Love/Hate Relationship: The NFL

Image I can’t believe what I’m about to type but I’m going for it anyway; I can foresee a day when I don’t watch the NFL anymore.

If you don’t currently know this, I’m a massive Green Bay Packers fan. When Brett Favre tossed an interception against the New York Giants during the 08-09 playoffs I cried. My friend Alex and I had mental breakdowns. We collectively went into the parking lot of our apartment and drank, bitched, groaned, screamed, and then drunkenly patted each other on the back. It was a low point in my life. I was 25 years old. I was a total loser.

The following morning Alex and I agreed that we loved the Packers too much (if there is such a thing) and both said we had to bring it in a little bit, and from that moment I did kind of bring it in. I dialed down my love, which actually translates to: I don’t drink that much during football games.

Years later I’m the slightly mature version of that human that once was, but I can feel the earlier version of me creeping back into my system. Last week when I found out Clay Matthews was injured I was pissed, then to see Randall Cobb, and James Jones get taken out in the same game I was irate. I went on a rant to anyone who would listen, only to be hit with the realization that I hate injuries in a football game. They’re obvious, common, and still infuriating.

I get it, injures are part of any sport, but the NFL seems to be leading the injury market… obviously. It’s a full contact “I want to rip your head off now” sport. I get it. I get that the NFL is a team sport. I get all the obvious things you could say but there is a growing issue inside of me that is having an adverse reaction to the NFL. The injuries are causing me to actually dislike the sport, for two reasons really. First reason being based solely on how brutal it is, the second reason because it causes the NFL to be completely sporadic.

I realize injuries have always been around but lately it’s really affecting me. Maybe it’s the media and the constant covering of sports. Maybe it’s the sports media constantly talking about neck injuries. Maybe it’s the sports media constantly talking about how to hit in the NFL. Maybe it’s the effing media! Maybe… But maybe not.

My awareness of how injuries impact a NFL game is literally hurting my viewing experience. Not only am I rooting for my team to properly execute, but also I’m rooting for my team to make it through the full 60 minutes without a serious injury. This inevitably makes me question whether I can put up with an extra layer of rooting.

Oh wait, shit, maybe I’ve reverted into the old version of me more than I thought. Are my emotions taking over? Is there any way to be more pragmatic about this approach? Am I just hiding my overbearing emotions somewhere deep in my soul? Is this normal?

So many questions, such little time. Hopefully I can one day find a perfect harmony to this balance but I think that means taking another step away from football and not care as much. If I keep taking these steps away I’m going to eventually find myself further away than I ever thought, unfortunately, I can envision this happening.

Until then… Go Packers.

Oh, and hopefully Jermichael Finley recuperates while he’s in the ICU from the neck injury he experienced yesterday. Effing, football.

Sportscenter and Breaking Bad.

I sort of feel brain dead right now. It was a long weekend. Maybe it was because my lady was out of town and I proceeded to eat frozen pizza, drink beer, watch TV, and eat more pizza. Maybe it was because I was anticipating the Breaking Bad finale and felt emotionally drained. Maybe it’s because I’ve been staring at a computer screen all day and my emotions were poltergeisted from me and sucked into my laptop. Or, maybe it’s all of the above. It’s all of the above.

Somewhere in the fog and pizza I managed to come to two very important conclusions this weekend that (I think) have an impact on any human who likes either sports or watching narrative programs. I’m banking on one of these two things appealing to you.

Conclusion 1: I was really trying to avoid being the guy who talks about Breaking Bad. I’m not going to get into how great Breaking Bad is, we already know that, the finale was great. The show was great, it’s storytelling at its finest.  What I am going to get into is how great Breaking Bad was at marketing to its fans. I kind of think it may have been a game changer.

Breaking Bad knew exactly what it was as a show and fed into it. It knew that we as fans loved Heisenberg saying, “Say My Name” or “Tread Lightly” and Pinkman saying, “Bitch.” It was so aware of what it was doing that it didn’t over think itself. But rather, it fed itself, and in turn, fed us. It created hashtags that weren’t generic, and created novelty items (meth lab Lego set).

