Bill Simmons with a nice column about his dog

Let's try to refrain from the usual arguments. We've been typing in circles about Bill and his career for close to five years. No sense in discussing his path to fame, whether he's a journalist, his time at the Herald, how much he gets paid, etc. Been there, done that.

I liked this column. I think empathy is important, no matter what kind of writer you are. There is something universal about a pet dying, and while this was not the greatest fracken column ever spun about the subject, it made me tear up a little.

So well done, Bill.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/090122

 

I second your thoughts. If you've ever had a dog, you can't help but be touched.

 

I've trashed Simmons mercilessly in the past and will again in the future, but this was indeed touching.

Remember the good times.

 

As one who grew up with a Golden who lived for water, kids and balls, I'll say that one hit me also.

 

Not a fan at all, but this I could relate to. Retrievers and tennis balls, a universal connection (and obsession).

 

No trashing of Bill Simmons here.
Anyone who has ever had the love of a dog and it companionship can truly identify and sympathize with him.
I'd worry if somebody didn't cry over this column.

 

If everyone wrote a story about their dog that died, there would be a lot of stories about dogs that died, and a lot of people thinking the people that wrote them were a lot better writers than they are.

I generally like Bill Simmons' stuff. But that column is boring. It's like a play-by-play of the dog's life. How can you not start that story with the part about the dog following his daughter out into the street when she snuck away one day? The first 500 words of that column could have been trimmed into 200 good ones.

Just because cyberspace is theoretically infinite doesn't mean your stories have to be as well.

 

Style-wise, you're right.
But again, I gotta give Bill a break here.

 

I have lost two dogs in my lifetime and don't care to go through it again.
Tough, very tough.
My heart goes out to all of us who have dealt with such a loss.

 

Good story. Not great, but good. Agreed with TSP - the lead was 800 words too late.

This, however, was phenomenal:

Once Dooze started visibly declining, our daughter knew something bad was happening, so we told her that Dooze was heading to the moon soon and went through the "it's better on the moon, she'll be happier there" charade. Now she thinks everyone goes to the moon when they die. This will be awkward if she ever meets Neil Armstrong. But that's the part nobody prepares you for -- not just losing your dog, but watching your kids lose their dog. As a parent, you feel obligated to protect your children from the things you don't want them to see, and then suddenly there's your dog slowly dying in the house, and they're seeing it every day. It's not fair.