It’s not that kids are allergic or afraid of sunlight, it’s just that some don’t see the need for it. Why go outside when the Internet can bring you the real world, and your Xbox 360 can bring you a fake one...with explosions and car chases?

The governor is teaming up with some high-profile buddies to try and encourage kids to spend time in the great outdoors. They’ve ingeniously named the new campaign "Take It Outside."

We can all agree that getting more kids to spend time outside is good because there is a growing (no pun intended) problem with obesity in America. But at the same time, when are we going to realize that some kids just don’t take to the outdoors?

Of course, I don’t think it helps when Governor Baldacci is making statements like this:

"Sometimes we need to lead our kids outdoors to get away from the, you know, the ipodding (sic), the shuffling of the deck and the video and the text messaging and all that stuff and just get out here and smell the beautiful air and enjoy all the beautiful resources we have."

The “ipodding?” The “shuffling of the deck and the video and the text messaging?”

Maybe Jack Baldacci should be helping his dad out with the “hip new slang” the kids are using these days.

Meanwhile, I once again feel the need to reach out to my Celtics fans out there as it appears we now have a shared love of Kevin Garnett.

The Big Ticket and I go way back. I remember when he came to the struggling expansion team I was growing to love in 1995. They called him "The Kid" back then, largely because he was just that, a fresh out of high school teenager (which, if you’re a 15-year-old guy who’s happy to have pro basketball team, is a great reason to follow the team.)

It’s been a great ride, but always a bittersweet one. KG’s never made it to the finals, only made it out of the first round once, but has been a 10-time All-Star. If you thought the Celtics had trouble with bad contracts and worse personnel moves, I’ll see you one Vin Baker and raise a Joe Smith.

As a wolves fan, it’s a tough day. There’s a lot of season ticket holders upset right now, but the bottom line is that the team was drowning and as much as Garnett is a fan favorite, it’s almost selfish to want him to stick around on a losing team.
Of course we all had hoped to get more for KG than a couple promising players and some castoffs (Sebastian Telfair I am looking at you.). But as it goes, it's better than a sack of magic beans, which I suspected they may have traded for.

For the Celtics, this is a blockbuster, the kind of insane, unthinkable pick-up that seems to alter the course of life for fans and players alike. I’m not a paid sports prognosticator, talking head or "NBA Analyst," so I won’t make the leap and say the C’s will make it to the NBA Finals next season.

That’s a tough argument to make, as many have already pointed out – you need a point guard to get to the Finals, and another powerhouse outside of Brian Scalabrine or Kendrick Perkins.

The last time I got to see KG live was when the wolves beat the Bulls this past Christmas. It was a tough game, not because the Bulls almost beat them, but because the team had trouble just holding onto a lead. Sound familiar Celtics fans?
The irony of course is that I’ll get to watch more now than I have in the last nine years since I lived in Minneapolis. Does that mean I’ll replace my #21 jersey with a #5? Possibly, if they get KG a ring.

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