One of the paths to a good outlook on life is to try to do something different every day, something you never thought you’d experience. For me on Saturday, that meant watching a water polo match on the Internet.

One of the paths to bitterness is to suffer a similar negative fate repeatedly, especially at the hands of the same nemesis. For the University of Hawaii on Saturday, that meant one of its teams being methodically and thoroughly dismantled by USC … yet again.

This Hawaii water polo team is easy to love. It obviously improved as the season wore on, winning its last nine matches until running into the Trojans on Saturday and losing 16-9. It got to the final four. It is the most successful UH team of this school year. It came within one win of playing for the national championship. It played with heart down the stretch Saturday despite being routed.

Some will say, "Who cares? It’s just water polo." But in this star-crossed year, UH fans should take what they can get. Plus, this is one of the toughest intercollegiate sports there is.

Over the years, UH water polo has taken more than its share of beatings from the Trojans, in big matches. USC has now ousted Hawaii three times in the national semifinals.

"I think I hate losing to that team as much as anyone in the world," said UH coach Mo Cole, who played for rival UCLA. "But I’ve got a lot of respect for them. They’re good, bottom-line. It hurts to lose to them, but at least you know you’re losing to a team that puts in the work."

I don’t hate USC as much as I love underdogs. Always have. Charlie Brown, Bad News Bears, Dirty Dozen, Mean Machine.

So that means when UH plays USC in something I’m usually hoping UH wins.

If I were actually still a UH fan, I think I’d hate USC more than Boise State, Fresno State and BYU … combined.

My personal disdain for Troy goes back to 1974. As a kid I liked Notre Dame, and that was the year the Trojans came back from a 24-0 deficit to win 55-24.

Then, 1978, and the game when UH was a dropped pass in the end zone away from a 12-7 lead late in the fourth quarter, but the Trojans won 21-5.

Then, the 1996 Rose Bowl, when USC beat my other alma mater, Northwestern, 41-32 (it wasn’t that close).

Then, all those recent Warriors-Trojans football blowouts. Good for my deadline, but bad for the attitude of many people I have to be around on a regular basis. (UH and USC open the season against each other again this year; the only apparent positive for Hawaii is it will make some money.)

Baseball long ago and volleyball (men and women) seem to be the only sports where UH usually has a fighting chance against the Trojans (the Wahine beat them in a national championship final and the men knocked them off twice this season).

"Love to hate USC," tweeted UH fan Stanley Ching. "Whenever we can beat them, in ANY sport — it’s a good day."

It’s just too bad for Hawaii those days are so few and far between.

Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783.