Besides God, Crystal and my kids, the two things I LOVE more than anything else are music (duh) and sports...Since I was a little boy I can remember sitting with my dad and my grandpa either in the stands or in front of a TV watching the NC State Wolfpack, Atlanta Braves, IceCaps (remember them Raleigh folks?), Charlotte Hornets, and of course the Washington Redskins.
If you really think about it, music and sports are a perfect match. Let me explain...
Name me ANYTHING YOU CAN THINK OF that you can have an absolute blast doing, even if you're no good at it...
I vividly remember sitting for hours on end in my bedroom beating on a busted guitar, listening to Lynyrd Skynyrd and failing miserably to come even close to sounding like Steve Gaines, Allen Collins, Ed King and Gary Rossington. I remember these times so well because of the release it gave me. Because of the intense emotions it brought me and the escape from everything else in life. (Life is SO difficult as a 10 year old ya know!) Kinda like going 0 for 15 from beyond the three point line at the old black top basketball court behind the local elementary school before hitting the 16th shot and imagining yourself under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden. (or in my case Reynolds Coliseum)
Name ANYTHING YOU CAN THINK OF that you can remember tons of info about/for seemingly effortlessly...
I had the hardest time in school remembering the answers to questions I had studied over and over again. I have a hard time today remembering birthdays, our show dates or worst of all, what Crystal said she wanted for her birthday. That said, I can tell you off the top of my head how many touchdowns Phillip Rivers threw in his last year at NC State (34). Or the lifetime batting average for my favorite baseball player, David Justice (.279).
And best of all....EVERY SINGLE WORD to Ice Ice Baby by Vanilla Ice or Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen. (You can too..don't act like I'm lying...)
Here is my personal favorite - Name ANYWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD where you can act like a COMPLETE AND TOTAL FOOL and nobody looks at you funny...
If you've ever been to an ACC Tournament basketball weekend you know exactly what I'm talking about. In 1997 NC State made it ALL THE WAY to the championship game. I was in middle school. I skipped with my dad to drive to Greensboro to watch them play the "play in game". They weren't expected to even get past that round. We won. And Won again, and again...I was beyond ecstatic..Jumping, screaming, crying, my voice went out and my face was the color of the Wolfpack jerseys. And Guess what? I wasn't the only one! I was among great company of kids AND adults acting the same way. I'm not so sure you'd still have friends or a job if you showed that same emotion after closing a big sale or rebuilding the brake system on Mrs. Johnson's Buick...Just sayin'. Same goes for my first concert. Jimmy Buffet...If you've ever been, I don't need to say anymore...Singing, dancing, laughing, hollering...Losing yourself for a few short hours in a way that is only acceptable during sporting events or concerts! It's awesome!
In conclusion, I hope this sheds a light on why I love the things I love...MUSIC and SPORTS are the only things in this crazy world we live in where politics, religious beliefs and personal differences DON'T MATTER! For a brief period in time you can sit back, forget about all of these things and completely be free! So go on, pop in your favorite album, pick up that dusty guitar that you've had sitting in the corner for 15 years and strum away. It doesn't need to be tuned...you can't play it anyway! Turn on the NBA Finals or the NHL Stanley Cup Finals and remove yourself from life for a little bit! You wont get this opportunity ANYWHERE else, with ANYTHING ELSE, ANYTIME SOON!
-Josh
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