Halloween is here

Finally, after weeks of getting ready, Halloween has arrived. Everyone in Lego Land, including the NBA players, is very excited. Antoine Walker and Allen Iverson are going trick-or-treating dressed as samurai warriors (see photo above). Like every year, they will also be collecting money for the United Nations Children's Fund (more commonly known as UNICEF) to help needy children around the world. It is a good thing that Antoine Walker and Allen Iverson are professional athletes and in excellent shape, because the collection box can become quite heavy after a long night of trick-or-treating.

There is one surprising Halloween-related development, however. Due to a lack of communication, both Vince Carter and Tony Parker have dressed up in the same costume. Hopefully Jalen Rose can help them sort out this mess. (See photo above)

Below: Happy Halloween from everyone at Ape Canyon News Service and the Overflow Blog!

Antoine Walker wants you to know that drinking bottled water is bad for the environment

The weekend supervisor at the water company is unhappy that some people in Lego Land choose to drink bottled water rather than regular tap water. He has decided to start a public education campaign to teach people about how wasteful it is to drink bottled water. He wants to let people know about the negative impact of bottled water, from the creation of many plastic bottles to the high cost of transportation.

Joining him in this effort is Antoine Walker. Together they are going door-to-door trying to convince folks to stop wasting money and resources on bottled water. Today they are visiting an office where the workers pitch in to rent a water cooler and pay for bottle water to be delivered. The weekend supervisor and Antoine Walker patiently explain the many negative environmental effects of bottled water. They also point out that the high-priced water in the bottles comes from the exact same source as the municipal water does.

After hearing what the two men have to say, the office manager decides that she and her co-workers are wasting their hard-earned money. As soon as they finish the last bottle they have already paid for, they will be cancelling their service.

Below: Steve Francis and Jalen Rose inspecting the forklift from the bottled water company.

Allen Iverson and Antoine Walker go to the movies

Allen Iverson and Antoine Walker are very excited. Tonight they are going to the movies! Watch the video below and try to figure out what movie they are seeing.

Something is wrong with the water tower

Shaq has woken up early this morning, and right away he notices that the grass outside his front window is starting to look very dried out. So Shaq decides that it is time to water his yard. However, when he turns on the garden hose, nothing comes out. In fact, when Shaq goes back inside his house, he discovers that the water is not working anywhere at all. Of course, Shaq is very concerned about this situation, so he decides to call the municipal water company to file a report. (See photos above and below)

At the water company headquarters (pictured below), the weekend supervisor answers the phone. He writes down Shaq's customer complaint and then performs a systems check using his computer. The weekend supervisor quickly determines that the water has been cut off throughout Lego Land. It appears that there is a problem with the main water tower that supplies water to all of Lego Land.

The weekend supervisor at the water company calls Steve Francis to notify him of the problem. Steve Francis is one of the best people in Lego Land at fixing things. (See photo below)

Steve Francis and his friend Antoine Walker head over to the water tower to see what the trouble is. (See photo below)

Steve Francis climbs straight up to the top of the water tower and gets right to work. (See photo below)

Above: The view from the top of the water tower.

Below: Antoine Walker climbs the ladder up to the top of the tower.

Steve Francis and Antoine Walker are able to quickly identify and solve the problem. Within a few hours, water service has been restored to all of Lego Land. Now everyone, including Karl Malone (pictured below), can water their lawns, wash their cars, or do whatever else it is that they need to do.

Game night in Lego Land

Tonight Jalen Rose has invited all the NBA players over to play Clue-- "Parker Brothers Classic Detective Game". Clue is a game in which six players try to solve a mystery about which one of them committed a murder. The players also have to figure out where the murder took place and what the murder weapon was.

Below: Dirk Nowitzki and Shaq examine the roll of the dice.

Steve Francis thinks he is on to something-- he has found this lead pipe lying on the floor of the lounge. Vince Carter definitely agrees that the lounge is a strange place to find a slightly-bent lead pipe.

Meanwhile, Jalen Rose and Dirk Nowitzki are investigating the kitchen. They both believe that this large candlestick may hold important clues.

The time has come for the players to make their accusations and then to reveal the true identity of the murder. They have all gathered (see photo below) for the final showdown.

Everyone wonders-- "Who will it turn out to be?"

Working out at the gym

During the off-season, NBA stars spend a lot of time working out in the gym so that they can be as strong as possible for the start of the regular season. Physical fitness is very important for everyone, but especially for professional basketball players because of the grueling schedule they face.

Below: Antoine Walker is lifting weights.

Above: Tony Parker works on his legs.

Below: Dirk Nowitzki builds his upper-body strength.

