It's Sunday morning. Generally, my routine doesn't differ much on Sundays. I wake up. I use the bathroom. I turn on my computer and check my various internet stops. I watch football. And like most football enthusiasts, I take part in the magically terrifying tradition of..... Fantasy Football.
First, a bit of history.
Modern fantasy football was started by the late Wilfred "Bill" Winkenbach. Wilfred was a businessman and a limited partner in the Oakland Raiders. In a New York hotel room during a 1962 Raiders eastern cross-country trip, Winkenbach teamed up with Raiders Public Relations man Bill Tunnel and Tribune reporter Scotty Starling to develope a game based on the stats of actual AFL players.
Today, websites like Yahoo, NFL.com, Foxsports.com, and ESPN track every step of the 1,696 active players in the NFL. Every pass, catch, touchdown, fumble, interception, and yard is recorded and assigned point values to help your average Joe look like Joe Gibbs or Scott Linehan. Each week, teams go head-to-head and rack up the points to see who put together the best team back in August/September while munching on taco dip, pizza, and buffalo wings. The mini-sport has brought men closer together, and it has torn friendships apart. Brought men great fortune, or emptied their wallets. And while a good head on your shoulders and an analytical mind could take you far, sometimes luck, chance, and the gods are the better weapons to have.
For those of us who really care, it's an obsession. Pouring over endless stat sheets, checking injury reports, and watching the waiver wires like vultures. We check it everyday and more then twice on Sunday. Watch every game we can to will the players we own forward to have big days. Watching live stat trackers, pulling our hair out when we are behind, and jumping up a down for joy when we are ahead. Watching like politicians on election night as the projections continue and feeling that sadness when we realize, even before the end, that we have lost the race.
Like most obsessions, it is unhealthy. But it gives us something to do. Obsessions drive us crazy. They make fools of us all. And that's exactly what fantasy football does. In the end, if we were any good at managing a team, we would actually be working for an NFL team. Managing personnel, signing players, and winning championships. I know I could not do the job.
So I'm not an NFL coach...... But I play one on the internet ;)
I would wish all of the people who play fantasy football good luck, but I need to save some for myself! So have fun wannabes. And remember....
It's just a game!
Sunday, November 15
Tuesday, November 10
WOW. So, last June, I created this blog as a way to share more of my thoughts with more and more people. I have a lot of thoughts, and most of them, I think, would be considered interesting. I had been sharing them on my Myspace page for years but I didn't like everything else about that whole mess. I also started it because my friend Jay started one and was doing some pretty neat things with video blogging. I went to look at his blog today and he too hasn't touched his in three months. I don't think it had anything to do with not having something to say for either of us. Jay and I always have something funny to say. But alas, Jay has 2 jobs and works like a fiend. I, however, don't have that limitation. So what is my excuse? The simple answer is..... I don't have one.
Moving on.
So, tomorrow is Veterans Day. One day a year where people think of those men and women that have fought in wars. It doesn't matter if you actually know a veteran. You're suppose to appreciate all they've done, which also included dying. Here's the thing. I think of veterans everyday. Well.... really just one of them. My brother is a Marine. A Jarhead, Leatherneck, Devil Dog. A veteran of the Second Iraq war, Mark has been on my mind alot recently. He's stateside these days, working on his tan in southern California's 29 Palms. I have no idea what exactly he does all day. Every now and then he goes out into the desert and shoots some really big pieces of artillery but that's all I know. Although my brothers biggest danger at this time is drinking too much on friday nights(so proud), I can't help but be the older brother and be concerned about his well being.
A little background about our brotherly love. Me and my brother didn't use to get along. He use to steal my stuff, then I'd steal it back(plus an extra item or two), and so on and on. He wore cloths that were 3 sizes too big that usually came from my closet. Quit a paper route because it meant getting up too early on the weekends. On a basic level, Mark was kind of a tool. It was hard to relate to him. Our sister, Lisa, is less then two years older then me, but Mark is almost 4 years younger then me. Mark and I were 2 different people. Even with all that, I still loved him and would've taken a bullet for him. And it wasn't all bad. We had tons of fun terrorizing people. Mark and I always knew how to team up and mess with peoples heads. Still do it to this day. Every time he's back in town, mom's blood pressure get's worse. Fun times!
