Birthday Bowl Game

I don't know what I'm more excited about for this New Year's Eve: My wife's birthday, or the Insight Bowl, featuring the 6-6 powerhouse Minnesota Gophers vs. 6-6 Iowa State. (Just kidding, honey...)

I recall a conversation two uncles of mine were having in 1977. The Gophers were invited to this new "loser bowl," as one of them called it. That was the inaugural (and now-defunct) Hall of Fame Classic, which they lost to Maryland, 27-17. This new bowl game had brought the total of college football bowl games to a whopping twelve.

In 1985, the Lou Holtz-led, 6-5 Gophers earned a trip to the Independence Bowl, which they won 20-13 over Clemson under coach John Gutekunst, who had replaced the Notre Dame-headed Holtz by the time the game was played. It was one of fifteen bowl games overall.

In 1986, the Gophers were again bowl-bound at 6-5, despite a 63-0 shellacking at the hands of Oklahoma, and an embarrassing non-conference loss to Pacific. The also now-defunct Pacific Tigers finished the year 4-7, losing its final five games, including two to three-win teams (the also also-now-defunct Fullerton State, and the Utah State Aggies). For more perspective, only the more recent loss to North Dakota State was worse in my lifetime, and the recent wins against North Dakota State and South Dakota State were about as bad.

The Butch-Nash-pep-talk-inspired upset win over Michigan that year saved the season, as did, perhaps, the addition of two more bowl games, bringing the total to seventeen. They lost to Tennessee in the Liberty Bowl, 21-14. I remember reading and wondering about where the integrity in the bowl system was headed.

In 1999, the Gophers finished 8-4, after losing to Oregon in the Sun Bowl. It was one of 23 bowl games that season. It was around this time that the prestige of bowl games had come to the point of schools defining successful seasons by whether they made it to a "New Year's" bowl game, presumably meaning one played on or after January 1.

This season, there are 34 bowl games. The Cyclones of Iowa State have lost a couple close ones, and they defeated Nebraska. They were also much more impressive in defeating NDSU (34-17) than the Gophers were in defeating SDSU (16-13, a game in which the Gophers' offense did not score a touchdown). I would assume that puts the Gophers in the role of the underdog.

Here's what I find especially funny about this bowl season: There are fourteen bowl games played on or after January 1. That's two more than all of the 1977 bowl season. What's more, some of those games are far less prestigious (e.g., Papa Johns, GMAC) than some of the pre-New Year games (e.g., Brut Sun, Champs Sports). The term "New Year's" bowl game has been rendered meaningless.

My wife is a former University of Minnesota varsity swimmer. I am a long-suffering Golden Gophers fan. So just as I did with my wife on her birthday last year, I'll be pulling hard for a Ski-U-Mah victory just before ringing in the New Year on Thursday. A bowl victory on my wife's birthday, followed by some Auld Lang Syne - does life get any better than that?

Rah!

Bittersweet Day at the Magic Kingdom

My wife and I took our two boys, ages 2 and 4, to Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom today. It was their first visit, and they really enjoyed it, especially the four-year-old, because he got to meet many of the characters, including Mickey Mouse.

Today was also the birthday of my late father-in-law, the first birthday since his passing last May. My wife understandably was hesitant to go to Disney World on this day, but it ended up being a very nice distraction. The smiles on the boys' faces helped her forget, if only for some of the time.

On a different note, sort of, I would love to go to all of the Disney theme parks on my own some time. I am an avid admirer of the man's vision, and the attention to detail you find in the parks. One of the nice things about waiting in line for 45 minutes just for a picture with Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, too, is that it gives someone like me a chance to be introspective about it all. But I'd rather be walking around taking more of it in.

As chance would have it, the History Channel aired its Modern Marvels - Disney World episode tonight. For grownups who may need a different perspective from which to see "It's a Small World" without losing a little of their lunch, I highly recommend catching this episode.

Rules of the House

If I buy a half gallon of my favorite ice cream, and you would like some, don't wait. I will have finished it in three late night sittings.

With many other foods, I will most likely be considerate and make sure you have had a chance to take in a fair portion - Oreo Double Stuff cookies, for example. But not ice cream. You're welcome to have some, just don't wait more than a couple days, or you're likely to miss out.

This will no doubt have to change if I am to reach my 2009 weight loss goals in 2010. At least the ice cream companies think I'm too stupid to notice their half-gallons have shrunk to 1.75 quarts, and now 1.5 quarts. The way I see it, I'm eating less in three late-night sittings than ever before.

