brainsplotch

The Michigan State basketball team is in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA tournament for the eighth time in the last twelve years (and as I come back to finish this blog, the Spartans are in the Final Four for the fifth time in ten years). This is quite an amazing feat and got me to ponder how these are really the glory years of MSU basketball and we'd better appreciate them while they last. As anyone who has spent any time on this blog knows, I spend a good amount of time reading MSU sports fan sites as well as reader comments in various online local newspapers (Lansing State Journal, Detroit Free Press, etc.). For every excited and happy fan, there seem to be at least two others who complain about which player "didn't step up" or how "if the team doesn't cut down on the turnovers, they won't go any futher" or some such thing. Now, people have the right to complain and express their opinions (God knows I can get ticked off sometimes about MSU sports te...

Today is the beginning of the best and most exciting two days in the entire sports calendar year, the first round of the NCAA basketball tournament. I wish I'd taken today and tomorrow off to watch it, but at least I get off work today at 3:30 and will be able to see at least half of it. I will be taking my lunch today at about 12:20 PM to see the opening tip of the first game. Woohoo, bring on March Madness!

These last few weeks, and extending all the way into April, have been a veritable cornucopia of interesting book, music, and video releases for yours truly. On February 17, a DVD called "The Greatest Stories of Michigan State Basketball" was released. I had seen the program when it was broadcast on the Big Ten Network and thought that, for the most part, it was well done. There were a few minor errors here and there, but some of the old footage was great. When I learned that it would be released on DVD, I was ecstatic. I included in my "birthday wish list," and figured that if I didn't receive it from someone, I'd go out and buy it. I finally bought it yesterday and watched it again very late last night. It was a little pricey (with my Schuler Books employee discount, I think it came to about $22 and change), but it's Michigan State for crying out loud, so of course I had to buy it. Still, the program is only 74 minutes long and the extras are a little o...