When to Quit

Friends wonder: Why quit watching now? Sports addicts around here are going nuts with all the news: The Warriors have finally made the playoffs .Barry Bond's is chasing the home run record. And the 49ers are poised for a return to glory.

So much spectating to do. So many memorable moments not to be missed.

But doesn't that make this the BEST time to quit? After all, even the most addicted fan will turn off the set when the home team bumbles its way to defeat. That proves nothing.

The true test of one's desire to break free of sports addiction is when the "good stuff" is served up. In the days and weeks ahead, with Bonds challenging Aaron, and the Warriors making the post season, and the 49ers aiming for the Super Bowl, I hope my one and only response will be:

"Hell no. I won't watch!"

Breaking "News"

Starting many years ago at the top of each hour I'd flick on the radio to pick up the top news stories. The all-news station and the talk-radio station both go to the networks for a few minutes.

But this morning, right after a national report about a huge car bombing in Iraq, the local station began a story about the Golden State Warriors who are in the playoffs. A few games have been played, but I don't know the results. Apparently, though, fan fever is high in the Bay Area, and the news editor felt that covering the Warriors was as important as news about the President's position on the Iraq war or immigration or...

Angrily, I thrust my hand toward the radio's off button. With my 65th birthday approaching, I wasn't expecting much from my antique reflexes. But my hand flew like lightning. Amazingly, I silencing the radio before I could hear a single fact about the Warriors.

I've already learned to avoid sports reports which on the all-news station come at 15 minutes after and before the hour.
Now I wonder if I must cease listening to the top-of-the-hour news reports. Maybe it's OK to abandon radio altogether. I need to think about it.

Identifying Addiction

When I was an active sports addict, I'd find myself anticipating the next "big" game.

For example, during the NFL season--especially decades ago--on Monday I was sated. I'd read the sporting news--especially if my team won--but I didn't hunger for it.

On Tuesday, I'd be OK. But by Wednesday, I'd be thinking about the weekend's game, and getting through Thursday, Friday, and Saturday could be downright painful. Thanksgiving was good because the NFL presented an unusual Thursday game that brought relief, even if my team weren't involved.

Eventually, we got Monday Night Football, and then--near the end of the season--Saturday games. The pain decreased while the dose frequency increased and the addiction deepened.

I wasn't aware of this phenomenon at the time. But I was aware enough never to complain to my wife that I was having withdrawal symptoms.

Sports Screenplay

At age 51 I earned a graduate degree in screenwriting from UCLA. Since then I've had half a dozen scripts optioned. One--SUMMER OF THE FLYING SAUCER--was shot in the fall of 2006. Another--THE ESP AFFAIR is in preproduction at Point Reyes Pictures. (Yeah, there's nepotism involved; I co-own the company. Still, it's a good script and worth investing in--if you happen to be a friend or family member of the producers.)

Now I'm writing a love story about an amateur athlete. A few scenes involve spectators at games. When working on these scenes, I imagine myself in the crowd, watching the action.

I therefore ask myself: Am I violating the terms of this kick-my-sports-addiction journey by creating the very sort of happening that I am trying to avoid in my life? Or do I get a dispensation because art isn't the same thing as reality?

Letter to the S.F. Chronicle

When I woke up this morning, I decided that I must be more proactive about the media. So I wrote the following letter to the editorial board of the San Francisco Chronicle, requesting their help in my struggle to stay sports free. I'll post their response as soon as I get it.

* * *

Dear Chronicle,

After a lifetime of compulsive sports watching, on April 8 I decided to end my addiction. This means not watching games live or on TV, not listening to broadcasts, and not reading about my favorite teams.

The journey of my recovery is documented at http://kickingmysportsaddiction.blogspot.com/

Unfortunately, you at our beloved Chronicle don't make it easy. Last week you printed a story about Don Nelson on page 1--above the fold! Today, you feature a basketball story in the flag.

Now, when I fetch the paper, I have to avert my eyes.

I have a simple request: Could you please refrain from including sports information in section 1? Otherwise, I'll be forced to ask my wife to pre-read the paper for me and, if necessary, clip out offending stories about the Warriors, Bonds, and other enticing topics that could drag me off the wagon.

