A Spring Tease/March Roundball Madness

Yesterday was unlike most St. Patrick's Days you will find in west Ohio. 74 degrees, no clouds, and a slight southern breeze was the order of the day. Seldom does St. Paddy's Day fall like that, weather wise.

I remember 36 years ago on March 17, 1973. My sister Marty and her husband-to-be, Pat(yep another Pat in the family...Pats and Mikes come in bunches, whether by marriage or birth in our American Family) were married...I woke up that morning of the wedding and the surprise storm of that winter had struck overnight....6 to 8 inches of heavy wet snow, with temps in the 20s greeted us. The wedding at the Immaculate Conception Church went off, as did the reception, without a hitch...but the storm caused some anxious moments. Despite that, the Houseworth part of the family drove from as far as 60 miles to make the gig.

Other mid March days, and even late March have brought us plenty of snow....I remember a dozen or so years ago, March 28th, the opening of the State High School Basketball Tournament saw a blizzard...just last year the second day of the Girls State Tournament was postponed by 14 inches of snow...Sam and I were on our way to California with a couple of RVs, so we missed that one....March is not always kind, weather wise.

So yesterday was a tease...today we will stay fairly warm, 65 for a high, but showers moving in tonight, and then 50s for the rest of the week...Next week looks damp, but with normal or above normal temps.

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March Madness, the NCAA Men's Tournament began last night, with the "play-in" game down at the University of Dayton....Morehead State(Kentucky) won that game, and the field of 64 is set.

The teams I follow, Duke and Ohio State are set to play. Duke takes on Bighamton(NY), while the Buckeyes take on a tough Sienna team at the aforementioned Dayton Arena...if(and that is a big "if") they will be rewarded by getting top ranked Louisville. The Blue Devils with a win would take on the Minnesota-Texas winner.

I sent youngest son Hal my picks, after filling out 2 brackets...I did win some money last year, but for the most part the past few years, my picks have not all been that good...I usually ride my Duke Blue Devils and have been tossed off that mule, this year Pittsburgh is my team of choice in both the brackets I have filled out....tomorrow it starts.

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Tomorrow will also see baseball scrimmage season begin for me, weather permitting. I head to Russia(pronounced Rue-She so not to look Commie inspired) and will be back there Saturday as well...Friday night I'm at Spencerville....next week, depending on the rain forecast...I have 4 more dates scheduled, but not likely to get all in...especially if Coldwater makes the State Basketball Tournament, that Saturday game would be cancelled, with the Cavs in Columbus playing roundball.

The Regular Season gets underway on March 30th, I am scheduled to do a Varsity Contest between visiting Wapakoneta and host Delphos St. Johns, at Delphos.

So, I am ready, hope my back and the weather cooperates this spring....frankly I've been pretty bored since I shut down, or rather the calf muscle shut down, the basketball season a month or more ago.

Heading out to enjoy today's "Tease of Spring"....we may not see a day like this again for weeks, you never know.

And one final thought for today..Why the Hell is our "Annoited Leader" one Barry Soetoro Obama, going on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno tonight? Does this over-his-head out-of-his league rookie think it's still the Campaign Season? I say...Get to Work Slacker, or resign, because you are not making it as a "leader" in any sense of the word.

back later>>>>

Photos-My Bracket...rooting for Duke, but taking Pittsburgh, Spring gets an early start, but how long will it last, and the high school baseball season(scrimmages) begin for me tomorrow.