Hate is a strong word and probably an exaggeration. Let’s just say that I have strong negative feelings toward college football. This is for many reasons. Some of the reasons are due to the emphasis placed on sports by some supposed institutions of higher learning. Others are due to my feelings toward sports in general; I think sports are rather silly.
Most of my ire arises from the parking situation on home game days. I work weekends, and my lab and the football stadium have the misfortune of being across the street from each other. Regular university parking permits are not valid on game days; those spots are reserved for season ticket holders (I think). No problem, I’ll just park on the surrounding city streets and walk in. Not so much. Most of those spots require city permits, and the city closes down most of the remaining spots on game days to aid traffic flow. Also, the bus routes shift to steer clear of the stadium on game days.
I understand that the school brings in lots of revenue from parking and ticket sales. But I bring in money too, damnit. My work is funded by an $11 million federal grant (thank you taxpayers!) off which the school skims a considerable amount. Keeping that gravy train intact would be greatly aided by being able to actually get into work easily when I need to, but that’s not a priority here. Oh well.
I would not shed a tear if college sports were abolished or if the stadium burned down, but since it’s here to stay, I figured I’d check things out. I went to a game today (after working a bit). To make sure I was the coolest guy in the stadium, I printed out a few JACS articles to read during the copious down time.
It was fun. The weather was cool but the sun was shining and there was little wind. Plus, “we” (:rolleyes:) won. I got to see relatively skilled people do things they’re skilled at. I got to buy an overpriced cup of coke that has animated football players who move around when you move the cup. Good times all around.