A fun start to the new year...

And a motherhood first for me - a trip to urgent care. In 6.5 years, none of my children had needed anything other than well checks and two - yes, two visits among the three kids - sick visits to the doctor. Well, our streak is broken. Today I had to take my 2.5 year old Miss S to have her foot x-rayed. A fun two hour New Year's Day trip to the off-hours medical place only to find out that it's not broken, or at least isn't showing up as a fracture on the x-ray. In the meantime, she still won't walk on it and keeps forgetting that it hurts and stands up to run and then screams "my foot!" I'm told she'll be fine in a few days. Meanwhile, I should keep her off of it. Said by someone who's never tried to keep a two year old still, obviously.

And while this might seem like an inauspicious start to 2008, I'm trying to look at the bright side. I hate streaks. When my team is on a streak or a favorite player is on a streak, I get all tense and nervous every time they make a move on the field. Streaks add an unnatural element to the game, be it football, basketball or motherhood. When March Madness closes in, I always hope my favorite team gets a loss right before it starts. A win streak (which adds a bit more tension than a losing streak, because, well, no one minds if a losing streak ends) puts your mind in a different place. You don't lose yourself to the moment, you start thinking about every little move.

So our streak is broken. May it be a fresh start for the new year.

A brief sports interlude...

I need to talk NFL Draft. It's the closest thing I can get to college football in April, so I was way psyched for it. Turns out I shouldn't have been. It's not like I stayed home glued to my TV or anything, but I followed the coverage every now and then on tv and online. Here's what I have to say:

1. What the hell, Cleveland? And all you dumbasses who had picks 4 through 21? Brady Quinn? You passed on Brady Quinn? Y'all suck.

2. Baltimore, what the hell? Troy Smith? Are ya kiddin me? Sure he won the flipping Heisman trophy and he team only lost one game. But, well, I don't like him. And I won't cheer you on if he's your QB. If he's on the bench, I am willing to overlook him.

3. I would like to commend Detroit on the selection of Drew Stanton, who I think it going to end up being the best NFL QB out of this year's draft. (Sorry, Brady - but you're definitely be the hottest).

That's really all I have. Unless I start all over on number 1. I mean, seriously, Cleveland, Miami, etc. What were you all thinking? No one needs a quarterback? No one needs their team's hot factor to instantly quadruple? Really?

Wrapping up the first weekend of March Madness...

So my big huge family does a pool for March Madness because a) they'll bet on anything and b) they're major sports fans. So I usually just dash off a bracket and hope for...not the worst. I'm not a big basketball fan. I like the sound of sports, though, so I'll put it on sometimes if nothing else is on. And I usually watch Maryland games. My grandmother is the biggest basketball (and sports in general) fan I know. We all know to not even call her during a Maryland game (or at least call with caution or to purposely tease her). It's like calling me during a Notre Dame football game. It better be good. That's where my sports fandom comes from, I think.

So I go to fill out my bracket this year and decide to take a new tack. I will only select teams I don't hate in football (mainly these are Notre Dame grudges). So that means no USC, no Michigan State, no Boston College. Yeah, I didn't do so hot. I think all of my football grudges won. And any upset I took didn't upset. That's what I get for applying football rules to basketball. I think next year I need to revert to teams with pretty colors.

And can I just go on record right here as noting that if college football had brackets like this? OH. MY. GOD. I would have so freaking much fun. Incorporate the joy that is Bowl Season with the joy that is Bracketology. I don't think it could get much better. Unless Notre Dame won it. Then? Sheer bliss.

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

That's right, people. Bowl season is upon us. Day after day of football, all day long. Mama Chris is getting all tingly just thinking about it. Her husband, on the other hand, is already counting all the various ways he can think of to get away from the television and her mania. It's been three weeks! Three. Whole. Weeks. Since I watched a decent days' worth of college football. The pros have been subbing, but it's just not the same, although I must extend my thanks to the Ravens for doing so well in my time of need.

It started Monday (or was it Tuesday - I can't remember what I ate for lunch today so don't ask me specifics like that - unless it was about things that happened ten years ago. Then I'm good) with a, well, kind of boring game. It doesn't get much better really until New Year's weekend. And then once Notre Dame plays LSU, it's all over. I'm not going to discuss how that game might end up because I refuse to believe that ND doesn't have a chance and I'd hate to eat my words if I said they'll kick LSU's ass. So I'll just not say anything at all.

Yeah, I don't give a crap about OSU and Florida. Unless Florida wins. Then I'd be impressed.See, I'm always rooting for the underdog. Unless that underdog is playing Notre Dame.

The only thing that gets my dear old hubby through this glorious time is knowing that it's all over until next September. Seriously, how did I end up married to a total sports-hater? I'm not a big rah-rah type. I really just love football, especially the give-it-their-all way the college teams play. Okay, so I'm kind of rah-rah about Notre Dame. And Maryland. And whoever's playing Florida State. My father-in-law finally got someone to watch sports with when Tom married me. He's more into NFL and baseball, but we can hang, especially on January 1. Tom? Just not into it. Actually, kind of rabidly against fandom in general - you know the overbearing, all encompassing level that some people take it to? And really I agree with him. Football is entertainment, not a way of life. Not unless someone is paying you millions upon millions of dollars to participate in it.

I barely even have the heart to tell him that I'll be watching the Ravens in the playoffs. So, just until February (optimistically speaking). Oh, and then I'll probably get into March Madness yet again. But then once it's April, I'm off of sports until September. Mostly. I mean, if a baseball game's the only thing on, I'll probably watch it.