It has been brought to my attention (thanks, Matt!) that the Hornets folks are sending out an e-mail asking fans to provide their input on 300-Level Concessions improvements that they want to see for 2008-09.
As some of you may know, one of the foundations upon which this blog/movement was built is the gradual removal of local favorite Abita Beer from all New Orleans Arena concessions. (No, seriously.) We have lamented the lack of Abita on several occasions.
So now I am totally co-opting their survey in order to further our own Abita agenda. Please please click the link and tell them it’s not the N.O.L.A. without the A.B.I.T.A. It will take like 30 seconds, I promise. Do not let this opportunity to help knock an item permanently off the $#*t List pass us by! (And you know, like, if you actually sit in the 300-level, to tell them other things like you want healthier food and chairs to sit in, which are also totally things I can get behind. Because we were up there for the All Star Game and I was thinking, “Man, this is the sad little stepchild of concourses.” And then I thought, “Oh, there’s Jamario Moon walking by!” and got completely distracted.)
CrowdWaaaaaatch: Because, after all, this site was born out of a fit of righteous rage over such things, I can’t believe I haven’t posted an update about the Hornets’ ticket status. So here it is: season ticket sales are going REALLY well. As of this week, I’ve heard there are only a couple hundred seats left in the lower bowl. Total season ticket sales are just short of the 10,000 mark and should keep on going throughout the summer! Consider that, back in December, it wasn’t out of the question for there to be 10,000 or fewer people in the building total…
So the much-discussed (not here, obviously– HornetsHype doesn’t watch college ball and doesn’t begin to have a clue about most of the prospects in the draft, but rest assured, after the Hornets draft someone we’ll be the first to dig up something random and hopefully embarrassing about him) NBA draft is June 26th. June 26th, I have been informed, is this Thursday. The Hornets are having a draft party, but it won’t be at the arena (the circus ran away with it… booo).
Time: 6:00-9:00 PM
Location: Fox and Hound (Green room), 1200 S. Clearview Parkway, Elmwood Village Center, Metairie, LA
Featuring: Honeybees, 35 cent wings, drink specials, free stuff (OK, the flyer doesn’t say anything about free stuff, but there’s always free stuff at these things– wait, the email says free stuff so there we go)
Anyway, we’re going. Mostly because we’re in Hornets withdrawal. Just wanted to put the info up in case people didn’t know about it!
Because HornetsHype loves arts and crafts. And because no one fucks with David West on my watch. And now, for your Game 7 viewing pleasure, I present to you…
OK, people, in vain have I struggled with this all day.
If the team wins, I am going to the airport tonight to meet them, and I think there should be AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE. I wrestled with posting this. See, if I plan ahead, I feel like it will jinx them. But then, if I don’t post this, then maybe some people miss out. I am sitting here chanting over and over in my head, “I am not that superstitious. I am not that superstitious.” But man, it is tough for me to type this. Anyway, JUST IN CASE, I am posting the info:
(… OK, just do it. Deep breath. Ready set go.)
What: Hornets Airport Fun
Where: Signature Flight Services, 22nd Street and Aberdeen Street, Kenner, LA. See map below. It’s right off the exit and super easy to find. End of the street on the LEFT.
When: TBD. Game will probably be over around 11ish, so you can figure… shower, press conference, short flight… 2ish? If you’re interested, check back here for flight info after the game.
Who: HornetsHype, Hornets247, HornetsAsylum probably (don’t worry, I can assure you we are all quite normal and attractive looking, despite spending startlingly long quantities of time obsessively digging up Hornets info on the internet), … YOU
What to Bring: Signs, FAN UP stuff, Hornets gear. Hornets Airport Fun is BYOB. This means I will not share my Abitas with you. Bring your own.
I think, in the end, the importance of having people out there outweighs any superstitious jinxing effect posting something like this may have. (That said, the Hornets are 18-1 recently at home, and that one game against the Utah Jazz I don’t think I straightened my hair, I mean I cannot think of anything else I could possibly have done to cause the Hornets to lose in such an egregious fashion… SO I’m going to go take care of that ASAP, if ya know what I mean…)
So FAN UP and get your ass to the airport tonight!!!
Today we’ve got a guest post from one of our regular commenters. This is his story of how he became the Hornets fan that he is today…
“I wasn’t born one. There. I said it.
