Today, Dec. 21, is the Winter Solstice; the longest night of the year. From now on, the days will get longer. I really do not like it when it gets dark at 5:00. But it makes the Christmas lights all the more important.
I kept telling myself it's really hard to beat the same team three times, but those Wisconsin Badgers got it done. Our girls deserve praise for the way they worked their way to the Championship match. You could see how much emotion played into that fifth set when they talked to the media. I thought Coach Cook looked exhausted. But the paper says he's coming back for more. We all thought Tyler Hildebrand was being groomed to take over, but he's gone back to California to his alma mater. And, speaking of alma mater, Dani Busboom Kelly has just received a raise and a contract extension, which she certainly deserves. But that contract does have a clause that says if she leaves for NU, there will be no penalties. Interesting.
I also watched the girl's basketball game on Sunday, followed by the guys. Both games were at home, with good crowds. In fact, I was surprised at the attendance for the boys; a team that lost its last two games by thirty points. They started out well, but still lost.
The gals, on the other hand, are unbeaten. It's so fun to see Jaz Shelly make those threes, and Alexis Markowski pull down the rebounds for an easy lay up. Coach Williams had on a bright red dress, which compliments her black hair, and looked really chic. I mention that because friends in Orlando used to question me regarding Coach Yori's wardrobe.
I guess when you coach at Division One schools, everything is fair game, including your clothes. I'm really glad I don't have anyone critiquing mine. (Spell check says that's not spelled correctly, but does not provide the right one.)
My cleaning lady just left; I say “my” cleaning lady because she has helped me out a few times this year. Today, she had a cancellation and was here before 8:00 am. In case you haven't figured it out yet, that's early for me, but beggars can't be choosy. And it feels so good when she's finished.
Last night, I watched Christmas at Blemont. On PBS. Belmont is a school in Nashville that puts a priority on music majors. They have a brand new venue, a huge facility modeled after European opera houses with good acoustics. I enjoyed it, but so many arrangements of the familiar carols were dissonant. Some of the vocalists were unaccompanied, and there were some great instrumentals. I guess I will continue to play my seasonal CDs, ones I can sing along with.
I caught a couple holiday special programs on CBS, and although delightful, seemed to be almost like watching Hallmark. There is always a couple who either knew each other when, or were strangers to begin with. There is a project, either a community performance of Scrooge, or one of the Nutcracker. There is a slight conflict when one of the couple gets a false impression, but it's always corrected. There are often cute kids. There is a trip to a tree farm, cookie baking, tree decorating, and carol singing. Sometimes, there is a prince of an unusual country involved.
Oh, well, no violence, and the decorations are pretty, if slightly over the top.
Have a blessed Christmas, everyone, and remember the reason for the season.
