JTF.ORG Forum
General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: Ari on September 12, 2007, 12:14:43 AM
-
While I know there are so many more important things to worry about in the world, believe it or not, I was actually a little depressed when my favorite football team lost over the weekend in the first game of the season. Things were even worse when I was a kid, before I gained a more worldly perspective over what is important in life. Now it really doesn't effect me all that much, but I would like to reach the point where I don't care about it at all quite frankly. Any suggestions?
-
Which team?
-
Force yourself to not watch it for a few weeks.
Do something else. DON'T think, "I wish I was watching football right now."
Listen to Beethoven instead.
-
While I know there are so many more important things to worry about in the world, believe it or not, I was actually a little depressed when my favorite football team lost over the weekend in the first game of the season. Things were even worse when I was a kid, before I gained a more worldly perspective over what is important in life. Now it really doesn't effect me all that much, but I would like to reach the point where I don't care about it at all quite frankly. Any suggestions?
Read as many books, articles and listin to Shiurim about Judaism and Emuna, as possible. The last 2 days I was kinda thinking negativly because of all the pressure from school, Today the order I placed finally came in, I read some of the book= "the garden of Emuna"- by Rav Shalom Arush, and I feel great right now (even though I have been in school from 9 a.m. till 8 30 p.m. and then had to do some things). I really recommend- as do some really big Rabbis- to get these 2 books http://lazerbrody.typepad.com/emuna_beams/2007/02/the_power_pair.html (also comes with a free gift+ its a reducted price when you get both at the same time).
-
Your question reminds me of a similar experience in my own life. I was just a small child in 1971, but I followed the Los Angeles Dodger baseball season extremely closely, listening to Vince Scully and Jerry Dogget for every inning of every game. The Dodgers had been way behind first place in their Western Division of the National League, but made a run for it toward the end of the season, and actually lost to the Giants by one game on the very last day of the season. When that happened, I felt such a loss, and even cried. My Holocaust-surviving father mocked me. But hey, I was only ten years old! (now everybody knows how old I am. oh well)
Fortunately, the Pittsburgh Pirates not only beat the hated Giants in the playoffs, but beat the Baltimore Orioles in the World Series as well. I was so happy! The hero of the world series was known to be perhaps the kindest player to ever wear a professional baseball uniform, a man by the name of Roberto Clemente. I remember having to help my father in his liquor store on that day that the Pirates won it all; I was so shy back then, but instinctively let out a big clap when it happened. I think I shocked my father; perhaps he did not realize until then that behind all of my quietness, churned some very passionate emotions.
A little over a year later, Roberto Clemente rode in a private plane to help his fellow Nicaraguans in Central America, who had just days earlier experienced a devastating earthquake. Sadly, on December 31, 1972, he was killed in a plane crash.
Normally, the Baseball Hall of Fame will not consider candidates who have not been retired for at least five years, but in Clemente's one case, they made an exception. He was given this ultimate baseball honor by a unanimous vote.
I eventually grew out of baseball, but to this day, I follow Barry Bonds' home run record every single night, and know that the Boston Red Sox are the best baseball team this year. I happen to like the New York Yankees, but hey, I like the Boston Red Sox team, too.
So I only grew out of my love for baseball partially, involving myself in my school studies, and then my father got me interested in politics. Yet I really see very little wrong with being a sports fan, um, as long as you like baseball a whole lot more than soccer or boxing. I suppose being a sports fan can be a negative thing if it overtakes all of your life, sacrificing the quality of your work, family, and social life, but hey, baseball is so much an integral part of the best that America has to offer.
Take me out to a ballgame, take me out to the crowds...
-
Sit yourself down and answer the following questions.
In how many ways will my life be better when the sports team that I root for wins?
In how many ways will my life be worse when the sports team that I root for loses?
If the answer to both questions is 0, forget about it and instead use the additional free time you will have by not watching sporting events to better your life by focusing on things that you have control over.
-
While I know there are so many more important things to worry about in the world, believe it or not, I was actually a little depressed when my favorite football team lost over the weekend in the first game of the season. Things were even worse when I was a kid, before I gained a more worldly perspective over what is important in life. Now it really doesn't effect me all that much, but I would like to reach the point where I don't care about it at all quite frankly. Any suggestions?
