Do I Still Care?

I wanted to share with you some pics from the weekend, but we’re having technical difficulties getting those photos. So I will save that for tomorrow. Instead, it’s time to answer a bit of viewer mail.

Fair

From Jane – along with several other people who stop me on the street and ask me the same question: Andrew, do you miss sports?

Fair question. I have been asked since the day I got this assignment if I miss covering sports. The short answer is no. I was a sportscaster for more than 15 years ( hard to believe ) and I have seen just about everything and I have observed a few things in my time: Spring always means baseball, fall always means football and 18 year olds give you pretty much the same answers they gave you 15 years ago.

Little changes in sports aside from the outcome of the game and how the outcome is reached. You find that sports comes in one neat little pakage. The game starts at a certain time, ends at a certain time and it’s eay to dicpher the heroes from the villans. Covering news is hardly so simple.

A news story can last a few seconds or a few years and it’s hard to tell who’s right and who’s wrong. Plus, what is at stake can often involve life and death. Rarely does sports get to that level ( sorry Steeler fans, but missing the playoffs does not constitute a reason for killing one’s self ).

The truth is news is more compelling, more thought-provoking and more interesting that sports. The games I covered for 15 years were just that – games. Nothing more and nothing less. In this role, I am learning that first hand on a daily basis.

Maybe it’s just my schedule that has changed my feelings about the teams we watch. Let me give you an example. This past calendar year, I went to the following games as a fan: 2 Steeler games, 2 Pirates games and no Penguins Games. This after years of attending at least half the games for all these teams. When you get up as early as I do, you’re exposure to games can often be limited to getting up at 2am and catching the highlights on ESPN News.

There is one caveat to my feelings about the games I followed for so long. I miss high school sports – and going to football games on Friday night and watching Panthers games on Saturday afternoons. Maybe it’s because I have grown so close to both these programs over the years – or maybe it’s the fact it’s not the pros.

Jane and friends – thanks for asking — and keep those questions coming.