What are you worried about?

It’s been an annoying week, we can all agree on that. Championship week is always annoying when our team dares deprive us of an extended stay, and there is so little that compares to a run in a conference tournament, well, we can all understand our own disappointment. Dammit, Boston College, why did you have to try. Dammit, universe. This stupid planet. And so on and so forth.

I was pretty pissed after NC State’s loss Wednesday and swore off the rest of the ACC tournament—I do this every time State loses in the tournament and then usually fail to follow through. (I failed to follow through this time too.) That game Wednesday would have ruined my entire week when I was in college.

These days I’m more capable of seeing the bigger picture, which leaves me less prone to angrily running in circles amid the short-term fury that I would direct at whichever official who stunk and/or that jerk on the other team who did well because he’s good at sports, which I have grown to learn—and grudgingly accept—as no reflection on his character.

And I get over the setbacks more quickly, and fortunately it’s easier to realize and understand and process what happened, and especially this year I can shout myself down with the perspective that comes from this last offseason and judgmentally point a finger at myself and ask, what are you worried about?

NC State lost its first two ACC games this season by a combined 46 points. That was supposed to be immaterial—still is, in a different way—and here is this team, 11-7, set for a shot at the NCAAs despite all of the crap that distracts from where we were when this season started. So I don’t know what I’m worried about. I’m not worried about anything. This is all I need right here.