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Each year there comes a horrible stretch of the calendar for many sports fans. It happens the day after the NBA Finals, usually beginning sometime in June.
With football nowhere in sight, sports fans are left with only Major League Baseball. That's right, only MLB games and highlights. All other sports news is purely conversation, and for fans who aren't interested in the first months of a brutally long MLB schedule, this time of the year can become brutally long.
There is no help from television either, with almost every worthwhile show playing repeats or nothing at all.
But American's are resilient, we keep on trucking. We eventually find ways to pass time without sitting curled up in the fetal position in the corner of our couch holding a football and muttering, "My precious, my precious!"
Some people watch a show they didn't have time for during the fall season and others drink until they pass out in a pool of their own vomit. Unfortunately, there weren't any shows I was interested in last fall, so now that I've woken up, taken a shower and cleaned up the puddle of puke, I'm ready for some football!
Which means, of course, that Sundays, Mondays, sometimes Thursdays (sometimes Fridays, too) and Saturdays are good. The question now is what to do with all the time in between?
Sadly, there are also cases in which the Monday, Thursday or even the Friday night game is not worth watching, so what to do then? Luckily, in the time I've sobered up I've come up with seven great things that will surely pass the time between football games and make all seven days of the week exciting.
Trust me, any or all of these will keep you entertained and keep you from turning to your "Special Videos" folder on your computer for at least 30 minutes. From television shows and movies to video games and bad habits, each of these is well worth the time spent not looking at your fantasy football team and trying to find a way to trade for Adrian Peterson.
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No. 1 -- Watch Two and a Half Men -- Television show -- Monday's at 9 ET on CBS -- I'm not sucking up to the almighty CBS Eye here, alright maybe a little, but that doesn't change the fact that Two and a Half Men is a great show.
With hilarious writing, a great cast and a bevy of hot chicks, Two and a Half Men is a show any football fan would like. If you're lucky, Megan Fox might even reprise her role on the show, but Charlie Harper (Charlie Sheen) will have plenty of eye candy (again, sucking up to the almighty Eye) to look at.
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No. 2 -- Watch Heroes -- Television show -- Monday's at 9 ET on NBC -- I know what you're probably saying to yourself, "This douche just listed two shows that air Monday's at 9pm." And while you're completely right, there are ways to make this work.
Since both of these show air at the same time as Monday night football, your best bet is to put one or both of them on your DVR season pass. If you don't know what I'm talking about, just try to record these shows and find some way to watch them during the week. Tuesday night is an especially weak night on television and would be perfect to get caught up on these shows.
If you haven't already become a fan of Heroes, do yourself a favor and buy the DVDs of the earlier seasons. If you're one of the few that has keep up with the show from the start, you've probably had the day and time of the season three premiere on your calendar for months.
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No. 3 -- Play NCAA 2009 – Video game -- All systems -- I'm sure many gamers are wondering why Madden 2009 isn't listed here, and normally it would be. After playing both games this year, however, it's NCAA 2009 that currently resides in my XBox 360.
With smoother gameplay, the ability to lateral the ball and the true feel of the college atmosphere, NCAA is a better all-around game this year. Now if only the Seminoles were as good in real life as they are in NCAA. ...
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No. 4 -- Play Tiger Woods 2009 -- Video game -- All systems -- EA Sports offers an amazing at-home golfing experience for all systems, but if you have a Wii system you absolutely have to own Tiger Woods 2009. The game is an amazing way to pass time, and if you play with multiple friends you can easily spend an entire day on the links and not even know it.
Golfers and people who swear they hate golf will enjoy the game just the same, and you can make it even better with the inclusion of alcohol. That is, of course, assuming that you're all over the age of 21 and will not be driving anywhere. Because that's just wrong, so grow up.
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No. 5 -- Watch Animal House -- Movie -- Released in 1978, one of the greatest comedies of all time is turning 30 years old. Like Halle Berry or Angelina Jolie, this movie may never show signs of age, and the jokes will always be funny.
From Blutarsky (John Belushi) pretending to be a zit to the way Dean Wormer (John Vernon) says "feces," Animal House could be the funniest movie ever made. If you haven't seen this film and don't immediately purchase it, you must have an IQ of "Zero ... point ... zero."
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No. 6 -- Watch Max Payne -- Movie -- Scheduled to hit the theatres on October 17, 2008, Max Payne actually looks as good as the original video game played. One of the best titles ever released on the XBox, it was only a matter of time until Max Payne hit the big screen.
Check out the trailer if you haven't done so already, and I'm sure you'll look forward to this movie. The only thing that might make me want to see this more would be for Mila Kunis's character to blend with Heather Graham's ‘Roller Girl,' since Dirk Diggler is playing Max Payne. Is it too late for a rewrite?
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No. 7 -- Drink Samuel Adams Octoberfest -- Beer -- It should be noted that I'm not a fan of Samuel Adams beer. In fact, I'd probably turn down a free regular Samuel Adams brew. Most Samuel Adams brews are extremely bitter and hoppy, but Octoberfest is different.
With a distinctly orange-colored foam and smooth finish, Octoberfest is probably the best of Samuel Adams seasonal brews. So you'll need to hit the store shelves now if you want to try it.
