March Madness and FO's

Bracketology: The science of picking the winners of the NCAA college basketball tournament starting with 64 teams and ending up with a single National Champion.


I confess, I'm hooked. Why else would I spend the entire weekend glued to the tv watching a bunch of VERY tall college boys run back and forth bouncing a ball and bumping into each other while trying to make it look as if they were the bumpees not the bumpers?

They call it March Madness and one look at the rabid fans in the stands and you know where the term originated. And it doesn't end there. The business world has spent time and money documenting the productivity lost in office pools and time spent watching games on company time on the internet. (I would venture to say that a fair amount of productivity was also lost in doing the study!) But it remains an american reality. Maybe it is a harbinger of spring after the long cold winter. Maybe it is just a harmless diversion in a world full of tragic news. On any given day, any team can be a winner, sometimes despite the rankings so it sometimes becomes America's David and Goliath story. Everybody wants to root for David.

For the uninitiated here are some important terms: (If this is all boring to you, just skip ahead to the FO's)

64 teams are initially selected to participate in the tournament and a selected college team is therefore invited to "The Big Dance." These selections are based on their season records and the divisions where they play. Each team is ranked from 1 to 16 in their division. In a nod to sadism, the number one team is always matched with the number sixteen, the number two team is matched to number fifteen and so on. The first weekend of the tournament first and second round games are played, leaving 16 teams left. These teams become the "Sweet Sixteen." After the next round the "Elite Eight" emerge to play each other, followed by the "Final Four" and then ultimately, the Championship game determines the National Champion. Selecting the winners of each round has become a national pasttime, sometimes with great amounts of money at stake but often just offering the opportunity for some heavy duty bragging rights.

This year Facebook has become a major player. Yes, I have a facebook page...one of the by products of working on a college campus. It has become my way of staying in touch with my students (as well as my daughter). I started a pool on facebook and five people joined, including Meredith and my nephew Paul. As of right now, here are the standings.


Pool Standings - Top 20
Rank Name R1 R2 Total
1 Mary Ann 26 24 50
2 Paul 27 18 45
2 Matt 21 24 45
2 Bobby 23 20 43
5 Meredith 26 16 42
6 Mike 19 18 37

Not too shabby, huh? I could end up getting hammered in rounds three and four but I am savoring my spot at the top of the heap right now!

When I haven't been biting my nails and screaming at the tv, I have managed to get some knitting done. I'm even working on the GD Baby Blanket which has been languishing in my knitting bag. Here's my output so far:





Pink Lady Hobo Bag
(I love, love, love
the Celtic Knot button)


















The teal
"Pink Lady" Hobo Bag
(also with that
great Celtic Knot button)













A black envelope clutch evening bag for my sister's birthday *cough* last month.
















...and a little ipod/cellphone bag made from some extra material.




The baby blanket is coming along agonizingly slowly. It has had more than its share of frogging but I am determined to finish it. Fortunately, I don't have a specific recipient in mind for it at this point. The little girl I originally started it for will be in kindergarten next fall so she got something else, a simple sweater and hat that I could finish in a short amount of time.

Also on the needles at this point: a second pair of wool socks for Brendan. He absolutely LOVES the first pair I made him.



So now he is getting a gray pair. He was such an angel while I was laid up with my ankle, doting on me as if I were royalty. A pair of socks is such a small way to show my love and gratitude, but it's all he wants. What a honey!

So, for the next couple of weeks you will find me parked in front of those basketball games, rooting, swearing (a little), and knitting. Oh, and Go Gators!!!!