Heat Wave

Although the temperatures are going to be a little high today, the real Heat Wave is all those Bullies in Chicago giving the Miami Heat a cheery good bye to their basketball season. The defending champs can now go home and watch the rest of the playoffs on their fancy tv's having been swept off of their collective feet by the team now coached by the little guy from Plymouth, Indiana, Scott Skiles. Last time a Chicago team advanced? You know when - Michael's last championship year, 1998.

Luke Donald lost out to Scott Verplank, who grew up in the Dallas area and actually played with Byron Nelson. That's cool. (Did visit Irvine once when I helped my Dad move down there for a year's stay at a university there - pretty flat country; wasn't into golf at the time so didn't avail myself of the opportunity to get over and visit with one of the greats....) Lorena Ochoa lost out to the lady from Italy, Sylvia Cavalleri. Julieta Granada tied Ochoa for 2nd. Ochoa no doubt will remain at number 1 among the women. The wins by Verplank and Cavalleri were their first. Nice.

So who's the big winner in the NFL draft? Brady Quinn and the Browns? Looks like a pretty good fit. Here's another question for you football fans: Which team is going to win the Super Bowl next January? Hey, now that Dungy and Manning knows how to do it (with great defense!), why not pick the Colts to repeat?! There's my vote. And you know with my early vote I don't have to think about it again until mid January 2008.

Which reminds me of something else, the bunching of the presidential primaries into early February next year rather than the usual run from February to June. I like that, the bunching, although I did read a suggestion that made even more sense: to have a series of three primary dates, each organized so that all three would be important in the selection of the party nominee. For that to happen would take organization, agreement, commitment. Hmmmm. Also movements to make the electoral college system a thing of the past and let the popular vote be the deciding factor. That too makes sense to me - would be no such thing as a swing state; every vote would count. That would mean that Democrats in Indiana and Republicans in California would have a say in who the next president is. Hey, that's a good idea, isn't it?

Going to go finish Vonnegut's Hocus Pocus. See you at the golf course a little later.