My Brain Hurts!

Miscellany from the files inside my head:

I am still trying to recover from Nebraska's elimination from the College World Series. They lost on Tuesday to Arizona State, 8 to 7, in 11 innings, in a game that ESPN rightfully considers worthy of being an "Instant Classic." Lead changes, errors, dramatic three-run homers, strange decisions to steal, dropped foul balls, dramatic catches and other defensive gems . . . this game had enough excitement to replace any number of Viagra prescriptions.

My own take on why Nebraska lost is simple: they had a lot to play for; they were ranked # 3 in the nation coming into the CWS; and after previous CWS appearances both were 0-for-2 and out (also known as "oh-for-two-and barbeque"), they knew expectations were high. They didn't want to let the home state crowds down. So they were nervous, and they played like it. But they did beat Arizona State once before going down in flames to Florida then losing to ASU in the elimination game rematch.

[Just an aside: I still don't think I like this twin bracket, modified double elimination format. I much prefer the traditional round-robin double elimination, because then you didn't have to play the same team every other time you turned around. I do understand why the format was changed . . . the needs of TV. TV people must schedule with some certainty, and the old format could let things go on way too long for their abilities to plan. At least this way, we know for sure how long the CWS will last and when (w/in a 48-hour time frame) the final game will be played.--Ed.]

Arizona State, on the other hand, was not even ranked in the top 25 nationally coming into the CWS; they had nothing to lose and could play as loose as they needed to win. They are playing Florida right now in a rematch of yesterday's game to see which of them goes on to play Texas in the best of 3 Championship Series.

In watching the CWS, however, I missed the telecast of the American Film Institute's top 100 film lines of all time. I did see the list in the paper. I am pleasantly surprised to admit that with only 1 or 2 or maybe 3 exceptions, I had no quarrel with what was on the list . . . though I might have adjusted the rankings of some of them. Ferinstance: I think "You're going to need a bigger boat," from Jaws, should have been higher than # 35. I also think "Gentlemen! You can't fight in here! This is the War Room!" from Dr. Strangelove should have been much higher than # 64.

Oh, well. That's what makes all this list-making fun . . . debating the results.

Some friends have suggested that I start posting info about the books I am reading. I am taking that under advisement. Apparently people are reading this thing, even if they aren't posting comments. But I'd really like to see some comments! I started this not just to rant my rants, but to get some intelligent dialogues going. Agree w/ me, disagree w/ me, have suggestions for me--I don't care what you post as comments--just please post some comments!

Finally, don't forget to watch the Discovery Channel Sunday, the 26th, to find out who got voted as "The Greatest American." Keep a barf bag by your chair, just in case.