The Celtics-Bulls series has been so good, I had to jump in and attempt a running diary. Before we get started, 5 points of clarification:

1. I’m a casual NBA fan and a casual Celtics fan (I was born and raised in Massachusetts). Yes, there might be a little bias in play, I can’t help it.

2. I don’t know if Bill Simmons’ created the running diary or simply perfected it, but I realize I am not him and I’m not trying to be him. I’m a huge fan, however, and I know my writing style has been heavily influenced by him. In fact, in honor of Bill let’s not call this a running diary. Let’s call it a jogging journal.

3. If Bill is writing a running diary for this game, it will be infinitely more interesting than mine. So go read it.

4. I’m DVRing the game in case I need to pause it to type something out or go get a refill on my tea.

5. I won’t be going back and editing this afterward, just in case it’s awful.

Here we go…

8:07pm – we’re about to tip. I can’t believe I made a point to watch an NBA first round playoff game. By the way, Ben Gordon has already tried to shoot the ball twice and the game hasn’t started yet.

8:09pm - We’re two minutes into the game and neither bench has sat down yet. Chicago’s got the early lead 9-2.

8:12pm – In case you’re wondering, I’m sitting in my basement flying solo right now. Kids are upstairs watching that new Jonas Brothers show on the Disney Channel. That show is destined to fail. I bet nobody watches it.[/sarcasm]

8:16pm – The Boston fans just pulled out their first chant of the night and it was “bulls&@%!” in response to a foul on Perkins. I thought it was going to be “Yankees Suck!”

8:18pm – Vinny Del Negro’s part-down-the-middle-and feathered hairstyle is amazing. It should have it’s own NBA “Where Amazing Happens” commercial.

8:21pm – Wait a minute, it’s been 14 minutes without a commercial! Is that some kind of record?

8:22pm – Wow, Derrick Rose just rejected Brian Scalibrine from behind on an open dunk. That was ridiculous. You’ll see that one on Sportscenter tomorrow.

8:24pm – Finally some commercials…hey there’s Ernie Johnson with a promo spot for the NBA on TNT. We interviewed Ernie Johnson for this site you know. check it out here. And hey it’s a Coors Light commercial. What about this new technology that makes our lives better? When the mountains turn blue on your can, you know it’s cold. Astounding! But get this: another way to tell if your beer is cold is to touch your can! If your fingers get cold, you know it’s cold. Also astounding!

8:26pm – With the Bulls up 25-20, Rondo misses again and has yet to score. He’s so cold, his jersey numbers are turning blue.

8:32pm – There’s a commercial for the MLB Extra Innings on. I’ve gotta say, I have it and I love it. Not only do I get every Red Sox game during the season, but I get to hear Vin Scully calling Dodgers games. Love that guy’s voice and his style.

8:34pm – Scalabrine just hit a 3-pointer. He’s got 5 points and the first quarter ends with the Bulls up 27-23.

8:41pm – Ben Gordon has 17 of the Bulls’ 32 points, giving Chicago a 9 point lead. He might score 70 tonight.

8:42pm – Scalabrine! He hits his second 3 of the night. I havent been this excited watching a #44 on the court since Derrick Coleman was throwing down left-handed dunks for the Nets. The Bulls are 11-11 from the free throw line and lead 34-28 with 8:30 left in the 1st half.

8:49pm – Would you be surprised if underneath his suit Kevin Garnett was wearing a uniform? Me either.

8:51pm – The NBA is apparently on Twitter now. What isn’t on Twitter? Does Wal-Mart have a Twitter? What about gravity? Does gravity have a Twitter?

8:52pm – A Glen Davis dunk just tied the game at 36 with 6 minutes to go in the first half. (and yeah, I refuse to call him Big Baby)

8:54pm – DirecTV has a new referral program. $100 to the referrer and the referee. If anyone is thinking of switching to DirecTV, shoot me an email. Srsly. Meanwhile, the Celtics just took the lead on an Eddie House 3-pointer after Ben Gordon flopped and didn’t get a whistle.

9:00pm – another Eddie House 3 gives Boston a 7-point lead, but a dumb foul by Kendrick Perkins means he and Glen Davis both have 2 fouls. Could loom large late in the game. Meanwhile the Celtics are up 46-38 now, meaning they are on an 18-4 run. I know this because I am a math genius and grew up an hour from Harvard.

9:02pm – This Dos Equis commercial featuring “The Most Interesting Man in the World” kills me every time…”He lives vicariously through himself”…brilliant.

9:05pm – Kendrick Perkins picks up his 3rd foul with 2:30 left in the half. Quick shot over to the Chicago bench and Del Negro’s feathered hairdo is covering the top of his ears.  Moments later Paul Pierce is fouled in the face, which apparently opens up the 7-10 stitches that he has IN his nose. I’ve got to be honest, I can only think of 4 or 5 places on my body I’d rather NOT have stitches in than inside my nose.

9:10pm – The Celtics’ Mikki Moore is at the line to shoot two and the Celtics have a 10 point lead. The Bulls have scored 4 points in the last half hour of real time. What happened to Ben Gordon? Seriously, I have no idea what happened to him. Not sure if he’s still on the Bulls’ roster at this point.

9:12pm – Kettle corn popcorn with Parmesan cheese. Delicious. (and why am I supposed to capitalize Parmesan, autocorrect? That’s inane.)

9:14pm – Kirk Heinrich misses two free throws and the Celtics lead stays at 12 points with under a minute to go in the half. If this basketball thing doesn’t work out for Kirk, I’m pretty sure he could run with Brody and his crew on the Hills. Just seems like that type of guy.

