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Ponderous thoughts I was pondering while looking down upon the Dalai Lama, of all people, from the press box at Gillette Stadium:

Seriously, this isn't "sports" in the traditional sense. But I just have to say, lapsing into the vernacular for a moment, that it was pretty cool that Gillette Stadium played host to the Dalai Lama on Saturday.

I got a chance to listen to a little bit of the message delivered by this very serene and spiritual individual, the winner of the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize. It was fascinating to hear him speak of the need for a renewal of a sense of community on not just a global scale, but also in individual neighborhoods, as a means of bettering the human condition.

Here's an individual who has, since becoming Tibet's spiritual and political leader-in-exile in 1959, has received over 84 awards, honorary doctorates and prizes in recognition of his message of peace, non-violence, inter-religious understanding, universal responsibility and compassion - yet he still considers himself a humble Buddhist monk. And he was here, talking to New Englanders in an edifice that was built as another sort of temple, one built to honor football.

While that may sound a little facetious and even a little disrespectful, keep in mind that the Dalai Lama is a man who is keenly aware of his surroundings - and he proved that Saturday by delivering his afternoon address wearing a red baseball cap adorned with the Patriots' "Flying Elvis" logo. I kid you not. He loved the hat. Somewhere in the stadium, Bob Kraft must have been smiling from ear to ear.

I've spent a lifetime in this career surrounded by celebrities. I've interviewed hundreds, possibly thousands, of sports "heroes." I've talked to actors and actresses, posed questions to presidential candidates and stood next to supermodels - and yet, on Saturday, I couldn't help but be impressed by the fact that our local 68,000-seat coliseum was used for something a little more ethereal than football or rock-'n-'roll.

It was a thought-provoking break from the usual celebrity culture, and I hope there will be more of it in Gillette Stadium's future.

**The sad thing about the amazing playoff series staged by the Celtics and the Chicago Bulls is that I can't see either team having anything left for the next round of the playoffs. Both of them truly left everything on the floor in that series.

The next time you hear someone say that pro athletes are spoiled and don't want to give everything they have, please refer them to this first-round series as an example of 100-percent effort.

**One thing I've noticed recently is that some individuals have begun to leave comments on our Internet-posted high school sports roundups that are totally devoid of sportsmanship - and, in my opinion, highly inappropriate - because of the critical and insulting tone they take toward individual athletes or coaches.

It's one thing to criticize professional athletes, because they are being paid significant sums of money to perform in public. But I don't believe there's any place for that sort of nonsense to appear underneath stories about local high schoolers.

**I also had to chuckle at the comments left under one of my columns about the NFL Draft in which the writer believed that Bill Belichick really botched things when he picked offensive tackle Sebastian Vollmer in the second round.

I admit, Vollmer did appear to be a reach. But he's a huge fellow - I'm not tiny, but I felt puny standing next to him during an interview on Saturday - and seriously, how can anyone say a draft has been botched before any of these kids actually take the field?

**Yes, I did become a tree-hugger. I now own a hybrid automobile. Averaging 45 mpg over the first two tanks of gasoline, I can say without hesitation that I'm happy to be not only more environmentally responsible, but also to have a few more dollars back in the wallet. **Since when did the Tampa Bay Rays earn such ownership rights over the Boston Red Sox?

**Admittedly, I'm not a hockey maven. But I don't mind becoming a fair-weather fan while the Bruins are advancing in the Stanley Cup playoffs. I really enjoy watching playoff hockey, anyway, and these playoffs have been outstanding.

**I've mentioned this before in my blog, but I'd like to offer a quick plug for the newest Patriot Place restaurant. It's called "Tavolino," and it's got tasty Italian fare in generous portions for reasonable prices. It's also run by the same folks who own a restaurant in Mashpee Commons called "Siena," which I visit frequently in the summertime.

**From first look, I'd say that both Patrick Chung and Darius Butler have a long way to go before they can be considered as potential contributors to the Patriots' secondary. But talented athletes such as them often close that gap quickly in offseason workouts, minicamps and training camp. Butler, in fact, showed a lot of improvement in his awareness and confidence after just one practice session.

By the way, keep an eye on his fellow UConn cornerback, Robbie Vaughn, late of North Attleboro, for next year's draft.

**Speaking of former local athletes in the pros, I got no help whatsoever from the Indianapolis Colts in contacting former Mansfield High standout Brett McDermott, who had a nice career as a receiver and special-teamer at Holy Cross and was signed as an undrafted free agent. Apparently, the Colts had just one day in which their rookies could be available to the media, and I was out of luck. It's not as if I was asking for a one-on-one with Peyton Manning, fellas.

McDermott, you may remember, had one of the best Thanksgiving games possible back in 2004, when his three touchdown catches and one thunderous, fumble-forcing hit on Foxboro running back Joe Bordieri turned a 7-7 game into a 37-7 Mansfield rout.

**Seriously, the Dalai Lama, wearing a Patriots cap ... no doubt, one of those things you never expect to see in a lifetime, but you do and you never forget it.

MARK FARINELLA may be reached at 508-236-0315 or via e-mail at mfarinel@thesunchronicle.com. Read Farinella's blog, "Blogging Fearlessly," at thesunchronicle.com/farinella.