First of all, for those not interested in sports, I do have stitching and health news farther down in this entry.
Well, as much as I hate to say it, I have to give credit where credit is due. The game last night was a real roller coaster to watch, but it was an AMAZING game!! 
In the first half, the Vols looked about as good as I’d seen them look all season (in what few games I was actually able to see on TV in California). We built up a really nice lead and our D was all over the Buckeyes. We were rebounding really well, taking advantage of turnovers, and were hitting 3 pointers all over the place. Unfortunately, we apparently left that team in the locker room after the half because it just wasn’t the same in the second half.
I’m not sure if, being a somewhat young team, they just got too cocky with the good lead we had, or if it was just an overall underestimation of the Buckeye’s tenaciousness. Regardless of the reason, by midway in the second half, we’d given up the 20 point lead we’d had at one point and the lead swapped back and forth like a see-saw the rest of the game. This was our second very close nail-biter of a game to the Buckeyes this season, both of which unfortunately resulted in losses. 
We lost to the Bucks by 2 points back in January during regular season play and then by 1 point to them last night. Any way you slice it, the Buckeyes are just a really good team, so I give them credit and congratulations on the win.
On the upside, I think it says a LOT about the quality of our men’s program to play that well against one of the best teams in the nation. Given that Dane Bradshaw is the only starter we’ll be losing this year, I’m really hopeful that we’ll have a great season next year. Our men’s basketball program may actually start getting some recognition and, eventually, be the same type of powerhouse that our football team and women’s basketball team are known for being. 
Speaking of our women’s team, we will be facing off against the 13 seed Marist on Sunday at noon ET. Marist is definitely a school that our women can’t take for granted. They first knocked out the 4 seed Ohio State team and then the 5 seed Middle Tennessee State team. So, even though our ladies are the 1 seed in the Dayton bracket, you can’t underestimate a scrappy 13 seed that keeps knocking off much higher seeds in the earlier rounds.
In stitching news, I’m gearing up for the Stitcher’s Retreat next week. I’m really looking forward to it. I’ll be taking a 3-hour class from the ladies at Brightneedle, a 2-hour class from the ladies at Sisters & Best Friends, and three 50-minute round robin classes from Brightneedle, Sisters & Best Friends, and Charland. I’ll end up with 5 class kits. Now I just have to figure out when I’ll have time to actually stitch them. LOL 
On the health front, I have the date for my upcoming surgery finally. It will be at noon PT on Thursday, April 12. Given that it’s not a morning surgery, I’ll most likely end up staying the night at the hospital. I’m still trying to not let it worry me, but I’m really internalizing a lot of it. I have full confidence in my surgeon, but there is a part of me that really fears that something will go wrong and that I won’t make it. I’m trying my hardest to quell those feelings because I really believe a positive mental attitude has a lot to do with the ability one’s body has to heal itself quickly. I’ll definitely try to work in a lot of meditation time the week prior to my surgery to hopefully get my fears under control.
Well, I guess that’s it for now. In closing …
Go Lady Vols!!! Happy stitching! 
I’m just trying to focus on that fact that I have an EXCELLENT surgeon and have full confidence in his abilities.