So far, the proudest day in my life was watching Mark walk across the parade grounds at the Marine Corp. Recruit Depot. Accepting his eagle, globe, and anchor and becoming a Marine. The fact that there was a war still raging in the Middle East and it was pretty obvious he was headed straight for it was furthest from my mind. Mark had grown up before my very eyes.
Then, he shipped out to Iraq. Leave it to Mark to pick a job that didn't get used very much. Why use artillery when you have smart bombs from unmanned drones? So they made him protect convoys and bases. Other basic, but still dangerous, tasks. Got a call every now and then with every conversation ending in "Love you, bro". It was then that I realized how much I actually missed him. The scrawny little brother that always stole my things was fighting in a war and I was a little scared for him. By the grace of god and his own common sense, Mark made it back home even after so many didn't. Reassigned to the Marine Base at 29 Palms, he's been there ever since.
I guess my point is this. It's great that everyone takes the time on Nov. 11th to think of veterans. But I beat everybody at it. Because, for people like me, Veterans Day happens everyday. But it's not a competition. I'm just saying....
It's what I do!
Moving on.
So, tomorrow is Veterans Day. One day a year where people think of those men and women that have fought in wars. It doesn't matter if you actually know a veteran. You're suppose to appreciate all they've done, which also included dying. Here's the thing. I think of veterans everyday. Well.... really just one of them. My brother is a Marine. A Jarhead, Leatherneck, Devil Dog. A veteran of the Second Iraq war, Mark has been on my mind alot recently. He's stateside these days, working on his tan in southern California's 29 Palms. I have no idea what exactly he does all day. Every now and then he goes out into the desert and shoots some really big pieces of artillery but that's all I know. Although my brothers biggest danger at this time is drinking too much on friday nights(so proud), I can't help but be the older brother and be concerned about his well being.
A little background about our brotherly love. Me and my brother didn't use to get along. He use to steal my stuff, then I'd steal it back(plus an extra item or two), and so on and on. He wore cloths that were 3 sizes too big that usually came from my closet. Quit a paper route because it meant getting up too early on the weekends. On a basic level, Mark was kind of a tool. It was hard to relate to him. Our sister, Lisa, is less then two years older then me, but Mark is almost 4 years younger then me. Mark and I were 2 different people. Even with all that, I still loved him and would've taken a bullet for him. And it wasn't all bad. We had tons of fun terrorizing people. Mark and I always knew how to team up and mess with peoples heads. Still do it to this day. Every time he's back in town, mom's blood pressure get's worse. Fun times!
So far, the proudest day in my life was watching Mark walk across the parade grounds at the Marine Corp. Recruit Depot. Accepting his eagle, globe, and anchor and becoming a Marine. The fact that there was a war still raging in the Middle East and it was pretty obvious he was headed straight for it was furthest from my mind. Mark had grown up before my very eyes.
Then, he shipped out to Iraq. Leave it to Mark to pick a job that didn't get used very much. Why use artillery when you have smart bombs from unmanned drones? So they made him protect convoys and bases. Other basic, but still dangerous, tasks. Got a call every now and then with every conversation ending in "Love you, bro". It was then that I realized how much I actually missed him. The scrawny little brother that always stole my things was fighting in a war and I was a little scared for him. By the grace of god and his own common sense, Mark made it back home even after so many didn't. Reassigned to the Marine Base at 29 Palms, he's been there ever since.
I guess my point is this. It's great that everyone takes the time on Nov. 11th to think of veterans. But I beat everybody at it. Because, for people like me, Veterans Day happens everyday. But it's not a competition. I'm just saying....
It's what I do!
Tuesday, June 23
I'm moving my blog.. I will have beer for anyone who helps!
Welcome everyone to a-v-j.blogspot.com. It's the new home for the funny things I think or feel from time to time. I've been doing it for years on myspace with some success but have grown tired of myspace in general. A good friend of mine recently started a blog of his own here at blogspot, were he yells at myspace for being stupid, and it made me wanna get my own blog here. So when your done reading here, please go visit my friends blog too. He is funnier then me in almost every way. Funnier writer, funnier thinker, funnier looking... Anyway, check him out at awesomejay.blogspot.com.
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