Those football players are violent criminals that turned into millionaires because they can throw a ball. Stop supporting criminals - Stop watching football... and basketball for that matter.
-
]
Those football players are violent criminals that turned into millionaires because they can throw a ball. Stop supporting criminals - Stop watching football... and basketball for that matter.
You'll have to lay off the fried chicken and grits too. Because before you know it, one of those black athletes will move in next door with one of his white womuns and will wanna invite himself over for dinner all the time.
-
Have hope that they'll win next time? :-\ ;D
-
kananga is funny, whoever that is :laugh:
-
Good advice everyone. Actually it was my two teams that lost, the Jets and the Bills. If anyone can't understand how I'm a fan of both teams in the same division, it's a long story.
-
If they are your favorite team, just stand behind them 100%.....I have been a lifelong fan of the Seattle Seahawks...we were the worst team in football for so many years, and now we are winners and It's great.....it's just like anything else in life...don't stop beleiving and sooner or later your time will come.
:)
-
Personally, I am a fair-weathered fan. I only like my local teams, the Dodgers and the Lakers, when they are winning teams. For similar reasons, that is why I like Barry Bonds so much: I like to watch excellence.
-
Personally, I am a fair-weathered fan. I only like my local teams, the Dodgers and the Lakers, when they are winning teams. For similar reasons, that is why I like Barry Bonds so much: I like to watch excellence.
Does Barry Bonds really epitomize excellence? He tested positive for steroid use. We can't overlook that being a big factor in him achieving the homerun record. On the one hand, it's nice to see one of the most coveted records being broken. On the other hand, it's a bitter pill to swallow when we recognize that the steroids were a big factor to help him achieve this. I don't buy that nonsense of him never "knowingly" using steroids and that he just thought the cream that he was using was for cosmetic purposes. Baseball players usually become less strong when they get older and hit fewer homeruns. Bonds seemed to hit more homeruns and significantly bulked up in size in his later years. It's not just him getting fatter, it's clear to see how much more bloated he looks now compared to when he was younger.
-
While I know there are so many more important things to worry about in the world, believe it or not, I was actually a little depressed when my favorite football team lost over the weekend in the first game of the season. Things were even worse when I was a kid, before I gained a more worldly perspective over what is important in life. Now it really doesn't effect me all that much, but I would like to reach the point where I don't care about it at all quite frankly. Any suggestions?
I personally think it's okay to follow sports and to be a devoted fan to a team. I just think we need to attain the proper balance and perspective when it comes to following sports. It's completely normal and natural to feel jubilated when your team wins and to feel down and sad when your team loses, especially if it's a big playoff or championship game when it's a really close game. But it's not good to go overboard to the point where your entire life revolves around sports where you end up devoting all your time to watch every single game and where you will become completely depressed and devastated when your team loses. I think the best way of dealing with the disappointment when your team loses is to recognize and accept the fact that your team will lose at times, even those close important games, and to accept that it's okay and normal to feel a little down at these times. Also, recognize that while this might be disappointing, this is just a game after all where the outcome of the game does not affect your quality of life either way. However, the way you react to the outcome of the game greatly affects your quality of life, and that's the factor that's a lot more important to focus on and to be sure you're maintaining the proper perspective.
-
Daniel, I agree with you. Sports seems like a quite harmless diversion; we as human beings need such distractions in our lives, especially when we are hard working family people with a lot of stress in our lives.
This interest in sports only becomes something negative when it becomes an obsession. When one tells his spouse to wait until the game is over before she tells him about what happened to their children at school that day, that is probably a sign that a person's interest in sports has gone too far. Or when sports team rivalries come to physical blows or lost friendships, that is also a bad sign. Following one's favorite sports team should be a fun thing to do, and nothing more than that.
Concerning Barry Bonds, though, I have to disagree. Yes, of course he used steroids, but so do a lot of professional ballplayers. And let me tell you, they could give me all the steroids in the world and even design my baseball bat to be some kind of mini-rocket, and still, I would be a terrible baseball hitter. The steroids only work for Barry Bonds because he is already such an incredible talent.
