Day 18 – You Win Some, You Lose Some

With anticipation and excitement I watched Michigan State play in the first semi-final game of the Final Four. With a bit of disappointment, I watched them lose by two to Butler, a Cinderella team you can't help but root for. Still, I'm proud of the Spartans, who defied long odds and reached the Final Four for the second year in a row and the sixth time in twelve years. Any college would take that record.

In the interest of full disclosure, allow me to tell you that, even though I live in Tucson now, I was born and raised and spent most of my life in Michigan. Thus, I am a diehard State of Michigan fan. Yes, that does mean I root for the Lions. Like the Cubs, they are long-time losers, but if New Orleans can make it to the Super Bowl, hope springs eternal in Detroit. The Red Wings, though down this year, have had a good run; same with the Pistons. The Tigers have been losers for a long time, but rebounded enough to give fans hope in 1996 when they reached the World Series. Last year they competed again, which is all you can ask of any sports team.

It also means I root hard for any Michigan college...except when they play each other. In that I bleed Blue and Gold...the University of Michigan. Like the Red Wings and Pistons, they've been down for a few years, but I am ever hopeful they will return to glory. Still, if Michigan is not playing Michigan State, I will root hard for MSU because, above all else, I root for any team from the state.

I must confess this does put me at odds sometimes with my wife and her family. They are diehard Spartans, just as I am a diehard Wolverine. So when the teams play each other...well, we just go to our separate corners. But they love me anyway and I feel the same way about them.

Coincidentally, there is a parallel with beer.

With anticipation and excitement I tackled some of the many beers I had waiting for me. With a bit of disappointment, I watched a few of them go down with no breakthrough in scoring for me. The first was called Red Seal Ale. Funny, but before this challenge, if you had asked me some of my favorite styles, I would have included red ales in the mix. Come to find out, red ales are actually called pale ales and tend toward the hoppy side, which I do not favor. Therefore, RSA didn't fare well in my rating.

Next up was one I thought would score well, a dark lager from Sam Adams. I like dark beers; I like Sam Adams - what could go wrong? Well, it, too, was on the bitter side, and though I liked it better than RSA, it wasn't by much. Damn!

The final try was from a local brewery...Oak Creek Brewing in Sedona, the place in AZ of the famous red rocks...and tried their hefeweizen. Okay, I admit, I stacked the deck a bit. I like wheat beers...really like wheat beers...so I was sure I would favor this one. I did.

So, two not so good and one good. Score one for the other side.

Just like Michigan State and Butler.

Go Blue!

Goal...............524.....365
Progress...........32.......18
Remaining......492.....347