It was Tuesday night and I was standing in the gymnasium at Triton High School. The Cubs and Cardinals were playing in game four of the National League Division Series at Wrigley Field. I had to work a volleyball game so I had to set my fandom aside for a little while, well, I tried to set it aside.

I was following the game an much as possible via twitter and texts from my friends. I was standing there, upset, eyes locked on my phone waiting for any kind of update. Upset because this was going to be a historic moment for the Cubs. They were about to beat their No. 1 rival in the playoffs and I had to be at a volleyball game. I live, sleep, eat and breathe sports and I was missing out on making a memory of a huge moment for one of my teams.

I stood there in the gym upset at myself for not being able to make a memory with my friends during this game. The baseball game went on into the top of the ninth.

Three outs away.

Regret started to fill my mind, “Why did I decide to cover volleyball tonight?”

Two outs away.

I was so caught up in thinking that I was missing some kind of great moment or memory that I failed to realize that I was creating my own story for that game, that moment.

One out away.

I thought to myself , “I wish I could hear Pat Hughes make this call.”

Then it dawned on me, “I can hear him make this call.”

I looked at the scoreboard as Wawasee and Triton were just starting the third game, if I wanted to hear the Cubs broadcaster call the final out of this series then I just needed to get to my car for a little bit.

I casually made my way towards the exit and as I stepped outside, away from spectator eyes, I set out on a dead sprint for my vehicle

(Full disclosure: A “dead sprint” for me is probably closer to a brisk walk for a healthy person.)

I got to my car, almost collapsing from the experience of exercise for the first time since high school, turned on the radio in time to hear Hughes say, “I wish all of you could be right here at this moment.” Thanks to him, I sort of felt like I was at Wrigley, at least in some sense.

Seconds later Hughes made the call, the Cubs had won, they were moving on. I swung open the car door and began jumping around in the parking lot of Triton High School. Readers, I am not sensationalizing what happened, I was physically jumping up and down. There are witnesses. Witnesses that probably went home very confused that night.

After letting out my emotions through jumping and yelling, I quickly ran back inside to catch the end of the volleyball game. It hit me as came back into the gym that I had my own story for this awesome sports moment. I had a unique experience even though it was not at all how I thought it would be.

Everyone from bloggers to beat writers are hopping on the bandwagon and sharing their Cubs stories from this season, that game and even from years past. So, I thought I’d share mine too. I think this Cubs thing isn’t finished just yet. Something feels different about this team then the 2003 Cubs. Maybe I’m still on my high from Tuesday. Maybe it’s a runner’s high…it’s not.

Whatever the feeling is, I love it and I hope sports fans are loving what the Cubs, Mets, Royals and Blue Jays are doing right now. It’s been so long since any of those teams have won it all. This is a great postseason ride all around.

I also wanted to share the story so you all could try to visualize me attempting to sprint. That makes the long read worth it, right?

Okay, this week I have written my picks in haiku form, at least I think I have.

I got really bored and decided to try this out. You should all know that before this article was written  had never attempted to create a haiku at any point in my life. Ever. So, the following attempts might be really bad, uninteresting or just simply not in haiku form. I’m really not sure but I wanted to break up the normal routine of things and I know I at least accomplished that.

Let’s get to it.

Last Week: 1-4
Overall: 44-23

High School Football 10/16

West Central (1-7, 0-7) at Triton (1-7, 1-6), 7 p.m.
Haiku Scoop:
Season finale
It’s Trojans against Trojans
Bourbon boys score more
Nick’s Pick: Triton 18, West Central 6.

Warsaw (4-4, 3-3) at Concord (6-2, 6-0), 7 p.m.
Haiku Scoop:
Tigers Dangerous
Payback the goal for home team
Minutemen prevail
Nick’s Pick: Concord 28, Warsaw 23.

Wabash (6-2, 4-2) at Tippecanoe Valley (3-5, 3-3), 7 p.m. TRC Playoff Game
Haiku Scoop:
Rematch from last week
Vikings trying to end skid
Close game, same result
Nick’s Pick: Wabash 28, Valley 20.

Wawasee (3-5, 1-5) at Goshen (4-4, 2-4), 7 p.m.
Haiku Scoop:
Redskins farewell night
Warriors finding rhythm now
Coin flip pick for me
Nick’s Pick: Wawasee 27, Goshen 17.

Peru (7-1, 5-1) at Whitko (4-4, 3-3), 7 p.m. TRC Championship
Haiku Scoop:
Looks bad on paper
Peru defense not the best
‘Cats find way to win
Nick’s Pick: Whitko 25, Peru 20.

College Football 10/17

Purdue (1-5, 0-2) at Wisconsin (4-2, 1-1), 12 p.m.
Haiku Scoop:
Boilers not ready
Badgers are too strong at home
Could get ugly by half
Nick’s Pick: Wisconsin 38, Purdue 14.

Rutgers (2-3, 0-2) at Indiana (4-2, 0-2), 3:30 p.m.
Haiku Scoop:
Homecoming weekend
Hoosiers on a slide for now
I hate Rutgers, hate.
Nick’s Pick: Indiana 31, Rutgers 21.

USC (3-2) at No. 14 Notre Dame (5-1), 7:30 p.m.
Haiku Scoop:
Marquee rivalry
Okay, not really now
Irish pull it out
Nick’s Pick: Notre Dame 45, USC 31.

NFL 10/18

Chicago (2-3) at Detroit (0-5), 1 p.m.
Haiku Scoop:
Divisional game
Cutler and Forte will shine
Lions get first pick
Nick’s Pick: Bears 34, Lions 24.

New England (4-0) at Indianapolis (3-2), 8:30 p.m. Sunday Night Football
Haiku Scoop:
Brady looking great
Don’t count out Luck and the Colts
Turnovers are key
Actually, no. I need to say more. I am sick of everyone already writing the Colts off in this game! Yes, it’s mainly because I am diehard fan but also because the Patriots have truly yet to be challenged. Brady is on fire, he is putting together an awesome MVP season right now, I don’t want to take away anything from him, but he did just lose his starting left tackle. The LT is a critical piece for a QB’s protection. If, and that’s a big if, the Colts can exploit that loss then I will guarantee a win for them.
The Pats defense is also weak, at least in the secondary. No team has truly challenge that early in a game yet. The Colts are improved from last year’s AFC Championship but I don’t know that they (mainly the coaches) are ready to go toe-to-toe with the NFL’s elite. But, I am a sick a twisted fan and nobody is picking Indy in this one so, let me do the honors of making a regret!
Nick’s Pick: Colts 27, Patriots 24.