A sad little story

This morning I find myself back in Beecher, Illinois! Later on today, I will head to Indianapolis with my good friends Meagan and Ryan to enjoy some of the Women's Final Four activities. There's a lot of background involved in how I got here...

I remember watching the 1995 Women's Final Four (broadcast on network TV for the first time). Connecticut won the championship and Rebecca Lobo was their star player. I was 13 at the time and eating, sleeping, and breathing basketball. I immediately became semi-obsessed with Connecticut and my Dad even ordered me a championship t-shirt that I wore very proudly!

Fast forward ten years (2005) and I had left my love for Connecticut, but not basketball, behind. As a recent graduate of Baylor University, I was a working girl in the great metropolis of Waco, TX. Since I was still living in Waco it was easy to get to the Lady Bears homes games and the entire city became wrapped up in their NCAA tournament run. The Sweet Sixteen was a big deal. The Elite 8 was an even bigger one. Then, they made the Final Four. Baylor was making it very easy for any and all fans to get to Indianapolis to cheer on the team in their quest for a National Championship - something that had never been done at Baylor. I struggled long and hard with whether or not I should make the trip. I wanted to so badly, but I was on the verge of quitting my job and pursuing the whole teaching thing so it didn't necessarily seem like a wise financial decision. The night of the championship game I was back in Fort Worth for a meeting at the Region XI Service Center...the official beginning of my teaching career. After my meeting I headed over to my college roommate's parent's house where we watched the game together as we addressed invitiations to her wedding! Baylor winning was a HUGE deal in Waco and I pretty much have regretted not being there to see it in person ever since!

Last year, both the men's and women's basketball teams made impressive runs in the NCAA tournament. The girls making it to the Final Four in San Antonio and the boys making it to the Elite 8 in Houston. I chose to follow the men's team to Houston and missed out on yet another Final Four trip. So, early on in this season I decided that if Baylor was headed to the Final Four I was going too! The Final Four was going to be back in Indianapolis this year and I felt like it was a sign that Baylor would be back again too! And, because of it's proximity to the Chicago area, I knew there was a certain girl that would probably love to go as well!

This year's tournament began and Meagan and I watched in hopeful anticipation that Baylor would make back-to-back trips to the Final Four. Once it was down to 16 teams I started looking at tickets and travel options. Last Saturday, I was feeling confident and bought a plane ticket and Final Four game tickets. On Sunday, Baylor made us really nervous in a close game against Green Bay but eventually came out on top. Then, on Tuesday we met Texas A&M for the fourth time this season. Then, for the first time this season the Aggies won. I knew it would be a close game but Baylor's performance was quite disappointing. I didn't get to actually watch the game so I wasn't nearly as depressed as some people expected me to be. Although, the irony of me buying a plane ticket and game tickets to a Final Four that Baylor would not be at was not lost on me! We decided to press on and attend the Final Four anyway. So, I am here and in just a little while we'll be making the trek to Indy! I'll probably be able to enjoy the whole experience a lot more now that Baylor's not involved...if they were, I'd be a nervous wreck!