Friday, November 11, 2011
Woops
As I said in my last post (in July...sorry about that) I am a terrible blogger. I have the potential to be good, but I don't have the time. New Years is only a month and a half away, but one of my resolutions is to get back to blogging and to be consistent about it. This, however, will not happen until I graduate in May. I'm sorry if you've been waiting for new posts, but I just don't have the time right now. I do have tons of ideas for things to write about. We'll just have to wait until spring time for them to be revealed.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Keeping up with Real Time
I'm a terrible blogger.
I'm sorry I haven't written about the Tribe still hanging in there, LeBron still being a d-bag, Ohio State still taking bullets to the head, or the bureaucracy involved with it all. I'm sorry I promised to be more consistent, but instead violated this all-important rule of blogging. I could make a thousand excuses for my non-existent presence, but I'll limit the number to two. Neither of these have to do with my job taking over my life (because it doesn't, even if I am working more than 40 hours a week).
The first is that it's summer. In my 23 years of life, summer has been the time where my mind gets to rest. I've never taken summer classes, the only other "summer" internship I had was more of a shadowing opportunity and I've worked food service/retail jobs since I was 14. This is the first summer I've had a real job where I'm required to be just as, if not more, creative as I was during the school year. You would think I'd be adjusting with difficulty, but in fact, I love this pace. And every single weekend thus far has been phenomenal. This state of bliss is possible because I'm not waiting on ignorant men who think giving out their phone numbers will suffice as an adequate tip, or tourists who spend so much money on water gun games that their food budget had to be sacrificed. So, rather than staying at my apartment or sitting behind a computer 16 hours a day, I've been enjoying summer, as all of us should be.
The second reason is that I got rid of cable and won't allow it to return to my life until mid-August. For sports people, not having cable is sort of sacrilegious. I got rid of it because my roommates moved out and I barely watch TV in the summer anyway. As far as the sports stuff is concerned, I get everything I need to know from blogs, Twitter and sports websites. Personally, you should all be jealous of me because I have the privilege of NOT watching ESPN. However, the bad part of not actually watching sports and sports news is that I find it much more difficult to get a 360 platform of inspiration. Hearing other people talk about stuff is fine for knowledge, but not when you want to get in the conversation surrounding a live event.
Speaking of the conversation, who's heard of this little thing called Google+? I hope the answer to that is yes, but hey, it's summer. I don't blame you for living under a rock. Basically, Google's been paying attention to the way people communicate, connect and create content, and has developed an interface to give everyone a unique place to do what they've already been doing. It seems most of the people I've added to circles share like they would on Twitter, but it looks like it would on Facebook, if Facebook wasn't so busy.
I'm not saying Google+ is going to wipe out either of these networks. Facebook connected people in a way MySpace couldn't and Twitter made real-time the norm. But as someone who has established myself in a sports circle in the Twitterverse, I can honestly say this platform can give us a whole new way to talk about live sports- if we have a way to watch them, of course.
Think about it. Every Saturday from September to November and in the three weeks of bowl season, those of us who are not at a college game, at a bar watching a college game, at a party watching a college game, or doing anything involving a college game that keeps us away from our computers, were most likely live blogging or live tweeting with others about that game. With Google+, we can take our live discussions to the next level and "hangout" with each other, "spark" content with each other and follow our "circles," all in one place. Now, for those of us who don't get to leave the house, we can technically watch and absorb the game with other people in the same boat. Brilliant.
I personally would much rather be out and about on football Saturdays, but if I learned anything last year it's that grad school doesn't always allow a full day for fun. Sometimes I have to stay sober and the only way to do so is to pretend I'm doing homework while watching the game(s). It's a wonderful mind trick I seem to have perfected. In either scenario, it's much better enjoying football with others.
I'm still learning Google+ and all the fun that might come with it. I'm not quitting Twitter because I like it too much. I'm not quitting Facebook, because that's where my friends are, though I suspect my activity will decrease even more than it already has. I guess if I removed some of the clutter, aka people I don't care about, I could make Facebook a little more like Google+. But nobody likes the feeling of being "unfriended," and I don't like hurting people's feelings. I actually like that these social networks are different, serve different purposes and keep up the conversation in different ways.