I honestly do not understand why people feel such animosity toward him. I cannot say it is racist, because he broke the all time home run record of another Black player, Henry Aaron. Barry Bonds has a reputation for being a loner and maybe not a super nice guy, but who cares? I am there to watch excellence in baseball, not to speak to my local Rabbi. If I ever have children and find them admiring various sports figures or other people involved in entertainment, I will make sure to let them know that these people are no better than anybody else, but just happen to have a particular talent in their particular field. Barry Bonds may be bad at every other aspect of his life, but when it comes to that one very narrow thing, which is hitting a baseball, there has been no player as good as him since the days of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig.
-
Daniel, I agree with you. Sports seems like a quite harmless diversion; we as human beings need such distractions in our lives, especially when we are hard working family people with a lot of stress in our lives.
This interest in sports only becomes something negative when it becomes an obsession. When one tells his spouse to wait until the game is over before she tells him about what happened to their children at school that day, that is probably a sign that a person's interest in sports has gone too far. Or when sports team rivalries come to physical blows or lost friendships, that is also a bad sign. Following one's favorite sports team should be a fun thing to do, and nothing more than that.
Concerning Barry Bonds, though, I have to disagree. Yes, of course he used steroids, but so do a lot of professional ballplayers. And let me tell you, they could give me all the steroids in the world and even design my baseball bat to be some kind of mini-rocket, and still, I would be a terrible baseball hitter. The steroids only work for Barry Bonds because he is already such an incredible talent.
I honestly do not understand why people feel such animosity toward him. I cannot say it is racist, because he broke the all time home run record of another Black player, Henry Aaron. Barry Bonds has a reputation for being a loner and maybe not a super nice guy, but who cares? I am there to watch excellence in baseball, not to speak to my local Rabbi. If I ever have children and find them admiring various sports figures or other people involved in entertainment, I will make sure to let them know that these people are no better than anybody else, but just happen to have a particular talent in their particular field. Barry Bonds may be bad at every other aspect of his life, but when it comes to that one very narrow thing, which is hitting a baseball, there has been no player as good as him since the days of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig.
The controversy is not really about whether Bonds is a great baseball hitter or not (he is) but about whether or not he would have broken the record if he hadn't taken steroids. Whose to day that Ruth and Aaron wouldn't have hit over 800 home runs had they used the same drugs.
-
But it is not Barry Bonds' fault that Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig did not have access to some of the things that he does. I am sure that both Ruth and Gehrig took advantage of whatever was available to them at the time.
Once again, I have to attribute the anti-Barry Bonds crowd of thinking like liberals. A true conservative loves excellence, strives for excellence, and admires excellence. Liberals, in contrast, love to level the playing field, of saying that good is not so good, bad is not so bad, that we are all basically the same, and so on.
Since Barry Bonds represents excellence, the liberal mind cannot tolerate that, so it seeks to find some way to discount his accomplishments as a baseball player.
-
Well, they both lost again. Doesn't feel as bad as last week. I must acknowledge they both suck.
-
Ari, I love hockey, I wouldn't make it my life's obsession but it is maybe the only sport for me left to enjoy without having maniacs dominating the game. And if the team I like win great if they lose, ah no biggie. Don't let it get to you got more important things for that. If you like it just concider a past time nothing more nothing less.
-
But it is not Barry Bonds' fault that Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig did not have access to some of the things that he does. I am sure that both Ruth and Gehrig took advantage of whatever was available to them at the time.
Once again, I have to attribute the anti-Barry Bonds crowd of thinking like liberals. A true conservative loves excellence, strives for excellence, and admires excellence. Liberals, in contrast, love to level the playing field, of saying that good is not so good, bad is not so bad, that we are all basically the same, and so on.
Since Barry Bonds represents excellence, the liberal mind cannot tolerate that, so it seeks to find some way to discount his accomplishments as a baseball player.
But it is not about him having access to things that they did not have. It is about him having access and using things that were NOT legal. If Hank Aaron had broken Babe Ruth's home run record with a corked bat, would that mean that he was still just as great a home run hitter as Ruth? Should his new record have been recognized or discarded? This is the cloud hanging over Bond's head.
