Uh, it's real. This is real.

I never envisioned myself in the position I find myself in now. I'm blogging from a Starbucks. I can't tell you how unnerving it was to type that sentence. It's incredibly cliché at this point, isn't it? Very 2004 or sometime several years ago when nerds, previously tied down by a lack of WiFi, self-esteem, and melanin, emerged from their parents' basements, emboldened by free wireless and the idea that their inane opinions might be more interesting if they had a URL. And guess what? That's right, bird brain, they were.

Don't look at me! I'm hideous!

Fueled by caffeine (and marijuana), the nerds became hipsters and scenesters and foodies.  Trust fund babies with no practical skills whatsoever built empires based on telling people what they drank at which club, or something! Right? Haven't they? Probably. And now, all their hot air, along with the steam from their lattes, has risen high above the Earth, forming the blogosphere. Zing.

But thanks to these digital pioneers, I felt comfortable enough to start my own blog, and I thought I'd give the Starbucks move a try. This entry is about sports.

Sports have been on my mind more than usual lately, which is saying something. If you think this is because I have no identity of my own anymore, and that I rely on the performance of my favorite teams to find meaning in my life, well you'd be right. I mean wrong! I mean, okay, maybe you're kinda right! If you think about it, if you really take a few minutes to think about it, you'd have to agree that caring about professional sports is actually insane behavior. No well adjusted person's mood should be affected by the millionaires wearing blue shirts scoring more points than the millionaires wearing red shirts. It's totally illogical. Seinfeld was right, we're rooting for laundry.

But who cares! It's late December! The NFL playoff picture is coming into focus! The Premiere League is entering the intense Christmas period when some clubs will play three matches in six days! The good NBA teams are separating themselves from the herd! The MLB Hot Stove is on high with trades and free agent signings galore! Hockey is a sport!

Let me briefly focus on each of these areas as they pertain to my interests.

Giants football is about running the ball and pressuring the opposing QB. The GMen have been doing both very well the last few weeks and we need to keep it up against the hated Eagles on Sunday. They're a good team. But I think the media has made the idea of playing the Eagles more daunting than actually playing them (unless you're the Redskins, where real life is worse than any nightmare). Had Eli slid in Philly, we were right in that game.  We contained Vick, and the Giants are better than they were a month ago, so we win at home 31-24. And there will be a work stoppage next year.

This next beloved team of mine has underperformed for the last 4-5 years amid rampant injuries, front office controversy, managerial changes, disappointing acquisitions, and a general lack of direction, while many of their geographic and symbolic rivals have steadily improved, some winning championships. Wait a minute, am I talking about Liverpool FC or the Mets? Oh, this describes both clubs! Fantastic! I've accepted the fact that LFC and NYM are in transitional phases (I won't say "rebuilding"), and I'll be somewhat patient with them this season. Look out in 2012!

Kindred spirits

The Celtics/Knicks game was fantastic last night. The talent level in the NBA might be at an all-time high and I haven't been this interested since MJ retired. The Heat might be good all of a sudden. And there will be a work stoppage next year.

Hot Stove- I already said the Mets aren't doing anything this year. I think Cliff Lee signed somewhere though.

You're allowed to fight in hockey!

I'm tired now. Until we meet again.

Techmology! What is it?

Yesterday's Premier League clash between Liverpool and Aston Villa wasn't being broadcast on Fox Soccer Channel. Perplexed, I went to the internet. That place has everything. Sure enough, espn3.com had the match. Brilliant!

But wait. Why was espn3.com asking me to choose my internet service provider? Why did it care? I have Shitty Time Warner. Shitty Time Warner wasn't on their list. Evidently, I'm shut out on espn3.com, who by the way, has partnered with MicroSoft to offer its content via XboxLive. I can't do that either. So far, techmol...technology was letting me down.

But wait again. The internet is massive. There must be other sites broadcasting the match. I checked out a couple where I had to download some plug-in. Forget that, the match had started. I needed something now! God bless the "web," I found ezstreamlive.com where I could just choose my match, and start watching. Yes, the window was only about 6 inches wide, and yes the feed was just a bit choppy, but the audio was perfect and I could support the Reds just the same.

Now, never mind that at half time I turned on the TV to see that the match was being shown on ESPN2 in stunning high definition. The fact is, that before I realized I was an idiot, technology had saved the day. (Yes, I watched the second half on my beautiful 47" LCD. Shiiiit.)

 

 

Ngog opens the scoring. This is only a bit smaller than the window I watched the match on.

But as great as technology in general is, I see a few problems. First, just think about how much of your day is spent staring at a screen of some kind. How many of us stare at a computer all day, while constantly fiddling with our phones, only to come home and turn on the TV? If this describes your day, I'm not pooing on you. When I had a job, that's exactly what I did. I read some article (yes, on the internet) that said adults spend something like 8 hours a day staring at screens. That's kind of a shame, isn't it?

I certainly don't mean to condemn the internet, or technology, or cool things with screens. Heck, we're both staring at screens right now. And I'd like people to continue reading my blog, so I'm not trying to be anti-screen. But the fact is, that our reliance on our bright, glowing, screeny things has gotten a little out of hand. Case in point...actually a few cases in point.

I'm at the supermarket and I see a mom pushing her little girl in a stroller. The girl, who couldn't have been more than three, was staring, wide-eyed at the DVD player in her lap. Another time, I saw two young parents distracting their fussy INFANT with the cartoon playing on the dad's iPhone. TVs in cars are almost standard at this point and kids and babies are being raised on the warm blue glow of screens. I just don't think this bodes well for the future.

Time to upgrade, kid.

Look at our generation, kids of the 80's. Our parents (and probably their parents) used to say, "Watching too much TV will turn your brain to mush." But it's not just TV anymore. Smart phones and portable media have really only exploded in the last 5-10 years, right? In a decade, we've gone from the most basic of cell phones to iPhones and all the other things that wish they were iPhones. Now, kids are using these things from a much younger age.

Remember when it used to be rude to answer your phone when you were out with friends? Me neither. How many times have you been in a group of four where all four people are messing with their phones? It's happened to me a few times, and it freaks me out. Now, I love the fact that I can instantly post a pic when something sweet happens, but I'm trying to be aware if I'm messing with my phone at the expense of the real, live people in front of me.

Introduction

"Remember, a writer writes always."

That's a quote from Billy Crystal's character, Larry Donner in Throw Mama from the Train. Do you italicize movie titles? I don't remember. In any case, I think that's good advice. Since I lost my job in October (and before) I've been telling people that I want to be a writer. Specifically an advertising copywriter. The problem is, I haven't been doing nearly enough writing for someone with that particular goal. So, like the rest of the jerk offs out there, I've started a blog.

I'm going to cover a variety of subjects over the coming weeks, months and the idea is to become a better writer and to show prospective employers how I think. A lot of it will just be therapeutic. I tend to write in "stream of consciousness" style, but I'll try to keep that to a minimum and stay organized. Most posts will be dedicated to a specific subject be it sports, food, music, what I did that day, making fun of myself, making fun of my friends, things that bother me, whatever. But I know that sometimes I'll just end up writing whatever comes to mind, like I am now.

So, I guess that's a start. Maybe I'll be back on Monday with a weekend recap or something less lame. Cheers.