Everybody hates a bully and loves the underdog. Underdog = popularly expected to lose. I am cheering for the Devil Rays because they are the underdog.. and this has nothing to do with the fact that every time (two times) the Phillies have won the World Series a Republican President gets elected.

I am also cheering for Matt Cassel because the Patriots are finally interesting to watch again. I certainly love Tom Brady but he is too perfect and I wish that he could have lost a few times, (except for that last game last year). There really was no reason to pay attention to the Patriots. They just won every week. This year I am paying attention, similar to the year that Tom Brady took over, I want the new guy to win.

So why is it that the underdog is popular? Does everybody have hidden inside them an idea that they are underrated and they could perhaps be the underdog? Like a sports drama movie or a sports fantasy weekend, we all think that given the right opportunity we could be the come back kid or hit the grand slam to win the World Series.

All underdogs seem to have a hidden streak of self confidence. They all seem to know that they are going to win, and maybe are surprised that other people think they might be a long shot. That might be the difference between and underdog that wins and the regular opponent that loses.

I know that we all like to dream about the day that we come from behind and against all odds, surprise the enemy and surprise our friends with some fabulous hidden talent.

When Josh goes to bed, he likes me to send him off to sleep with a good dream. Generally these dreams have consisted of a sports or music fantasy. He becomes the skateboard/bmx bike/football/baseball hero in the Superbowl. Or he is pulled out of the crowd at a rock concert and asked to play onstage with Axl Rose and then gets to join GunsNRoses for the world tour.

Because it is Friday and I get to rest for a few days, here are a few random things I came across when I was reading the news this morning;

McCain thinks he is the underdog. The New York Times quoted some high ranking Republican this morning saying "the 2008 cake has been baked".

Dr's are giving their patients placebos (vitamins etc..) and not telling them. I don't know what to think about this. It doesn't sound all bad. What are they billing the insurance companies for?

I really like this story; Warm Hands, Warm Feelings. There is a study that says that after holding a warm beverage you are more likely to be nice toward a person. It might be a good idea to hold a cup of hot coffee while you are having a fight with your spouse.

Also, for anyone that has fond memories of Underdog cartoons, here you go..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgG0fhzjRfk&NR=1