good luck, sparty! #ncaa
Ok, the tournament is not the same for me this year. The demise of the Big East - the one that I knew and loved for over 25 years - has broken my basketball heart. No disrespect to the current Big East teams, but the Beast of the East and I arrived in Syracuse about the same time, and we kinda grew into adulthood together, raised our kids together, and many of us are retiring together. Still, I'm kind of surprised by my reaction to their absence. I thought I'd still care about the teams, but it really just isn't the same now that they've scattered to the conference winds. And, yes, I know, it's pretty ridiculous to mourn a sports league given the number of truly serious situations around the world these days. I'm not even a diehard sports fan, just kind of an ordinary one, but I feel their loss. And no, I cannot really support Syracuse as an ACC team.
But - and there is almost always a but with me - there is a positive side. In the past, my March loyalties have always been divided - much to the chagrin of daughters and colleagues (Big East) and siblings, cousins, and dad (Big Ten). This year, all my eggs are in the Michigan State basket,* As my alma mater, I've always supported them, but there was also a strong counter pull from my workplace of twenty years. Until now, when I am posting this 4-leaf clover for Sparty. Good Luck and play well, guys!
*Full disclosure: This is for the men's tournament. You can't live in Connecticut for a decade and not become a UConn Women's fan. Yeah, I know, the rest of you hate them - kinda like I hate the baseball Yankees - if you even know what women's basketball is. But that's a blurb for another posting.
good luck, sparty! #ncaa
Ok, the tournament is not the same for me this year. The demise of the Big East - the one that I knew and loved for over 25 years - has broken my basketball heart. No disrespect to the current Big East teams, but the Beast of the East and I arrived in Syracuse about the same time, and we kinda grew into adulthood together, raised our kids together, and many of us are retiring together. Still, I'm kind of surprised by my reaction to their absence. I thought I'd still care about the teams, but it really just isn't the same now that they've scattered to the conference winds. And, yes, I know, it's pretty ridiculous to mourn a sports league given the number of truly serious situations around the world these days. I'm not even a diehard sports fan, just kind of an ordinary one, but I feel their loss. And no, I cannot really support Syracuse as an ACC team.
But - and there is almost always a but with me - there is a positive side. In the past, my March loyalties have always been divided - much to the chagrin of daughters and colleagues (Big East) and siblings, cousins, and dad (Big Ten). This year, all my eggs are in the Michigan State basket,* As my alma mater, I've always supported them, but there was also a strong counter pull from my workplace of twenty years. Until now, when I am posting this 4-leaf clover for Sparty. Good Luck and play well, guys!
*Full disclosure: This is for the men's tournament. You can't live in Connecticut for a decade and not become a UConn Women's fan. Yeah, I know, the rest of you hate them - kinda like I hate the baseball Yankees - if you even know what women's basketball is. But that's a blurb for another posting.