An Insane Night In Buffalo

If you didn't catch Monday Night Football last night, I truly feel sorry for you. The game was the craziest, most intense football game I have ever seen in my life--we're talking about 10 years of watching the NFL.

The last time the Buffalo Bills hosted a Monday Night Football game was in 1994, 13 years ago! This was finally their year, and who comes to town? None other than the undefeated, arguably best playing team in the league, the Dallas Cowboys. The Buffalo Bills have gotten off to a rough start this season winning only one of their four games. They were planning to get killed, maybe even shut out, but they went on their home field with their heads held high....and actually held the game in their hands for all four quarters.

Tony Romo threw FIVE interceptions, two of which were ran back for touchdowns. The Bills even ran a punt back for a touchdown as well. The Bills were up 24-16 in the fourth quarter when Tony Romo took the Cowboys all the way down the field to score a touchdown. With 20 seconds left on the game clock the Cowboys went for a two-point conversion that would tie the game at 24. The Bills' defense was impeccable, and Terrell Owens was unable to make the catch. The Cowboys had one more chance: an onside kick. The onside kick was great, the Cowboys recover it, and have 13 seconds to get into field goal range. T.O. drops another catch, which means the Cowboys have less than 10 seconds left. Tony Romo throws two more short passes to get their kicker, Folk, as close as possible. With two seconds remaining, Folk comes out to make a career long 52 yard field goal-his previous career long was only from 47 yards.

Folk makes the field goal, the Cowboys go crazy, but wait--Bills' coach Dick Jauron called a timeout right before the snap, so the kick was no good. After the timeout, Folk comes out to attempt the field goal again. Impossible right? Wrong! Folk makes the 52-yarder and the Cowboys win the game!

Unbelievable.

Show Mother Nature Some Love, Go Climb!

I love trying out new things: new food, new shoes, and especially new activities. It's the little rush that you get, when expectations are high, and you're optimistic that everything will go well, and you'll love it. I started rock climbing a couple months ago, in a gym downtown called Pipeworks. I discovered that I loved it the first time I went. As much fun as climbing in a gym was though, I really wanted to try climbing outside.

After a few months of climbing in the gym, I finally had the opportunity to go climbing outside for the first time, and it was exhilerating. I thought I enjoyed climing in a gym, but climbing outside is much more fun. Being outside, in the woods, climbing on actual boulders was an unreal experience. As cliche as it sounds, I felt at one with nature, like I was apart of it. It made respect the natural beauty of Earth, and made my appreciation for nature even stronger.

My boyfriend and I went to Castle Rock State Park, which is south of San Francisco. When we got there we hiked through the woods to the first boulder we were going to climb. Castle Rock is gorgeous, filled with tall trees, beautiful trails, and friendly hikers.

Even though I have been told that climbing outside is much more difficult than climbing in the gym, I was determined to do well. The first problem I tried was a "one-move wonder". From the start there was only one move to get to the top, a move that I wasn't able to do, no matter how many times I tried. The hold was directly above my head, and just far enough out of my reach that I wasn't able to grab it. Pair that with terrible foot holds, and I was unable to get past the start.

I decided to take a break from working on that problem, and went to another one, called the "Spoon"...which is by far my favorite problem at Castle Rock. The Spoon is a great problem for me because it is just past my level of ability, so it makes me strive harder to get it. The Spoon was another problem that had a really high hold above my head, but the holds leading up to it were much better than the one on the first problem. One of the holds was deep into a crevice in the rock, so I had to wedge my left hand and arm into the crack to get a good grip, after falling a few times and hurting my wrist, I decided to take a break and try another problem for awhile.

We went to another boulder and found a problem that was easier for me to do. After struggling a little with the start, I sent it, and finally finished my first problem outside. It was a great feeling, but I was ready for the Spoon again. I attempted the Spoon a few more times, but after almost breaking my wrist, I decided to call it a day. I guess I will just have to wait to send it until the next time I'm there.

