Let's talk about football.

With the close of the NFL season comes a good party, tons of calories, and another week closer to baseball season.

I will be honest in saying that I paid much more attention to football this year than last. Although the Jets struggled to barely make it through their regular season games, I found some fun in post-season football without them. With New York out of the running, I paired up with some of my Seattle mates to watch the Seahawks. The games were neck and neck. Full on nail biters. Right until the heartbreaking end.

From there, I had to turn south. To San Francisco. The 49ers fought their way through some tough teams. First, they tore through Green Bay. For me, it was like watching my first live football game all over again (see post in years past regarding my first game, many, many moons ago). Only this time, they took the win. I still think there was a lot of luck involved.

Next, they took on the Atlanta Falcons. Watching the first quarter of this game was pretty abysmal. From the way they were playing, there was no way they were going to make it past these birds. Somehow, they managed to recover, and the game remained tight until the last couple of minutes. I wasn't even sure they had the win at the 2:00 warning.

But they did.

And then I got to thinking. How much of this is rigged? How badly did the NFL want to see the Harbaugh brothers battle it out against each other? What a great marketing tool! What a great story for the books! I'm sure their parents are so proud! Which one will root for which team?

I'll be honest, I think the Ravens fought the good fight to earn their place in Super Bowl XLVII. But I really thought the game was going to be bird on bird. A fight for the south and the east. As much as the 49ers played hard, they made critical mistakes that were magically erased by many strokes of good luck in the divisional and conference games.

That being said, I'm turning my back on my third-string team and rooting for the Baltimore Ravens next Sunday. I look good in purple anyway.

So, let's play ball...and figure out the menu....may the best team win.

The Rebirth...

I saw the Dodgers make a great post on their Twitter feed today.

30 days until we head to Camelback Ranch. 30 days until that threaded ball gets tossed around in the glistening Arizona sun. 30 days until baseball.

If you're new to me, you should know that I believe baseball to be the best six months out of the year. It's my church, my serenity, my favorite pastime. There's numbers, statistics, and explosions. There's always some sort of calm before the storm. A pitching game can turn into a four run lead in a matter of seconds. There's the thrill of that pennant chase. And as much as the guys on TV like to tell us who is looking to make into October, there's just no telling what could happen over summer.

With every burst of new talent, there are old horses waiting to go out to pasture. There are injuries. Sometimes there are scandals. The Dodgers have seen it all, and I am sure they are not through.

Regardless of the drama, we welcome the 2013 season with open arms, big hearts, and wide eyes. Because this year is finally shaping up for our boys in blue.

I know I'm hoping to see Matt Kemp, Chad Billingsley, and Ted Lilly all coming off of injuries feeling stronger than ever. If Kemp can drag Ethier up the rungs with him, I think the rest of the batting lineup will follow suit. Adrian Gonzalez had an outstanding 2012, and Hanley Ramirez is hoped to raise the bar as a wild card in this lineup. Newby, Carl Crawford aka "The Perfect Storm," completely rounds out this hurricane of a team.

Our pitching game is what finally looks glowing. The Dodgers have not had a pitching lineup like this in quite some time. Josh Beckett and Matt Greinke are expected to be quite the fire starters, but Clayton Kershaw and new Korean pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu will presumably have an exceptional season as well.

This team didn't come without a hefty price tag, but under new ownership and at the brink of a fresh year, there are finally worlds of possibilities for these guys.

Hey, MLB, watch us go. Go Blue!

Let the countdown begin....

Back on the field.

I've had nothing to say for a while.

Mainly because I can't write when I don't feel. Quite frankly, sports have not made me feel anything for a while. Perhaps I can blame it on the lackluster ability of team owners and managers to assemble any sort of quartet worth paying attention to. Maybe I could even blame it on outside sources that have distracted me so from my passions. Sources that distract me from my loves and my creativity.

Whatever.

I watched a ton of football today (and drank a lot of alcohol). I went to a sports bar full of douchey guys and slutty girls pretending to like football. It was awesome. There's an energy and an outcry of love towards a bunch of overweight guys in tight pants that no one in the room has ever met before. There's this connection toward them that ignites some feeling so deep that their failure translates into one's own. Yeah, totally irrational.

But we still do it.

And I'm glad that I did. Because it's been a while since I surrounded myself amongst those people that relate themselves to these massive creatures of the midwest. It's been a while since I have been reminded of how much we need to channel the players on the field and give so many of us to live for. Maybe because we work a mediocre job or have a shitty marriage. Maybe because we never exhausted our dreams into any thread of reality. Maybe because Sundays outside of church give us something else to live for.

Football is an American sport. And we live that American dream through those monsters on the field. No matter how or why.

I love sports, and I'm sorry I've neglected sharing how much I love sports with you guys for so long. Whether I'm making jokes on a player or spewing my opinion on a game, I feel the need to spread my good word. Even if my language is bad.

I love sports. I love you. And I'm back.

Call this my belated new years resolution. Hi, 2013. Hike.