Despite living in central Texas, I’m still planning to remain a Packer fan. I’ll probably eventually get into the Longhorns, but I really don’t care for college sports. And I’m not about to pick up the Cowboys or Texans as they both play 3 hours away (the same time it would take me to get to Green Bay, via plane) and I have no connection to them. I grew up watching the Packers and if anything, remain a fan out of habit. I don’t know how NOT to be a fan. However, even though it’s only week 2 of the first full season away from the Wisconsin area, I’m finding it difficult to keep up.
There are a lot of reasons but these are the top three:
1. Hype is gone.
Co-workers, neighbors, friends, people at the bar, etc will all talk about the local team… but when you’re 1,200 miles away you don’t get that. You also don’t get the barrage of media coverage. You have to seek the hype.
2. Sports bars (part 1)
We can’t get DirectTV, no line of sight with the satellite. So if the Packers aren’t on the national game, we have to go to the bar (as will happen tomorrow for week 2 vs. the Bills). That means you have to sit through all the commercials, half-time, coaches challenges, injuries, etc. TiVo is a big part of football watching for me, and it’s painful without it. You also have to pay to see the game, going out usually means lunch, beer, tip, etc and far less control over the choices. I like greasy bar food, but I don’t want it to be the only choice.
3. Sports bars (part 2)
There is a local Packer bar… I should watch games there, but I don’t like being stuck with one option. That’s my problem. But that means if I go anywhere else, the game I want probably won’t get sound, and I’ll have to fight fans of other teams for seats. It’s frustrating. I really should go to the local Packer bar.
I’m hoping week 3 will be better. Monday night, against the division/border rival – doesn’t get more exciting. And in the end, it’s probably not a huge deal, it’s just an adjustment I never really planned on.