It was very refreshing to be outside, I got tired less often, and was far more determined than when in the gym. I would recommend climbing in general to anyone, but if you ever get the chance to go climbing outside, do it. Even if you struggle at it and do not do well, like I didn't, despite the cuts and bruises, you will still be amazed at how great you feel afterwards.

Pushing Daisies--Dead or Alive?

It is always nice to see a new show on TV that is unique and filled with unfamiliar storylines, and Pushing Daisies is both. Bryan Fuller's new show on ABC has all the right components to be a new favorite: humor, drama, and a love story, all of which revolve around the main character, Ned, who can bring dead people back to life.

Pushing Daisies makes light of a normally serious subject: death. Ned has the power to bring dead people back to life by simply touching them. They stay alive for a full minute, after which they will remain alive unless Ned touches them again. If he decides to keep them alive another person in close proximity will die. Ned decides to use his power to help solve crimes by bringing people back to life and asking them how they died. If they were murdered, they would surely remember who killed them. Then, once he knows how the person died, he touches them again and kills them for good.

All of the characters seem to be hopped up on caffeine, or sugar, which is fitting because the storyline revolves around Ned's pie bakery: Pie Hole. Everyone talks a mile a minute and is quite witty. Watching Ned use discretion in who to keep alive and who to "re-kill" is quite comical as it pokes fun at the finality of death. Ned's humbleness paired with his god-like powers to determine who dies and who gets another chance at life make for a light-hearted story that you will surely enjoy.

If you haven't seen an episode yet, catch a new one on ABC, Wednesday nights at 8. There is a recap at the beginning of every episode which will bring you up to speed if you're new to the show, or remind you what happened last week if you're an avid watcher. Enjoy!

College: Time Well....Wasted?

It’s amazing how many college students in our generation take higher learning for granted. And believe me, I’m not any better, I know I take my college education for granted, but it seems hard not to. It is increasingly becoming a way of life. After high school, you go to college. No questions asked. It’s just what you do. This was different for the generation before us, and for the generation before that, a college education was only for the elite. For us--it's expected.

Society's higher expectations for our generation seem to result in a growing cynicism amongst college students of the importance of a college degree. When I was in high school, I knew I would be going to college afterwards; there was no doubt in my mind. I was young and excited, and I had big dreams for myself. I thought that a college degree would be my ticket to whatever career I wanted. Now that I am in college though, I find reasons not to attend class, despite the ridiculous amount of money that I spend on every unit I take. The more classes I take, the closer I am to obtaining my degree, the more I think a college degree is overrated. I have found that in the real world, it is all about who you know, rather that what you know.

Some students who feel the same cynicism towards college made a video called “A Vision of Students Today”. Some 200 college students, led by their professor, made the video to highlight the problems of higher education today. The students created a survey and took it, then collaborated all of the answers to find trends that are detrimental to the college system.

“A Vision of Students Today” is quite an eye-opening video that touches on many concerns of students today. They are concerns that plague many college students around the country, not just the few students who voiced their opinion on the video. I think these problems deserve to be looked at carefully, and I believe as more students realize the problems with our education system, more students will become cynical to the importance of a college degree.

The part of the video that talks about the number of pages a student will read in a semester, and how much of the reading will actually pertain to her life was most amusing to me. Professors assign reading homework, it seems, just to have something for their students to do. Unless there is a test designed specifically for the reading, most of what professors have us read is useless. And the cost of textbooks is even more outrageous than the fact that we have to read them! It baffles me that, after tuition is paid, students still fork out hundreds of dollars just on books! Usually books they will never need again.

I agree with the students in the video, students learn what they are doing, not necessarily what they are reading. Hands-on, real-life homework assignments are much more helpful to students. Filling out a scantron and marking bubbles A through E do not help them once they have their diploma. Being involved in real-world situations that would plague someone in their prospective profession is much more valuable than knowing all the key terms at the back of a chapter. Some professors know this, others will, hopefully, get on board soon. It is the only way our outdated education system will be revived.

Give Pizza Chance

If you are looking for a fun place to hang out and some good food to eat, you should go to Pieces. Great people, great atmosphere, great food—what more could you want in a restaurant? Pieces has all three PLUS great prices! It’s every broke college student’s dream pizzeria.

