I’ll go ahead and admit it, I was short on column topics this week. I even resorted to putting out a call for suggestions on my Facebook page and got some pretty good ones, thus we’re going lightning round and maybe (just maybe) we’ll get to everything before I run out of space.

Do you think volleyball players are really that excited by every point their team scores? I watched a lot of volleyball last week and that’s one thing that stuck with me. On almost every point they act like they just won the state title. I suppose the better question might be, just how excited would they be if they had just scored the final point to win the state title?

New York Giant Bobby Thomson died Monday. Thomson was a baseball great who will always be remembered by yours truly as the guy who took the time to actually write me a letter when I sent him an autograph request a few years ago. In the letter he told me he didn’t think his now famous “Shot Heard ‘Round the World” home run off Brooklyn Dodger Ralph Branca would be such a historic thing. I thought that was pretty cool and his passing seems to draw us farther away from baseball’s golden age and even further toward the me-first, money-driven world of sports we have today.

Do the mascots actually train? I know the marching bands train. In fact, I learned last year that some marching bands even do conditioning. Yes, that’s right, they actually run to get in shape for their marching. Honestly I had no idea. But that brings me back to the mascots. I wonder if the people in those furry suits do anything other than don said suits five minutes before the first football game and then go out and start waving? I suppose they should do some conditioning as well. It must be really hot inside one of those things, especially here in August. Is this something I need to investigate? Hmm.

If you only eat concession stand food on Friday nights, is it possible to get a good meal? I still yearn for the days of the Frito Pie at the Diboll High School football games when I was a kid. They were things of beauty with shredded cheese and homemade chili served from a dirty looking crock pot. Are there concessions like that around here? For the most part I either eat prior to the game or eat in the press box so I wonder if I’m missing out or has that super-secret, concession stand delicacy (you know, the one only you and your fellow fans know about) gone the way of the dodo?

And, in the biggest surprise of the day, Brett Favre is supposedly ready to start playing again. Yawn.

Whew! Well, it looks like I did it and with a little room to spare. Mascots, food, baseball legends and more Brett Favre news, all rolled into one nice little treat for your afternoon. I knew I could do it folks and with help from some of you, I actually did. Now I think it’s time for me to go take a nap and time to return you to your regularly scheduled programming.