Go Dawgs

Well here's the weekly first paragraph apology: I'm sorry I don't update my blog more often. I'm a bad person and I don't deserve having anyone reading it. I really want to blog every day during my road trip and I need to get in the habit now. I'm going to try to enter something every day for the next two weeks, even if it's just what I had for lunch. Enjoy.

First off I'll answer Mr. Anonymous' question about food on the ship in Antarctica. The food was awesome and everyone ate way too much. They had options that ranged from King Crab Crepes to Salmon fillets to Ribeye steaks. There was a salad bar every meal with different soup options and fresh fruits. There was a dessert every night, usually some sort of fruit or pie with icecream. My favorite was the dulce de leche crepe. Dulce de leche is probably the greatest concoction of all time. We ate really well on the ship and most people gained a lot of weight. I hope that helps you a bit.

I'm in Seattle, finally. It's really nice to be home for good. It was quite the challenge, packing up the little Prius with all my belongings, but I found a way to do it. Obviously I left my bed, desk, and shelf in Carlsbad but they were all the cheapest stuff from Ikea so it isn't that big of a deal. Renee flew one-way into San Francisco and it was nice having a co-driver for the long portion of the trip. She tried to drive but got tired after 40 miles and had to switch back. She drove from Chehalis to Olympia, exit 69 to exit 109.

I love the NCAA tournament so much. After the Super Bowl, sports goes through a 6 week lull and then, BAM, the tourney jumps up and slaps us in the face with great college basketball games. I love college sports because these kids play with the emotion that I remember having when I played sports. Pro athletes always have that pretentious air about them and you can really feel the business side of things.

This weekend should have some great games. Today we have LSU - Duke and Gonzaga - UCL as the marquee matchups. I think LSU could pull off the upset but I think JJ will pull through when they need him. I despise Duke but he's just so money. My heart is pulling for the Zags but, man, UCLA looks really good. If Morrison is off again the Zags don't stand a chance. If he's dominant, I think they can beat anyone. I can't wait for these two.

Tomorrow is the big Huskies-Huskies matchup and as much as I love my Dawgs, I just don't see how we can beat these guys. Their front line is just too strong and I think we're going to get worked. I still don't have any faith in Jensen and I feel like the Illinois game was more of a knock on Augustine than it was an atta-boy for Jensen. Call me crazy but I won't let 10 minutes of defense erase 4 years of boneheadedness, if that's even a word. I wish we could put Bobby Jones on their point guard to make it difficult for him to throw entry passes but I think we'll have to put him on Rudy Gay since Dentman can't guard anyone but Marcus Williams. UCONN scares the crap out of me but I'll be at the bar tomorrow night in my Husky purple. GO DAWGS!!!

My favorite part of this year's tournament is the success of the mid-majors and the failure of the Big Ten. In 2000, at the Rose Bowl, I was getting continental breakfast at my Pasadena motel before the game with one of the worst hangovers of my life, wearing my Husky purple when two Purdue fans came up and asked, "Do you guys really think you have a chance today?" My eyes bugged out of my head and I was like, "A chance? You guys went 8-3 and got into the game because you haven't been in 30+ years. We're 10-1! We beat Miami! We're the favorites here, what the hell are you talking about?" He replied with, "Well, who have you beaten besides Miami?" I said, "WTF!!! We beat Miami, another 10-1 team! Do we have to list all our wins? What 8 teams have YOU beaten?" Finally he simply said, "Well, we're from the Big 10 so we're going to win." Unreal. Since then I've always relished in the Big 10's failures. Screw those arrogant bastards.

That game featured the greatest trash talking moment of my life. Purdue hadn't been to the Rose Bowl if like 35 years, and they were all excited. The Rose Bowl had the fans from each scool divided into sections and I was sitting right on the edge of the Husky section next to the rowdy Purdue fans. We had a stifling defense and Marques Tuiasosopo and we kicked their butts. In the 4th quarter, we ran the clock out by just smashing the rock down their throats, getting 4-yards on every carry and demoralizing the team and its fans. On one of the last first-down runs, the one that made it clear that the game was over, I turned to the silent Purdue section and yealled, in my obnoxious hungover Schaefer voice, "SEE YOU IN 30 YEARS!!!" The "oooooohhhhhhhhhhhh" from the Husky fans helped and there was nothing the Purdue fans could do but bow their heads and cry. You know you got someone good when you feel really bad afterwards because the person you're making fun of looks suicidal. Good times, I don't think there were any reports of Purdue fans killing themselves so I can feel good about it.

Poker has been going pretty poorly since coming back to Seattle. I feel like I'm playing well but the cards aren't cooperating. When I lose I don't feel like playing but I need to play to earn money for travel. Let's hope I stop losing soon.

I looked at a 1998 Honda Odyssey today and I'm probably going to buy it. It looks clean and has a new transmission so it shouldn't break down on me. It sure would suck to have a busted ass van in the middle of Texas or something. Texas....*shudder*.

The games are about to start. I'd like to see Duke lose and Gonzaga win. GO DAWGS!!!!