Pieces is a small, hole-the-wall pizza-by-the-slice restaurant that is probably (unfortunately) overlooked by many that walk by it. Its laid back atmosphere is very welcoming to everyone that visits. It has a comfortable vibe that is great for a dinner out with friends, or a night of studying. Pieces offers inside and outside seating, catering to everyone's needs. It is open during the week from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. during the week, on Fridays from 11 a.m. to 2:30 a.m. and on Saturdays from 12 p.m. to 2:30 a.m.

If the atmosphere doesn't keep you coming back, the food definitely will. Pieces is by far the best pizza I have had in Sacramento. They offer pizza-lover favorites like, pepperoni and cheese, among others. But they also have a great veggie pizza and an amazing pesto pizza that will win your heart. The slices are huge and are made to order. Kind of . Pizzas are already baked, but you can add on extra produce like pineapple. Unlike many restaurants, what's great about Pieces is they bring in fresh groceries everyday, and that is what they use for their pizza. And don't forget the fresh garlic! If that isn't enough, their pesto sticks are killer, and are also big to help fill you up. Pieces also offers fresh salads and fresh baked desserts, as well as beer!

The staff is great too. Everyone is very friendly and helpful. I have yet to have an experience with a server that was anywhere near less than satisfactory. All of the employees are always in a good mood and are funny. They welcome conversation and always greet customers with a smile. Their laid back personalities feed into the great vibe at Pieces.

Another great thing about Pieces is it is one of the few places that stay open later than last call. Post-2 a.m. restaurants are hard to find, unless Denny's will satisfy your drunken craving for greasy food. This is good for night-owls that aren't ready to go home when bars close. Pieces is a great place to wind down the night, or a great place to get the night started. Whether you're drunk or sober, the next time you're in the midtown area, make sure you stop by 21st and Capitol for some great food, you'll leave feeling better than you did when you went in.

For Love of the Game

Have you ever stopped and wondered why you like something so much? What is it about the "something" that makes you so passionate about it? I often wonder this about my love for sports. Many people are "sports fans" and enjoy watching games, and possibly even playing some. But not all sports fans have the passion that I am talking about. Crying when your team loses, crying when your team wins, appreciating the fact that hardships come and go, as do winning seasons. Not everyone can say sports effects them this strongly, so what is it about sports that gives the select few of us that "special" feeling?

You know the "special" feeling, maybe you do not get it when watching a basketball game, but you have had the feeling before. It feels like hope, happiness, anxiousness, and excitement all wrapped up into one. If the outcome is good, you feel like you’re on top of the world, if the outcome is bad, your heart breaks with devastation. Either way, the feeling you have comes from within, and cannot be forced or imitated.

This is what sports is like. Watching an exciting game, a championship game, the playoffs, an extra-inning baseball game, or a hockey game come down to a shoot out. All of these are amazing and exciting, and get our adrenaline pumping. We feel like our whole lives come down to the last few moments of the game, as if we were out on the field or court playing the game ourselves.

What gives me that "special feeling" is how easily sports can bring people together. At any given game you will see strangers high-fiving after a great play, friends arguing over their rival teams-then later having a beer, talking about the great time they had, and an entire stadium full of thousands of people coming together as one when a referee makes a bad call or when their home team wins. All of these are reasons why sports give us fans that "special" feeling. One of my favorite things at a game is when all of the fans join together and sing. Many teams have anthems, and true fans know them and sing along. It is such a great feeling knowing that there are thousands of strangers around you that share the love and passion you have for your favorite team.

Another reason why sports gives that "special" feeling is the support that players and coaches have for one another. It is amazing to see how easily sports can bring a group of players together, and how easily it can make each player respect the other, even when the players are as different as night and day. My favorite story is of an autistic high school student in New York that loved basketball. The school's basketball coach allowed Jason to be the team manager, granting him participation in practices, and giving him the chance to sit on the bench with his team during games. However, in the last game of the season he was given the chance to play.



