Mark’s Musings – April 2, 2014

| April 1, 2014
Mark Fortune

Mark Fortune

I still have a shot at the national champion with the Badgers winning on Saturday night. The weekend had some incredible basketball games with some very talented athletes putting on a display that I am not sure has been seen on the court in recent years. Kentucky was just too much power in the paint for the Wolverines. Most people’s brackets have been busted more than a Chicago alderman during Prohibition. That’s a bunch by the way. Who is your prediction for a national champion? Kentucky? Wisconsin? Florida? UConn?

While I like the Badgers as an all-around team, the sheer physicality of Kentucky inside and the strength of Florida’s big men could over power both UConn and Wisconsin. It seems that the game is changing with the strength of the inside game going to powerful athletes. I was surprised that Michigan had no answer to the domination in the paint by the Wildcats. I would at least have tried to take a charge or two. . . then again, maybe not. Those guys are big.

I like Florida and Wisconsin in the title bout. I’m sticking with my pick from last week, Badgers.

Did you know that couples in Paris place a lock and throw away the key on bridges across the Seine? The problem is that the weight of the locks is now becoming a danger to the structural integrity of many bridges in Paris. Two expatriate Americans have taken up the cause to have the locks banned. A petition currently has 1700 signatures. The locks are engraved with the name of the couple. Now I’m wondering about the keys? Wouldn’t they be considered a danger to the environment if they have been thrown into the river? And further, why isn’t this scene in any of the Jason Bourne movies? Just wondering. And for those of you wondering, no, let’s not do this to the Three Rivers Bridge.

Now in addition to the issues in the Ukraine, we have problems in Korea. Artillery shells hitting harmlessly in the water is not as bad as landing in a populated city but one has to wonder if the recent Russian takeover of Crimea (yes, let’s call it a takeover) has led to boldness from certain leaders around the globe. Time will tell.

I like the weather prediction for this week … it appears that the shock of winter is wearing off. Just in time for “Winter Soldier” the new Captain America movie, to hit the big screen this Friday. We just can’t seem to escape the clutches of this winter.

Baseball season started Monday. Any predictions? The L. A. Dodgers are the odds on favorite to win it all this year with the most expensive lineup at $26 million. The Reds are 15 to 1 odds according to pregame.com. The Indians – 28 to 1 – the Cubs – 60 to 1. If you’re in Houston – it could be a long season – the Astros are 250 to 1 to win it all.  We’ll see.

Category: Mark's Musings

About the Author ()

Mark Fortune, along with his wife Nancy, is the former owner and founder of The Coshocton County Beacon, the highest circulated newspaper in Coshocton County. He has over 40 years in the publishing business with sales, marketing, and journalism experience. After selling The Beacon to the AloNovus Corp., in January 2020, Mark has been a Business Development Strategist with the company. They publish a network of weekly news publications with almost a half million distribution weekly, a quarterly tourism magazine and a digital division. Mark enjoys history, and has a passion for genealogy, currently researching and discovering his Fortune ancestry. He and his wife Nancy live on a small farm outside of Coshocton.

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