The most frustrating part of having a beat is refraining from cheering in the press box.

A couple of months of following your team to God-forsaken regions of the country, shaving your GPA in the process, creates an almost primal urge to yell when that third period goal hits the back of the net.

But if my reaction exceeds a smile and perhaps a gentle pounding of the table, some official casts a disapproving glance in my direction

Fortunately, my beat--men's hockey--doesn't start until the end of the month. So please forgive this momentary lapse of objectivity when I say that I'm going to the Fifth Annual Hockey Madness tonight as a fan.

I plan on clapping, chanting, and maybe singing along with the band when it plays "Ten Thousand Men of Harvard."

Now for the real unprofessional statement: Every student should try and attend.

For those that don't know, hockey and not basketball is traditionally Harvard's premier winter sport. The Athletic Department holds a midnight madness (starting at 10 p.m. tonight) for the icemen at Bright Hockey Center.

No, I'm not an A.D. shill, but this really is an important event. Why, you ask?