This story sums up every reason I could possibly describe for why sports is such an amazing thing. What is it about sports that gives us fans that "special" feeling? It's the fact that with seemingly little effort it has the ability to turn strangers into best friends, to boost your ego and break your heart, and to bring a tear to your eye.

Will You Be My Valentine?

February 14^th is the one day out of the year when women in relationships are supposed to be guaranteed attention and gifts. It is one day during the year (aside, maybe, from anniversaries) when the boyfriend or husband is supposed to spoil his significant other with flowers and cards and candy, and pretend to be the best, most caring guy in the world. Valentine’s day is the holiday for love.

Gag me, please.

It is ridiculous to have one day during the year where people are supposed to be forced to show their love for one another. Pressure is put on everyone in a relationship to get the perfect gift for their significant other. It’s no longer acceptable to be cliché either; cards, candy, and flowers do not cut it anymore.

Girls want jewelry, and dinner, and a night out on the town for a date. They want sexy underwear, and perfume, and maybe some chocolate-covered strawberries. While expecting all of these things from guys, girls aren’t sure if they are even supposed to get their boyfriends or husbands anything more than a card. And, if they are supposed to get gifts for them, what do guys want for Valentine’s Day that they wouldn’t want any other day of the year?

Is it just me, or shouldn’t everyday be a potential day to show someone you love them? Why do we need a backup day, so that we can justify to ourselves that “even though I haven’t been told I’m loved from my significant other this whole year, there’s always Valentine’s Day.” Why must we show each other we care with gifts that are red, pink, white, and lacey, and cram them all into one day of celebration?

Valentine’s Day is just one more day that our consumer-driven society can market. It’s one more day that makes people in a relationship happy, and makes singles feel even more lonely than they already feel.

I don’t think Valentine’s Day should be recognized the way it is today. For the lovers in relationships, show your love everyday, and do something extra special on your anniversary. This way singles won’t have to have their loneliness rubbed in their faces every time February comes around.

Leave Britney Alone Right NOW!

It is amazing the stuff people will post online. Blogs about nonsense, naked pictures of themselves, “one-night stand wanted” ads on Craigslist, and everything else you could possibly think of. Whenever I find these kinds of posts and webpages online, I think to myself, there are way too many people in this world with way too much time on their hands.

People feel the need to post anything and everything that pops into their mind. Whether they decide to voice their opinion about politics and religion, or about the latest celebrity gossip and what they did on Saturday night. People: we don’t care! It is one thing when someone goes online to rant about how horrible Barack Obama is, if the person is competent and makes a legitimate point, even if it is a point I disagree with. However, it is a different situation entirely when people with too much time on their hands and nothing intelligent to say go online to rant about issues they shouldn’t be talking about.

And now, with the new craze that is YouTube, people not only have the ability to voice their opinion online, but are also able to film themselves and put it online for the world to see. It seems the new “cool” thing to do is have a vblog (video blog) where instead of writing about nonsense, they film themselves talking nonsense and then post it online.

YouTube.com is a site with millions of videos posted by users. There is no way to filter videos that are inappropriate for public viewing, unless someone sees the video and reports it. People can go onto YouTube and search for videos by categories such as “most recent” and “most viewed”, and can search by subjects such as “cats” or “hot girls”. Users that are members of YouTube can also rate the video and post comments about it—much like the comment option on blogs.

With all the freedom that is given, the use of YouTube is out of control. People post all kinds of videos, things they did that are stupid (think “funniest home video” stupid) and things they believe are serious. Excerpts from television shows and movies are posted, as well as music videos and governmental debates. All of these videos are okay to post, they allow an easier way for internet users to find clips of video that interest them. Not only is it convenient to be able to go back and see part of a show you missed, or a politician’s answer to a question that you did not get to see; but some of the “comical” videos that are posted are hilarious and extremely entertaining.

What I find hard to understand is why people with nothing intelligent to say create videos of themselves and post them on YouTube. Are they that starving for attention? Do they really need everyone in the world to know how sad they feel for Britney Spears because she was going through a custody battle for her kids?

