Vacation, And The Endless Depression Of Sports

Play baaaaarrgh.

I finally ended my winter term work, although I have 23 research papers to read at some point.  They don't have to be read for a few weeks, so I can relax for a few days, do chores, read for pleasure, maybe catch a movie.

Politics seem to be entering a bizarre feedback loop.  The GOP primaries are inconclusive.  Then some GOP mouthpiece or state legislator does or says something mind-bogglingly stupid.  Lather, rinse, repeat.

This is also the great dry season for sports.  OK, there is March Madness, but I really can't motivate myself to get interested in it.  I'll watch some games, but my interest is transitory.

In baseball, we have spring training, which from a Braves fan's point of view is simply an opportunity to relive the horror of last September.  Every loss (and their record is something like 1-8) means that the decision to stand pat and not blow up the team relegates the Braves to the status of the Astros or Pirates.  Every tweak, every time a regular sits with "stiffness" becomes a season ending injury.  Usually, spring training is a time of hope.  For Braves (and Red Sox fans, too, I imagine) it's a time of dread.

In football, we at least have the pleasing diversion of the Saints imploding.  But again, given the way the Falcons' season ended, the lack of real progress towards fixing the holes apparent from last year is maddening.  And without a first round draft pick, you can't even look forward to the draft.

Meanwhile, the Things play indoor soccer, and though Thing One is quite talented and Thing Two works like a demon to keep up with the older players, the fact is... well, they lose a lot.

I've grown up as a sports fan.  I no longer freak out (so much) when things go poorly for the athletic team of my choosing.  Sports add unscripted drama.  They can be heroic or cathartic or tragic.

And sometimes they can just sit there, like a 300 lb sumo wrestler in a bad mood.