Early season disasters have so often blighted our hopes for Minnesota football and basketball teams through these many years. Cruel realities emerge quickly and expectations fade. When the "unthinkable" occurs ( in this case, consecutive losses to South Dakota teams), the painful truths are soon processed and their meanings integrated. I am now well into my all too familiar survival mode. I'll watch the games whenever I can and allow our wins, however few there might be, to put a little spring in my step. The losses won't hurt much and I will look to the next season. The Twins showed some promise last year! Thanks for reading. I live in California and no one around here gets why I love all things Minnesota so much.