Bad News/Good News

The men lost at Hilton again. I don't want to talk about it.

The good news: the women won at Hilton! (Maybe we should be going to their games instead?) Also, the RAGBRAI overnight towns were announced. It looks like a good year, but we'd better keep training! Three of the overnight towns are Carroll, Boone, and Altoona, which means we will be able to do some training on the actual route.

Hangover in Hilton

A few weeks ago, I asked Adam one of the most important questions I have ever asked him: if the Cyclone men made the post-season, how far would he be willing to travel to see them play? Before I even finished the question, he answered: "Anywhere." We were lucky enough to see the women play in the NCAA tournament here in Ames last spring and we'd love to be able to see the men play in the post-season as well.

Unfortunately, that's probably not going to happen after last night's pathetic attempt against Texas Tech. Our guys looked hungover and were never able to dig themselves out from an early deficit. Texas Tech was clearly the team who wanted to win the most. I've never seen Hoiberg as upset as he was during last night's game, and based on some of his post-game statements, I think the guys can look forward to some punishing practices this week!

There were a couple of bright spots last night, though:

• The student section chanting "Throw a chair!" at Texas Tech's coach, Pat Knight, son of the legendary basketball personality Bobby Knight
• This license plate, which we saw on our way out of the parking lot--Boone from Boone:
  

After a game like that, I'll take my amusement wherever I can get it!

EDITED TO ADD: If you're interested in seeing an extremely annoyed Fred Hoiberg, here's his post-game press conference.

Pick Me Up, Bring Me Down

Last weekend we made a trip to Des Moines to check out a couple of places we had been hearing about for awhile. Up first was a stop at the Mars Cafe in the Drake University neighborhood.

I have frequently seen Mars Cafe mentioned in various Des Moines publications and Twitter posts by Central Iowans I follow, and it seemed like a happening place. We popped in for a few afternoon hours and enjoyed a late lunch with caffeinated beverages of our choices (Amy: Diet Coke; Me: coffee) followed by recreational activities of our choices (Amy: reading a novel; Me: surfing the Internet). The sandwiches were great, and the cafe had a nice modern atmosphere. They also host various interesting events, such as the upcoming Pour-Over Poster Show featuring coffee-themed artwork accompanied by free beer from my favorite Ames-based brewpub, Olde Main. Perhaps we'll have to make a return visit!

After wrapping up at the cafe, we then passed a little time at Barnes & Noble before moving on to The Keg Stand, a bar in West Des Moines that we had heard about from promotions on local sports radio station KXNO as a host for Iowa State University game-watch events. Saturday night's main event was Iowa State's border-war showdown with the Missouri Tigers in men's basketball, and after a should-have-won-but-didn't game on the road at Oklahoma State earlier in the week, we were hoping that this game would be Iowa State's chance to erase bad memories of a couple of close road-losses this season with an away game win over a ranked team. And what better way to celebrate such a significant win than with a large group of fellow Cyclone fans in a bar?

We should have known it was not going to be a good night when we arrived and saw a large section of the bar roped off as reserved space for someone's 40th birthday party, and the congratulatory signs hanging on the wall were done up in Iowa Hawkeye black and gold. As it turned out, the Cyclones kept the game close for about the first ten minutes, until Missouri started playing more like a 14th ranked team at home and Iowa State started playing more like this year's Iowa team (ZING!). As the game went on it only got worse and ended up as a 33 point loss.

At least we were in a location well suited for sorrow-drowning. Even the bar stools are made out of beer kegs!

Despite the disappointing loss to end the night, it was still an enjoyable day exploring some new locations in the capital city just south of Ames. The Iowa State men have what are probably the easiest games of their remaining schedule this week, with Texas Tech in Ames tomorrow night, followed by a visit from Oklahoma on Saturday. Hopefully the team can bounce back and rebuild some confidence. We'll be there cheering them on!

Heeeeeeere's Johnny (with a little Hilton Magic)

Any Iowa State basketball fan knows about Hilton Magic and knows that it started with a coach by the name of Johnny Orr who left Michigan in 1980 to lead the program at Iowa State University for the rest of that decade and part of the next. That was also the year I was born, so my knowledge of the original Hilton Magic, the thunderous shouting and clapping support from the fans that would cause the rafters to vibrate, the floor to shake, and opposing players to miss free throws, is based on second-hand stories from an earlier generation.

I was fortunate, however, to attend ISU from 1998 through 2005 (thanks for a few extra years graduate school). Larry Eustachy was head coach, the torch having been passed on to him from Orr's successor, Tim Floyd, who had enough success to carry on the Hilton Magic tradition, including winning the final Big 8 Tournament over Kansas in 1996. During Eustachy's coaching stint, and my time as a student, Iowa State had some of it's best seasons ever, including two Big 12 championships and a memorable NCAA tournament run to the Elite 8, where they suffered a heartbreaking loss to eventual champion Michigan State. While the old timers may say that nothing compared to the Hilton Magic of the 80's, I can say that I had blast experiencing the late 90's and early 00's version.

