Grateful and Lucky

Well, it was a more interesting weekend than I wanted. Saturday afternoon, my dad and I came back to Oxford for the MAC Baseball Championship. We left after the first game because it appeared rain was on its way. Just north of Hueston Woods on 177/732 (for those of you familiar with the area), we were run off the road by an oncoming driver who was well across the center line and who continued to come straight at us until the very last second. I was driving our Sebring convertible, ironically the car that replaced our LeBaron convertible after I was involved in an accident in high school. That time, I was hit by a car running a red light while I was in the median turning left after the light had turned and the traffic had cleared finally allowing me to turn.

This time, we came over a rise and I noticed the car immediately right on the center line (I was driving). Normally on two-lane roads, some cars do drive more in the middle of the road (because they're more comfortable), but veer back over when they see oncoming traffic. However, this car didn't veer back over, but continued to cross the center line and come toward us. Here, I should've honked the horn, but I'm not one to honk the horn. Instead, I kept maneuvering our car while slowing down to the right, thinking the oncoming car would get back over in their lane. This didn't happen, and I was forced onto the grass to avoid a head-on collision. The car did veer back over, but by going to the grass, I lost control of the back end of the car, which made us go left. For a second, I thought I regained control, getting it back to the right, preventing a 360, but I overcompensated, forcing the car into a ditch and into a wire fence.

The oncoming car didn't stop, and I didn't have time to look at a license plate, so we were out of luck there. But, my dad and I weren't hurt at all, the airbags didn't go off, and we were able to drive the car home. Yes, there is external damage to the front of the car, but considering we didn't get hurt and the car wasn't totaled, we were very lucky. It's very unsettling remembering losing control of the car, hearing the fear in my dad's voice as I tried to get us through. My dad has reminded me a number of other things could've happened. If I froze, we would've hit the car head-on at 55mph, or I would've gone to the right too much, which could've made us roll into the ditch. So, we survived, thankfully, and I am ever more grateful for what I have because it could've all been gone.

Alright, time to move on and talk about some other things:

• Congratulations to the Miami baseball team, winners of the MAC Tournament and a trip to the NCAA Tournament. Miami beat #2 Ball St. Friday and #3 Central Michigan twice on Saturday to win the championship. The Redhawks open up in Austin vs. Arkansas on Friday afternoon with Texas or Quinnipac waiting next. It is double-elimination, and whoever wins the regional advances to the Sweet 16 or superregionals.
• Go figure, I correctly predicted Miss Canada as winner of last night's Miss Universe pageant. 9 of my top 10 and 4 of my top 5 advanced and yes, the girl made me go, "Ohhhh, Canada" (yes, cheesy, but I think you would say the same).
• The Americans are all gone from the French Open after Lindsay Davenport lost to Mary Pierce in the women's quarterfinals. Realistically, I think I'll watch one more match, the Roger Federer/Rafael Nadal semifinal. The remaining contestants are just not very intriguing, which sums up the French Open quite well I think. Agassi, Roddick, Sharapova, Safin, Safin's girlfriend, they're all gone. At least Wimbledon is only a couple of weeks away.
• I officially weighed in at 205 this weekend, bringing my weight loss totals to 20 pounds since Winter Break and 15 since Spring Break.
  
• Currently, the defense of my exit thesis is slated for July 21st. This will likely be the final academic exercise of my life, which is weird to think about. It's going to be a challenge to try and finish by then, but I think by increasing the time I spend on this each day and remain consistent, I think I'll be fine.
• Honestly, who is going to watch the new show, which begins on my birthday nevertheless, "Who Wants To Be a Hilton?" Yes, I understand there's a lot of money involved, but do you really want to be mentioned in the same breath as Paris Hilton. Shows like The Contender get cancelled, but there's room for Who Wants To Be a Hilton. Thank you for tarnishing my birthday NBC.
• I was one of the people drawn into the Indianapolis 500 because of Danica Patrick, and I was glad to see her live up to the hype, having a chance to win the race in the last 10 laps before fuel concerns forced her to slow and finish 4th. But, ABC and every other network that talked about the race started to overdo it. While I watched, all I heard was "Danica this, Danica that..." Can you tell me who actually won the race? Oh yeah, Dan Wheldon won, his 4th win of the year. Danica is a great story, but the winner should get a little attention. That just shows you how desperate open-wheel racing is for good stories and publicity. In addition, what's all this "Sportswoman of the Year" talk? Annika Sorenstam is hands-down sportswoman of the year right now.

Overall, May is probably the worst sports month there is, more so this year with no Stanley Cup playoffs. But, May is over and here are some reasons to get excited for June:

• NCAA College World Series. If you want to see actual hustle and players who play with a sense of urgency on every play, watch the College World Series. I'm not a big baseball fan, but I do watch this every year, and I'm never let down. In addition, this year provides a good opportunity for college baseball to become more popular nationally with the added exposure due to no playoff hockey.
• U.S. Open. This tournament is almost better than the Masters because you get to see the pros struggle a little bit and you get to watch almost ever shot, unlike the Masters which doesn't show 18-hole coverage until Sunday. The US Open returns to Pinehurst, which was the scene for one of the most exciting major golf tournaments ever, when Payne Stewart, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, and Vijay Singh battled until the final stroke when Stewart made a putt on the 72nd hole to win. Pinehurst is a course you can't overpower with sheer power. You must place your ball carefully, especially on the Donald Ross greens because if you don't, you'll be off the green with a huge mound directly in front of you.
• Wimbledon. There are only 2 negatives to Wimbledon. First, you can survive if you have a 145-mph serve and occasional volley, and second, the constant rain delays. But there's something about the grass, the atmosphere, and the players wearing white and the other traditions that draw you in. Usually, the best player wins, unlike the French Open where you see clay-court specialists who aren't the best players win.
• Tour De France. Ok, the Tour doesn't start until July, but we are just a month away from Lance's try at #7.
  
• NBA Draft. This is like the equivalent of spring football for college basketball, seeing where the star players end up.
  

Ok, I think that's good for tonight, talk to y'all later.