Be impressed.

Apparently, we have at least something of a following on our little blog. Yesterday while we were at Rumbi Island Grill with my parents and brother's family, my brother said, "I thought you would blog about how you won the family bracket, but I didn't see it on there."

Besides being flattered that he ever read the blog at all, I felt just a little like I was back at piano lessons during high school. "Yeah, that would have been great, but I've been a little ... slacky ... in that area ... lately ..."

But his reminder did renew in me a new sense of pride. "Oh yeah! I did win that, didn't I?" I said.

And here's proof.

My strategy: pick the guy who's in the running for POY with Jimmer, then put his team in the championship. It worked.

Unfortunately, we never actually defined what the winner got. (Maybe a trip to Rumbi Island Grill?) I know winning a bracket this year doesn't actually say anything about my knowledge of sports—in fact, it probably reveals just how little I actually know. But that's the great thing about March. If you're being laughed at in the beginning, you'll do the laughing later.

Just look at those people tied for second. My sister-in-law had BYU winning it all and smoked all those Ohio Staters.

(And we won't mention how Ryan did. Let's just say he actually knows something about sports.)

T-T-T-Teach Me How to Jimmer

I'm just so excited I have to show you.
On this video, skip to 2:17, then squint. See? That's me on the left!



Yes, I knew they were filming.
Yes, I was crazy-excited.
Yes, I still played it cool.
No, Ryan wasn't there yet. He was in class or whatever. Pshh.
Yes, I've watched this multiple times.
Yes, I can sing nearly every word. Don't judge.

And yes, we have plans for tomorrow. We will not answer phone calls or the door from 5:27 until approximately 7:27. Send a text if you must.

But really, you should be watching too.

Mad About March

For the record, I am currently tied for third in my family NCAA tournament bracket contest.

As in, the contest against my four athletic brothers, their sports-savvy wives, their ESPN-watching pre-teenage sons and my statistics-memorizing huzzy. THIRD place.

Can I get a "what what"?

However, I will probably drop in the rankings pretty soon. I know BYU has struggled a little lately, but I love them. And the heart knows no reason, I suppose.

Go Cougs!

Classy

In general conference last October, President Uchtdorf said something that hit pretty close to home for a lot of people:

Perhaps there is no better laboratory to observe the sin of pride than the world of sports. I have always loved participating in and attending sporting events. But I confess there are times when the lack of civility in sports is embarrassing. How is it that normally kind and compassionate human beings can be so intolerant and filled with hatred toward an opposing team and its fans?

Especially this season, I've loved cheering for my Cougars. There's nothing quite like being in the Marriott Center and cheering them on, especially when they're playing so well.

Other teams, of course, are entitled to the same joy. But one team in particular has bothered me for quite some time, taking cheap shots at our religion. San Diego State's student section is known for being witty and energetic, but sometimes they cross the line. It really bugs me when they wear white shirts, ties and name tags when they play BYU.

Would they dress like monks and nuns when they played Notre Dame? Of course not. That's disrespectful of something important to Catholics that they hold dear. So, how is dressing like LDS missionaries any different?

But when I heard about SDSU head coach Steve Fisher's statement to their student section before last Saturday's game, I felt happy. It gave me hope that there's still some civility in the crazy world of sports. It said, in part, "We cannot cross the line into topics that are out of bounds and distasteful, particularly making fun of one’s religion."

I'm pretty sure—correct me if I'm wrong—there weren't any shirts and ties at the game last Saturday. Classy, coach. Very classy.

And, thanks.

We'll Never Fredette It

Today, I overslept by an hour. • woke up in the night because I swear Ryan was singing the Cougar Fight Song in his sleep. He says he wasn't, but it was SO real. • worked 8 1/2 hours to make up for leaving early yesterday. • might have dreamed about Jimmer. • have had a scratchy throat all day • can hardly keep my eyes open • feel like I ran a marathon.

Today, Ryan fell asleep for 1 1/2 hours after I left for work. • made a conscious effort to stop reading ESPN.com. • sounds like he could sing bass. • smiled as he rode past the Marriott Center. • woke up starving. • is way behind on his homework.

But it's all worth it, because yesterday, we were there.

For all our Idaho friends, here's a video that might give you a teensy weensy taste of what it was like. Except imagine a two-hour adrenaline rush. And a loss of all inhibitions. A really funny loss of inhibitions. I might have screamed "We are naming a child James!" at one point.

 

P.S. Sorry you have to hear my annoying/half gone voice there at the beginning. Luckily, it's evened out by Ryan's super-excited face.

P.P.S. Shout out to Ryan who named this post. I just love me a man who can write. And loves Jimmer as much as I do.

P.P.P.S. Last night, this post peaked at 32 views. Coincidence? I think not.

Fabricated

I've said it before, but no thought is official until it debuts in the blogosphere. So I'm going on record right now and saying this: I am completely convinced that all BYU athletes are given the option to change their names at the outset of their careers.

I know everyone's going to "cite" the athletes' "mothers" saying "that's really his name," but I'm not buying it. One or two weird names slipping in is understandable, but so many of those names are so strange, outrageous and downright awesome that they HAVE to be hand-picked.

John Beck obviously declined the offer. But Bryan Kariya? JJ Di Luigi? Harvey Unga? Bronco Mendenhall? Charles Abouo? Brock Zylstra? Jimmer Fredette? Do they really think no one's going to notice they're made up?

Mostly I'm just jealous. But writers can have pen names, right? Maybe I'll find a former BYU athlete to help me come up with a good one.

The Latest

Hello everyone. Now that I'm starting to slip out of my Christmas coma, reality is beginning to set in. We've done a lot of thinking about 2010 and looking forward to 2011. And as far as we can see, it's going to be a really good year.
The big news first—the job hunt is officially over. I was actually lucky enough to get two offers and we had just shy of seven hours to make a decision. It was perhaps the best/most stressful day of my adult (ha! adult? me?) life. To make a very long story short, the hardest decision is ALWAYS between two good things. But the nice thing about those decisions is that you can't really go wrong.

Thanks to my awesome friend/supervisor at the Ensign, who got me in touch with the right people, I start my new job tomorrow. I'll be working at PMI and I'm pretty thrilled about it. It's going to be strange to not be "the intern" anymore (I wore that hat right out with internships at two different companies for a combined 12 months), though I think I'll somehow manage.

I will be writing, which I think is most of what is making me so excited about it all. PMI is an education company that teaches business owners how to be successful, and I'll be writing articles and blog posts for their websites.

OK, OK. Enough about me. Ryan is starting his second semester at BYU and he's ready to go full speed ahead. He just finished a really good semester, and I think he's really found what he's good at. I love seeing the programs he writes and hearing about all the things he's learning. He loves his group and they work really well together. Basically, he's doing great.

In other news, we have all kinds of plans to read lots of books, watch lots of movies (thanks Dallin and Cecily!), play lots of Wii games (thanks Mom and Dad B.!), and basically wear all our fun Christmas gifts right out. I have big dreams of sewing up a storm (thanks Camille and Bonnie!) and Ryan will be navigating us all over the place (thanks Mom and Dad O.!). And as usual, we'll be spending several nights with these fellas,

whom we love.

2011, I have a really good feeling about you.