-
Listen, i have favorite teams too..The NY Giants, the NY Mets. NOw can you imagine, me as a big fan of the Mets losing the way the lost last year in the playoffs?
But this is what i tell myself, It's not the end of the world, there is alway next year.
NOw, losing the first game of a season? think of it as a blessing for them to learn from their mistakes and win the rest of the games..and if they lose the rest of their games, then next year, they'll know who they need to draft to become a winning team the following year...
it's just a game.
-
There is a cloud hanging over Barry Bonds' head only in the mind of the liberal, who prefers mediocrity and hates excellence. For conservatives, we simply marvel at Barry Bonds' ability and determination.
-
Listen, i have favorite teams too..The NY Giants, the NY Mets. NOw can you imagine, me as a big fan of the Mets losing the way the lost last year in the playoffs?
But this is what i tell myself, It's not the end of the world, there is alway next year.
NOw, losing the first game of a season? think of it as a blessing for them to learn from their mistakes and win the rest of the games..and if they lose the rest of their games, then next year, they'll know who they need to draft to become a winning team the following year...
it's just a game.
Is that baseball or American football? :D
-
NY Mets are baseball and NY Giants are football. I understand the positive approach to wait til next year, and I do realize there are far more important things in life certainly. Then again, it would be nice to see one of the teams I root for at least win once in my lifetime, lol.
-
Watch a game of Australian Rules football and you'll be turned off all sports, that sport is the most retarted waste of time ever invented.
-
While I know there are so many more important things to worry about in the world, believe it or not, I was actually a little depressed when my favorite football team lost over the weekend in the first game of the season. Things were even worse when I was a kid, before I gained a more worldly perspective over what is important in life. Now it really doesn't effect me all that much, but I would like to reach the point where I don't care about it at all quite frankly. Any suggestions?
Turn the television off and pick up a good book and increase your IQ and not lower it via watching highly over paid shvartzas or tatood pagan whites who can't read and barely speak English chase after a ball. Sorry, I like playing sports but cannot watch them. They are a very distractive tool to keep people dumbed down and preoccupied from the real importance of life and things going on around them...imo
-
NY Mets are baseball and NY Giants are football. I understand the positive approach to wait til next year, and I do realize there are far more important things in life certainly. Then again, it would be nice to see one of the teams I root for at least win once in my lifetime, lol.
I just solve that problem by rooting for the winning team, its the same sport in the end. ;D
Marzutra is right, sometimes its a distraction.
-
if you thank thats bad,think how i felt when my team got relegated from the Premier League.
-
What team was that, Watford, Sheffield United or Charlton?
-
lol for soccer hmm maybe?
http://www.showdownsports.com/images/replicas/italy-poster-white.jpg
Del Mondo!
-
Sarah, if you always root for the winning team it's not as fun. If you team ever does finally win it'll feel great that you stuck by them. In America, they call someone who always roots for the winning team a "fair weather fan" or "bandwagon jumper." I understand your sentiment though, and quite a few people do follow this philosophy.
-
I guess I am one of those fear-weathered fans who is no fun at all, because I also root for the better team. I love to see excellence. that is why I like the New York Yankees and Dallas Cowboys, and the Dodgers/Lakers too, but only when they are doing really well.
-
I love to see excellence.
Then why watch sports?
-
So that I can watch excellence.
-
Good point Scriabin. I agree 100% as per my earlier post. If one wishes to lower ones own IQ watch your soap operas or sit down guzzel a few beer eat cheezys and watch sports... Now playing sports is an entirely different story.... at least one gets some personal benefit :)
-
So that I can watch excellence.
Whatever you say. ;D
-
So that I can watch excellence.
Excellence, mmm hmm!
y'knowumsayin'!
-
So that I can watch excellence.
Excellence, mmm hmm!
y'knowumsayin'!
LOL Now that is funny :D
-
So that I can watch excellence.
Here's some REAL excellence:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIsXmOHo7EA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vgAYTC9bRY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfV8fZK3YGQ
-
Personally, I would rather watch sports than play sports. Less sweat that way. I can just sit back, and watch great athletic feats.
There are many forms of excellence. Barry Bonds hitting a home run is excellence. Roger Staubach's Cowboys defeating Fran Tarkenton's Vikings, is excellence. Kirk Gibson of the 1988 Los Angeles Dodgers giving me the single most exciting sports moment of my life, is excellence.
