Living In The Moment What a great time to be a sports fan. Not so much on the local scene--the Cardinals will take a little breather before beginning their makeover for 2008, and will the Rams ever come out of their death spiral? But there are many other places to look at and marvel.

Did the Rockies' Matt Holliday really get a hand on the plate after his landing gear stuck on Monday night? Who cares (besides you Padres fans)? Umpire Tim McClelland made the call and so we move on, as do the Rockies. But what great drama! San Diego scores 2 in the 13th to go ahead, their dugout was alive in celebration, and they had saved closer Trevor Hoffman for just such an occasion. So after back-to-back doubles, Holliday, the front-runner for MVP (and dare I say, the linchpin of my fantasy league team), ties the game with an opposite-field triple and then makes his heroic, headlong dive that sent Colorado to the postseason for the first time since 1995. After Holliday got his marbles reshuffled, he was asked if he'd trade winning the MVP over making the postseason. He responded that yes, he would. The feeling of winning as a part of a team overpowers the individual achievement.

Did you Rams fans get a sense on Sunday of the Kurt Warner story being remade, starring Dallas' Tony Romo? He attended a small college, was an unknown third-stringer, got his chance and made the most of it. But where Kurt (funny how we in St. Louis are still on a first-name basis with him, nearly four years since he left) won a Super Bowl to cap his Cinderella season, Romo's ended with his botched snap against Seattle. The big question was, after having all offseason to stew over that mistake, would he be able to rebound? With a passer rating of 112 and leading an undefeated team, his answer (confirmed unanimously by the Rams) would be a resounding yes.

It would have been very easy for Brett Favre to ride off into the sunset. After all, what a great career. Super Bowls, MVP's, NFL records, automatic inclusion in the Hall of Fame. How many of you thought he should retire after last season? With the tearful walk off at Soldier Field last December, wrapping up his career with a four-game winning streak, many thought it would have been a perfect time to call it a career. But Brett went against convention and look at him now---a 4-0 start, an 8-2 TD-to-interception rate, and a 97 passer rating, and more NFL records. And he's playing with the enthusiasm of a rookie.

Have you seen the new NBC show, "Life"? No. I'm not shilling for the network, but it really has promise. The central character is a former cop who was falsely imprisoned for twelve years, got the crap beat out of him and basically lived through hell, only to be exonerated (and get a $50 million settlement, too) and wind up as a detective on his old force. He's very quirky, out of touch (due to prison) with modern technologies, but he's making up for lost time. And the first episode was very watchable.

What do these four have in common? They are most certainly living in the moment. The right here, right now. Matt Holliday took off from third base without waiting to hear from his third base coach. Tony Romo turned disaster into the play of the weekend, running down that wild snap over his head and ran 37 yards for a first down. Brett Favre has found a way to turn back the clock, leading a one-dimensional Packers offense to an unexpected, undefeated start. And Charlie Crews is driving a Bentley, living in a mansion and eating all the fresh fruit that he never got in prison. The right here and right now.

The Missouri Tigers, the Fighting Illini, and the Blues all have their chance to fill the void on what has been a bleak local scene in 2007. The Blues have made headlines all offseason and want this to be the year they get back into the playoffs. But first they should build some momentum by winning their first season opener since 1996. After a couple of down years, Ron Zook's Illini are on a four-game winning streak and can really make some noise with a win at home over 5th-ranked Wisconsin. And then there's Ol' Mizzou, facing perhaps the most important two weeks in the Gary Pinkel era. They've proven they can beat Nebraska--they've done it at home the last two times--and they're favored to make it a trifecta. Let's say they make the oddsmakers look good and beat the Huskers. Next up, a trip to Norman, Oklahoma. Mizzou couldn't follow up their past two Husker-do's with a win the following week. Can they quiet the naysayers this time around?

Who is going to live in the moment, the right here and right now? ¶ 4:41 PM