Last night, I tasted victory. And it was sweet. My softball team finally won one with me in the lineup. Hard fought, gritty, gutty…whatever cliché you can think of, it was that. My team advanced to the third round of the playoffs with a 13-12 win, avenging the crushing 18-3 loss that the same opponent dealt us earlier in the season. After going into the bottom of the 7th with a 13-7 lead, our worthy opponents made it interesting by scoring five in the inning before finally bowing out. Gotta tell ya…it feels good.
I actually didn’t put up a chattus (gmail status) yesterday. Not one. Here’s yesterday’s best anyway:
- My facebook status: “Scottie wishes he was a little bit taller” (most of my friends didn’t take the bait…or just didn’t realize I was baiting them, anyway. Kudos to Merci—“I wish I was a baller”—and Tim—“and a 64 Impala”—for pickin’ up what I was puttin’ down)
- Chattus of the day: “Now they're giving away free wine. This job is never getting rid of me.” –Tamika
- Honorable mention: “annoying morning. woken up by dog at 2am, then he ate a pair of my pants.” –Leslie
- Link of the day (Reality Check Division): “Athletes the real collateral damage” by Dana O’Neil—Great piece on ‘niche’ athletic programs being cut or cutback across the country, with a nice little implied stab at the NCAA for their hypocrisy when it comes to the major (read: football and basketball) programs. The first part of the story hit me particularly close to home having spent 10 years as a competitive swimmer…I remember how hard the adjustment was when it was over.
- Link of the day (Infuriating Division): “The 10 best sporting events to see live” by Rick Reilly—I really used to like Reilly. His stuff when he was at SI was great. Now that he’s at the Worldwide Leader, I just wanna choke him with a coat hanger. Having said that, most of these, I actually agree with, and I think you’d be hard pressed to find a guy that doesn’t. Now, having said THAT…
“4. North Carolina vs. Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium -- Fans pulling the hair of Tar Heels players as they inbound the ball; students camping out for months in K-Ville for tix; the hilarious chants from the Crazies, who once yelled at Grant Hill's parents, "One more kid!"; public school vs. private; an electricity that makes the Final Four and its corporate crowd seem like a three-day seminar on bunions.”
I don’t know where to begin here. I’m about as intimidated by the Cameron Crazies as I am by mango sorbet. Cameron Indoor has an incredibly overhyped reputation as being the toughest place to play in Division I hoops, and at one time, it was. But now? Well, it’s kinda like the Jonas Brothers; small, white, played out and dying a slow death, but great for little girls who just don’t know any better. There…that’s my “I hate Duke” rant for the summer. Gimme a UNC-Duke game at the Dean Dome any day of the week. I’ll take the slightly less intense atmosphere if it means I won’t have to look at Speedo Guy. - Comment of the day: dcist.com – Go Home Already: Magic Hour “Obama deserves DC's respect when he does something more for this city than make it impossible for locals to get a half-smoke or cheeseburger.” –KittyLiteral. This one made me chuckle, mostly because I had a killer half-smoke the night before last.
- Quote of the day (America! F&%K YEAH! Division): “…U.S. men's 4x100-meter freestyle relay team won the Best Moment award for Jason Lezak's late sprint to edge France.”—from the ESPY wrap-up article on espn.com. Just thinking about that race gives me goosebumps…if you don’t know what I’m talking about, and you wanna see something amazing, watch the full race here.
- Quote of the day (Funny Chat Excerpt Division): “i actually stood up when i heard this like i was about to run to my car and drive to St. Louis just to point out all the ways McCarver was wrong” –Stallings, telling me about some stupid comments that Tim McCarver made during the All-Star Game that Kevin Youkilis is better than A-Rod or Mark Teixeira on the basis that Youkilis can play both first and third. Um…Tim? Remember when A-Rod wasn’t a Yankee? Yeah…best shortstop in the bigs back then. And short is the toughest position on the field. First base is a joke (I should know…I play first base). Tim, you are wrong. QED.
