Unintended consequences from COVID (good ones, I think) - with regard to me and sports

[NRaleighLiberal]

Before COVID hit, I was deep into my long time sports listening and following and sometimes watching (if I can find it on the web) - the Celtics, Bruins, Red Sox approaching their season, Duke basketball (I've been a Red Sox fan since 1967, when I was 11 - watching games with my grandfather).

All sorts of shit then hit the fan - in November we decided to move - we found a house, decluttered, donated, threw away stuff, moved in to our new house in the western NC mountain area in mid January. Then COVID hit. Sports all shut down.

And lo and behold - I love all of the time I got back not listening to it, not reading about it. I've done more garden writing, blogging, doing Zooms, doing Instagram live, my garden here is much larger, more complex, more successful. I am hiking 4-6 miles every other day with my wife and our dogs, and shorter hikes in between. We are spending hours in the hammock each afternoon reading, listening to the birds sing. We love our lives here, where it is easy to social distance.

And I've not thought about sports for a second. I don't miss them in the least and suspect I won't return to active listening or watching. There is too much music to listen to, books to read, movies to watch, hikes to take.

COVID will certainly bring about - is bringing about - changes that will end up to be permanent. I wonder how many other sports fans in the country are transitioning like I am.

One thing for sure - something like this is a major reset for priorities, our lifestyles, what we do with our time and who we spend it with. That may be the lemonade to make out of this horrible lemon.

have a nice evening, all. Be kind to one another!

[MLAA]

1. Which veggie or fruit in the garden is doing the best?

For me it’s cantaloupes.

[NRaleighLiberal]

4. it's been in stages.

early on, bumper crop of lettuce - then carrots, now beets, but we are just overloaded (joyously) with green beans and summer squash.

Tomatoes are on the cusp - 128 plants, all different - then bell peppers and eggplants will follow.

everything is in straw bales, grow bags or containers - lots of watering, but pretty easy to manage.

[MLAA]

11. Wonderful! Do you plant a fall/ winter garden as well? And do you can or freeze anything?

I just added 6 pots to my 3 x 5 foot bed and a smaller sweet potato bed. This is my first year gardening (I’m a late bloomer! Haha). Cantaloupe taking over the first bed and sweet potatoes are just flourishing but I’m not sure if their outward appearance will mean a good crop of potatoes or not. Have you ever planted cantaloupe and seen that they look like little furry footballs when they are babies?

[Stallion]

2. Carl Yastrzemski Ruined My Chance at Big Leagues with his Batting Stance

I was a big Red Sox fan in that era although living in Texas-we didn't have a tean and only a couple of games were televised. Now there is oversaturation

[tblue37]

3. I bet your wife is glad to have your company back! nt

[NRaleighLiberal]

5. you know, we were just saying how amazing it is that in our 40th year of marriage,

our favorite thing is spending time with each other. We are really, really, really, really lucky!

[tblue37]

6. Smart, too, because you kept at it instead of ditching the minute things were less than

perfectly smooth, as such moments inevitably must happen sometimes in a marriage.

[NRaleighLiberal]

7. oh indeed. The first 10 years - jobs, moves, children - were the tough years

But it is about compromise, patience - and knowing when to shut up or walk away (I am an extrovert that likes to work things out NOW, my wife and introvert that needs space to think). Now the only time we argue is in the car - she is a somewhat nervous passenger, and I am a driver who doesn't take suggestions well!

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

8. Glad to hear.

I'm not much of a fan, although I pay small attention to a couple of teams in a city where I used to live.

I wonder if this won't in some way profoundly change professional sports. For one thing, I can't imagine how different the games will be for the athletes if there are no fans in the stands. For another, people might decide there's simply a better way to spend their money, with far fewer attending games even when fans are allowed back. Which might also lead to a serious diminution of salaries.

[NRaleighLiberal]

9. yes, exactly what I was thinking.

[LuvNewcastle]

10. Good to hear.

Far too much attention is paid to sports, I think, and there's insane money involved! Glad you've found a more productive use of your time. I plan to do the same soon.