March Madness Advice

I'll be the first to tell you I know shit about sports. Growing up, my ideas of sports were Final Fantasy VII marathons and putting together computers. But the one time of year I pay attention is March Madness. Not because of some fondness for basketball, but because I enjoy placing a bracket on a site like ESPN where random chance and guesses are as much a part of it as knowing these teams inside and out.


So you're like me, huh? Well, grab a beer (or a capris sun if your under 21) and let's look at some of the tried and true methods for winning some money with little to no sports knowledge required!


1. Bracket Seeds


This is the easiest one to follow. You have a 1 seed facing a 16 seed? Well that's a no brainer. I don't care if the 16 seed has your favorite color on the uniform or it's mascot is Admiral Ackbar (I see you Ole Miss people), 1 is good and 16 is bad. As the seed matchups get more even (like 1 vs 4 and 2 vs 3), then it becomes a free for all, but at the beginning, be smart. They rank these teams for a reason.


2. Mascots


You got one of those pesky 7 seed vs 10 seed matchups and you're like shit, what do I do? Let's go to the mascot check. The 7 seed has the mighty Friar for a mascot. The 10 seed has the radical Flying Space Hyenas as theirs. Duh - this is what we call a no brainer. You best be picking the Flying Space Hyenas. If you don't, you better be a Friar alum or intoxicated. Mascot coolness counts and don't be afraid to run with it.


3. Colors


A popular method amongst the lady-type people, picking based on what color appeals to you. I'm not going to lie, I've used this method on occasion to great success. My favorite color is green and thanks to a good old Michigan State run for a few tournaments, green took me to the promised land. However, color picks are superseded by seeds and mascots. I don't give two shits if aquamarine is your favorite color, if that team is a 15 seed with a mascot of the Jazz Bunny and they are playing a 2 seed with a mascot of the Killer Chainsaws, there's no way in hell you should be using the color method (unless you are an alum or intoxicated).


Well, there you have it. The brackets are out now and you should go get to picking. And, if you win any money, use it to buy one of your old pal Jack's books. You won't regret it.


-Jack
jack.crosby25@gmail.com

Brewery Thoughts

So yesterday I went out to explore Albuquerque and a few local breweries.  I never made it passed the Broken Bottle.  That place was awesome and deserves some recognition.  The beers were amazing, especially the AFD Red.  I love a good red beer and this one definitely hit the spot.

I also want to give a quick shout out to Bobby, Kim, and Macey for the exceptionally fun evening.  It turns out Bobby has read Death Among Us and nearly shit his pants when I was able to prove I was the author.  Unfortunately that meant giving him a sneak peek at Old War Stories, so if any story secrets are leaked, I'll know where to come.  In all seriousness, New Mexico has some really cool cats and besides those three, I had a great time with a bunch of locals.

I'm sure the main reason you read this blog is for story updates.  I finished Chapter 11 today while nursing a bit of a hangover.  I'm about a third of the way through the story (shooting for 34-36 chapters) and I'm getting to the point where I want to start sharing a few tidbits here and there.  I probably won't be able to write anything more until I get settled in Dallas and take stock in my next IT job, but when I get through Chapter 13, I'll post a blog with the first chapter.  It'll be a rough draft version, so pardon my grammatical errors, but something is better than nothing.

I hit the road for Dallas in the morning, so I'll catch up wit hall of you guys later.  Keep the emails coming, your thoughts are priceless.

-Jack
jack.crosby25@gmail.com

New Mexico is Cold

Greetings from Nex Mexico! Albuquerque to be exact, as I am on my way from Silicon Valley to Dallas. My Jeep is holding up well on this trip, but I'm afraid when I get back home, it'll be time to upgrade my ride. Fortunately, book sales aren't too shabby so I might even look at a car with under 100K miles on it. Who am I kidding? I'll be getting another Jeep just because I love 'em so much.

So I'm taking two days to hang out in New Mexico. I'm not due to start my next gig until Friday, so I figured I'd take today and tomorrow to check out some sites, mainly breweries. Today I'm hoping to get to the Broken Bottle Brewery and Chama River. If I remember, I'll post a review of the places tomorrow morning for all of you.

Right now I'm sitting on the little ouside porch to my room. I thought New Mexico was supposed to be hot? According to iWeather, it's only 48 degrees out here right now. Oh well, there goes the pool later.

I got in late last night to my hotel, and before I called it a night, I worked some more on Old War Stories. I had a great idea and ran with it. Before I knew it, I'd finished two chapters and began to get to the heart of the story. After I get my beer fix, I might knock out some more.

Well, I guess it is time to start getting ready to do some exploring. Before I go, if you'd like to tell me some of your favorite beers, especially if I can get them in the southwest, I'd love to hear. Beer = Inspiration.

-Jack
jack.crosby25@gmail.com