For me, and hopefully for others, the unique purpose of Google+ can be another way to make our communities more open. But if this summer taught me anything, it's that no interface, social platform or real time conversation can ever replace real life experiences. I can look at people's beach vacation pictures all day, but nothing compares to actually going to the beach. I can read about stuff going on in Cleveland, Columbus or NYC but it doesn't do much for me unless I'm really there. I can drink a Summer Shandy while writing this post, but it doesn't taste as good as when I'm sitting around a patio table, having a toast with my friends.
I'm sorry I haven't written about the Tribe still hanging in there, LeBron still being a d-bag, Ohio State still taking bullets to the head, or the bureaucracy involved with it all. I'm sorry I promised to be more consistent, but instead violated this all-important rule of blogging. I could make a thousand excuses for my non-existent presence, but I'll limit the number to two. Neither of these have to do with my job taking over my life (because it doesn't, even if I am working more than 40 hours a week).
The first is that it's summer. In my 23 years of life, summer has been the time where my mind gets to rest. I've never taken summer classes, the only other "summer" internship I had was more of a shadowing opportunity and I've worked food service/retail jobs since I was 14. This is the first summer I've had a real job where I'm required to be just as, if not more, creative as I was during the school year. You would think I'd be adjusting with difficulty, but in fact, I love this pace. And every single weekend thus far has been phenomenal. This state of bliss is possible because I'm not waiting on ignorant men who think giving out their phone numbers will suffice as an adequate tip, or tourists who spend so much money on water gun games that their food budget had to be sacrificed. So, rather than staying at my apartment or sitting behind a computer 16 hours a day, I've been enjoying summer, as all of us should be.
 | |||||
| Some friends and I waiting outside Grimaldi's in Brooklyn back in May. This was taken a few days after my first Yankees game. Go Tribe! |
The second reason is that I got rid of cable and won't allow it to return to my life until mid-August. For sports people, not having cable is sort of sacrilegious. I got rid of it because my roommates moved out and I barely watch TV in the summer anyway. As far as the sports stuff is concerned, I get everything I need to know from blogs, Twitter and sports websites. Personally, you should all be jealous of me because I have the privilege of NOT watching ESPN. However, the bad part of not actually watching sports and sports news is that I find it much more difficult to get a 360 platform of inspiration. Hearing other people talk about stuff is fine for knowledge, but not when you want to get in the conversation surrounding a live event.
I'm not saying Google+ is going to wipe out either of these networks. Facebook connected people in a way MySpace couldn't and Twitter made real-time the norm. But as someone who has established myself in a sports circle in the Twitterverse, I can honestly say this platform can give us a whole new way to talk about live sports- if we have a way to watch them, of course.
Think about it. Every Saturday from September to November and in the three weeks of bowl season, those of us who are not at a college game, at a bar watching a college game, at a party watching a college game, or doing anything involving a college game that keeps us away from our computers, were most likely live blogging or live tweeting with others about that game. With Google+, we can take our live discussions to the next level and "hangout" with each other, "spark" content with each other and follow our "circles," all in one place. Now, for those of us who don't get to leave the house, we can technically watch and absorb the game with other people in the same boat. Brilliant.
I personally would much rather be out and about on football Saturdays, but if I learned anything last year it's that grad school doesn't always allow a full day for fun. Sometimes I have to stay sober and the only way to do so is to pretend I'm doing homework while watching the game(s). It's a wonderful mind trick I seem to have perfected. In either scenario, it's much better enjoying football with others.
I'm still learning Google+ and all the fun that might come with it. I'm not quitting Twitter because I like it too much. I'm not quitting Facebook, because that's where my friends are, though I suspect my activity will decrease even more than it already has. I guess if I removed some of the clutter, aka people I don't care about, I could make Facebook a little more like Google+. But nobody likes the feeling of being "unfriended," and I don't like hurting people's feelings. I actually like that these social networks are different, serve different purposes and keep up the conversation in different ways.
For me, and hopefully for others, the unique purpose of Google+ can be another way to make our communities more open. But if this summer taught me anything, it's that no interface, social platform or real time conversation can ever replace real life experiences. I can look at people's beach vacation pictures all day, but nothing compares to actually going to the beach. I can read about stuff going on in Cleveland, Columbus or NYC but it doesn't do much for me unless I'm really there. I can drink a Summer Shandy while writing this post, but it doesn't taste as good as when I'm sitting around a patio table, having a toast with my friends.
