I can’t believe it. They got into the Big Dance. The Longhorns’ streak of consecutive NCAA tournament appearances is still alive. Coach Rick Barnes will be able to keep the angry mobs away for at least another season. Maybe.
The end of the regular season wasn’t pretty by any stretch of the imagination. The Longhorns stumbled their way into the Big 12 tournament. There was a loss against Baylor, followed by a tenuous overtime victory against Texas Tech. They did get an end-of-season win against Oklahoma – always a good thing – but then got pounded by Kansas. Up and down, up and down, all season long - much like a roller coaster.
All the Horns could do at this point was hope for a good showing in the Big 12 tournament. With the sixth seed, they had a bye in the first round. This season, that was as good as a win.
It’s almost that time of year again. Spring break is right around the corner, and with it comes the influx of creative types to our fair city. It is time for SXSW in all its myriad of flavors. The most prolific (and original) part of SXSW – the music conference- starts on Wednesday March 14 with the Austin Music Awards.
It has been a while since I have been fully exposed to all that is SXSW, but I can say that I do have some great and fond memories of it from years long past. I may end up sounding a little “old school”, but as Dylan said, the times they are a changin’. SXSW has changed a lot over the years, of that there is no question. Nonetheless, here are five great memories I have of SXSW.
Life presents us with many glorious moments, interspersed with just as many (if not more) challenges. Most people don’t seem to have much difficulty getting through the glorious moments. With any luck whatsoever, we face the challenges bravely, with courage and conviction.
But even at the best of times, we can lose sight of the brilliant and get mired in the difficult. We can have internal doubts about ourselves, our role in the world, or our personal efficacy – even when we know, deep down inside, the truths that are self-evident.
Sometimes, it can all get lost in the mix of our day-to-day existence. Sometimes, we miss the forest for the proverbial trees.
Sometimes, we suffer from It-Is-As-It-Is-Itis.
Two weeks between episodes always seems like a lot of time. But as I have found, time seems to keep on ticking along, faster and faster every day. I can remember my mother telling me as a child that I should enjoy how slow time goes by when you are young, because it gets faster as you get older. Once again, Mom was right.
Each two week cycle takes us a little closer to March Madness … to summer … to a federal election. Well, I guess two out of three ain’t so bad, and you can pick the two.
It’s time for Episode 35, a time for the economics of Wall Street, the economics of the New York Knicks, and the economics of Obamacare.
Get busy living. It was as simple as that.
For 17 days I was in a hospital room at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario – one of the best teaching facilities to be found anywhere in the region, if not the nation. I was under the care of highly-trained gastroenterologists that would lead me back to a world of health.
That’s the logical side of me speaking. For all intents and purposes, it felt like being in prison – or what I would imagine that feels like. Suddenly I was away from my family, my friends, and school. It was a long 17 days. There was a lot of time to wonder. And reflect. And mourn. And wonder some more. And think. A lot.
Our lives are filled with moments, memories, events that forever put their indelible stamp upon us and change our lives and the ways in which we view the world. Often these challenges will require us to dig deep within ourselves. February 18, 1981 was one of those days. The memory of that day never strays very far from me.
February 18, 1981 was probably much like any other February 18. There was snow on the ground and it was the dead of winter in Canada. No surprises there. Hockey season was in full swing. The Toronto Maple Leafs were sliding into the playoffs, only to eventually lose to the Stanley Cup champion New York Islanders 3 - 0. No surprises there either.
I was in the tenth grade at the time - 15 years old but, perhaps more importantly, just 4 feet 8 inches tall and a whopping 68 pounds. Yes, you read that correctly.
Of course, there is a story that goes along with this – and many life lessons learned. Here is my story.
On Monday night, basketball fans at the Erwin Center got to see two teams headed in very different directions. Fans were given a fine example of the characteristics of a good basketball team, and one not-so-good team.
For those who may be wondering, the team headed in the downward direction is none other than the University of Texas Longhorns. On the upswing are the Baylor Bears. Oh, how times have changed.
The Horns were on a four game winning streak heading in to Stillwater for Saturday’s game against OSU. I, for one, was starting to get, well, almost optimistic. Perhaps they might be able to finagle their way into the Big Dance in March. A big maybe, but after 4 straight wins, it was conceivable.
But over the span of two games, Longhorn fans were subjected to the harsh reality of the 2011-2012 season.
Allan Besselink, PT, DPT, Ph.D., Dip.MDT has a unique voice in the world of sports, education, and health care. Read more about Allan here.