Which brings me to tonight's game at Hilton against #3 ranked Kansas. Fred Hoiberg (a star player under Orr) has had more success in his first as coach of the Cyclones than most expected, but a win against Kansas still seemed fairly unlikely. As he said in pre-game interviews, Iowa State would need to play near perfectly to win. A big, loud home crowd wouldn't hurt either, and thankfully there was a noticeable increase in attendance tonight, thanks to Iowa State's decision to honor Johnny Orr with a special presentation before the game for the dedication of a new statue and donor's area. At age 83 he came bounding out of the tunnel to the Johnny Carson theme song, just like when he was coach, and gave the crowd all the first pumps it could handle.

The statue now on display captures the action quite well.

It was all almost enough to help the Cyclones get their most impressive win of the season (and really, of the last five years), but in the end Kansas had too many talented bodies and held off a couple of scrappy streaks by Iowa State to win, 84-79. Iowa State never led, but they came close multiple times, and during those pushes it was clear that Hilton Magic was starting to make a comeback. The crowd was into it, I was yelling my throat off during some key Kansas possessions, and if a three-pointer here or a put-back there had gone in for an Iowa State tie or lead, Hilton would have exploded. It was fun feeling, and we look forward to more in the future. This year's team may not have a lot of talent compared to the rest of the Big 12, but they have a lot of heart and know how to play together. I think we will see some upset wins in Ames yet this season.

In the meantime, here's a hilarious YouTube video of Johnny Orr giving ESPN college basketball commentator Dick Vitale an earful from back in the day.

Project 365 Day 365: Out With The Old

On this final day of 2010, and the final day of this Project 365 blog-a-day business, it is only fitting that we toss the Christmas tree out on the deck. And by we, I mean Amy, since my recent exploits on the basketball court that resulted in a sprained ankle prompted me to "take it easy" and act in a supervisory role only. I am happy to say that with much rest and leg elevation, my ankle continues to feel better, and I hope to be be walking with only a slight limp soon!

The Project 365 blog has been an interesting experiment in attempting to document some event from each day of the year, however insignificant. Amongst the many posts about basement rearrangements and meals and mismatched socks, hopefully there was an interesting tidbit every once in awhile for our faithful readers. It will be a neat reference to be able to go back in the future, and jog our memories of some of the things that happened during our first full year after moving back to Ames during the summer of 2009.

For 2011, we are planning to ease up on the volume of posting and try for updates on a weekly basis or thereabouts. Quality over quantity! We apologize to those who couldn't get enough pictures of canned goods from our grocery shopping trips, but we'll try to make the less frequent posts worth your while in the future.

Happy New Year!

Project 365 Day 364: Ankle Update

With some passing of time since yesterday's update, I am finally ready to admit that my sprained ankle was not directly caused by the Iowa State football team failing to make a bowl game this year. It really just came down to me thinking I could play recreational basketball like a 20-year old with my 30-year old not-very-conditioned body.

I found that I had some trouble walking this morning on my bad ankle, probably due to not having kept it elevated while I slept, but fortunately one of Amy's coworkers was kind enough to let us borrow some crutches she had on hand. These were very useful today to help keep the weight off that ankle, and I also found that after spending the morning and afternoon icing and elevating my foot, that I had a much easier time getting around, even without crutches. I will keep using them on and off though so I don't stress things too much. They sure beat having to crawl to the kitchen for breakfast!

Project 365 Day 363: More Ice Please

We continued our workout plan tonight with another trip to the rec, during which I was planning to shoot some hoops and maybe do a little sprinting between baskets for layups to get some cardio in. Instead, I was asked to play 3-on-3 pickup basketball, which of course I could not turn down!

The highlight of my performance was probably when I swished my first free throw attempt to choose teams. That's always a high pressure situation, and I was first up, so I felt like I really set the tone for the shooting-for-teams portion of the pickup games. Then about halfway through the first game I found myself winded, throwing up off-balance shots that were lucky to find the rim, and getting a few layups at opportune moments.

I probably should have quit after the first game, but I couldn't sit out the second and look like a wuss! Unfortunately it was during the second game that I jammed my ring finger against the ball while catching a pass (luckily on my off-hand!) and then rolled my ankle while trying to cut back too fast. All this resulted in my hobbling to the big comfy chair in the living room where Amy took this photo of me icing down my sore finger and ankle.

