Oh, the NCAA tournament ...

Did anybody really care who won this year? All four top seeds in the Final Four=BORING.

Kansas won, but only because Memphis choked at the end of regulation and couldn't hit a free throw if their lives depended on it.

Oh well. Enough said about that. It's baseball season.

It's NCAA tournament time

This is really about the only time of the year where I pay any attention at all to college basketball.

The NCAA bracket was announced yesterday, and really there are no big surprises. Arkansas got a No. 9 seed, which I think might be a little low considering they beat Vanderbilt and Tennessee in the SEC tournament. But losing Sunday's final to Georgia, which had to win just to get in, may have hurt them just a bit. Probably doesn't matter anyway. Assuming the Razorbacks beat Indiana, they get No. 1 seed North Carolina in the second round. Nice seein' ya Hogs!

My Final Four is pretty much Memphis, North Carolina, UCLA and Kansas. My pick to win the whole thing, and I've done two brackets so far, is Memphis. The Tigers have only one loss, and while Conference-USA may not be the strongest league in the world, going 32-1 or 33-1 is quite an accomplishment.

I'd love to say that I think Drake will go far, but my favorite team from Des Moines is likely to go out after two games, just like Arkansas. Would have been kind of cool if somehow they had been paired up in the same bracket.

Games tip-off Thursday, so make sure you get your brackets in on time. I know I will. When thousands of dollars are at stake, especially in this time of recession, every little bit helps.

Packing day

Today Ed and I are going to get the majority of our packing done for the cruise, which is now only 8 days away. It's going to take forever to get here, then it's going to be gone in a flash. Anyway ... we're doing most of the packing today because by the end of the week, when Josh, Cheryl and Val get here, it'll be too busy around the house to get anything done.

Our plan is to take two individual bags, a hanging bag, Ed's computer and my backpack. I found two Reebok bags at Target (don't you just love Target?) yesterday for $24.99 each. Perfect size and great price. The hanging bag is for our formal night clothing. The backpack will come in handy when we're out on our excursions. The computer is coming for one main reason -- so we can get our NCAA Tournament pools in on time. And to recharge our iPods. And who travels anywhere without a computer anymore?

We just have to remember to leave a little space in one of the bags for any souvenirs we might bring back. And I know of several coming back from the Bacardi Rum distillery in San Juan.

I just had a "discussion" about this with Ed, who didn't see the need to take a hanging bag. First, wrinkles. Second, see above.

The Madness that is March

Hmmm. Dilemma. Selection Sunday for the men's NCAA Tournament is next Sunday, March 11. We'll be on a boat headed for the Dominican Republic when all the teams are announced, and we'll be in St. Thomas when the Tournament begins the following Thursday.

The problem is this: We'll be there, they'll be here. Along with the brackets. The brackets that myself and about 500 of my closest friends fill out to try and win about $3,000.

Unless we are able to fax our picks or send them by computer, this may be the first year in many that we aren't entered in the pool. I know Wisconsin's Bucky the Badger will be very upset.

But hey, sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do.