A Very Bad Break

When I saw Napoleon McCallum injure his leg in 1994, my first thought was, "His career is over." Unfortunately, I was right. I had no medical knowledge to guide me other than remembering hearing it was that type of injury that ended Gale Sayers' career. I'm not even sure if that's true; it just looked that bad.

I fear tonight I have seen another career-ender in Minnesota Viking E.J. Henderson's injury. When the knee bends the wrong way that far, it's not good, to say the very least.

The Vikes look bad tonight, and without Henderson the rest of the year, it'll be tough. But right now, my thoughts are with E.J. I seriously doubt he will ever play again.

Another Saturday Night at My House

It seems every time I post a blog entry, I think I have to write a chapter of a book and include some deep thoughts, or something elongated to either make one chuckle, smile, or think. I don't tweet yet, but my other short thoughts end up as Facebook entries, so the blog posts tend to be infrequent and long. I hope to tweet soon, but also blog more, even if it means short, silly entries like this one.

So without further ado, here it is:

My wife and I are sitting on the couch together on this cold Saturday night. Romantic, no? No. We are both on our laptops, I on my blog and she playing Farmville. She's also on the phone with her best friend, while listening to Bette Midler, and two televisions are on. The boys are in the basement playing the Wii. I just think it's funny, nothing more.

I Always Give Them My Money

On Black Friday, for an early Christmas present, my wife bought three Beatles CDs for me: Past Masters I & II, Abbey Road, and the "White Album." I'm a huge Beatles fan, plus post-Beatles Paul McCartney (you know the old joke: "Paul McCartney was in a band before Wings?").

When some friends and I trekked to Ames, Iowa in 1990 for a McCartney show, one of them wondered aloud how much Macca must make on royalties. "Todd just mails him a $50 check every week," joked one of the guys. He was exaggerating only a little.

In the '70s, my sister turned me on to the Beatles. Then in 1980, a high school friend in band class came from typing every day, where he would type some John Lennon lyrics for me to read ("poems," as my friend called them). The morning of December 9, 1980, however, he had nothing.

"Who could type a poem on a day like today?," he solemnly asked. Indeed.

By then I was hooked. My friend had taped some of his Beatles albums for me, but I had to buy my own. Later that sophomore year, I recall my dad once saying, after seeing I had purchased the Sgt. Pepper and Magical Mystery Tour cassettes, "They're still making money!" That was only a little over ten years after they had broken up. He may have popped a vein had he known how much more they would continue to make.

So let's get back to my weekly check to McCartney, no pun intended. ("Get Back" if you missed it, but now that I've pointed it out, you're less likely to believe it was unintended. Oh well...) That Sgt. Pepper cassette did fine for me for a few years, but every self-respecting Beatles fan has to own the LP, even today, so eventually I bought that, too.

In 1984, picture discs were appearing here and there, and although they never quite caught on, I had to buy the Sgt. Pepper version. Then in the late '80s, when the Beatles finally worked out an agreement to release their albums on CD, I of course had to buy it again in that format.

That brings us to the present, and the re-released and re-mastered collection of the Fab Four's albums, which are claimed to be superior to the '80s releases. Even though I likely will not be able to notice one iota of difference, no doubt I will soon own my fifth Sgt. Pepper album.

(Yes, you can still call them "albums." The word "album" does not necessarily mean the long-playing record format. Those are called "LPs." It is a huge pet peeve of mine when people think they have to correct even themselves when they say "album" when referring to a "CD.")

There are many albums I've purchased more than once, with most of them being to upgrade from tape or LP to CD format. Michael Jackson's Thriller comes in second with three. But Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band leads with four, soon to be five.

And Paul, Ringo Starr, Olivia Harrison, and Yoko Ono will still be making money.

LPGA Popularity

I watched the re-run last night of Michelle Wie winning her first ever LPGA tournament, narrowly defeating, among others Paula Creamer.

The LPGA tour had 34 tournaments in 2008, 27 in 2009, and is scheduled for 23 in 2010. I don't get it. Why the LPGA tour is not more popular now than ever before is a bit puzzling to me.

Yes, I know the economy is in the dumper still. Yes, I know with the increase of non-American born players, it is possible American fans have felt a bit disconnected.

But come on. Natalie Gulbis. Michelle Wie. Paula Creamer. And those are just the famous ones. Sex sells, so they say, and the LPGA tour has never been sexier.

It may be controversial, but the new LPGA commissioner needs to use the tour's sex appeal.

As Michelle McGann once said long ago, when the aforementioned ladies were in diapers (if that yet), "I don't know why people wouldn't want to come out and see our pretty faces."

My personal golf crush? Suzann Pettersen. But that can change day-to-day.