Really, though, I have no one to blame this on other than the Iowa State Football team. If they had managed to get one win in their last three tries, they would have had six wins and been invited to a late December bowl game, which we would have likely attended, causing me to not be at the rec tonight when the five gentlemen needed a sixth for their game.

Thanks a lot, Cyclones!

Project 365 Day 362: Winter Workouts

With rumors floating around that we might do RAGBRAI again this coming year, we have been preparing ourselves for such an event by going to the Lied Rec Center on campus for some workout time. We've been trying to go at least 3 times a week, and compared to when we started training for the bike ride across Iowa last year, we definitely have a head start this time.

Of course, if the Des Moines Register announces that the coming year's route is the hardest, hilliest ever, then maybe we'll just do AAAAGBRTDMAB instead.

Oh, you haven't heard of that common acronym? Well, it stands for Amy And Adam's Annual Great Bike Ride To Des Moines And Back.

Project 365 Day 361: Olde Leftovers

We had a nice meal out tonight with my parents, sister, and her boyfriend, as they had made a trip to Des Moines to do some furniture store browsing, and it worked out to grab a bite to eat in Ames before they headed back home. We went to Olde Main, ate some delicious food, and best of all, brought home some leftovers!

Project 365 Day 360: Presents Day Three

Today we "wrapped" up the holiday season (oh ho ho that was a great pun) with a gathering at my grandparent's house on my mom's side, and it was quite literally a full house! There were many young children running around, playing with their new toys and spreading the holiday cheer. Pictured here are a couple of toys taking a breather from the action, though I'm sure it wasn't long before they rejoined the fray.

All I can say is they sure make Transformers more complicated now then they did back in my youth! I was trying for the life of me to turn a Bumblebee Transformer robot back into its car form, but about all I accomplished was getting the rear wheels aligned. The front wheels, doors, windshields, and pretty much everything else had no hope of being transformed correctly in my hands. I'll just assume my 30 year old fingers are too big for the 8-14 year old specifications and I was doomed from the get-go.

Where's Mr. Potato Head when you need him?

Project 365 Day 359: Presents Day Two

For Christmas Day we moved the festivities to Independence for gatherings with my Dad's side of the family at his mom's house, followed a return to my parents house for evening gift opening with my parents, sister, and her boyfriend. Following the opening of gifts we had a fun time giving Mom and Dad a run down on how their new Netflix subscription works; hopefully the process of updating their movie queue does not introduce any marital strife! As we finished getting their Nintendo Wii set up for online Netflix streaming, Mom requested that we play some Christmas music piano duets, which Amy captured in this photo. My playing was a little rusty, so next year I'll have to get the music early and get some practice in ahead of time, but practiced or not it's always fun to make some music!

Project 365 Day 358: Presents Day One

Christmas Eve means it's the first day of our traditional rounds of gift openings with family. Today we are at Amy's parent's house, and in this photo I am holding the biggest gift I have received. As we all know, the bigger the gift, the better it is! Fortunately I am of an age and maturity level that I was genuinely excited to receive the cooking implements contained within. It was only 20 some short years ago when I hoped for and was very excited to open the latest video gaming system of the year... now the most exciting part of gift opening around Christmas is watching the little nephews and nieces open their gifts.

The coolest gift I got so far would have to be the Hallmark Tron Legacy Light Cycle. I can't wait until next Christmas so I can get that thing on a tree for all of December!

Project 365 Day 357: Apple Invasion

Mmm, there's nothing sweeter than the smell of a freshly unboxed computer! Today I had the pleasure of helping Amy's parents get their new Apple iMac with 27" display set up. Here it is in its happy new home in their computer room.

Long ago I was firmly entrenched in the Windows camp and thought Apple products were just for the schoolteacher families that could get discounts on those inferior systems. I mean, all the cool games were on Windows, so why bother with anything else?

As it turns out, we now have a couple of Apple computers in our own household, not to mention a variety of iPods, and it seems I was as firmly entrenched in the Windows camp as former Iowa State football coach Gene Chizik was in Ames. I continue to be impressed with the Apple approach to computing, and don't mind migrating between the Apple and Microsoft arenas on any given day.

The most important thing these days is whether you can get to Google and Facebook, and how you get there is a matter personal taste.

I still think Windows has more cool games though.

Project 365 Day 356: Wrapping Scraps

The presents are wrapped and biding their time under the tree until tomorrow, when they will be transported to Eastern Iowa via us for Christmas distribution. Pictured here are the scraps of wrapping paper left over from my packaging efforts. There are always a few odd scraps left, too narrow to be of use for most gifts, but if one just plans ahead a little...

Looks like a lot of people will be getting tubes of Pillsbury dough next year! That and Pez dispensers.

