It was dead calm this morning, overcast with light snow, and the temperature was about 28 degrees. I headed out to do some roadwork. I was desperate to log some miles as I've been stuck in the weight room since Monday, what with medical stuff and the winter storm and all.
As I finished my second mile the snow stopped, the clouds began to break up, and the sun began to chase away the gray. The temperature began to rise and it looked like we were on the verge of a lovely spring day.
So I hit some sand sprints, 16 sets of two. The last three I did with my phone out in video mode, which wasn't very satisfying. I hate sand sprints. Always have. Which is why I love them.
After the sand sprints I did two more miles over to the underpass steps and knocked out 94 flights. As I was running steps the clouds closed back in, the temperature fell, an east wind picked up, and it started to snow again.
A great workout on a typical April day in Nebraska.
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Today is Nebraska's Spring Game at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln. It's a kind of a big deal in this here state, and hopes are high that the Cornhuskers will return to greatness this year under second-year Head coach Scott Frost (Former Husker QB and National Champion). Of course it's just a spring game, but just like the players, true Husker Fans have to put in the grinding post-season, Spring, Summer, and Pre-Season work. So we'll be eyeballing the game later today.
UPDATE: Reds 24, Whites 13
We won! But we also lost. It's a Spring Game thing.
Yesterday my Niece Julia, a Freshman at UNL, was working a shift at the Nebraska Bookstore, which is a kind of manically iconic Husker Nation business and landmark. She happened to meet some old dude with a big, flashy Husker ring.
The old dude with the ring turned out to be Keithen McCant, Nebraska's starting QB from the 1990/1991 seasons.
Miami kicked the shit out of us in that 1992 Orange Bowl, BTW.
McCant was in town for the Spring Game of course. And now Julia is the most famous Evertson of all time. Yes, it's a thing. A form of psychosis, perhaps, but nonetheless a thing.
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Yesterday we had a visitor at the ranch. He (possibly she) stopped by the south deck to hang out for a while.
It's a Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus). One of the smallest of the Accipiters, they are mainly aerial hunters and generally feed on songbirds, doves, and pigeons. Here are a few higher quality stills.
Very cool birds.
Can't say about all the country but from where I sit Nebraska fans are unique, and in a good way. Decent people, don't tear up a town when visiting, don't pour cups of urine on the opposing players coming out the tunnel (hello, Sooners), etc.
ReplyDeleteLots of coaches and players comment on how different Nebraska fans are, and of course the announcers on tee-vee are required by federal-football law to blather on about the fans during the broadcast. I think for a lot of us the Golden Rule was somehow emphasized as a major part of our "one big thing" and it's somehow stuck. Even the youngsters pick up on and carry forward the tradition.
DeleteThey can eat all the pigeons, as far as I care. Loathsome, filthy birds. Go Hawks!
ReplyDeleteThey seem to be pretty good at it. Nature made a lot of pigeons though...
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