​We have a new one this week.  And a first after years of posting these “Piano Puzzlers”.  This week’s contestant is Finn Mikeal calling from Euless, Texas.  And the reason it’s a first here is that a few weeks back I received an email from Ms. Mikeal to say – well, let her explain herself.  She wrote:
 
“hi, i was the contestant for the piano puzzler from 3/19/2025 and i would love to see if you would be interested in covering it since i know you post mini reviews of the puzzlers!! i’m a big fan of reading them along with when i play and would love to know what you thought because i had a lot of fun. thanks!”
 
Well, of course I would not only be interested in covering it, but I always do and will – and am.  I’ll get to what I thought in a moment, but first (for added perspective) some words on how I did.
 
When I saw this episode was 13 minutes, I thought I might be in trouble, and she, as well, since that’s a long one, which means there were likely some replays of the tune and extra discussion.  And when the song began, I didn’t have a clue about any of it – but after about 20 seconds, the hidden song kicked in and I got it almost immediately.  Because, well, I’m me with my knowledge of such obscurities.  But I knew not everyone would, since it is not a well-known song at all, though there is something about its – well, let’s call it its “provenance” (so as not to give anything away) – that is well-known.  As for the composer style, it wasn’t my area of expertise, and there are usually only two composers with that style that I reasonably know.  I thought it might possibly be one of those, and almost guessed it.  However, there’s a third composer who is similar, but I don’t know well at all, and usually never guess.  But on a whim, I thought I would this time, since it didn’t strike me as exactly the person I was going to guess.  And…I was wrong – it was the person I was going to guess!
 
As for how Ms. Mikeal did – for starters, her interview was charming and even a bit funny, when talking about the pressure her family put on her for her appearance.  I was impressed by her guess for the composer style – it wasn’t right, but it was “right next-adjacent,” for reasons I knew immediately, and which pianist Bruce explains.  Personally, I didn’t hear the connection she did – but that’s all the more to her credit, given how incredibly “adjacent” her guess was.  And so, when told how close she had been and why, she got it on her follow-up guess.  As for the hidden song, when she didn’t get it right away I knew she’d be in trouble with it.  In fact, host Fred Childe didn’t know it either.  That’s how little known it is.  But after getting a bunch of clues, she impressively did guess it.  So, even though it took the clues, given the song’s relative obscurity (though not its “provenance”…), she gets major points for figuring it out.  And so, overall, did very well.
 
I will add just one additional comment.  And I say this quip completely with my tongue-in-cheek.  But my only other comment is that I believe Ms. Mikeal’s keyboard has a broken Caps Lock…

ADDENDUM:  After writing this, I sent an advance copy of the text to Ms. Mikeal, rather than unnecessarily make her wait weeks.  And among her thoughtful and charming responses was noting at the very end -- "Also fun fact, my laptop keyboard was in fact broken at the time of my initial email haha!"

So, I was right!!

​The guest on this week’s Al Franken podcast is author, public health advocate, and American surgeon Atul Gawande.  As Al writes, “Elon Musk and DOGE have been taking a chainsaw to the federal government since Trump was re-elected. It could take us generations to fully recover from the damage inflicted by the careless and cruel nature of these cuts. We’re joined by Atul Gawande to discuss just how devastating these actions are. During the Biden administration, Gawande was a senior official at USAID. He walks us through many of the great works the program did around the world… and the damaging and deadly road that lies ahead now that it’s been gutted.
 
“We also discuss the state of our healthcare system and the popularity of Medicaid expansion. The Affordable Care Act has improved the lives of millions of Americans, but Donald Trump and the Republicans threatened to take it away from Americans in his first term. Does he dare try again?”

On the surface, this is the endearing story of a rescue boxer who pretty much only gets along with the woman who adopted him.  But I think it’s as much a squirrel story (yes, another one – I love squirrel stories.  Not as much as my friend Rob Hedden, though I’m not completely sure I want to go that far).  That’s because – well, as Rob would see it, squirrels bring out the best in everyone, if you just let them.

I don't think I can embed the video here (I'll try...), but if it doesn't work, you can watch it by the clicking the link here.
​

April 25, 2009

Oh, Say Can You Sing?  A National Anthem to Remember

As I prepared to write about an act of uncommon decency by a professional athlete, I realized that calling it that was unfair, that it diminishes what happened, because this was simply an act of uncommon decency, period.  That it happened on such a high level and under such a bright microscope might likely stir the heart more, but it's the act itself that is ultimately what stirs us to begin with.  Who it was and when it took place simply moves it up the pedestal.

Today is the sixth anniversary of Maurice Cheek's moment on the pedestal.

