bank on a Cure®, a unique gene bank to advance myeloma research. The IMF can be reached at (800) 452-CURE.

Congratulations Mr. Green.

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