Passionatey Dispassionate

I don't have any fondness for either North Carolina or Duke. I've rarely rooted for either team. When they play each other, then, I have no stake in the outcome. And that's what makes a game like the two they've played this year -- there could be a third in the ACC Tournament -- such a treat. Freed from an interest in the story arc, I could focus all my attention on the form: Sean May's ability to widen himself as if by magic, the way Duke always seems to poke the ball free on defense, the Tarheels crashing the boards, the ominously visaged Shelden Williams blocking one dunk attempt after another. The flow of action was so compelling that I even forgot to be annoyed by my mother's ex-high school classmate Billy Packer. Best of all, though, was the fact that I enjoyed the final minute with a Cadbury Creme Egg in my hand. There's nothing that says March Madness like those sticky spots on one's fingertips.