Red or Blue?

It's not easy being red.

Unless, of course, you are the New Mexico Lobos heading home from Utah after beating BYU in a fun-tastic game at the Marriott Center with a score of 83-81. Even those of us in the nose-bleed section could feel the energy radiating from the court so far below. It was palpable. It was deafening. It was one of the best games I have ever watched!

And exhausting. The players were dripping sweat, the fans were hyperventilating and those of us who live in New Mexico but love BYU were totally worn out. It's tough to scream for EVERY basket and holler for EVERY bad call - on either team, on both teams, the entire game!

But that's what I did. It was go BYU, then OMG Lobos, then yeah BYU, then alright Lobos....I can't do too many of these games in a row. I don't have the energy!

However, having set the scene for you, I now have to confess a few things. A) I live in Albuquerque, B) I love the Land of Enchantment, C) Not only do I live in Albuquerque, I live in close proximity to UNM - I can walk there, D) I am a REDhead, E) I have long dreamed of working for UofU (another RED school), F) Red is my nickname, G) I flew out with the UNM Lobos, H) I sat next to Darrington Hobson in the terminal and I) then he decided to take a little nap since our plane was delayed so I snapped the picture above.

So, when it comes down to it, I may love blue - after all, it's long been my favorite color, but the bottom line for me will always be this head of red hair. Add in the red of UNM's Lobos to the red of the UofU Utes and there is just no blue in sight.

Well, except my eyes. They are blue. Maybe this isn't as easy as I thought. And my BLUE eyes are often referred to as my best asset, so maybe it isn't all about red. And then there's my LDS background which certainly makes me feel some responsibility to cheer for "the Lord's team". I mean we were playing basketball where apostles and prophets have stood and spoken, and you can be sure they weren't cheering for red yesterday. "Follow the prophet..." And my oldest son graduated from BYU. Oh dear,  I don't know...it's a conundrum of non-eternal consequences. I know this may seem frivolous, all this time spent on discussing a sports event, but it feels, well, sacred. And you can see why! I mean, this is serious business.

It was a sell out crowd, over 22,000 people, no empty seats, a sea of white t-shirts with blue Y's emblazoned across front and back, speckled with about 50 red Lobos t-shirts here and there - oh, and one HUGE New Mexico state flag waving above the team in the hands of a devoutly enchanted Lobo fan.

And then there was me, sitting between Kalen - the avowed not-interested Mormon, and two recently returned LDS missionaries (Denver and Vancouver) - one wearing....wait for it....RED! Yes, a fellow LDS-type wearing RED and cheering for the Lobos! I was saved....again. ;)

So, go RED! I mean, go BLUE! OHHH freak, it's all so confusing! He and I weren't sure who to cheer for.

But one thing's for sure, the enchanted Lobos just won their 13th straight game when they took the Cougars by 2 points on BYU's home court, and I was there to watch and cheer both teams on.

Go Lobos! And go Cougars - cuz there's something about the underdog that brings out the empathy in all of us.

And I'll say it again: it's not easy being red. But, game on!

So, go Red! (which means, go Jeannie, it's your year, babe!)