Bom, Bom, Ba-Bom, Bom, Ba-Bom, Ba-Bom, Ba-Bom
After a week vacationing in an undisclosed, secure location, I am rested and ready to get back to work, such as pointing out that despite providing 1,700 hours of televised Olympic coverage, NBC seems totally incapable of letting the viewer know what is currently going on. Have they heard about superimposing scores on the screen? I don't know how many times this week I switched over to the Olympics only to come in during the middle of a swimming race and wonder a) what is the distance, b) is this the men or the women competing, c) are any of those little blobs in the water Americans, and d) who do I have to see about getting a nickname like "Thorpedo"?

While I was away, the humor never stopped. So here is today's column. And in case you missed it, here is last week's.

Nomar Controversy Swirls
He's no longer a Red Sox, but debate continues.

No No Nomar
The Boston Red Sox traded All-Star shortstop Nomar Garciaparra to the Cubs last weekend setting off a flurry of sports stories explaining either a) Why this was the best move possible, or b) why the gates of hell just opened up. Gauging by the news coverage, which included BREAKING NEWS REPORTS moments after the announcement on all the local stations, followed by 24-hour Nomar coverage ever since, no transaction this large has taken place since the Lousiana Purchase, which now ranks a distance second in importance.

But Boston fans will miss Nomar. He came from California, but fit right in with New Englanders: he was hard-working, plain-spoken, surly, cantankerous, moody, and had an endearing touch of OCD. He was truly one of us. Fans wish him luck, so long as the Sox don't meet up with him in the World Series.