I'm telling you this straight, folks, it's been a rough sports week for me and Fred. My beloved Golden Bears got blown out for the second time in two weeks, while Fred's Tigers turned in one of the greatest collapses in baseball history by losing a heart-rending 12-inning thriller to the Twins, who trailed by 3 games with 4 left but still forced the tiebreaker game. If it weren't for the Niners beating the ever-living crap out of the St. Louis Lambs, I'd probably be in a padded room with no tearable cloth or sharp objects right now.

But here's the thing - we're hardened sports fans. Well, at least, I am - Fred may not be as inured to it as I am, but I'm hoping he'll stick it through. And when we face the kind of pain that can only come from a #2-ranked team losing a game to poor clock management, or a baseball team coughing up a lead with its magic number at 3 and 4 games to go, we mourn for a while in our own ways (I personally went through anger, bargaining, denial, depression, and acceptance in the second half) and then store that pain and rage for later use.

These things never heal fully, but there are things like championships or even just good stretches that will soothe them. But we have to take the long view. Because you can't fail EVERY year, right Cubs fans? Right?

There's always next year.