It was the fall of 1998. I had just gotten divorced and was nursing my wounds in a one bedroom apartment about an hour north of Sacramento, CA. My next door neighbor bore a striking resemblance to Will Ferrell and his personality fit one of his movie characters perfectly. He was also a diehard Lakers fan. Growing up in San Francisco, I was raised to despise all LA teams as if they were Satan incarnate. It just so happens, the Lakers were playing the Kings that year. I became an immediate Kings fan since they were playing the Lakers. I followed the Kings and rooted them on. I still have a license plate frame on my car from their 2001 season.
I moved to New Orleans and arrived New Years Day 2004. One of the first things I was told is that it was pitifully easy to get into Hornets games. Coming from around Sacramento, this did not compute. You couldnt get into Arco Arena without a second mortgage AND knowing someone. Nosebleed seats could be found on Ebay for $200+. I never saw a Kings game at Arco. For Christmas 2004, my brother gave me tickets to the Hornets-Kings at the Arena. Best present ever! My first basketball game with my fav team and my local team (who was #2 to me at the time). This was the season where the Hornets were on their way to the worst record in basketball history. They had 8 wins at that point, I think. The Kings LOST. I lost all respect for them. They traded my favorite players (including Peja). They brought in Artest. ‘Nuff said. Supporting my local team became a LOT easier. I saw a few games as I learned that basketball is more fun to watch live than on TV.
Then came that little storm we had. Overnight, I became militant New Orleans-proud. I got cushy job offers across the country that paid well. No thanks, I like my FEMA trailer. I went to all the games they had here when they were in OKC. The first game back was the Lakers. We lost. I didn’t care, they were BACK. I’ve been to as many games as I could reasonably pull off since then. Almost bought season tickets with some spare insurance money. This year was special from the start. They were looking GOOD. I became a Hornets booster. I suggested everyone should go to the games. Go to the games or we lose the team. Go TONIGHT! Just $10 and there isn’t a bad seat! GO! NOW!!!!! As the season progressed, it started to work. More and more people started going!
Then it hit me. I knew something as a former Kings fan Hornets fans didn’t know. Peja can hit three-pointers all day long, but he tended to choke rather badly in the post-season. I’ve seen him get 5 points in a game in Sac. Just when you thought you could count on him to put a game away, whiff. Airball. Dare I say something? Maybe if I ignored it, it wouldn’t happen again. After Game 1 with the Spurs, I told someone my fears. I prayed I didn’t jinx anything. 22 points. I don’t think he made 22 points in his postseason career in Sacramento.
God bless The New Orleans Hornets.”
This is one fan’s discovering-the-Hornets story. If you have one too, write it up and send it to me at ticktock6@gmail.com. I’ll post it on the site. The Hornets are converting people everywhere this season, and the Movement grows!
Who’s got their ride decorated for the playoffs?? I’ve been seeing more and more Hornets gear around town. The “GEAUX HORNETS” decals have been given away free at every official Hornets playoff event I’ve been to in the last three weeks. If you still haven’t gotten your hands on one, I’d investigate the Buzzfest on Saturday night. I saw some there on Tuesday. I also picked up about four at the Watch Party (what? those people won’t take no for an answer when they’re tossing free swag).
If you’ve got a Hornets ride, send me a picture at ticktock6@gmail.com, and I’ll put it in my album and on the site! (But I doubt you can beat mine. I mean, my car is friggin’ teal.)
Just a roundup of the good hype I’ve read over the past couple days:
Holy Positive Attendance Article!In USA Today. Finally. I’ve been waiting for a bunch of these to roll in. Of course, the positive ones have been slower in coming than the negative ones that were all over the place during the winter.
CP3 = King of PER: Chris Paul leads, oh, everyone in the playoffs in PER at 32.36. Kobe and Dwight come in a distant second and third at 28.31 and 28.26 respectively.
Who Made You? with Tyson Chandler:Video here. LOL at lil Tyson looking exactly like now Tyson, minus facial hair.
I Told You TrueHoop Dispensed Hornets Love: And here’s more, in the form of a fun Mike James interview.
And One Bee-llion (Ha. See what I did there) More Links: … located at Hornets247.
And here’s a bonus: If you’re in the CBD and you’ve got a lunch break, there’s going to be a Hornets second line going through the Quarter, starting at Café Du Monde at 11:30 and concluding at Harrah’s. There will be Soul Rebels, Hugo, Honeybees, and our favorite SerbSicles. They’ll be tossing out giveaways (T shirts, car stickers, and such) too.
It has been brought to my attention (thanks, Matt!) that the Hornets folks are sending out an e-mail asking fans to provide their input on 300-Level Concessions improvements that they want to see for 2008-09.
I mean, my car is friggin’ teal.)
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