I don’t think there’s ever been a show of this caliber that played to its strengths in regard to communicating with fans. There was no forcing the Breaking Bad slogans, they saw what was trending and moved with it… Which is a great lesson for just about everything in the entire world.

 

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Conclusion 2: Sportscenter is never not on.

What. The. Fuck. Seriously, Sportscenter is always on. I have Time Warner which has 3 ESPN channels – ESPN, ESPN2, and some 3rd ESPN station that I literally have no clue about… ESPNews maybe?

I was staring at my cable guide and noticed that as one Sportscenter would end on ESPN it begin on ESPN2 then end and then begin on the 3rd station - and continue, over and over and over and over. The weird part is, is that these were all different Sportcenters talking about the same thing, sort of, but with different people. Then when a certain time came, ESPN just looped the original Sportcenter!

In my slumped over fat guy weekend mode I searched forward to find out if this was just a weekend thing, it isn’t! ESPN legitimately loops Sportscenter.  This is horrible. I love Sportscenter as much as anyone but this is not right. The main reason being is because Sportscenter now releases so much content they’re talking about non-stories and bullshit that shouldn’t warrant a conversation. I don’t give a flying fuck what LeBron said on Twitter or the Instagram of him and his wife, I don’t need you to tell me, that’s why I have Twitter and a Instagram account.

Sportscenter talked about Dwayne Wade and Kevin Durant’s minor words back and forth like they had a KG / Carmelo exchange.  The ironic part is, having this oversaturation of Sportscenter being there 24.5 hours a day makes me tune out and allows me to appreciate the Internet’s a la carte style along with good writing from sites like Grantland.

Eh, bitter old man talking. Whatever, Breaking Bad was great. I’m off to read about sports. 

Emergency Row Issues.

Every few months I go on rants about how there is no method or madness to airports or TSA regulations. Every airport in America seems different. Every airport seems to follow a different set of TSA rules. Every airport seems to be confused and hoping nothing goes wrong. It’s all a bunch of confusing bullshit. To add to that list is the emergency row… This will be quick and truthfully I once wrote something about the emergency row but it’s worth mentioning again.

I just booked a ticket on Virgin. I upgraded to main cabin select which happens to be a seat in the emergency row, which means I get free TV, free internet, free movies, unlimited free drinks, I pay more money, and OH, I get to fucking save some lives if shit hits the fan. Did I mention that I get free drinks and will most likely be partly drunk on this flight?

This is all so confusing. It’s a blatantly obvious trap to pocket more money and screw over consumers. If airlines really cared about the emergency exit and saving lives no drinks would be allowed and I’d think the ticket would be cheaper. Right? Yet, it’s a flawless system. I just upgraded to the emergency row for the hope of free stuff and leg room! I just paid money to be put into a row where I can either be a hero or a total drunken loser who doesn’t know how to open the emergency row.

Best case scenario -- a slightly drunk hero who had a ton of leg room until shit hit the fan. Goddamn you airlines.

The Greg Jennings Fall From Grace.

Image Ahhhhh, yes, football season, welcome back. I feel good about things. I’m ready to overly engage in minute details and look at everything as absolutes. This is the life of a football fan. I’m not proud of it, but it’s just the way it is. Oh, in case anyone has forgotten I’m a Green Bay Packers fan. Lets just jump right into this…

Greg Jennings recently signed with the Vikings. Cool. Happy for the guy, I’d take more money too. Then he started to talk about Aaron Rodgers and that he’s basically unapproachable due to his stigma and the Packer organization is basically afraid to point at him when things go wrong. Okay, fine, that’s cool. But now this —

A quote from an article I read on NBC:

“When I came over here, I was kind of brainwashed, there’s no ‘kind of’ to it. Being over in Green Bay, you’re brainwashed to think anyone in the division is tiers below. And so coming over here I meet the people within the organization and I’m like, ‘Wow, these are really great people.’”

And —

“It’s like everything that you know in Green Bay is like the best, the best, the best, the best, the best,” Jennings said. “And it’s like total brainwashing. And I think you don’t open your eyes to see what other teams have to offer unless you are in that position.”

