Winter is Coming

If you watched Game of Thrones you understand the ominous nature of those words.

Dont'a Hightower opted out of the 2020 season with THE NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS, out of health concerns regarding the coronavirus.  He has a weeks old son. I don't blame him. I believe three or four other PATS players have opted out as well.

If every single NFL player, if every single professional athlete "opted out of the 2020 season" I would support them. These are frightening times and there is no end in sight. We are not winning this war.

I don't think there will be an NFL season this year. If there is one it will be spectacularly bizarre. If there is one, I will watch it. If there isn't, I am in trouble.

Football is my defense against winter. Without football I am left naked and afraid.

In addition, as sports begin to crumble, my mental health becomes more fragile. I watch the NFL network and various sports talk shows as an escape. Very often they make me smile, they make me laugh. It is the nature of athletes and sports pundits. Carol is addicted to MSNBC and watches it 27 hours/day. I hate it because it depresses me. Nothing but trump crimes and death counts and watching my life being compromised by the cold-hearted  stupidity of elected officials.

But now that same depressing shit is all over sports networks. Coronavirus took sports away from us and is doing its best to make sure sports do not return.

I cannot get away from this shit and it is taking a toll.

I went back to work last week. Walked in on Day One wearing a mask. Nobody in the office wears a mask, unless they are dealing with the public. I was a bit uncomfortable at first but I noticed that everybody keeps their distance. And frankly, there is no fucking way I will wear a mask for four or 8 consecutive hours.

But I am uncomfortable.

This shit is on my mind at work, at home watching MSNBC, at home watching sports networks. The only escapes are books, movies, TV series. But really, there is no escape.

The cruelty is that sports gave us hope, and that hope is rapidly dwindling.

What are we left with?

I am 66 and a year of my life has been stolen from me. I cannot afford that. And it ain't over. This shit will infect 2021 as well.

There will be no new normal. It will be a new abnormal. And we will have to adjust. This is so big and so dangerous that we have no choice but to learn to live with it.

There is no escape.

You think the fucking virus is dangerous?

No escape is equally dangerous.