I understand that we have the choice to watch the videos and aren’t being forced to pay attention to such ridiculous videos as the one above, but why would someone want to show off to the world how incompetent they are? While this new age of vblogs can be very helpful and quite entertaining at times, I just wish there was a way to filter out the ridiculous videos of people complaining about their date or giving reasons why they think you should break up with your significant other.

Seriously people, do society a favor, and get a life.

Mike Sando: A Fan Favorite in the NFL World

There are lots of football fans in the world, most of them will watch a game on Sunday, and probably Monday night as well; some will watch as many games as they can on Sunday, will definitely watch the Monday night game, and will read updates online or in a newspaper for games they missed; the elite not only watch every game that is on T.V., but will also read about their team—or the entire NFL—in a newspaper or online every day. These elite fans depend on insider information to tell them what happens off the field, what is happening on the field, and what they should expect for the next game.

And, if you are a Seattle Seahawks fanatic, then Mike Sando is your guy. Sando has an impeccable reputation for his columns and blog about the Seahawks. Fans all over the world followed Sando’s blog daily to find out as much as they could about the Seahawks.

Mike Sando grew up in Northern California until he attended Whitworth University in Spokane, Washington. Sando graduated in 1992 with a B.A. in political studies. After graduation, he got a job writing online for the Spokes-man Review in Spokane. While writing for the Review he covered Washington State University football and basketball. In 1998, he was hired on at the News Tribune in Tacoma, Washington where he worked for nine years covering the Seattle Seahawks. Not only did Mike Sando write for the News Tribune, but he also had a Seahawks Insider blog that he began in 2005. His blog was voted the best newspaper-related sports blog in the nation for the past two years. His monthly readership for the blog is between 250,000 and 500,000 worldwide.

There comes a time when we all must say goodbye to the familiar, and step into a new light, a new position, a new life. After nine years of covering the Seattle Seahawks, Mike Sando did just that when he was hired at ESPN.com. July 1, 2007 he said goodbye to his old job at the Tribune, and stepped into the unknown.

Sando was a fan favorite at the Tribune and had many readers following him. He was also very personable on his blog and welcomed readers to send him comments. On his last day at the Tribune, he wrote a farewell note to his readers on his blog where he said goodbye to his fans, but reminded them that in the internet world, there are no “goodbyes”—his fans would be able to follow his columns at ESPN.com. Sando’s farewell blog received 278 comments from fans saying goodbye and good luck.

Sando’s specialty is still professional football, however now he is writing on all of the NFL, not just the Seahawks. He posts a column two to three times a week about issues going on in the NFL. Every Sunday he writes a column with a list of his top 10 observations from that week of games. His writing style helps readers to better understand his analysis of games, players, and teams, without going over their head and confusing them. His “regular guy” reputation has helped him maintain success and readership at ESPN.com and will help keep him a fan favorite for years to come.

You can read Mike Sando's columns for ESPN.com at http://sports.espn.go.com/keyword/search?searchString=mike_sando&filter=null&page=espn

Living In Your Own Little Fantasy World

A new wave has taken over the world of sports…and it isn’t even ‘real’. Online fantasy sports leagues have become extremely popular among sports fans. These leagues give fans the opportunity to make their dreams of coaching a professional team come true. If you pick the right players and play them at the right time, you could walk away with bragging rights…and a whole lot of money.

There are fantasy leagues for all different sports: hockey, football, baseball, and basketball are a few. They also have leagues for college sports as well. The way it works is you join a league with your friends, or complete strangers, whichever you choose, and you get a “draft day”. On draft day all players in the league choose professional players to play for their team. Everyone is allowed a certain number of players, and a certain number of positions must be filled. For example, in some fantasy football leagues you are allowed two quarterbacks and three wide receivers, so you might draft Bret Favre and Peyton Manning for your quarterbacks, and Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, and Chad Johnson for your wide receivers. The point of the draft is to get the best players you can for your team.

