March Madness

The NCAA basketball tournament is underway (3 weeks and 68 teams, but who's counting?) and though we’re not huge college basketball fans at our house, this year, for the first time in a long while, the University of Georgia men’s team is a contender.  

UGA forward Jeremy Price (#50)

The phrase “March Madness” was coined by a man named H.V. Porter in 1939 to describe an Illinois high school basketball tournament. American sportscaster Brent Musburger first used it during National Collegiate Athletic Assocation coverage in 1982.

The tournament is also sometimes referred to as "The Big Dance."

The 6 schools who have the winningest history in NCAA Division I Men's basketball are:

UCLA with 11 championships;
Kentucky -  7 times;
Indiana with 5 Big Dance victories;
North Carolina with 4, including in 2005
Duke with 4 titles, including last year's nail biter over Indianapolis' Butler University

I saw Charles Barkley the other night on David Letterman talking about the tournament.  He was funny.

And if you’re the competitive type, here’s a link to a printable copy of the brackets on the way to the Final Four.  

Go Dawgs!

Grown Up

My oldest.  My only daughter. 

The precious little girl, who I remember like this

With Kitty

and this

and this

and this

and now this

turns 18 today! 

She is smart and talented and funny and more grown up than I could ever have imagined.  

When you are raising children, the days are long, but the years are short.  Be careful.  It's gone in a blink.  

Happy Birthday, sweet girl!

Clover Cookies

Holiday enthusiast that I am, family and friends are often suggesting great ideas to me. My sister, in particular, also a holiday aficionado, has great recommendations for celebrations, events and party themes and is always on the lookout for topics for my blog.

Just recently she introduced me to these sanded clover cookies:

  
Of course, I was delighted.  Not only are these cookies adorable (and delicious), they sing to my Celtic roots and, most importantly, bring focus to  a very special day in my life -- the birth of my firstborn on St. Patrick’s Day, 1993. 

When the anesthesiologist mentioned in labor and delivery, “looks like you’re going to have a little leprechaun,"  I have to admit I was excited.  Granted, that was mostly because that indicated that my 20+ hour labor must be drawing to a close, but also because it meant our daughter would be born on March 17th; a fun, merry-making day for everyone, Irish or not.  Consequently, I love all things St. Patrick's Day including these:
 

These cookies are made in California but were purchased, all the way across the country at my local Whole Foods.  They can also be ordered online.   When I checked out Gianna's website I was delighted to discover they make other great holiday cookies too -- hello Easter bunnies and eggs and carrots! The dove is my favorite.   I love the baseball, basketballs and soccer balls, too. 

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to find a great Irish Coffee!
 

Checkmate

Bobby Fischer (1943-2008) on a November 1971 cover of Life magazine.

Chess legend James Robert "Bobby" Fischer was born 68 years ago today in Chicago, Illinois. For many, even those who don't play the competitive board game, Bobby Fischer's name is a household word, almost synonymous with the challenging contest. 

My husband was captain of his high school chess team. He also played baseball and football (in case you were wondering if I married a nerd).

Our sweet boy, in the 5th grade, contemplating his next move.

Our son loves chess, too. He has been playing on and off for about 6 years.  He has just recently become serious about improving his skills and competing.  

Consequently, I've learned a bit about the game including that it has its origins in 6th century Persia and that there is a movement to make chess an Olympic event (though summer or winter, I'm not quite sure).  I've become familiar with words like "castle" and "Grandmaster" too.

Would you think less of me if I admitted that I lack the powers of concentration and the cognitive, problem-solving, numerical and spatial skills among others, to be any good at chess?  I am more of a Connect Four, Mancala and UNO girl.  But I can still appreciate the genius of Bobby Fischer and the men in my life who  enjoy the game of chess.   

Mardi Gras

Tomorrow is the last day of the Mardi Gras season.     

And though my husband spent his last two years of high school in Louisiana and a good friend grew up in New Orleans,  I have to admit, I was never intrigued by the celebration that is until our trip to Louisiana last fall when my interest was peeked.

My daughter and husband look out over Lake Pontchartrain.

Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, celebrations outside of Louisiana are no doubt mostly limited to expatriates, though you can sometimes see evidence of those longing for life in the Pelican State (or maybe just those who appreciate a good party) in other places.   

For example yesterday, just a few streets over from my house, I spotted this:

 

I couldn't resist the urge to stop and take a few photos.  I bet these folks are fun!

In our local grocery stores at this time of year, you can find King Cake in the bakery section (or you can make your own) and this will be our own little taste of Mardi Gras.

I have to say, the notion of the King Cake and it's baby Jesus (remember my nativity infatuation?) is really special and a tradition, Louisianan or not, that I'm happy to adopt. 

"Laissez les bon temps rouler"

The Iditarod

I've written previously about my family's affinity for our 49th state, so I have to mention that today, the first Saturday in March, the Iditarod begins.

The Iditarod is a dog sled team race across Alaska.  Teams, typically 16 dogs and their dogsled driver (aka musher), cover more than 1,000 miles from Willow to Nome, Alaska, in nine to fifteen days.  

When my son was in the third grade his school placed an emphasis on the Iditarod, utilizing the details and facts about the race to interest the kids and making it part of a comprehensive curriculum - math, science, reading, etc. Which I have say, I thought was a really great idea.    One class even wrote the mushers and a few wrote back!

Irresistible

This year, in the spirit of the race (and an effort to be a little more active), I'm doing the Idita-Walk.  A fundraiser for the Nome, Alaska Boy Scouts.  Ten dollars buys you access to their tracking website so you can log your minutes (not miles, thankfully) and walk wherever you are. It's a really clever idea, your own version of the Iditarod and you won't be subject to white-outs or sub-zero temperatures!

National Grammar Day

This blog and my Bachelor of Arts in English demand that I include this information for your edification.  However, fearful of making a  syntax or punctuation error, I will conclude with this bit of funniness.