Friday, May 27, 2011
RED, WHITE AND WINDIANS, LOOK WHO'S BACK ON TOP AGAIN
It's Friday. Tomorrow is the Columbus Crawl for Cancer. Leave my cheesy title alone.
For most of you, the first official holiday of summer begins this evening, and, if you live in Ohio, the first 10-day forecast boasting an overwhelming majority of sunny days is finally here. Despite all the roller coaster weather, I think all of us can already smell the barbeques from every corner of our neighborhoods. For some, this weekend is a 72-hour vacation. For me, I've been on vacation for weeks. Since school ended May 5, I've traveled to Columbus, New York City and that state up north all within a 12 day span, and I'm now taking a "relaxing" two weeks to prepare for my summer internship.
But enough about where I've been and where I'm going. The most important thing about this weekend is that the Cleveland Indians will enter the weekend series against the Rays 30-17. The CLEVELAND Indians. The same team that was ranked dead last in the MLB's preseason rankings is now your number one and the team everyone wants to see fail simply because they are consistently #WINNING. Nobody, and I mean nobody, that I have come across, anyway, predicted how electric these first two months would be. Sure, the Red Sox did to them what they've been doing to everybody during Wednesday's home matinee, but that's the beauty of baseball: you're allowed a bad game without too many people reading too much into it. No other sport has that luxury, especially before the all-star break.
Is this really the same team that took until June 30 to reach 30 wins last season? Not exactly. While a decent number of players from the 40-man 2010 roster returned in 2011 (26 to be exact), notable additions, such as Jack Hannahan and Orlando Cabrera, have everyone saying "Grady who?"
A few weeks ago, Wall Street Journal writer Darren Everson completed a forensic journalistic analysis of every trade and how it's impacted the Tribe's unexpected success. While it's fun to hate on Larry Dolan's frugal attempt at running a business, reading this article probably made you kind of like the old man and think he's not so senile after all. Besides the roster, notable changes made to the organization in the last few years include:
What happened last July with "The Decision" proved that in sports, if a team fails to bring home hardware, it will never be the best and will simply fade into our distant memories. As Cleveland fans, or any fans (I'm talking to you with my sincerest sympathy here, Chicago), our teams can be amazing all season, but if they choke in the playoffs and crumble in the coming year, what was once our source of happiness is now the reason for a daily eye roll. We cannot keep assuming that a near flawless record equals a championship. What we can do is remain faithful and proud, go to games (or at least give them the ratings) no matter what the record, and refrain from fair-weather syndrome.
We can hate our owners all we want, but sometimes it takes a series of bad decisions to make the right ones. Sometimes it takes more than a good team to bring people to the stadium, though that is an enormous part of it. Everything in life has its villain, especially sports. But not every athlete, team or organization is ignorant to fan loyalty (or, the consumer of the product, if you want to look at it that way).
It's almost June. The Browns might never see the field. The Cavs are rebuilding. Mike Brown no longer works at Winking Lizard (okay, maybe he never did, but he has a doppleganger named Tom). Ohio State football is a perpetual mess. That's all irrelevant because it's Tribe time now. No one knows if they'll roll through October, but at least we can enjoy the ride while it lasts.
For most of you, the first official holiday of summer begins this evening, and, if you live in Ohio, the first 10-day forecast boasting an overwhelming majority of sunny days is finally here. Despite all the roller coaster weather, I think all of us can already smell the barbeques from every corner of our neighborhoods. For some, this weekend is a 72-hour vacation. For me, I've been on vacation for weeks. Since school ended May 5, I've traveled to Columbus, New York City and that state up north all within a 12 day span, and I'm now taking a "relaxing" two weeks to prepare for my summer internship.