Project 365 Day 355: Mascot Moves

The fun thing about basketball season, if you're a basketball fan, is the number of games to watch and go to. We have been very happy with our season ticket purchase for ISU Men's Basketball this year, and even though we are up in the nose bleed section of one of the corners, during the early pre-Big 12 conference games it's pretty easy to move around to better seats. I'm hoping that once we get into more competitive games that will be more difficult because of larger crowds. I love being at Hilton with a packed house going nuts.

Tonight we saw the good guys mop the floor with Chicago State and improve to 11-2 on the season. Iowa State won by over 40 points, which might get old after a while, but knowing that the Big 12 schedule will be much tougher I certainly don't mind watching these types of games now. Building the confidence of a young team and first year coach who are all figuring things out can't be a bad thing at this point either.

One of the highlights of tonights game was the halftime antics of our mascot Cy (a giant red cardinal-like bird). Here's a picture of Cy for reference:

The halftime entertainment consisted of a couple of dance numbers by the Southeast Polk high school dance squad, but the most entertaining aspect for us was watching Cy off to the side imitating some of their dance moves as well as coming up with some of his own. Then at one point while he was watching the dance team, they performed a sort of spinning flying leap in his direction, at which point he jumped back and struck a defensive karate pose with arms outstretched, ready to fight.

Thanks Cy, for everything you do!

Project 365 Day 354: Soup's On

Well I'll be; beans in a can and tomatoes in a can. And not just any tomatoes, mind you, but diced tomatoes! What will they think of next?

We had planned to make a big batch of turkey kielbasa soup last week using a slow-cooker recipe Amy found a few years back that we had used once while living in DC, but then I got sick and we resorted to plan b, soup in a can prepared by Mr. Progresso. We cashed our raincheck on the homemade soup today and cooked up some chicken-brothy-turkey-sausagey goodness.

Hopefully our healthy eating and recent trips to the rec center will prepare us for the holiday meal deluge that is about to strike!

Project 365 Day 353: Free Beast

Today will go down in history as the day I finally got one of those free t-shirts they occasionally toss out at college sporting events. My parents were in town for a visit and we all went to the ISU vs. Dartmouth men's basketball game. At one point some cheerleader-types came up to the upper deck where we were sitting while the PA announcer said it was time to see who can cheer the loudest. After realizing that this might finally be my chance, I stood up and waved my arms while yelling crazily like the other fans in our section. To my surprise I saw a cheerleader with a wadded-up shirt rear back and toss it in our direction, though I was sure the gentleman a few rows ahead would catch it.

Instead, the shirt somehow sailed through his outstretched hands, continuing towards me, at which point it also sailed past my uncoordinated hands, landing a glancing blow off my cheek and falling into my dad's seat. I snatched it up and held it in the air, victorious! Dad was kind enough to let me keep the shirt, though I would have argued that it was rightfully mine anyway on the basis of my cheek-deflection recovery; kind of like getting a fumble back in football.

After unraveling the shirt we found that it had the current I-State logo with the word "BEAST" printed below in large letters. Some might be confused by this, but we had been to enough basketball games to know it was a reference to the Beauty and the Beast gymnastics/wrestling combination meet coming up in the spring, which has been heavily advertised during basketball games.

Looks like I can check one more item off my bucket list!

Project 365 Day 352: Complimentary Socks

Amy informed me today that I was wearing one brown sock and one green sock. I'm pretty sure I was aware of this possibility, but didn't given it much thought when I was digging through the pile-o-laundry this morning for clean socks. I would like to say that they are simply complimentary socks, the dark brown and green hues representing the, uh, umm, colors of a Christmas Tree! Yes, that will do nicely.

The good news is that with a slow Saturday at home we were able to catch up on some household chores like dishes, bathroom cleaning, and laundry folding. That last one should improve my odds of getting matched socks tomorrow.

Project 365 Day 351: Wrapper's Delight

My cold and/or flu symptoms are on their way down, and what a better way to celebrate than wrapping some Christmas gifts? Here's our first batch, a stack to be shipped out to the West Coast for the families of some of Amy's siblings.

In our household I have been designated the official gift wrapper, probably due to my propensity for precisely folding paper. It is a responsibility I do not take lightly.

Project 365 Day 350: Buckyballs

My recent mild illness of some sort of cold or flu variety seems to be improving today, thank goodness, and I attribute it to two things:

1. Amy taking care of me
2. Magnets

Now when I say magnets, I don't mean those medical bracelets that help with sea sickness or anything. I'm talking about Buckyballs! They come in sets of 216 little magnetic balls which can be connected and sculpted into various shapes. Pictured here are a few of Amy's creations. I ordered a couple of sets so we would each have our own to play with, and the timing could not have been better.

Next time someone you know is feeling ill, perhaps some Buckyball magnetic therapy is what the doctor ordered.