Weekend Results

We're having California weather in Texas--it's damn near perfect outside--sunny with highs in the mid 70s, cool, not cold at night, etc. Well, on most days, anyway. On Thursday, I played in a business golf scramble deal that started in relatively mild temperatures but by the back nine had degenerated into a steadily plunging thermometer and a wind howling at a steady 30mph with gusts to around 40. Those last nine holes were pretty much a death march where you're just praying for the thing to end. But, the weekend was superb as highlighted above. Ideal for playing golf, taking in a college football game, copulating, sitting out on the patio with a glass of something, or marching for peace and a living wage and I managed to do four out of the five. Great stuff, this actual fall weather we're having. Makes you realize that all of those patio and outdoor living ads you see are designed precisely for this, not your typical Texas summer day when it's hanging in there at 98 even at 10pm.

Took in the Baylor v Nebraska game in Waco on Saturday. For those of you who had the good sense and breeding to have not attended either of those universities, feel free and mystically liberated to skip this part. Anyway, it was a splendid morning, even for driving on IH-35 standards, though 11:30 kickoffs are hell as far as anything resembling a pre-game tailgate goes. Mrs. Bulba and I barely had time to down a couple of stiff screwdrivers before it was time to head into Floyd Casey. Here are some observations once we got there:

It must still strike alumni and fans of public universities as odd or quaint when you hear the pre-game prayer at a Baylor game. That said, I've noticed that most are quite polite when it's offered. The prayer always asks for protection for both schools' players, fans, etc. and the Baylor fans are respectful when the Golden Wave band plays the other university's school song. I like that. For most of the country, when the other school's anthem is played, it's an opportunity to openly disparage the opponent (see Texas v Oklahoma which is a delicious display of mutual hate) but you don't see that very much in Waco. Of course, part of what's going into this is the overall suckitude of Baylor football and Baylor alumni passion. We've discussed this before and I won't rant about it now but fall Saturdays for Baylor alumni doesn't mean football but instead carrying your wife's purse at the mall.

Art Briles stresses to the Bears to "start fast" in their efforts and being aggressive from the kickoff. The result Saturday was going three and out on the opening possession and having the punt blocked for a Nebraska touchdown. Maybe a slogan of "don't fuck up as much" would be better.

The Baylor crowd, especially the student section, was abysmal. Alumni side was about three fourths full. The student side was comprised of about 60 percent solid red Nebraska supporters and maybe 2,500 Baylor students, including the Baylor Line. Speaking of which, what was an impressive number of Baylor Line members who poured out onto the field at the home opener appears down to about 20 percent of its original number. Sad. Otherwise, for you Baylor students who had a big test or a big paper due, you maybe get a pass for not attending. But where the fuck where the rest of you? Were the sales at Nieman's just too hard to pass up? What the hell else were you doing at 11:30 on Saturday? Goddamn it, that pissed me off. That is a big, big reason why when detractors talk about Baylor not belonging in the Big 12, I listen.

Baylor is down 20-0 at the half and the missus and I headed for the George's Tent for something cold. Commiserated with some other Baylor types (for the record, Mrs. Bulba did not attend Baylor but she's a good egg about the whole thing) and had some polite conversations with some Nebraska folks who are generally real nice, understated people as you would expect most from that part of the world to be. Lots of Nebraska women who had those modest, mousie hair cuts, white turtlenecks with a red sweatshirt or sweater (wouldn't want to get too whorish looking, would we?) and a walk crafted by years of carrying buckets of grain and heaving casseroles out of the oven. You know, they're Midwestern farm girls even if they grew up in Omaha and they tend to get a little horny thinking about Cloth World.

Made it back for the second half and Baylor actually made a game of it. Hell, they could have actually tied or won the thing had their players been able to execute, namely not dropping a wide open pass in the end zone with the closest defender in neighboring Bell County and missing a field goal spotted between the hash marks on the seven (7) yard line. Speaking of which, I've made a little light of the horrid nature of Baylor's starting kicker (I won't mention his name but it rhymes with "Farks"), once remarking that Baylor stood a good chance of winning as long as they can keep Mr. Farks off the field." I was actually right about that. I've seen the guy miss more chip shot field goals than I thought was possible--he's either a choke artist or just plain bad or both and there's at least about a hundred high school kickers in Texas that are better than he is right now. I don't want to sound vindictive about this or anything, but after this latest travesty, I do hope he is kicked off the team, his name and number expunged from the team's records, and be expelled from the university and exiled to Albania. Or, at least to Abilene.

The Baylor band isn't good. The twenty or so horn and drum members of the Nebraska contingent were just as loud and were not prone to playing the dirges and bizarre show tune type numbers at inopportune moments of the game as is perfected by Baylor.

Enough of that. Drove back, bought Halloween candy and waited for the deluge to begin, while sitting in front of the Texas/OSU broadcast. We get two waves of trick or treaters in my neighborhood--the first wave are the local neighborhood kids. The second, later contingent are the kids from economically less advantgaged parts of the city. I don't mind them at all and enjoy giving them candy. But, the "kids" bigger than me really test the spirit of the thing. Anyway, I was a little surprised and impressed with Texas' dominating performance over the Cowboys. That Longhorn defense was really in a lock down mode and Texas is playing like the best team in the country right now. Oh yeah, I get to see them play guess who on November 14th. Pray for me.

Golf Sunday. Glorious weather. Didn't shank but didn't light it up, either. But, nice to be out. Finished it off by contemplating a beer label on the patio. Salud.