Like It Is

My bucket may be empty, but my heart's full

After another round of ice and snow and a rush to the hospital Thursday, this column isn't as much sports as it is personal.

No, the hospital trip wasn't for me.

It was for my girlfriend's daughter, who was in labor and had been since shortly after the sleet started hitting central Arkansas.

They couldn't get out of their apartment and I have a four-wheel drive. So at 7:30 Thursday morning I was driving 25 mph on Interstate 430, which was untreated, passing cars and even a pedestrian who apparently didn't understand that cars on ice are like dead horses on roller skates.

Hospitals haven't played much of a role in my many years on this good earth.

There was the minor stroke a few years ago that put me in a hospital bed for one night. The man sharing the room with me was terminal, and he was checked by an orderly every hour. An orderly who seemed to think he had to turn the light on to check the monitors.

So after a night of little sleep I was discharged and drove myself home to get some rest.

The back surgery I had was a success and was done as an outpatient, although my daughter hovered over me like I was in critical condition.

I wasn't, and all things considered I feel great. So don't think this is a retirement party. It isn't.

I still have a passion for my job. When I don't, then I'll retire.

However, there was a time when people did retire when they hit 65, which I will be tomorrow when I have dinner with some of my closest friends.

I'm looking forward to next week's SEC basketball tournament and the NCAA Tournament the week after that. March Madness has always been my favorite time of the year, and it has been interesting to watch Mike Anderson put the blocks in place to get the Hogs back to the Big Dance and back on the national radar.

The basketball drought was not fun for a guy who loves writing about the game and the people who play and coach it.

Anderson is the fifth Razorbacks coach I've covered during my career. Bret Bielema is my 10th football coach.

There is nothing really left on my bucket list of things that I would like to cover. I've been blessed to cover numerous NCAA basketball tournaments, the Kentucky Derby (and all three legs of the Triple Crown), national championships in football and baseball, Super Bowls and the World Series.

I've covered three Olympics, including Seoul, South Korea, in 1988.

I discovered Mi Tierra in San Antonio the first time I covered the old Southwest Conference basketball tournament, and it remains my favorite restaurant in the world.

A couple of days ago Jerry Izenberg, the longtime columnist for the Newark Star-Ledger, called from Las Vegas and we had a great visit. We shared a press table at more than 20 Kentucky Derbies and numerous Final Fours.

It just made me think, and as I prepare to celebrate my 65th birthday I wanted to share a few things.

I wear glasses, but only so I can see.

I have hearing aids that I wear only when I want to hear.

My mom is 91 years old, and despite her dementia we sometimes share wonderful memories.

I have dinner with my daughter and her husband, Brad Homan, almost every Sunday night.

I love my sisters and their families.

I enjoy my time on the radio shows. It gives me another perspective, including some from an array of callers.

Sitting in the beautiful and ultra efficient UAMS waiting on the birth of a baby boy, looking out the window at snow and ice, thinking about my conversation with Izenberg and my pending birthday, I just want to reiterate something.

I'm truly blessed.

Sports on 03/06/2015

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