Inauguration Day Yesterday

 

                               MOURNING IN AMERICA

Obviously, I was not thrilled with Trump's election.  But worse, it filled the TV from 8 am to 8 pm because it was disorganized.  I understand the reason, it was brutally cold with single digit wind chill.  

And I did appreciate Trump saying the reason for bringing the ceremony inside was to protect attendees, service staff, and service animals.  Not that I believe him (it was more likely for his own comfort) but it was a decent reason to express it that way.

I watched science DVDs most of the day.  The most irritating thing was that I was looking forward to watching the Univ of MD Women's basketball game at 5:30.  #8 Maryland vs #7 Texas.  It promised to be a great game!

It wasn't.  MD was missing 2 top starters, so it became a wipeout.  89-51.  I'm actually glad I couldn't watch or listen to it on radio.  

First, I couldn't watch the game because it was scheduled to be shown on Fox TV (which wasn't going to cut away from the delayed inauguration even if WW3 broke out.  I'm feeling a bit conspiracy-minded right now.  I'm sure that if Harris had won the election, Fox would have shown very little of the inauguration and all of the basketball game!

But was also radio.  For reasons that make no sense to me, Md basketball games are broadcast on a local AM station.  Terrible reception on most radios.  

But I tried my stereo system since it was time to make dinner.  Static!  I have a hang-up antenna, but I pulled the stereo away from the wall to look at it.  It was for FM.  So I looked around in a box in the bottom of the stereo rack and found an "AM loop antenna" with 2 bare wires to insert in clips.  Tiny wires, tiny clips, "oh joy".

So I set up a flashlight to shine on the clips.  Naturally, the only place I could rest the flashlight was where my hand managing the clips was in a shadow.  ARRRGH!  I had to contort myself rather badly to get at the clips in light.  But I did succeed.  I heard the AM station tolerably.  

And they were broadcasting a different local basketball game!  One in which the local team had lost 4 games in a row (and the other wasn't much better).  That was better than a game between a #7 and #8 team going at each other?  

So I went to the computer and clicked my Univ of Md bookmark.  Md was getting crushed!  So I went back to DVDs and made dinner.  An all too unhappy day.  Something around the worst in 10 years...

Well, at least I do have working AM radio antenna.  Small victories do mean something.  👍

NFL Football and College Basketball

My local football team, The Washington Commanders, beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to advance in the playoffs.  If I understood a local sports announcer correctly, the Commanders have won their last 5 games on the last play of the game (offensively or defensively)!  Talk about heart-stopping endings...

They need a week of rest and so do I.  I feel exhausted after every game.  

And the Univ of MD prides itself on basketball.  The Men are doing well.  The #8 Women are doing better.  Sadly, they lost to the #4 USC team, but it could have gone either way right to the end when USC hit some baskets and MD had some bounce-outs.  But they won the next BIG 10 conference game, so that helped.  They are 14-1 which is very good.

More heart-stopping endings.

Basketball

 I don't watch professional basketball at all.  It isn't the game I remember from decades ago.  It is surprisingly violent.  The refs don't call most fouls, travelling is routine, and it seems to me that most dribblers palm the ball most of the time.  It's almost a cross between hockey and rugby.

But I watch my alma mater University of Maryland basketball teams.   When I started there, the men's team was average and there wasn't a women's team (I think).  The University got a good coach who raised the game to higher levels (just as I was leaving, of course) and for many years after.  

Funny story there.  I don't know why Mom got so wrapped up it the team.  But she got more emotionally involved in the games than I did, so it wasn't just because of me.  She would get all wound up, but she couldn't watch for long.  She would watch the game a couple a minutes and then leave for a few minutes cheering or yelling until she checked the score again.  She said actually watching the game was too exhausting! 

I watched in later years when they were near the top, and not much when they weren't.  I was a real fair-weather supporter.  In fact, I am a real homey but also a "watch when winning" about all local teams.  I'm not going to spend a lot of time watching a local team  when they are like 2-11. It's just too hard.  😭

But I discovered the U of Maryland Women's basketball team.  First, it was more like the game I remembered.  Second, they won a lot.  I've been watching them often for about 10 years now.  Most years, they are automatic for the NCAA ("National Collegiate Athletic Association" for my foreign friends) tourney, and they won the title in 2005-2006 season.

This year has not been so good.  They went 19-12 overall and 9-9 in The Big Ten Conference.  But yesterday the played Ohio State in the conference tourney and won 82-61!  Ohio State was ranked #1 in the conference and #4 nationally.  Winning was an upset.  Winning by 21 points was a crush!

Just winning the game was a major thing.  U of MD Womens team has a hard time with ranked teams (they are ranked somewhere in the 30s themselves).  Ohio as #4 is certainly going to the NCAA, so this won't exactly ruin their season.  But it gives a big boost to Univ of MD's chances of getting in.  

The Univ of MD has a 17 year streak of being in the NCAA tourney and it  would be a shame to see that end.  I don't expect them to advance far (they suddenly lost 3 starters this season), but I'll sure watch them do their best.

Here's the kicker...  I didn't see them beat Ohio State.  I assumed a game against the top conference team would be a prime-time game.  But it started at 2 PM and I was busy outside (expecting to watch the game later.  ARGGGH!  😞