On game day, which is the day the players on your team play (Sunday, Monday Night Football, etc.), a running total is kept for how well all of your players are doing. If Bret Favre throws three touchdowns you get a certain number of points, and if he throws an interception your team has points taken away. All players on your team are given points based on their individual performance. In football, passing yards, rushing yards, touchdowns, field goals, etc. all give your team a certain amount of points. At the end of the week, when all professional games are finished, your points are are added up and you are given a total score. Your goal is to get more points than all the other players in your league.

Several “big name” companies are now setting up fantasy leagues for people to join. You can have leagues on ESPN.com and Yahoo Sports, and most professional leagues and associations offer fantasy as well; NFL.com, NBA.com, and MLB.com are a few that offer free fantasy leagues. To join some leagues you have to pay money in order to play. However, in those leagues the incentive, unlike the free leagues, is if you win the most games or have the most points when the season is over, you get prize money…just for having the best fantasy team. In some leagues you can win hundreds of dollars!

Fantasy leagues have become so popular that some journalists have devoted all of their writing to analyzing players in the fantasy world. Most sports websites, now, have sections for fantasy, where journalists break down the upcoming week and suggest which players you should play, and which you should bench. ESPN’s Sportscenter now has its own analysts cover fantasy and give updates on which players are performing great, and which are playing poorly. There are also several books that give out tips for playing fantasy, and books that tell the story of the famous leagues around the country.

This new craze has changed sports in today’s world. Fans not only care about their team doing well and making it to the playoffs, but are also rooting for players on their rival teams. Where a deep hate for a rivalry used to reside, fans now hope players on the rival team do well in order to help out their fantasy team. Fantasy continues to grow and become more popular every year. It makes you wonder if one day people will stop caring about the Super Bowl because none of their fantasy players are in it.

"Let Me Call You Back, I'm Driving"

In today’s technology-driven world, it is nice to know our government is not afraid to step in and restrict the use of electronics in lieu of our health and safety. The banning of drivers talking on cell phones is supposed to be a great new law; not only is it designed to reduce the number of distractions for drivers, but law-makers are hoping it will reduce the number of distraction-caused accidents as well.

Harvard researchers estimated that one in 20 car accidents a year in the United States are linked to cell phones. They also say about 2,600 deaths result from those accidents every year. Although these estimates are a little sketchy because it is hard to determine the cause of many accidents, it can't be hard to imagine one in 20 car accidents being attributed to cell phone use, right? And even if the total number of accidents or deaths from cell phones is lower than the estimation, why not play it safe?

We all know there are many more distractions for drivers than just a cell phone. But eliminating one allows drivers to juggle the rest of the distractions without holding a phone to their ear as well. Now drivers will have two hands free to eat fast food, smoke cigarettes, and deal with the kids in the backseat all while having a conversation with a friend on the phone. I don’t know about you, but this seems much more efficient to me.

Despite the positive aspects of the law, many businessmen and women alike are probably not happy because it can significantly reduce the amount of time they are able to interact with clients. In today’s “time is money” way of life, driving time is time lost unless a business deal can be made while on the road. Businessmen and women might be afraid that they will bring in less money if they are not allowed to use their driving time efficiently.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger kept this in mind when passing the bill, which is why hands-free devices are allowed. The purpose of the new law, which goes into effect July 1, 2008, is to eliminate a distraction for drivers. Since, of course, it couldn’t possibly be the conversation that is distracting to drivers, but the fact that they have a phone held to their ear, the law allows drivers to talk on phones with ear pieces. This way they are still allowed to make business transactions and keep our economy running smoothly, all while being stuck in traffic. However, the law will ban text messaging and checking e-mail while on the road, which we can all agree is probably a good idea. Law-makers are hopeful that with both hands on the steering wheel, drivers will be safer while on the road.

The "only" problem with the new law is enforcing it. With the penalty being a $20 fine, drivers are not going to be too worried about getting pulled over for using their cell phones. And let’s be realistic, it is going to be pretty difficult for the police to tell if a person is on a cell phone unless they are stopped at a light or driving slowly. It is also hard to tell the difference between text messaging and picking a new song on an iPod. Though the law is great in theory, it seems a bit unrealistic when it comes to enforcing it. I guess the government is just hoping that the law will scare people away from driving while on the phone.

