Sports Post-Football

My faithful readers. I am so sorry it has been a while since I have last written. Blame the laziness. And video games. Homework? Nah, mostly video games. And reading. Surprise! Yes, reading. I, Nate Johnson, have actually been reading a book lately. It's Stephen King's latest, 11/22/63, and I really like it. King has long been my favorite author. After I read The Stand, The Tommyknockers, and It, I was hooked for life. He's got such a way of painting daily life and transforming it into things alternately wonderful and horrifying. He's awesome, the bee's knees.

That aside, I thought I'd comment on sport's fandom/watchiness post-Super Bowl. I know, I know, a lot of people will scoff at the notion that sports even exist between early February and September, but they do! Not that they're anywhere near as good, but a man dying of thirst isn't too picky about where his water comes from, is he? Without further horse patoot, here we go:

Daytona 500/NASCAR: This is something fairly new for me. In the past I've attempted to "get into" NASCAR. But I really can't. I just can't. For me, it's like trying to get into hockey. I did watch the end of the shootout race last weekend at Daytona and surprisingly enjoyed it. The massive wreck I saw probably helped a lot. You couldn't help but watch with all the drama unfolding! A huge wreck with two laps to go and only ten cars left? Riveting! So, I'll give the 500 a shot this weekend, if only for more wrecks.


March Madness: Ah, yes. March Madness (It really is madness because the tournament doesn't end until sometime in April). The month or so out of the year when I actually pay slight attention to college basketball. Until my Yahoo tournament bracket is busted, then I pretty much check out. But it's something, right??!!

NBA playoffs: Again, I don't really care about the NBA until the playoffs arrive, and I still don't care that much. I try to watch a few games, but I'd rather be doing something else.

Hockey playoffs: I usually catch snippets of a game or two each year. Nothing more.

Arena Football??: The cheap, artificial sweetener of football. If you can find what channel it's on, you deserve a medal. Also, I can only watch a few plays before I zone out.

Baseball: America's Pastime! The great sport of baseball! Baseball is a great sport, I recognize that. And I can't help but get excited when it starts up every year. For the first month I'm into it! Heck, one year I even watched the MLB Network in the run-up to the season and had spring training games on in the background while I did other stuff! I don't usually do that; it was a one-time thing. I immerse myself in fantasy drafts and preseason magazines; I watch the Royals on FSN (gah!); I tune in to Sunday-Monday-Wednesday-Funday Night Baseball on ESPN (it really feels like there's a primetime game every night). I watch Baseball Tonight on ESPN. All those fancy baseball card animations at the beginning! Catch phrases! It's awesome! And then I peter out and sink into the long, hot summer.

Baseball? Again!??!


God, when does football start??!!


What channel is Arena Football on? I need something! Even if it doesn't taste quite right! Someone please tell me!! What? It's on NFL Network? Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


We only have piddly cable. And NFL Network, possibly the greatest channel on earth, is not available on cable. Not even on fancy pants digital cable! Not even with the sports pack! Only on satellite. Curse you, NFL. Curse you. Sure, we get the NBA, MLB, and NHL networks. But who watches that stuff? Sheesh.

So, there it is. I will absently watch the summer full of non-football sporting events while scouring Twitter and various sports sites for news on the NFL. Go Dolphins!