Lost Youth, the Wrong Parts Regained

Somebody once said that Nostalgia was a longing for a time that you didn't think was so great the first time around.

We're going to have an elderly, insane Republican as President, filling his administration with corrupt religious zealots who are completely unqualified for their positions.

The music and the cars are horrible.

And the Yankees can't win the World Series.

They say you can't regain your lost youth. Well, it sounds like my youth, or at least my adolescence of the 1980s, is back in full force, just without so many of the stores I liked, and with higher prices (which, of course, are not the Democrats' fault).

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I haven't done a countdown in over 6 months. Here goes:

Hours until the next Rutgers University football game: 6, today, at 6:00 PM, away to the University of Maryland. If the Big Ten Conference and the TV networks were as smart as they think they are, they would have these 2 Northeastern outposts/newcomers in the league become big rivals.

Days until the next game of the U.S. National Soccer Team: 2, this Monday, 8:00 PM, vs. Jamaica, at Citypark, home of new MLS team St. Louis City. This past Thursday night, they beat Jamaica, 1-0 in Kingston. It was the 1st game under their new manager, former Tottenham and Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino.

Days until the next Arsenal match: 7, a week from today, Saturday, at 10:00 AM New York Eastern Time, home to East Midlands team Nottingham Forest.

Days until the next New York Red Bulls match: 7, a week from today, Saturday, at 5:30 PM, vs. New York City FC, at Citi Field, home of the New York Mets, in the MLS Cup Eastern Conference Semifinal. This is the 1st Hudson River Derby match to be a Playoff match.

Days until the Red Bulls again play a nearby rival: See the previous answer.

Days until the New Jersey Devils again play a local rival: 37, at 1:00 PM on December 23, against the New York Rangers, a 2-days-before-Christmas Monday matinee at Madison Square Garden.

Days until the next North London Derby: 60, on January 15, 2025, at 3:00 PM, at the Emirates Stadium. Exactly 2 months. This past September 15, Arsenal won, 1-0 at Tottenham. It is unusual that the game at Tottenham comes first, but, this time, it did.

Days until the Yankees open the 2025 regular season: 131, on Thursday, March 27, at 3:05 PM, home to the Milwaukee Brewers. A little over 4 months.

Days until the Yankees' next series against the Boston Red Sox begins: 195, on Friday night, June 6, 2025, at Yankee Stadium. Under 7 months.

Days until the next East Brunswick High School football game: Unknown. The 2024 season began earlier, and ended earlier, than ever before, as we went 2-8. If the schedule works out the same way as this season, then the opener will be on Friday night, August 28, 2025. That's 285 days, or a little over 9 months.

Days until the next East Brunswick-Old Bridge Game: Unknown. If the 2025 schedule is a reverse of the 2024 edition, with the teams flipping to the other's home field, it will be at home on September 26, 2025. That's 314 days, or a little over 10 months.

Days until the next elections for Governor of New Jersey and Mayor of New York City: 353, on Tuesday, November 4, 2025. Just under a year.

Days until the next Rutgers-Penn State football game: Unknown. With the expansion of the Big Ten Conference for this 2024 season, these 2 schools did not play each other. They are set to play each other in 2025, but a date has not been set. Since Rutgers entered the Big 10 in 2014, the Penn State game has usually been on the 3rd or 4th Saturday in November. If that holds true, then it will be on November 22, 2025, at 12:00 Noon, in Piscataway, at what's currently named SHI Stadium. (The naming rights could be sold to someone else by then.) If that turns out to be when it's played, that's 371 days, or a shade over 1 year.

Days until the next Winter Olympics open in Milan, Italy: 447, on Friday, February 6, 2026. Under a year and a half, or under 15 21 months.

Days until the next World Cup opens: 569, on Monday, June 8, 2026. A little over a year and a half, or a little over 18 months. I wonder what team Trump will be rooting for: Ours, or Russia's.

Days until the World Cup Final in New Jersey: 610, on Sunday, July 19, 2026. A little over a year and a half, or a little over 19 months.

Days until the next Summer Olympic Games: 1,336, on Friday, July 14, 2028, in Los Angeles. A little over 3 1/2 years. What shape America will be in at the time, God only knows.

Days until the next Presidential election: 1,452, on Tuesday, November 7, 2028. A little under 4 years. This, of course, presumes that the Trump Administration doesn't suspend the Constitution of the United States and cancel all future Presidential elections.