Sports Reporters Need Not Apply

If making it in TV is hard, making it in sports is nearly impossible. Not only is it hard to find open positions in the sports broadcasting field, but it is also hard to get hired on. At a news station there are several reporters and a handful of anchors, who also report on their “off-anchor” days. This makes getting a news position much easier than a position in sports.

In general, most stations max out at two people in the sports office. That’s it. Just two. One anchors during the week, the other during the weekend. On “off-anchor” days they report, although, it is not as necessary to have a reporter for the sports office, because most games can be recorded on TV. The only reason there are sports reporters is for local sporting events (such as high school football or a home game for the local professional team).

So, imagine trying to apply for a job in the sports office at a news station. Chances are you’re not going to find a station hiring for sports, and if you do, think all of the aspiring sports journalists that will be applying as well. A lot of sports journalists start out in news, and when their time comes, switches over to sports if a position opens up. Others start out in radio, or start by calling play-by-play for a local high school or college team. This allows them to create a tape that they can send out to stations when they are applying for a job.

Another problem with going into sports at a news station is that having sports reports on the news is beginning to die out. Few people watch the evening news for their sports update; unless you are watching to see highlights of a local high school game or see a local sports story, there is no point in watching the sportscasts.

ESPN has wiped out any need for local sportscasts. ESPN’s Sportscenter is an hour-long show dedicated to game highlights which runs about 10 times daily. They run a highlight for almost every professional game and for all different sports. They also show highlights for several college games, and definitely all important ones. They have clips of golf, tennis, and even swimming. If it’s sports, ESPN has it covered. So, why would anyone sit through 50 minutes of news to hear a 7 minute sportscast on a local station, if they can get an hour’s worth of sports and see highlights for everything? They don’t.

Sports lovers go to ESPN for their game updates, and when Sportscenter is not on, they go to the internet. The internet has become a huge detriment to local sportscasts because people do not need to wait to see highlights, they can watch live updates of games online and get up to the minute stats and scores. Fans can get online and find out how their favorite team or player is doing within seconds. No fishing through unimportant information. No waiting through highlights of games they don’t care about.

Since local sportscasts are being run off by ESPN and the internet, what are the aspiring sports journalists doing? Applying to ESPN of course! To apply to ESPN you must submit a resume online, then wait by the phone hoping for a call back. However, as hopeful as you are, the fact of the matter is that your resume is floating around with the other hundreds of resumes that are submitted daily.

So, my advice to all aspiring sports broadcasters: if you are good looking and know every score and statistic for every major league baseball game in every season since 1950, you’re probably in. As for the rest of us—good luck, we’ll need it.

Bad Table Service? Think Again

You just got off from work, after a long hard day, and you're starving. You're exhausted after your eight-hour shift, and the last thing you want to do is go home and cook dinner for yourself. So, you call a friend or your significant other and ask them if they would like to go out to dinner with you. Your friend agrees, so you both decide to eat at your favorite restaurant. You love that they have great food, great service, and it isn't too pricey.

When you get to the restaurant, you are told by the host that your table will be ready in five to 10 minutes; even though you can see open tables, it's not a big deal, your stomach can handle waiting 10 more minutes. After ten minutes go by, you see a group of six people walk through the door and get sat immediately at an open table. Now, you're starting to get frustrated, as it has already been 10 minutes and other people are getting sat before you. A few more minutes go by, and your name is called. Once you’re at your table, it takes the server a little while to get to you, and after you order your food, it doesn't come out for another 40 minutes! By this time you are very upset at your server for taking so long. When you get the bill, you pay the amount and decide she doesn’t deserve a tip because her service was terrible, so you leave.

Most people would be frustrated to have this experience at their favorite restaurant; however, people don’t realize how little their server can control. Not tipping your server is one of the worst things you can do, and most people do not understand why. At the end of every night, servers must “tip out” the bussers, food runners, and the bar. When a table stiff’s their server, at the end of the night, the server will be paying for that table out of her own pocket. This is unfair to the server, especially if there was nothing wrong with her service.