There is in the American consciousness for notable performances of the National Anthem at sporting events.  Jose Feliciano's evocative singing at the 1968 World Series in Detroit was the first to interpret the "Star Spangled Banner" before a national audience.  Because 1968 was one of the most tumultuous years in U.S. history, many at the time were so outraged that it took his career years to recover.  Today, the rendition not only seems tame, but one of the most tender and beautiful.  (And among the least known.  If you've never heard it, do yourself a favor and click here to listen.) 

Whitney Houston gets mentioned often for her rousing rendition at the 1991 Super Bowl, during the Gulf War.  For many, Marvin Gaye's deeply soulful performance at the 1983 NBA All Star is the most memorable.

But for sheer emotional joy, it's hard to top what happened on April 25, 2003, before Game 4 of the NBA playoffs between the Portland Trailblazers and Dallas Mavericks.

Context only adds to the story.  So, once again: 

This was the playoffs.  This is what all professional athletes live for, what their year is about.  The regular season is a prelude, an effort to get into the post-season and be in place to win the league championship, to become a part of your sport's history.  Everything centers on this.  As the start of each playoff game nears, as the roaring crowd is at its highest pitch, as players put on their proverbial "game faces" and the battle is moments from beginning, all external thoughts get filtered out, and focus is completely, solely on their task ahead.  

The National Anthem, for most athletes, must be one of those external influences.  More than most of us, who hear the "Star Spangled Banner" largely on special occasions, professional athletes have heard the National Anthem played before every single competitive game they've played.  Game after game repeatedly each season, and season after season, for decades.  Relentlessly.  As meaningful as the song is, it is also just part of the ritual for a professional athlete, focused on the game, geared up for the game, anxious to start the game.  Silent, not singing, maybe not even hearing the music.  Waiting for the National Anthem to be played, and finished, so that they can finally start what they're there for.  It's likely as much background noise as it is patriotic uplift.

And so it must have been as the Trailblazers and Mavericks prepared for their playoff game to start.  

Stepping out onto the court was Natalie Gilbert, a 13-year-old girl.   Just another National Anthem, just another youngster who won a contest, just another two minutes the crowd wanted to get past for the game they were there to see, to start.  And she started fine.  A little hesitant, since it's a frightening occasion for a child, with a national audience, flashing lights and a military guard.  But in her wavering voice, she was prepared.

Except that a few lines in, the high pageantry of the moment got her, and something went very wrong.  She totally, thoroughly forgot the words.  A young 13-year-old child, standing in front of over 10,000 people, lost.  Alone.

And that's when Maurice Cheeks showed the kind of person he was.

Maurice Cheeks had had a very good NBA career as a player.  He played for 15 years and was selected to four All Star games.  When he retired, he was the all-time leader in steals and fifth in assists.  He averaged over 11 points a game.  And then he later became a coach, the position he was currently in for the Portland Trailblazers.  It was Cheeks who was responsible for his team, responsible for keeping them focused on the game, responsible for guiding them.  But he saw a 13-year-old girl in trouble.

And that's when Maurice Cheeks showed the kind of person he was.  Immediately.

Cheeks always had a reputation in the NBA as a good guy.  But he was about to prove it on a national stage.  And what happened next - not just with Maurice Cheeks, but eventually with all the jaded players whose minds had been previously-focused on their game, an entire stadium of basketball fans there to see basketball, even the opposing white-haired coach Don Nelson - is just enthralling.

The moment is wonderful, but how it builds and surprises is even better.

And at the end, this tiny girl looking up at the giant of a man - who stayed around, refusing to leave her side and return to his team - with her face awash with relief, a huge hug, and the clear words mouthed, "Thank you," is all you need to see to why it's hard to top what happened on April 25, 2003, before Game 4 of the NBA playoffs for sheer emotional joy.  Six years ago today.
​

This is a six-minute excerpt from Jimmy Kimmel's monologue on Monday, and as he says, "Stick with me on this."

I don't want to describe what it is in too much detail, so you can appreciate the surprise, weirdness and joy of it.  There's nothing political, and the foundation of it is video which went viral (understandably) of a news story about a carjacking in Australia.  I know that doesn't sound overly promising, but again -- stick with me on this.  Because that's just the starting point.  And as weird, surprising and joyful as it is, Kimmel to his credit takes it to the next level.  And it's just -- well...weird, surprising and utterly joyful.  And inexplicably funny.

I can only add that I don't even begin to understand the existence of this.  But that's what makes it so...well, you know.  

Nothing more is really needed. But it's near-impossible not to go out with this ​11 o'clock number...