I've been told 'no thanks' while pushing my work so much I started taking it personally which is the first cardinal sin in writing. As a matter of fact it is now 3:30 in the morning and I have class in the morning. My girlfriend just came out of the bedroom and asked me if I was coming to bed and I told her soon. I can't go to sleep because I'm thinking of how I could make my sixth feature script ground breaking. That's right, I haven't given up hope. Someone once said that prolific writers can write one script every year. Well I did 5 in 20 months and it'll probably be 6 scripts in 2 years (I'm going to hit that mark 4 months and 120 pages from now).
I started wondering what kept me going after rejection after rejection. It's been a hard 3 years of work so why am I so ready to start the 4th and thinking the 5th and 6th will be magical. Well let me tell you what it is: its The Flu Game.
You're probably wondering what the Flu Game is but you should probably already know. If you are a Bulls fan, you should be saying 'oh yeah' right now. If you are a basketball fan in the 90s, you should be saying 'oh yeah' right.............
NOW.
If you still don't get it, I'll explain it to you:
It was the 1997 NBA Finals ('oh yeah' yet?) and the series was tied 2-2. As every sports fan knows, in the playoffs they do best of seven series so it was the first to four wins. When a team is actually in the series, the strong belief is that 2 wins is great but 3 is even better. So of course both the Chicago Bulls and Utah Jazz were looking for that crucial advantage of 3 games. The first 2 games of the series were played in Chicago and won by them. The next 2 were played in Utah and also won by them bringing us to an even 2 tilt. The 5th game of the series would be played in Utah giving them the advantage; but the ultimate advantage would go to Chicago who got Game 6 and 7 on their home floor. Both the Bulls and Jazz had unbeaten records at home so the Jazz knew if they wanted to win they would have to seal one more at home and pull off an incredible upset in Chicago to win it all.
Michael Jordan wasn't having it.
It was a tuesday and Jordan woke up nauseated and barely able to sit up in bed. The team doctors declared that he had a stomach virus and it would be virtually impossible for him to play in game 5. The news that Jordan wasn't playing Game 5 made the Utah win seem even more plausible. The game was at 6pm and Jordan got out of bed for the first time at 4pm and made his way to the stadium.
He could barely stand during pregame and 'looked pale' before tipoff (he's black, so whats pale? Dark gray). It was said that Jordan lacked his explosive speed and strength that made him the best player in the NBA but he still played tough. During the game, he was hitting shots dunking the ball, and still being the best player on the court. During half-time and time-outs, he looked like he might pass out. Jordan scored 15 points in the fourth quarter and 38 for the entire game. The next highest score was opponent Karl Malone who had 19 points. The Bulls went on to win the game. It was the first time the Jazz had been beaten at home. The Bulls would turn around and win Game 6 at home to clinch their 5th National Championship of the decade.
Every time I start feeling like I can't do something, I think of this. People with masters and doctorate degrees and specialized in medial practices told Jordan that he couldn't play. His body told him that he could barely stand. So what did he do? He went out and proved the whole world wrong. And then he passed out. If I had double his strength and half his determination, what could I accomplish?
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*does anybody know what time it is?*
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