9:15pm – The First Half ends with the Celtics leading 52-38.  The Bulls’ offense was about as pathetic as you could be in that second quarter. They were outscored 29-11. They were outrebounded 100-4 (okay, I made that up). If the Bulls don’t come out on fire in the 3rd quarter, this one might get ugly.

9:22pm – Kettle corn popcorn with Parmesan cheese. Still delicious.

9:40pm – We’re 3 minutes into the 3rd quarter and the Bulls have cut the lead from 14 to 11. Neither team looks particularly sharp at this point.

9:41pm – Kevin Harlan just said “When a baby falls, we all hear it.” I don’t care that he was referring to Glen Davis hitting the deck, that’s just a creepy quote.

9:44pm – Great sequence there for the Bulls. They cut the lead to 9 points and Perkins picks up his 4th foul. The referees have also assessed a technical foul to Kevin Harlan for his “When a baby falls, we all hear it” comment.

9:47pm – We have a Ben Gordon sighting. He hits 2 free throws to make it a 62-53 Celtics lead halfway through the 3rd quarter.

9:49pm – Joakim Noah fouls Rajon Rondo as Rondo heads to the basket. Rondo falls to the ground like a European Soccer player. Somewhere Manu Ginobili is applauding. Minutes later Rondo gets fouled hard by Brad Miller and again stays on the ground for an extra few seconds. Celtics up 65-57.

9:58pm – The Celtics lead is still at 9 with 2 minutes left in the 3rd quarter and you just get the feeling that the Bulls have a big run left in them. I again ask the question, where is Big Shot Ben Gordon??

10:04pm – Rose is hitting shot after shot for Chicago to keep the lead from growing to double digits, but Rondo has had some impressive dishes for the Celtics to keep the lead from shrinking. Rondo has gone 86 consecutive minutes without a turnover. That’s almost unbelievable,  but I do believe it.

10:07pm – “Noah Sucks! Noah Sucks! Noah Sucks!” … I can guarantee you there’s at least one drunk Celtics fan who thinks he’s at a Red Sox game and is screaming “Yankees Suck!”

10:09pm – A Ben Gordon 3-pointer in the waning seconds of the 3rd quarter cuts the Celtics lead to 78-71 with 12 minutes left.

10:15pm – Of the 10 players on the floor right now, 3 are wearing high socks, 1 has a ponytail, and 1 has a tattoo on his shaved head.

10:18pm – Kirk Heinrich hits two jump shots in a row to cut the Celtics lead to 4. Brody is going to have to wait for that bromance.

10:26pm – 8 minutes left in the game and the Celtics lead is back to 9. I still think this game is going to overtime.

10:29pm – Have you seen this Sprite commercial where people smash into each other and turn into water (or is it Sprite)? Never has there been a more blatant waste of amazing technology than in this commercial.

10:32pm – The officials just put an extra point on the board from a Ben Gordon shot in the first half that was wrongly ruled a 2-pointer. It’s now 89-84 Celtics with 6 minutes left. You think that extra point won’t factor in to this finish?

10:34pm – Paul Pierce executes a perfect pick-n-roll with Perkins to keep the lead at 5 and Ray Allen picks up his fourth foul on the other end.

10:36pm – turnover by Rondo on a careless pass. This guy is a turnover machine!!! On the other end Heinrich loses the ball so Rondo doesn’t feel so bad. Celtics by 5 with 3 minutes left.

10:38pm – Domino’s has a new bread bowl pasta thing going on. Gotta be honest, I love the bread bowl. In fact, why don’t I eat every meal in a bread bowl? I mean, wouldn’t cereal even be great in a toasted bread bowl? Messy maybe, but tastetacular.

10:41pm – Two free throws by Perkins make it a 93-86 Celtics lead. Ben Gordon reciprocates on the other end and the lead is 5.

10:43pm – Eddie House hits his 4th 3-pointer of the night! He’s got 14 points off the  bench for the Celtics.

10:44pm – Ben Gordon hits two more free throws. 96-90, Celtics with 2 minutes left.

10:46pm – Ray Allen’s 2 free throws are nice, but Kirk Heinrich’s 3-pointer is nicer, and the lead is 5 with 1:30 left.

10:48pm – 2 more free throws for Ray Allen followed by a Ben Gordon floater. 100-95 Celtics with 1:10 left.

10:50pm – PA guy is playing Eye of the Tiger on the sound system. I know this is un-American, but I’ve had enough Eye of the Tiger, thanks.

10:51pm – Paul Pierce misses a fall-away and the Bulls can cut the lead to one possession…but they don’t. Ben Gordon misses a contested layup and Joakim Noah picks up his 6th foul. Paul Pierce has two free throw attempts with 46 seconds left and he hits them both. 102-95, Celtics.

10:54pm – Brad Miller slam dunks the ball with two hands to cut the lead to 5, but Ray Allen hits a layup on the other end and gets fouled. He hits the free throw to make it an 8-point game with 36.6 seconds left.

10:57pm – It’s a flurry of activity (not really)…Heinrich tip-in…Celtics turnover…Gordon misses a 3…Celtics time out…I scrape parmesan cheese off the bottom of my popcorn bowl…Marbury hits 2 free throws…Gordon misses a 3…Eddie House gets the rebound and screams a word that appears to start with an ‘F’. I think he said “Fog!” Because it was unclear who was going to win this series. But now, it’s not.

11:03pm – Final Score: Celtics 109 – Bulls 99.