This was a response I posted on another blogger's site. He wrote an op-ed about how ESPN is a self-aggrandizing jam.
My response:
Let's be honest with ourselves for a moment.... shall we? ESPN is what the other half of the world follows, aside from day-time soaps. As I age, I hope that my viewership of ESPN will become "my stories." You know, "grandkid, hush your sweet little voice. Granny needs you to turn up those nice young guys on PTI." ESPN is absolutely, one hundred percent, self-indulgent. I have to bribe the other couch owner in my household to sit through it at times. Sure ESPN is flashy and cheeky (and as aforementioned, over-inflated) but WE LOVE IT, CAN'T GET ENOUGH and occasionally come out with real news.
Americans don't want to hear about cricket scores or Japanese soccer leagues - that's what strange concoctions of cable/satellite packages are for. Americans want to hear about American sports. So what do we fill the gaps with? What could we possibly do between closed out innings, championships to pre-seasons (nod to the Saints), slams and tourneys? Wish and pray and hope for overtimes (nod to the Syracuse squad 2009)?
We do all of the above yet we are not fulfilled. Scene 2, enter ESPN. Like the uncle totally full of himself between the turkey dinner and the left-over hoagie, relaying some bull-sh*t story of his latest escapades, we turn to ESPN. We turn to ESPN for the story-lines. We flip to ESPN for something to talk about at the water-cooler. Most importantly we turn to ESPN to satisfy our need in the downtime. So, thank you ESPN. Thank you for keeping my stories alive.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Haynesworth and Hurston
First I need to rip on a "member" of the Washington Redskins - and I'm calling him a "member" since it seems he doesn't care to belong... How much did you get paid to simply stay fit? What the hell did you do in the off-season that inhibits you from doing a few minor sprints? You didn't star in your own reality show - unless losing weight was part of the character development of the new and improved Haynesworth.
So really? Is there a reason that a guy who cashed a bonus check for $21 million a few months ago can't meet the standards for a LINEBACKER? I know your job is to hit people and use your weight to hold the line, but c'mon 92! If I were to cash a check for a cool $21 million I would damn near do as many sit-ups, bicep curls or 2 hour intervals on an elliptical, as Jillian Michaels yelled at me to do. So Jillian, if you're listening - I'm game for $21 million (o.b.o).
Now to Hurston... Zora Neale Hurston that is. In the start-up of 2010 I resolved to read 30 books in 2010. Among the books I have read: Overacheivers by Alexandra Robbins, the entire Harry Potter series by JK Rowling (actually re-read these to gear up for the next cinematic release), the Crucibles of Leadership and the 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. After I wrapped up Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows I decided that while I indulge in leadership texts I should also become a more well read "classics" gal. So the first of the classics that I have picked up is Their Eyes were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston.
I am having the most difficult time following the story of this book. I feel like I need to be reading it in a class and that I need some sort of discussion group to help me digest the dialogue. It is truly reading and interpreting another language. I am attempting to get into the story of a strong independent woman (I assume that the lead will start to trek this path) and reading diligently to appreciate this book as an American literary treasure. So far I have gotten more out of reading the time-line of Hurston's life located in the back of the book. If anyone out there can possibly shoot me a hint as to what I am supposed to find in this book, I would greatly appreciate it.
Maybe I am not meant to read fiction. Hopefully, the books you find listed on my new "must read" list offer up a little more at the fiction table. A few of these I read in high school and want to re-read as an adult (noted by an asterisk). Others of the list are books I could use a little help from high school teachers or from English or Lit majors!
Must Read Classic Books
East of Eden
Red Badge of Courage
The Awakening
Uncle Tom's Cabin
1984
Animal Farm
Farenheit 451*
Siddartha
Don Quixote
Walden
Utopia
The Prince
The Republic
Canterbury Tales
Invisible Man
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
A Streetcar Named Desire
The Great Gatsby
A Tale of Two Cities
The Old Man and the Sea
Brave New World
Great Expectations
Lord of the Flies*
Tales of Edgar Allen Poe
Catch 22
Beloved
Grapes of Wrath
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
So really? Is there a reason that a guy who cashed a bonus check for $21 million a few months ago can't meet the standards for a LINEBACKER? I know your job is to hit people and use your weight to hold the line, but c'mon 92! If I were to cash a check for a cool $21 million I would damn near do as many sit-ups, bicep curls or 2 hour intervals on an elliptical, as Jillian Michaels yelled at me to do. So Jillian, if you're listening - I'm game for $21 million (o.b.o).
Now to Hurston... Zora Neale Hurston that is. In the start-up of 2010 I resolved to read 30 books in 2010. Among the books I have read: Overacheivers by Alexandra Robbins, the entire Harry Potter series by JK Rowling (actually re-read these to gear up for the next cinematic release), the Crucibles of Leadership and the 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. After I wrapped up Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows I decided that while I indulge in leadership texts I should also become a more well read "classics" gal. So the first of the classics that I have picked up is Their Eyes were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston.
I am having the most difficult time following the story of this book. I feel like I need to be reading it in a class and that I need some sort of discussion group to help me digest the dialogue. It is truly reading and interpreting another language. I am attempting to get into the story of a strong independent woman (I assume that the lead will start to trek this path) and reading diligently to appreciate this book as an American literary treasure. So far I have gotten more out of reading the time-line of Hurston's life located in the back of the book. If anyone out there can possibly shoot me a hint as to what I am supposed to find in this book, I would greatly appreciate it.
Maybe I am not meant to read fiction. Hopefully, the books you find listed on my new "must read" list offer up a little more at the fiction table. A few of these I read in high school and want to re-read as an adult (noted by an asterisk). Others of the list are books I could use a little help from high school teachers or from English or Lit majors!
Must Read Classic Books
East of Eden
Red Badge of Courage
The Awakening
Uncle Tom's Cabin
1984
Animal Farm
Farenheit 451*
Siddartha
Don Quixote
Walden
Utopia
The Prince
The Republic
Canterbury Tales
Invisible Man
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
A Streetcar Named Desire
The Great Gatsby
A Tale of Two Cities
The Old Man and the Sea
Brave New World
Great Expectations
Lord of the Flies*
Tales of Edgar Allen Poe
Catch 22
Beloved
Grapes of Wrath
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
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