There is no I in Loser!

Does being behind when the time runs out mean you lose? For a group of young men from Memphis you probably will never convince them of anything else. For millions of fans that watched all over the country you can't ever make the low any worse than what it was at the end of the game. But I stand here and say that being behind when time ran out is just an obstacle to overcome next year.

Now what we have to do is realize what those men from Memphis have done in the last few weeks. They have taken a city that watched the nightly news to see how many people have died, been robbed, raped, etc. and turned it into Tiger Fever. For a short time we got a break from reality and learned to like ourselves and more importantly have pride in ourselves as we supported a team with spirit.

No. We didn't lose. We won on so many more important levels. There is no I in loser because you and "I" won so much more by just being in the moment with them.

How many people died in Memphis yesterday? It wasn't our focus. We won!

Go Tigers Go!

Next year the fight begins again. Never give up even when the time runs out.

Go Tigers Go!!

Memphis. A town of losers? A town of criminals? OK, I'll give you criminals. Well, a lot of them any way. But losers, no you can't have that one. But what is it about Memphis that gives people that idea?

Is it the image of our city? Is it the fact that in the past there has not often been a Memphis team to get this far in the finals. Is it simply because when you are down and out in so many ways people like to keep you there?

I have grown up in the Memphis area. I have lived here for 19.66 years of the twenty years since I moved back to the city after college. I have told people that I had to move back, after just four months when I did move away, because I love Memphis. Not Memphis basketball mind you. But I loved the city and being away just didn't seem right.

Now I find myself loving Memphis basketball too. Only twenty years after I made this city my chosen home. Just a couple of years after I have decided that the metropolitan is too dangerous to live in so I will have to move when I retire. So does this mean more than just an enjoyment of a game? Maybe I am looking so hard for a reason to stay that I am noticing all the positives about Memphis I have missed for all these years.

Positives about Memphis. The one thing that the entire country can focus on right now is Memphis basketball. Is it life changing? Will it make us a better city? Does it make any difference at all? Maybe. Maybe? Yeah, maybe.

If a person finds something to be happy about he or she will pass that along. Happy people share happy. Life changing? Maybe. You never know who needs only one more negative to finish them off. Why try any more? Extreme, possibly. Basketball as a life saver? In this cut off, virtual world of limited true human contact (pay at the pump, self-check out, ATM and so on) when more bad contact happens than good contact it can make people think really hard about all things in life.

How about a better city? Why don't we all wear blue and stand together supporting a university. It might lead us to believing it is more than just basketball. The thought of going to be a part of the whole system might lead people to want education. Education will make us a better city and change a life. Hmmm, makes more sense to me.

It makes all the difference when people can stand together for something. Look at history. Think of all the things good and bad that happened when a group of people had something to work for together. The north took a more supportive effort in the Civil War when it became all about slavery. Germans supported Hitler against those evil jews (please note sarcasm), the Allied powers uniting at the discovery of the Holocaust, the Red Scare and McCarthyism, the domino theory and the USSR, Monica Lewinsky, boys kissing, stem cells, and suicide bombers.

So I will support Memphis. Go Tigers Go! I just wish I had been shopping at Ashley furniture. Look up Memphis good things to figure that one out.

Wal-Mart and Other Anomalies

It just seems unusual to me how many people shop at Wal-Mart no matter what hour you go into that store. But more importantly, if you shop there, does that make you one of "them?"

How often do we judge other people silently and with no other facts than first impresson of appearances to base our judgments on, we seem to be able to sum up all the qualities of those around us.

I personally would never do that anymore than I would go out to eat on a Saturday night. In fact, three serial killers and a redneck woman later I finally made it totally in the store had basket and was in route to the pharmacy. Not for prescriptons but for Breath Assure. What a first impression! Now who would have thought that it was possible but with a harsh realization of this little information tidbit, I started to understand that I too was one of "them." Yes, I am a discount shopper. I will drive across town to save three cents on gas. I do have my old favorite clothes and will wear them however mis-matched into the Wal-Mart and if it is summer, sometimes there will be flip flops too.

Sadly, this store is in my community. I might run into people that I work with. Do I want my boss to see me in a shirt that says, "I make my own gas." I could justify that statement is not too bad with prices like they are but when you add the can of baked beans to the message in the big picture it all tends to go downhill.

There is nothing left to do. I will own my status in this society and be proud that I too am a redneckily(if Bush can make up words so can I) dressed discount shopper. I will however not go into a place without first using a comb or a hat.

If I am like those fellow shoppers in appearance, I should consider what really counts. How parallel are our lives? Do they struggle to make ends meet now that almost $300 a month goes to those wonderful people at the oil companies? Do they have elderly grandparents that need help with their house and lives? What about their own families? How many hours do they spend going to ballgames and dance rehersals? Dogs or cats?

If their lives are like mine, then on what can I judge them? I guess nothing. And isn't that the way it should be? How much time do we waste judging people? What could we do with our thoughts if we used them in a more fruitful manner?

Of course, to quote one of those famous writings there is the concept of "Judge not lest ye be judged." Now reading and knowing that simple fact it should be easy to say that I should not judge others on a glance.

Sadly we are all more alike than I want to admit because no matter what I realized I will probably still snap judge in the Wal-Mart and other places just like everyone else. But at least now it will be with fresh breath.