SPOILER ALERT
If have not read Quiz #2. March Sadness just yet, you’re about to read the answer to the “What did NOT happen?” question from that quiz.
Here’s the answer:
What did NOT happen?
A. In February, I got an email from a friend I’ll call Fred. He runs one of the most elaborate NCAA Pools on the planet. (It got written up in the Wall Street Journal.) I’ve played in it for 10 years, but I’ve never met Fred. He was emailing his people to let us know he would not be running his pool this year because he was facing surgery 2 days after Selection Sunday. I emailed him right away and offered him encouraging words, closing with one of my favorite lines from Sara: “The only way out is through.” He promised to send my pool invitation to his people before surgery;
B. Last month, I bought a “Get Well” card for Fred and filled it out with his address, leaving it on my desk at work. I planned on sending it out on the Monday after Selection Sunday (tomorrow)--but I am now working from home, with no access to my desk at work;
C. When the NCAA announced that the tournament was cancelled last Thursday, a friend whom I have actually met in person named Bill emailed me. He told me I was the first person he thought of when he heard the news that the tournament was cancelled;
D. When the tournament was cancelled, Fred emailed me again. He lives in Washington state and he wanted me to know his surgery was still on. I wished him luck;
E. Another friend we’ll call Andy, whom I’ve never met and who runs a funeral home in Pennsylvania, emailed to ask me to pay up. For 20 years, I’ve played in his Super Bowl box grid. I don’t pay him and we settle up after he joins my NCAA Pool. With no NCAA Pool, he (understandably) wanted his money. He doesn’t use Venmo.
For decades, I've played in a Super Bowl Box Pool with a family that runs a funeral home in Pennsylvania--and they've also been playing in my NCAA Jeopardy pool for decades. I've never met them—and can’t really remember how we met. 3 generations of their family now play in my pools. This year, we settled up in January with a check.
As for Fred, he's still facing surgery. "The only way out is through."
Want more?
Here’s the next quiz in the series: Quiz #3. Two Weeks.
Here’s the first quiz in the series: Quiz #1. Stella and Social Distancing, March 13, 2020
The quiz is explained here: Steve’s Stay-at-Home Coronavirus Quiz.
Here is an archive of all the quizzes.
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