Dude, what? What happened to this guy? How much did he hate being in Green Bay?

First off, this quote about meeting great people in another organization and seeming like he’s surprised. Huh? You’re a grown man that travels to play football for a living; you never met cool people in other places?

Secondly, I’ve been to Green Bay just once for a Packers game. The place is small as shit and I feel that being in the smallest market in the NFL an organization needs to implement some form of mindset like “win win win.” The Packers (fortunately) have been good or fun to watch for the last 18 years (give or take a few years). If you’ve ever been Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin, which is a suburb of Green Bay, and also the location of Lambeau field then you’d know that the Packers are the pride and glory. That mindset Greg Jennings is cutting down is crucial.

I still like the guy, he seems like a good dude and is a good football player. But come on, let it go. He’s starting to seem desperate.

-Enter girlfriend analogy about having remorse so you keep cutting her down because you secretly love her still-

I love Football season.

Art and Adventure.

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As I’m writing an outline for a script I’m drifting off and thinking about adventure. It’s underrated.

On a personal writing level I like to put a relatable individual in a highly unlikely situation and thrust him/her off into some form of an adventure. More times than not it’s usually a very exaggerated situation. But it always comes back to the adventure. Part of me thinks that most writers kind of follow this idea, especially if you’ve ever read Joseph Campbell.

However, the great thing about adventure is that it doesn’t have to be something exaggerated and I think people forget that. Adventures can be small and contained. They can be a night. They can be a drive. They can be quick. They can be a day. If you learn something new from an experience and it takes you mentally to some place you’ve never been then I’d chalk that up to an (mini) adventure.

The great thing about adventure is that it feeds into what’s amazing about life. The majority of us live pretty standard lives in the sense that we know how our days are going to unfold – coffee, work, work, work, home, dinner, TV, internet, sleep - Rise, lather, repeat. But adventure changes that. Adventure allows our brains to respond to something it doesn’t expect - it keeps us fresh.

I like to think that our minds and bodies need new experiences to keep us new and young. Adventure offers us that. AND I’m not even touching on the amazing stories created, new people we meet, and many regrets we secrets don’t regret that adventure offers. Underrated right?

BUT… As amazing as small adventures are how great are the ones where you take a monumental trip to Italy, sleep with a foreign diplomat and find yourself in the middle of a terrorist plot.

Adventure.

"I’ve always sa...

"I’ve always said there are – to oversimplify it – two kinds of writers. There are architects and gardeners. The architects do blueprints before they drive the first nail, they design the entire house, where the pipes are running, and how many rooms there are going to be, how high the roof will be. But the gardeners just dig a hole and plant the seed and see what comes up. I think all writers are partly architects and partly gardeners, but they tend to one side or another, and I am definitely more of a gardener. In my Hollywood years when everything does work on outlines, I had to put on my architect’s clothes and pretend to be an architect. But my natural inclinations, the way I work, is to give my characters the head and to follow them.”

R.R. Martin

A really great quote...

The Cloud

The Cloud

I’m flying over Utah, maybe Colorado. I just stared at a series of clouds that are scattered, one stuck out. This cloud (pictured above) seems so random; I can’t help but wonder what he’s up to. Maybe this lone cloud got into a fight with another cloud and he’s being punished. Maybe he’s old and doesn’t give a shit. Maybe he’s lost. Maybe he’s brand new and is looking down to earth for the first time ever… Or maybe it’s just a cumulus cloud formed from heat rising from the surface of the earth and connecting with a cooler atmosphere.

Damn. Science wins again.

Ignoring science for one second…

If this cloud is anything like me he’s being stubborn right now. He’s by himself trying to prove a point to someone, maybe himself, and he’s simultaneously wondering if he’s just being a total asshole and doing more harm than good. Either way, he’ll figure it out. I have faith in this cloud.

Being Grateful?

I had an interesting conversation with a friend, he was talking about someone he knew who passed away (I swear this is the most depressing it gets) and we were talking about the time and how fast it goes by. We were wrapping up the conversation and I made a comment, something along the lines of --

“Be grateful for what we have, be careful not to take things for granted.”

