A Serious Thought Before Playtime

Our sympathies go out to Zak and Sarah Kustok on the tragic loss of their mother. We hope there is some measure of comfort in knowing that many, many people would share the burden that has been put upon them.
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Two Gun is moribund, abandoning his customary sanguine outlook and reciting fatalistic quotes from Shakespeare as he rattles around Stately Two Gun Manor, attempting to apply medieval literary logic to the capricious world of modern capitalism. My outlook is rather more linear.

We're gonna get even. 

Week 4 was a -10.  That never happened before.  It can never happen again.  It was a disaster, and we must get even, as one gets even on a grudge.

Notice how emphatically the V eradicates the 0.
There are people with whom I attended the second
grade at St.Hedwig School who are blissfully unaware
that I will one day swoop down upon them to settle
 scores from years past.  V for "five", or V for
VENDETTA???

I know grudges. 

I was raised by a tribe that is among the most advanced in recorded history at silently declaring and ceaselessly holding grudges.  The grudge is our meat. If grudges were currency, we would have been immeasurably wealthy.  We defined new standards for the grudge. Holding a grudge was as certain as the coming dawn, as natural to us as breathing.

Even so, there is another facet to this challenge.  How does one respond to a week of abject failure, when the only one responsible for said failure is oneself?  How do you, in effect, get even with yourself? 

Hire somebody who is angrier than you. 

To help my partner cope, I have added some words of guidance from the Bard.

Ball State -15 1/2 @ Central Michigan  ****
Saturday 2:30 p.m.  TV TBA
Central Michigan arrived in Evanston last week to face Northwestern hearing sustained and prolonged rhetoric wherein every speaker gave them proper respect, didn't take them lightly, lauded their skill level, recognized their accomplishements, all damning through faint praise.  Everyone very politely dismissed them prior to the contest as unable to win.  Then they went out and lost.  They're a very good team, and they're back at home, angry and being visited by Ball State, losers to Liberty (?), Purdue and last week 45-0 to Iowa.  So why wouldn't Ball State be the one seeking retribution? Their report card says "meets expectations".  They're toast.

I like not fair terms and a villain's mind.
--William Shakespeare


Penn State @ Iowa -7  ***
Saturday 7:05 p.m. ESPN
The Hawkeyes are driven.  Their drubbing last week of Ball State did not assuage the collective burning in the souls of the Hawkeye faithful caused by a loss to Arizona. The Hawks aspire to greatness.  They have suffered the loss of their lead running back and his backup.  Their aspirations have been torn apart and thrown in their faces. The only way to salve this wound is apply bone crushing defeats to a succession of opponents, the next of which is the visitors from Happy Valley and their aged and revered leader.

How poor are they that have not patience! What wound did ever heal but by degrees?
--William Shakespeare

Ohio State -18 @ Illinois  **
Saturday 11 a.m. BTN
The Buckeyes of Ohio State are highly talented and highly regarded across the land.  Mr. Tressel, their uniquely clad mentor, surely will remind his charges of the year 2007 when the Fighting Illini came to Columbus and embarassed that highly regarded OSU team.  The Illini headmaster, Mr. Zook, will likely also be reminding his team that their predecessors accomplished this feat, to steel them for this contemporary crusade.  The referee will flip a coin, the two sides will form their respective battle lines, and the visitors will commence to ravage the countryside, then mount their steeds (ok, their team bus) and return, unsullied, to their province to the east. 

I had rather have a fool to make me merry than experience to make me sad and to travel for it too!
--William Shakespeare

Temple -4 @ Army   *
Saturday 11 a.m. CBSC-HD
Army is enjoying a good year.  The Black Knights opened with a road win over E.Michigan, lost to Hawaii by 3 at home, shut out North Texas in Week 3 and then disposed of Duke 35-21 this past week.  Nice.  Then there's Temple.  Temple was cruising along at 3-0 and they were looking to use Penn State last week to demand that the world give them appropriate respect.  Instead, they were reprimanded as upstarts. They're p.o.'d., and that will drive them to a cover win @ West Point.

What is past is prologue.
--William Shakespeare