Rant #1,729: Potpourri

"Potpourri."

I like that word to describe the "bits and pieces" I am going to write about today, stories that I have either covered before that don't deserve a full column mention, or stories that simply don't warrant long examinations.

I remember that in the late 1960s, the word "potpourri" came into focus seemingly each week on "Rowan and Martin"s Laugh-In," where a segment of the classic, groundbreaking variety show was labeled as such.

Dick Martin used to pronounce it "Pot-Pourri," with the emphasis on the "Pot," which used to get Dan Rowan crazy, but both of them were getting things by the NBC censors that those stalwarts of good conduct simply didn't get.

But that was then, this is now.

ARod is "Forced" Into Retirement: The Yankees' Alex Rodriguez, a once great player who is old and broken down and has shown that he really can't play anymore, was ceremoniously dumped by the Bronx Bombers over the weekend.

They say they didn't give him an ultimatum, and in their minds, they didn't, because they are still going to be paying him the many millions of dollars owed him.

But they want him to do something for them while he gets his money, and they created a whole news conference to explain their direction.

Rather than send him home after Friday's game so that he can soak up his big payday doing nothing, they have made him a "special advisor" to the team, wherein his duties pretty much entail working with younger players to hone their skills for the big leagues.

This is a nice cherry on top for the team, and kind of softens the fact that they are giving Rodriguez his unconditional release on Friday.

But ARod said after the news conference this past Sunday that he believes he still has something in the tank, and he still feels he can play.

Brian Cashman, the Yankees' general manager, said something to the effect that Rodriguez "can basically do whatever he wants" in the next year-plus that he is under obligation to the Yankees, until December 31, 2017, so he can do his advisor work for them, he can become a broadcaster, he can can even go back on the field if somebody wants him.

And this is what I believe his intention is--to go try to play a bit more.

Look, he is stuck at 696 home runs. If he hits just four more homers, he will join an elite group of four players who have accomplished this feat, and he will become the first Hispanic player to do so.

You think that he is going to close the book on a career being this close to the milestone?

I think if he has one ounce of ballplaying left in his very being, he will go out there and strive to hit those home runs ... if anyone wants him, to use him as a marketing tool.

Think of the bonanza a team could get from having ARod strive for that mark in their uniform. The stadium would be packed every night, the advertising will skyrocket in price, and the team will get a lot of publicity.

It can happen, it has to happen, and it will happen if ARod wants it.

And I believe he does.

No Olympics Coverage Here: Sorry, I love sports, but you won't find a bit of commentary on the Olympics here.

In fact, this is the only time I will probably mention the Olympics in this column, so if you are interested, read on.

I don't believe in the Olympics anymore. Oh, don't get me wrong, I believe in the basic concept of the Olympics, which is camaraderie gained through sport when nations play each other.

I like that.

I don't like what the Olympics have become.

It is more a political get together than an athletic one, where politics far outshine anything else.

Two things changed my mind about the Olympics, both happening generations ago, but both being incidents that should never be forgotten.

First, the Israelis that were murdered in cold blood in 1972. Their deaths have never really been atoned for, and this is a major blemish on the games, a horrible situation that quite frankly, ABC handled better than the IOC, and that is an embarrassment right there.

And let's not forget something much less horrid, but dismaying nonetheless: the Russians being given ultimate chances and do-overs to beat the Americans at basketball, the first time an American team ever lost an Olympics basketball game. I will never forget watching this, and deciding right then and there that there was no point in being interested in the Olympics anymore.

And you think things have changed in this PC world? No, we still have numerous incidents of doping, Israeli athletes are continuously looked down upon and abused by other countries' athletes without much retort from the IOC, and the games are full of other political nonsense.

And closer to home, I hate how fans become enamored of certain sports and athletes when the games are being held, yet totally forget about them afterward. You talk about the gold medal winner now in some sport you don't even understand, yet if I ask you six months from now who these people are, you probably won't remember.

Phony is as phony does.

No, I won't cover the games here, because quite frankly, I could care less about them — they aren't "sport" anymore.

My Medical Woes Continue: I just received a doctor's bill for $160 for my allergy shots. I was in the office maybe three minutes, and the shots were administered by a nurse, not the doctor.

That being said, these rates are killing me, robbing me of any money I have to pay bills, or to pay outrageous prices at the movies.

I will vote for any candidate who will repeal, change or get rid of Obamacare entirely, because the only people who think Obamacare is good are the ones who are getting care they previously did not have and those not directly affected by this plan.

I am directly affected, and Obamacare has become my cancer.

And by the way, the crown I was supposed to get ... hah hah, I didn't get it.

Seems that I needed a root canal first, which the dentist wasn't originally aware of, so the other day, I received my third root canal of the year, and it was the worst one, hurting like hell even with novocaine.

I am now scheduled for my crown next Tuesday, and if I can bear the pain in my mouth, I guess I will live.

But my teeth hurt like hell, and eating has become difficult.

And paying for this has become even more difficult.

My health woes continue in both my pocketbook and my mouth, and I am wondering when this is going to come to a head and end already.

Keep me in your prayers.

Speak to you again tomorrow.