Then there is musical excellence. Yes, it is quite moving to see the late great Jewish musical conductor/composer, Leonard Bernstein, conduct Beethoven's ninth symphony. Personally, though, my taste in that sort of music is from an earlier period, especially the Baroque period (Bach, Handel, Purcell, Vivaldi, Telemann, Pachelbel and so on) and Mozart. Although Felix Mendelssohn did come from a later era, in the mid 1800's, I am partial to him because he was Jewish, and besides, he did write some great music.
As for Pablo Picasso...sorry, but I do not even respect him enough to call him great despite all the critical acclaim to his work. He is probably the one most responsible for bringing modern art to the world. Modern art is a joke. Any child can draw modern art. True art is both representational yet elevating, as was the art of Michaelangelo and DaVinci. The art of Monet or Van Gogh may emphasize subjectivity, but the representation is still clearly there. That is art, not Picasso drawing some simple childish figure. By the way, I have seen his very early art, when he was still normal, and it was fantastic. Too bad he apparently got bored with it.
-
Barry Bonds hitting a home run is excellence.
As for Pablo Picasso...sorry, but I do not even respect him enough to call him great despite all the critical acclaim to his work. He is probably the one most responsible for bringing modern art to the world. Modern art is a joke. Any child can draw modern art. True art is both representational yet elevating, as was the art of Michaelangelo and DaVinci. The art of Monet or Van Gogh may emphasize subjectivity, but the representation is still clearly there. That is art, not Picasso drawing some simple childish figure. By the way, I have seen his very early art, when he was still normal, and it was fantastic. Too bad he apparently got bored with it.
So, the steroid-using Bonds is an example of excellence and Picasso is a joke.
What a world. ???
-
So that I can watch excellence.
Excellence, mmm hmm!
y'knowumsayin'!
Ah yes, excellence in sports today.
Lawyers for a former Madison Square Garden executive suing New York Knicks coach and president Isiah Thomas for sexual harassment rested her case after four days of testimony portraying him as a foul-mouthed lout who loathed and then loved her.
O.J. Simpson was charged Tuesday with seven felonies, including kidnapping, in the alleged armed robbery of sports memorabilia collectors in a casino-hotel room.
Suspended defensive tackle Tank Johnson signed a two-year contract Tuesday with the Dallas Cowboys. Johnson, who played the last three seasons for the Chicago Bears, can't play for the Cowboys and won't be paid until he completes his eight-game NFL suspension for violating probation on a gun charge.
Federal authorities have taken over the investigation into dog fighting on property owned by Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting.
Police seized $81,020 in cash belonging to Tennessee Titans cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones, money they said sparked a melee and a triple shooting at a strip club over the weekend, court documents show.
Nate Newton was caught with 213 pounds of marijuana in 2001, then two weeks later was caught with another 175 pounds. He served two years in jail and has recently come clean about his smuggling days, stating ""It was all the fun the law would allow...and then some."
Rae Carruth - Guilty of the most heinous crime in the history of the NFL (remember, OJ was acquitted), Carruth orchestrated the execution-style murder of his pregnant girlfriend because she refused to have an abortion.
Former Dallas Cowboys receiver Michael Irvin surrendered to police Saturday night, one day after Denton County authorities issued an arrest warrant on a felony cocaine possession charge.
A judge Monday approved a deal allowing Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis to avoid murder charges and jail time by pleading guilty to a misdemeanor and testifying against two co-defendants.
Jayson Williams played nine seasons (1990-99) in the National Basketball Association, but is now better known as the guy from the New Jersey Nets who shot his limo driver. On 14 February 2002 he allegedly shot and killed Costas "Gus" Christofi at a late-night party at Williams's home in Milford, New Jersey.
In 2001 Reuben Patterson while playing for the Seattle Supersonics, entered a modified plea to an attempted rape charge involving his children's
24 year old nanny whom he forced to perform a sex act on him.
He was sentenced to a year in jail with all but 15 days suspended. Patterson served the time in his Cleveland home and was suspended for the first five games of the following season by the NBA.
Well, you get the point.
