Public Service Announcement

Since I am still working a lot with not much with not much to report, I am interrupting my regularly scheduled blog session for some ruminations about this year's NCAA men's basketball tournament. A Brit I was speaking with here didn't know what March Madness was, and I have to say, I felt this person was really truly deprived. As much as I love all sports (except unfortunately for me, not cricket), March Madness I have always really loved because there are so many games on in such a short time, and it usually involves a little drinking and a little gambling.

Having not being able to watch the games but only read about them is not as fun. And it looks like there were some amazing games this year, like there are every year, only maybe a little bit more amazing this year than last year according to my sources (Justin and Zach who have been updating me). Seems like every game I checked scores for went into overtime. Although I haven't watched any games or even followed basketball as much this year (after Vandy took a downturn), I think I've developed some new strategies for next year.

So what have I learned?

I learned that the 5 over 12 upset is still a slam dunk, as long as you pick the right one (I didn't).

I learned that Illinois is about as good as I thought they were last year (which is - not that good).

I learned that I have to stop picking Florida to choke, because they finally didn't. OK to still pick Arizona to though.

I learned that Duke may not ever win the NCAA tournament again unless Laettner finds an extra year of eligibility somewhere and can work some magic.

I learned Tennessee should stick to football. Take that, Rocky top.

Will Gonzaga ever make it out of the sweet 16?

I learned that my mom is now a college basketball fan!

Finally, I would just like to ask, does anyone know anyone who went to George Mason? Does anyone know anyone who picked George Mason to do anything? Not by chance or on a coin flip, but maybe because they are an alum or they've always rooted for the George Mason (insert name of mascot for this school which I have no clue what it is). I really hope that person went with their gut and picked GMU to go to the sweet 16, the elite 8 and maybe even the final 4. I hope they didn't brush off their allegiance to GMU for a Duke or a Memphis (who would pick Memphis anyway??) to try and win the office pool. If there is such an individual out there, I commend you. If I could ever get a drink in this country, I would raise my glassto you. I hope you enjoy the ride. And I thank you for taking UCONN out of the tournament so the entire extended Dreiss family does not have to feel too sad about Villanova losing too.

Now, back to your regularly scheduled program...