Paul Pierce looked around, saw a free-agency market crowded with the likes of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Dirk Nowitzki and others (including his once-and-possibly-future teammate Ray Allen), and decided he wanted to join in today, opting out of the final year of his deal with the Celtics and becoming a free agent.

^{Sierra Hull}

Being broke doesn't have to be boring. Check out these events, all free of charge:

CHARLES OGLETREE | The Presumption of Guilt: The Arrest of Henry Louis Gates and Race, Class, and Crime in America discussion and signing | July 1 @ 7 pm | Harvard Coop, 1400 Mass Ave, Cambridge | 617.499.

Slow Hump Day? Nothing like a short French film from a short French electronica musician -- Martin Solveig -- who's convinced by his Jason Schwartzman look-alike French manager to do a celeb tennis match at the French Open to make Wednesday feel like a European Thursday (which is an American Friday, and a Southern European every-other-day).

Alright, silly Americans, it's that time to reset the clock and worry like it's 1988 -- Cold War-style! In case you haven't heard, in the last couple of days, the feds have rounded up 11 suspects thought to be Russian spies

^{PHOTOS: Iansanity and others at Guerilla Gallery's Take It Outside exhibit}

This past Saturday, June 26th, Iansanity (imightbeinsane.com) and Madness 2012 (myspace.com/themouthofmadness2012) organized an art show with their new project, the Guerilla Gallery. This event -- called "Take It Outside" -- is part of their initiative to up the ante with Allston's art scene.

Federally-funded scientists predicted a "larger than average" dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico this year, but said it's unclear what the oil spill's effects on the dead zone will be.

Dead zones are underwater areas where oxygen levels are so depleted that they're inhospitable to most marine life.

Child-turned-tween-turned-young adult actress Amanda Bynes recently dropped a flaming ball of WTF on the
film industry. Well, ok, it was probably more like a lukewarm marble of "ehhh." The actress, perhaps best known for her reprisal of Amanda on Nickelodeon's SNICK (which was, to be honest, quite awesome in its day) and The Amanda Show announced her retirement from show biz.

^{Nick Flynn reads to daughter Maeve (courtesy of the WW Norton Flickr gallery)}

Oh, Dad. He fed you, clothed you, put a roof over your head, and provided the seed from whence you sprung. Recognition must be paid. This year, you could travel the usual, tired old gift route -- a new Roto-Rooter, a magnum-sized bottle of Sitch by Situation cologne, a discreet pair of Man Spanx -- or you could think outside the box.

I'm an avid Brian Scalabrine fan, one of the few Celtics fans to sport a #44 jersey (T-shirts are for wimps). Tonight will prove whether the investment was worth it.

Scalabrine is back in uniform, and it’s up to him to prove he’s good for more than keeping Kevin Garnett’s seat warm. (Check it out tonight: Garnett comes out, Scal “stretches” or “cheers,” then walks to the other end of the bench.

Early during last night's shitstorm of a Game Six Lakers blowout, Kendrick Perkins went down in pain, clutching his knee. He would not return. Now we learn that he, indeed, will not play in the decisive Game Seven against Los Angeles. Kurt Helin of NBC's ProBasketballTalk describes the scene thusly:

Cast members from the Discovery Channel's Deadliest Catch are leaving the unforgiving sea for the open road. Following in the footsteps of "The Guy Fieri Roadshow," Dog Whisperer Cesar Millan's "Pack Power Tour," and other head-scratching television-inspired live tours, Captain Sig and the Hillstrand Brothers are coming to Lowell Memorial Auditorium this fall to present a "rare, live, interactive" event for the show's fans and aspiring crab fisherman.