-
So that I can watch excellence.
Excellence, mmm hmm!
y'knowumsayin'!
Ah yes, excellence in sports today.
Lawyers for a former Madison Square Garden executive suing New York Knicks coach and president Isiah Thomas for sexual harassment rested her case after four days of testimony portraying him as a foul-mouthed lout who loathed and then loved her.
O.J. Simpson was charged Tuesday with seven felonies, including kidnapping, in the alleged armed robbery of sports memorabilia collectors in a casino-hotel room.
Suspended defensive tackle Tank Johnson signed a two-year contract Tuesday with the Dallas Cowboys. Johnson, who played the last three seasons for the Chicago Bears, can't play for the Cowboys and won't be paid until he completes his eight-game NFL suspension for violating probation on a gun charge.
Federal authorities have taken over the investigation into dog fighting on property owned by Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting.
Police seized $81,020 in cash belonging to Tennessee Titans cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones, money they said sparked a melee and a triple shooting at a strip club over the weekend, court documents show.
Nate Newton was caught with 213 pounds of marijuana in 2001, then two weeks later was caught with another 175 pounds. He served two years in jail and has recently come clean about his smuggling days, stating ""It was all the fun the law would allow...and then some."
Rae Carruth - Guilty of the most heinous crime in the history of the NFL (remember, OJ was acquitted), Carruth orchestrated the execution-style murder of his pregnant girlfriend because she refused to have an abortion.
Former Dallas Cowboys receiver Michael Irvin surrendered to police Saturday night, one day after Denton County authorities issued an arrest warrant on a felony cocaine possession charge.
A judge Monday approved a deal allowing Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis to avoid murder charges and jail time by pleading guilty to a misdemeanor and testifying against two co-defendants.
Jayson Williams played nine seasons (1990-99) in the National Basketball Association, but is now better known as the guy from the New Jersey Nets who shot his limo driver. On 14 February 2002 he allegedly shot and killed Costas "Gus" Christofi at a late-night party at Williams's home in Milford, New Jersey.
In 2001 Reuben Patterson while playing for the Seattle Supersonics, entered a modified plea to an attempted rape charge involving his children's
24 year old nanny whom he forced to perform a sex act on him.
He was sentenced to a year in jail with all but 15 days suspended. Patterson served the time in his Cleveland home and was suspended for the first five games of the following season by the NBA.
Well, you get the point.
Mmm hmm, excellence.
Apparenlty, there's excellence in crime as well.
-
I am not aware of Barry Bonds committing any crime. Barry Bonds is not OJ Simpson. Believe it or not, not all Blacks are the same person.
And yes, as a matter of fact, Barry Bonds IS a better example of excellence than Pablo Picasso. Bonds hits home runs the way they are supposed to be hit. He does not change the rules by hitting the ball like a little girl would.
Pablo Picasso, on the other hand, took his enormous artistic talents, turned it over on its head, and started to paint like a little child. He made a mockery of truly great art.
-
And yes, as a matter of fact, Barry Bonds IS a better example of excellence than Pablo Picasso. Bonds hits home runs the way they are supposed to be hit. He does not change the rules by hitting the ball like a little girl would.
A brilliant analysis.
-
And yes, as a matter of fact, Barry Bonds IS a better example of excellence than Pablo Picasso. Bonds hits home runs the way they are supposed to be hit. He does not change the rules by hitting the ball like a little girl would.
A brilliant analysis.
Now why go start this again? As I've previously stated, HE DID change the rules by using ILLEGAL substances to enhance his physical capabilities.
-
Then weight lifting is also changing the rules, since it also enhances ones muscles.
To Scrabian, thank you for your praise. I hope it was sincere and not sarcastic!
-
Then weight lifting is also changing the rules, since it also enhances ones muscles.
To Scrabian, thank you for your praise. I hope it was sincere and not sarcastic!
But weightlifting, as well as running, taking batting practice, shagging fly balls, sitting in a whirlpool, icing sore muscles, doing crunches, using an elliptical trainer, etc. aren't ILLEGAL.
-
Then weight lifting is also changing the rules, since it also enhances ones muscles.
Weightlifting is HARD WORK.
Steroid use is cheating.