Below: Steve Francis rides the exercise bicycle. When he is finished, Steve Francis will enjoy an nutritious fitness shake high in protein, vitamins, and electrolytes.

Gary Payton is worried. Vince Carter is, too.

Gary Payton and Vince Carter have been researching deeper and deeper into the existence of UFOs in Lego Land, and they have discovered a very disturbing fact. If you rearrange the letters in the names of many of their NBA player-friends, you can spell out messages about creatures from outer space. For example:

• SHAQUILLE O'NEAL spells HELLO ALIENS U.Q.A.;

• ANTOINE WALKER spells WANT ALIEN KORE;

• ALLEN IVERSON spells S.N. ALIEN LOVER.

The scariest part is that neither Gary Payton nor Vince Carter knows what "S.N." stands for.

Above: Gary Payton and Vince Carter being scared

Below: One more picture of Antoine Walker

They formed a band

Some of the NBA players, along with some of their non-basketball-playing friends, have decided to form a band. As with all bands, the hardest part was coming up with a name. They came up with (and rejected) many names before settling on the Lloyd B. Free Singers, although some members of the band still want to call themselves the Latrell Sprewell Experience. (See photos, above- Antoine Walker playing guitar- and below- the Lloyd B. Free Singers giving their first concert)

The members of the band are as follows:

• Lead singer: Eva Longoria Parker
• Guitar players: Antoine Walker and the guitar-playing guy
• Bass: Kevin Garnett
• Drums: Steve Francis
• Keyboards: The keyboard-playing woman
• Saxophone: The man who plays the saxophone
• Trumpet: Shaq

Below: Eva Longoria Parker singing

Who else would be running the sound system but Vince Carter and Gary Payton?

Below: Footage from their first concert

One more photo of Antoine Walker hanging out at Steve Francis' repair shop

All week long, Antoine Walker has been helping Steve Francis at the repair shop. Steve Francis is very happy about this, because he has been very busy. So far this week, the two NBA stars have fixed two cars and one truck, replaced the chain on a 10-speed bicycle, and repaired one broken vacuum cleaner. It has been a good week for business, but both players are looking forward to a relaxing weekend, and they hope that all the readers of the Overflow blog have one as well.

Steve Francis has a repair shop

In addition to being an NBA basketball player, Steve Francis owns and operates a repair shop. He fixes cars, trucks, bicycles, and small appliances. Sometimes Antoine Walker likes to hang around the shop and help out with the work. Today, the alien guy has brought his UFO in because it is having trouble starting in the morning (especially when the weather is cold).

Above: Steve Francis and Antoine Walker discuss the problem with the alien guy.

Below: The UFO.

Steve Francis and Antoine Walker have different ideas about what might be wrong with the UFO. Steve Francis thinks that starter motor is bad and will need to be replaced. Antoine Walker believes that it is just the starter solenoid that is faulty and not the entire starter. The only way to find out is to open the UFO up, so they both get to work.

Above and below: Steve Francis and Antoine Walker try to diagnose the problem.

Above and below: More pictures of the two NBA players working on the UFO.

Below: Steve Francis uses his jack hammer.

While Steve Francis and Antoine Walker are busy fixing the UFO, they do not notice that they are being spied on. (See photo below) Gary Payton and Vince Carter are trying hard to get a glimpse of the UFO and the alien guy. They have been tracking the movements of the UFO for several days, but they have not told anybody about what they have seen because of a promise they made to Dirk Nowitzki.

Below: Gary Payton uses the binoculars to try to get a closer look.

The UFO is now all fixed and Steve Francis, Antoine Walker, the alien guy, and the pig are standing around the repair shop enjoying ice-cold sodas. In the end, Steve Francis is correct -- the entire starter has to be replaced, not just the solenoid. This is bad news for the alien guy, because that costs more money, but Steve Francis does his best to give him a break on the price.

A little three-on-three

Tonight, some of the NBA players got to together to play a little three-on-three basketball. The teams were Gary Payton, Vince Carter, and Shaq versus Kevin Garnett, Jalen Rose, and Antoine Walker. Here are a few photographs of the game.

Below: Gary Payton drives right by Jalen Rose.

Below: Seeing Gary Payton go by Jalen Rose, Antoine Walker does the right thing and slides over to help out. Antoine Walker knows how important it is to keep his opponents from getting too many easy baskets.

Below: Later on, Antoine Walker shows off his dunking skills.

Below: Jalen Rose can dunk the basketball as well.

Below: Kevin Garnett and Antoine Walker both know how important it is to keep your hands up on defense.

Below: All the while, Allen Iverson is watching patiently from the sidelines. Allen Iverson hopes that he will get a turn soon.