But enough about where I've been and where I'm going. The most important thing about this weekend is that the Cleveland Indians will enter the weekend series against the Rays 30-17. The CLEVELAND Indians. The same team that was ranked dead last in the MLB's preseason rankings is now your number one and the team everyone wants to see fail simply because they are consistently #WINNING. Nobody, and I mean nobody, that I have come across, anyway, predicted how electric these first two months would be. Sure, the Red Sox did to them what they've been doing to everybody during Wednesday's home matinee, but that's the beauty of baseball: you're allowed a bad game without too many people reading too much into it. No other sport has that luxury, especially before the all-star break.
 |
| Untouchable. For now. |
Is this really the same team that took until June 30 to reach 30 wins last season? Not exactly. While a decent number of players from the 40-man 2010 roster returned in 2011 (26 to be exact), notable additions, such as Jack Hannahan and Orlando Cabrera, have everyone saying "Grady who?"
A few weeks ago, Wall Street Journal writer Darren Everson completed a forensic journalistic analysis of every trade and how it's impacted the Tribe's unexpected success. While it's fun to hate on Larry Dolan's frugal attempt at running a business, reading this article probably made you kind of like the old man and think he's not so senile after all. Besides the roster, notable changes made to the organization in the last few years include:
 | ||||
| Brad Paisley wants to see YOU at Progressive Field. |
- The Indians Social Suite: Located where the old left field bleachers once stood, social media geeks like myself can apply to have experience the power of social media and sports, away from their TV sets. Not too shabby for a team owned by an 80-year old, though I doubt it was his idea.
- @tribetalk: The official Twitter page for Cleveland Indians social media. If you follow @tribetalk, you will get a follow-back, the opportunity for discounted tickets and a place in the Twitterverse to vent or praise about anything Tribe-related.
- The brand campaign of "Creating memories. Connecting Generations. Celebrating Families." or, as I like to call, six words that reinvent the meaning of America's favorite past-time.
- The Cleveland Indians Music Festival: Sure, it's all country, and if you know me, that's not exactly my favorite genre, but country concerts are probably some of the best concerts. While it might have nothing to do with baseball, it's going to get people to Progressive Field, where they will drink lots of beer and spend lots of money. How is that not a win for everyone?
What happened last July with "The Decision" proved that in sports, if a team fails to bring home hardware, it will never be the best and will simply fade into our distant memories. As Cleveland fans, or any fans (I'm talking to you with my sincerest sympathy here, Chicago), our teams can be amazing all season, but if they choke in the playoffs and crumble in the coming year, what was once our source of happiness is now the reason for a daily eye roll. We cannot keep assuming that a near flawless record equals a championship. What we can do is remain faithful and proud, go to games (or at least give them the ratings) no matter what the record, and refrain from fair-weather syndrome.
We can hate our owners all we want, but sometimes it takes a series of bad decisions to make the right ones. Sometimes it takes more than a good team to bring people to the stadium, though that is an enormous part of it. Everything in life has its villain, especially sports. But not every athlete, team or organization is ignorant to fan loyalty (or, the consumer of the product, if you want to look at it that way).
It's almost June. The Browns might never see the field. The Cavs are rebuilding. Mike Brown no longer works at Winking Lizard (okay, maybe he never did, but he has a doppleganger named Tom). Ohio State football is a perpetual mess. That's all irrelevant because it's Tribe time now. No one knows if they'll roll through October, but at least we can enjoy the ride while it lasts.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Taking a Break..Well, not really
I know I don’t have the biggest fanbase in the world, but I know people read this. I have a few thousand views, including 19 (and counting) from someone or multiple someones in Malaysia. I don't know who you are, but thanks for boosting my numbers and hopefully enjoying what I have to say. That being said, I think it’s only fair I let you know a little about what’s going on in my life.
As some of you may know, I’m a Master’s student at Kent State University. This semester, I am taking an PR online tactics class, which is all about Web PR and social media. One of the class requirements is that I post a weekly blog. Unfortunately, it would be cheating the system if I used this blog, so for a couple months, I will be taking my talents to WordPress and writing a blog called Sports PRspective. I’ll still be writing about sports, but this is from a PR and image management angle, rather than a fan/general sports angle. I would love if all if you would read it and comment on it so I get some good traffic (I’ll post links each week here). I would love to keep doing my bi-weekly postings on here, but between that, my other classes, my assistantship, and my duties for Our Honor Defend, trying to manage three blogs is a bit much for me. I will be back sometime in April or May. Once I return, I’m going to try to post weekly instead of bi-weekly, since I know you can’t get enough of me. Thanks again for reading and boosting my self-esteem :)
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