Adam Carolla, whose podcast I listen to on a near daily basis, recently put a common occurrence perfectly into words.
He described opening up the refrigerator and discovering an unmarked jug containing a beverage presumed to be milk. You take the "milk" jug out of the fridge and take a swig expecting an explosion of dairy goodness inside of your mouth.
As soon as the liquid hits your lips, it becomes apparent that the original assumption was incorrect. Involuntarily, your face scrunches up as what was thought to be milk makes its way down your throat.
After the initial shock of the mystery beverage passes, you take another sip to confirm what you already suspected: The mystery jug contained orange juice instead.
The adverse reaction to some freshly squeezed O.J. came because you were expecting dairy and got citrus instead. Once you understood what you were actually drinking, the orange juice was just as enjoyable.
Everyone has endured this at one time or another, and I was forced to experience this phenomenon with the sport of softball.
The Gators are heading back to Oklahoma City for the Women's College World Series for the second year in a row, which means I will be covering the tournament for the second year in a row as well.
When I started covering the UF softball team last spring, I was expecting milk.
Like many Americans, baseball is my favorite sport. I played it for over a decade growing up and I follow the MLB with an unhealthy fervor. The mistake I made that first day in the Pressly Stadium press box was assuming I would be taking a swig of a sport that was supposed to taste like baseball.
In fact, I never liked softball because it was never enough like baseball and so many of its elements bothered me - the high fiving and mound meetings after every out, throwing the ball to the first baseman after a strikeout, the miniature field, the pitchers' rubber arms and most of all, slap hitting.
But after a season of watching more than 75 games, I can tell you that softball can be just as refreshing as baseball.
The pitching is far superior to that of college baseball, the action is infinitely faster paced, the games between two good teams have a much higher likelihood of being close, the women are better than you think and slap hitting is actually an effective strategy against dominant pitchers who strike nearly everyone out.
Starting Thursday, you will have a chance to indulge in some of the freshest orange juice you will ever drink in your life.
Just don't make the mistake of assuming it's supposed to taste like milk.