Annnnd then the can of worms opened up. I should also note that I have my own issues in life, it’s not like I’m the guy who tells people how to life. This conversation was with a buddy, not some random guy.

After my comment our conversation went a little something like this:

Him: “You know what dude, I am grateful, and I don’t really take things for granted, but how does somebody stay aware of not taking things for granted?”

I kind of thought about it for a bit and then I thought about it even longer until he jumped back in --

Him: “Honestly, I know I’m lucky to have an active mind, working legs, and working arms. I don’t get sick, I’ve been fortunate with my health. But how the fuck do I show that? How do you do something more than just remind yourself?”

I was about to answer until he said --

Him: “How do you not take things for granted? I mean listen, I wish I could travel the world and see amazing things so I don’t waste life, but how can I do that with no money?”

He then proceeded to say he’s just blurting out thoughts and that he really is appreciative, he was trying to justify what he said, but I basically blacked out because my friend had a very good point. I was busy trying to find an answer and a proper segway into more conversation but it wasn’t happening. We said our goodbyes but I’m still thinking about it.

How do you stay grateful? And how do you maximize life if you don’t have a lot of money but the things you love cost money? Listen, I know you can do fun things in life without money, and you can be happy as shit doing them, but you get what I’m saying, right?

I haven’t come to a conclusion on this conversation but I really wish I could. Do we need people to constantly tell you “hey, you’re doing a great job!” - we shouldn’t. But, it still feels good when people say that, and I wish I knew how to bottle that feeling. I wish I knew how to contain the feeling of total happiness. A few weeks ago after the Boston tragedy I was just happy to be alive. I had total appreciation for everything around me but truthfully; I may have lost that feeling of appreciation. I wish I didn’t lose that feeling. I hate that terrible things have to happen in the world for people to be reminded of how awesome it is to be alive.

I’m currently sitting in an office looking at a palm tree on a 70-degree day in Los Angeles. Let me say that one more fucking time so it can maybe stick to my head, I’m currently sitting in an office looking at a palm tree on a 70-degree day in Los Angeles. How could anyone take this for granted?

I have some thinking to do… 

The Purpose Of Life...

Mothers Day, the day that we celebrate the existence of the woman who gave us life. Or, in many unfortunate cases, it’s the day we celebrate the absence of the woman who gave us life. Either way, moms are awesome. Even if you’ve severed ties with your mom there’s no denying that the ability to give life is a cool thing.

This mom thought is a perfect transition to a conversation a friend and I had this weekend. Somehow we may have cracked a few codes to life and I want to reopen that conversation but only touch the surface because I really don’t think there is any real way to recreate this conversation. This brings me to, the purpose of life…

Creation.  Specifically, the creation of LIFE.

We were talking about the ability to create in life. We can all create anything we want… ANYTHING! And hopefully our creations impact someone to do the same thing, so suddenly we have a ripple effect of creation, and before you know it – you’re creation is changing things. Your creation begins to change the world.

You start to think about the most unique creation that one can offer to the world… Life. It kind of blows my mind that two guys can have a child with the same woman yet that child comes out 100% different. It doesn’t blow my mind on a DNA level, but rather on an individualistic level.

We can argue that art (film, paintings, music, etc...) can be recreated. It may not be true… but we can sure as fuck argue about it.  The one thing we do know for certain is that creating a specific human is something that cannot be replicated… by anyone. A person’s ability to create life is so totally unique for everyone.

Then, on another level you have to wonder why there is this lone thing in the world that you need someone else for. You need another person to crate this life. You can do anything in the world that you want but in order to create life you need someone else, that’s trippy, right?

When I think about it my mind wraps like I’m entering a wormhole and truthfully I wish I could articulate this better. I wish I could ramble and use my hands to try and express myself… both of which I’m very good at.

It comes down to creation. I believe creating is what enhances the world and makes it a better place. It what makes us evolve. It just so happens that the ultimate thumbprint of evolving is creating life.

By my logic I should have a litter of children running around me. My current child count is 0. I’m pretty sure it isn’t going to change any time soon… I need to stick with trying to create other things.

Life is awesome.