Wal-Mart wolverines: Since someone else brought it up...

I was born in Michigan and my Sparty-grad father cheated on my mom and ran off to start a new life and family with another woman. Needless to say, my hatred for Sparty started at a young age because I associated them with my "father". At five years old, you can make such blanket connections without remiss. Having a Michigan family on my mom's side, six alums in all, didn't hurt either. Early in my life, my mother met a guy from Ohio who was living and working in Michigan. A couple years later, I was living in Ohio. I've spent the next 30+ years of my life in the state I now call home. That guy my mom married was a Buckeye born and bred. Hell, he even knew and called "the vest" a friend. Despite that, he took me to my first Michigan game and many to follow. He saw the connection I had to the U of M and selflessly helped me to embrace it. I was accepted to Michigan in my senior year of high school, one of the proudest days of my life. But with all the sentimental connections I had to Michigan, out of state tuition made that trigger too hard (and a bit too selfish) to pull, knowing my step-dad would have to take on a lot more work to help foot the bill. I love the U of M for more reasons than I can say. For the family members who diverted my attention by taking me to games when I was going through my parents' divorce. For the step-father who drove me four hours to see games at the Big House when he was secretly rooting for his friend in the red vest, and for the loathing I held for all things Sparty, thanks to the life choices of just one alum. I guess what I am saying is that I simply take issue with the whole, "Wal-Mart Wolverine" meme, because I've lived Michigan in so many ways. I've died each dropped pass, each missed tackle and each loss as much as any alum. I've caught nerf balls at tailgates as a youngster, I've watched in person as Biakabatuka rambled through a damp, cool November afternoon. I've taken my wife and kids to the golf course and the blue lot to start the cycle over again. My connections to the maize and blue are as meaningful to me and my family as they could be for anyone associated with the University. I love Michigan. My kids love Michigan. We support the University at every chance. God willing, someday my children will be alums. Excuse me if, "Wal-Mart wolverine", doesn't quite sum up how much the place means to me, and maybe, what I mean to it.