Let me take you behind the scenes of the scenario I described. When you were waiting for a table, the reason it took longer than 10 minutes was because the host was new and was not great at predicting wait times yet. She didn’t want to give you too long of a wait time because you might have left and gone somewhere else, but didn’t want to give too short of one either; so she decided five to 10 minutes was a good happy-medium. There were open tables because it was a Wednesday night, and not all sections of the restaurant are open during the week; the open tables were tables that were not going to be sat at all that night. The group of six people that walked in and were sat immediately had a reservation, so a table was ready for them.

The server took awhile to get to you because she wasn’t ready to take your table, she already had all of her tables full and didn’t know she was taking an extra one as well. She was running around taking care of her five other tables when you were sat, so by the time she got to your table, you had already been there a few minutes. The food came out late because the kitchen was behind. An unexpected party of 15 came in about 20 minutes before you and the kitchen was backed up making their food. It took the kitchen awhile to recover and catch up again, so your food came out later than usual. The server had no control over the kitchen, even though she was asking about your food every couple of minutes.

When you decided not to tip her, you are making her pay for her coworker’s shortcomings. She couldn’t control your wait time, or that the host sat you at the wrong table. She also couldn’t control how long it took to cook your food. Instead of focusing on the aspects of your meal that she couldn’t control, you should focus on the server herself. Was she kind? Did she apologize for the wait? Did she bring refills when you needed them? If you can answer yes to these questions then she deserves to be tipped for doing her job. So, the next time you are at a restaurant, think twice before stiffing your server, because probably deserves the tip more than you think.

Big Dreams Usually Mean Lots of Work

Ever been told to “be careful what you wish for”? Many of us have at some point in our lives, but many of us probably never understood its truth until we got what we wished for. We all know that the good comes with the bad, and that when you reach the bottom there is nowhere else to go but up. But when your dream job keeps you at the bottom for what seems like an eternity, it is hard to not to get discouraged. There are probably several professions that have this “lull” before the big promotion comes, but television broadcasting has to be in the top ten worst.

When people dream of being on television, perhaps as an anchor on a nightly newscast, or as a sideline reporter for ESPN, many have no idea what the job entails, or even how to get into the business. Dreamers see the glitz and glamor of having the life-changing story they wrote heard, or having their face recognized by thousands, or millions, of people. What dreamers don’t see is the rough road to making it big.

That road is filled with unexpected twists and turns that try to throw people off track. Most start off working for a station so small they have never heard of the town it’s in, working long hard hours on stories that don’t interest them, and getting paid close to nothing. New hires almost always get the least-desirable shifts, so if your new station has a morning show, you better bet you’re going to be working for it. This means getting to the station sometime around midnight, or before, for a newscast that airs at six o’clock in the morning. Most news does not take place in the middle of the night, so you will probably be working long hours searching desperately for something you can make “newsworthy”.

The long, hard hours are filled with operating a camera, possibly conducting an interview, writing a story, and editing your own footage—otherwise known as “one-man banding it”. You’ll combine all of this into a package that you’re not extremely proud of for the newscast, then go home and sleep and start the process all over again.

All broadcast stations revolve around the “market”, or the number of people the broadcast will be aired to. The lower the market number, the bigger the market is. For example, New York City is market one, Los Angeles is market two, Sacramento is market 20, and Glendive, Montana is market 210 (which is the smallest). Most people in the industry set their goal at being in a top 20 market, some strive for top ten, which is very hard to get in to. However, most start out between 75 and 100.

After you send out tapes of your work to every station you can think of, you hope that you get into a station you want. But if a tiny station in North Dakota is the only one that calls, you will probably be packing your stuff and moving to a town you never knew existed. Most try not to stay at a small station longer than necessary, so once your contract is up (usually two years) you will be sending out tapes again in hope to jump to a bigger market…which means moving again. This will typically be the pattern, until you finally get to a market that you are happy in. It can take ten years to reach a top 20 market, but once you’re in, the jump to top 10 is a little easier, which should be encouraging!