He’s facing Harv Matision.

“Say your prayers, old man,” spits Matision, the store lights gleaming off his long knife. Matision lunges.

T.K. parries with his left arm, forcing the knife up and away while at the same time hooking his left leg behind Matision’s left knee. He pushes backwards and the younger man goes down.

T.K. shoves the first items he can lay his hands on, a pile of lingerie, on Matision to tangle him up and impede him. Then, again, T.K. makes for the fire escape.

Matision, quicker to recover than T.K. anticipates, catches T.K.’s legs and drags T.K. down. T.K. rolls over, his first thought for the knife. He kicks at it feebly, catches it perfectly, knocking it out of Matision’s hand. The knife goes chattering across the floor and comes to rest under a counter.

Matision scrambles for the knife, but T.K. hangs on to Matision’s legs, dragging him down.

Just when it looks like a standoff, Matision squirms free, stands, tugs at a large display case nearby filled with jewelry, and topples it over on T.K.’s body. T.K. sees it coming, but can’t get out of the way. The entire weight of the case comes down on him. Try as he might, he can’t move.

The referee blows his whistle.

After extricating T.K., the referee places down a red marker. Tomorrow, a joint Minutemen/Prospectors restitution squad will come here and reimburse the store’s owner for damages. The referee then moves the ball out to the street, placing it at a point approximately the same distance from the goalyard as it had been inside.

Two plays later, literally within spitting distance of the goalyard, on a straight power push, T.K. fumbles the ball.

Matision scoops it up. On the very next play, in a brilliant display of evasive running, he streaks 600 yards for the touchdown.

He also runs in the extra point.

Score: Minutemen 14, Prospectors 0.

Dedemus and DeGeller both are knocked unconscious on the kickoff.

Zack Rauscher hustles out, pulling his white, roller mounted medical box behind him. In it he has everything necessary to provide any medical aid short of major surgery. From a compartment underneath, he pulls out two cloth red crosses, which he lays over Dedemus and DeGeller. He opens the top of the box, pulls out two capsules of ammonia, snaps one open and waves it under Dedemus’ nose. No response. He tries the same treatment on DeGeller with similarly negative results.

He gives T.K. the secret high sign, left hand, two fingers extended, to helmet. Out for at least one play, possibly the whole rest of the quarter. Both of them.

Unbidden, and definitely unwanted, a forebodingly gloomy sense of imminent defeat settles firmly over the Prospectors.

Television Program Ratings for the Week Ending July 16, 2010

Thursday, July 22, 2010