March madness article.

Following on from yesterdays bit on march madness, read an american eulogy for it here.

March Madness - NCAA tournament.

This Thursday is the start of March Madness, one of the coolest sporting events of the year. I'm quite excited about it.

March Madness is the nickname for the National Collegiate Athletic Association's men's Division 1 national basketball tournament. Hence the need for a nickname. Division 1 men's basketball is a confederation made of 31 leagues consisting of over 300 teams. These teams compete from November to March to win their leagues and also to make a national reputation about how strong they are. This is because to get into March Madness, you either have to win your league (like 31 teams do) or you have to be nominated by a committee (as the other 34 teams do).

What you end up with is a knockout tournament of 65 teams of incredible diversity from all across america, competing to be the national champions. Some of these teams are multi million dollar programs that you will see people wear the T shirts of in the UK like UCLA, North Carolina or Georgetown, others are little back water colleges like University of Texas-Arlington or Coppin State (incidentally the first team to lose 20 games in a season and make the tournament)

March Madness is like the FA cup played over 3 weekends. The first weekend is the best because there is a game on from 10am in the morning until 2am at night (US time) and there is the greatest chance of a giant killing. March Madness is also the most participatory sports event in the US as everyone fills in predictions of who is going to win each game with a similar kind of feel to our grand national sweepstakes.

I've already filled in my bracket and i'm tipping North Carolina to beat UCLA to become national champions, however, I reckon that Oregon, St Josephs, Michigan State and West Virginia are capable of pulling off some upsets.

North Carolina are probably the best team in the country, although it hurts as a Maryland fan to admit that, and the reason i think they'll win is they have the player of the year in Tyler Hansborough. He is an incredibly determined athlete who can carry his team. I think when the big games happen, he will make the difference. To see his determination in action, here he is dunking over a 7 foot 7 monster called Kenny George.



If this has somehow whetted your appetite for the tournament, you can watch games online for free via the CBS website, or you can do what I do and watch them on NASN.

Alex is home

Just a quick post to say that Alex was released from hospital yesterday afternoon. She has completed her course of anti-virals and had a lot more tests.

We have to wait for the detailed results of the tests, but the first signs look ok. It's been explained to us that while the illness has gone, there may be some longer term effects. We don't know how it's going to work out yet, so the watchword is wait and see.

For now, we're just grateful to be a family again. Grateful to my dad who has been awesome in looking after us. Grateful to be doing ok.

Wall-e trailer

The last movie we went to see at the cinema was Ratatouille, which may or not make it surprising that the movie we're really excited about over the summer, even more than indiana jones and batman is wall-e. Watch the trailer for super cuteness.

Remembering how much i love billy bragg

Billy Bragg has a new album out and I bought it and although i haven't listened to it all yet, i'm already loving it. Especially I keep faith and M for me, which for all you budding preachers, is a cracking wedding sermon.

I'd forgotten how much I loved billy bragg. Probably because he hasn't had an album out in 5 years or so and it's 10 years since he had an album out that caught my attention. I haven't listened to any of his stuff for ages, but now i remember that it's great, i'm going to have him on the stereo all year. Billy Bragg is this years Bruce Springsteen.

I bought the song above on 7 inch single when I was 10 years old. Im still not sure i entirely get all the references, so I can't of had a clue back then, but i love this song very much. The first billy bragg album i bought was talking to the taxman about poetry. I don't have it anymore, but i remember the line 'if it takes another war to fill the churches of england, then the world the meek inherit, what will it be worth?' My favourite album of his is probably don't try this at home, which among it's many virtues, has a pretty cover of Dolphins.

Now Dolphins is one of my most all time favouritest desert island discs songs, and while Billy's version has been overtaken in my affections by Tim Buckley's version (see below)



It's still pretty good. Also around that time, i recorded a live thing that he did for radio 1, back in the day when Radio 1 put out a recorded live concert every saturday night before the rock show. And that stayed on my stereo forever, especially because of the cover version of groove is in the heart and the one liner in waiting for the great leap forwards when he says 'Have you heard about the new world order yet, it's the same as the old world order, them and us' (which incidentally, may not be such a bad thing, but that's a whole other load of stuff)

I took alex to see Billy Bragg live in 1997 as a birthday treat for me before we got married. It was a Sheffield uni 'raise your banners' event and he played solo. The song i remember from that night was the 'never cross a picket line' one about the dockers strike in the 1990s.

I'm rambling now, but I just wanted to share some of the many happy memories i have of billy bragg and say something about how he has influenced my life and how i am happy he has an album out and it is good. He's not always right, but he's always thought provoking. So lets finish this post with his waiting for the great leap forwards, which has the added bonus of being introduced by henry rollins.

Hello from Rocky.

The big box of ...?

I saw this in town yesterday in the front window of The Works. It's actually a big box of craft, but either by accident or design, a shop assistant has put the stickers on to suggest it could be something else. It made me smile

Alex Update

Alex is currently convalescing on mayflower ward in derriford hospital. The drugs are working although it seems as though the anti-convulsants might have brought her out in a rash. The anti-virals are going to need a week to keep working although the anti-biotics will finish tommorow, so all going well, we would expect alex to be home around about the 17th or 18th March.

Alex is doing well in herself and her spirits are as high as they can be. They were raised today by our friend Roger who has his own hospital radio show. Everyone on Alex's bay got requests played. Class.

DIY update

We had sort of planned for march to be a big diy month, and my dad was coming down to help us with the prayer shed we want to build before alex went into hospital, but it is one of life's oddities that Alex's illness has co-incided with a lot of diy.

The bathroom is just about finished and the toilet will be done this weekend. Our old shed is knocked down and now we can prepare for a new shed to be put in it's place.

One of the things that we have always wanted for this house is for a shed we could use as a chapel at the bottom of our garden. We've been dreaming that for years now, but the dream is getting closer. Watch this space.

Rest and Relaxation at Home Park

My dad and I went to see plymouth argyle beat colchester 4-1 on tuesday. It was a chance to blow off some steam from the last week or so and have a laugh.

The game was poor in the first half but better in the second when Plymouth realised that Colchester really couldn't defend a cross from the right. You suspect this may be why they are bottom of the table.

Exciting things that Rocky can do.

1. pick his sock off his foot and put it in his mouth.

2. pick his activity thing off the floor and put it in his mouth.

Alex is on the mend

Alex is still in hospital and we don't know how long for. Possibly another 2 weeks. However, she is remembering more, looking healthier and getting back to herself. She is doing great and showing every sign of beating this. Rocky has put on 7 1/2 ounces in the last week and the bathroom is just about done. Things are good. Thank you for all the love and support.