Thanks.

Murray Suid
Point Reyes Station, California

Second-hands Sports Information

While crumpling up newspaper to start a fire in my woodstove this morning, my eye fell upon a headline: "Why baseball is now so white" by C.W. Nevius, one of my favorite writers. The article was in the front section of the paper, not the sports section, which I totally avoid.

I asked myself: "If the article is about a social issue, could I read it without falling off the wagon?"

On this project, there is no judge to give me guidedance. But my wonderful wife, sensing my perplexity, offered to read the article and possibly clear it. While she read, I was reminded of the Orthodox Jewish tradition of skirting the prohibition of working on the Sabbath. For example, while the Bible has been interpreted as forbidding turning on the lights during the Sabbath, a non-Jew can be hired to do that chore.

Is such a work-around Kosher--given that the non-Jew would be violating God's rule about honoring the day of rest? Alas, answering that question falls outside the scope of this entry. In the present situation, my wife didn't violate any rule because my flight from spectator sports involves only me. I wasn't corrupting her, just using her.

My wife's synopsis of the article explained that young white players with parental backing attend expensive training camps to devleop baseball skills, thus giving them an advantage over poor players, many of them people of color. Clearly, Nevius's piece was about justice, not sports. His words would not stimulate my desire to watch sports, but rather make me angry about the un-level playing field that we provide young people in this country.

Embedded Sports

My wife and I recently watched NOTES ON A SCANDAL. This highly rated movie contains a brief scene of high school kids playing soccer. The scene probably was included so that a male student could remove his shirt and show his handsome chest to the older female protagonist--a teacher who eventually has an affair with him.

The shots distracted me because suddenly--if just for a few seconds--I found myself watching a sporting event. It was different, of course, from watching a pro game. The outcome didn't matter and it was just make-believe. And yet, the action drew me in. I was--momentarily--a spectator.

Does this mean I need to stop watching movies if I am to avoid watching sports? I don't think so, but I imagine that if I watched a movie devoted to sports--say, Rocky--I would get a "hit" perhaps as strong as attending an actual sporting event.

Sports News Above the Fold

For the past few days, I've thought about sports only a couple of times. I've been busy promoting my book WORDS OF A FEATHER. Occasionally, when nothing is on my favorite newstalk radio program, I recall that in the old days I'd go to sportstalk radio. But I've resisted the temptation.

Then, this morning when I picked up our local paper-- the San Francisco Chronicle--I noticed a headline about Don Nelson, coach of the Golden State Warriors basketball team. Immediately, I tossed the paper aside, angry that the editor thought basketball was important enough to put on page 1, above the fold. I speculated that the Warriors, who were struggling for a playoff space when I turned away from sports, maybe earned a playoff space. I asked myself if I needed to know. I decided in the negative.

But later, when my wife was reading the paper, she looked up and commented, "The warriors are in the playoffs." She doesn't care about sports and, as far as I know, has never attended a basketball game at any level. But she was startled to see the report given so much prominence and she thought I wanted to know.

Have I said before: In this culture, it is almost impossible to avoid information about spectactor sports. This is true even in the tightly controlled world of one's own home.

Weather and Sports

My wife knows that I'm kicking my sports addiction. So I was surprised yesterday when she looked up from the newspaper and said, "Did you know that for the fourth day in a row a snow storm has forced cancellation of baseball in Cleveland?"

I replied, "You know that I'm ignoring sports these days."

"Yes," she answered, "but this isn't a sports story. It's a weather story."

She was right, I suppose, but I still felt jarred by the mention of baseball." I'd like to be so oblivious to the news of sports that I actually forget it's baseball season.

Day 2: No sports

Driving to work, I almost hit the button for my favorite Sportstalk radio show, "Rhome Is Burning." But I caught myself and instead listened to a recorded book, a biography of Jane Austin.

After dinner, I tuned in a newstalk radio program. The host Gene Burns was badmouthing the British sailors who acted unheroically--as Gene viewed it--in turning their boat over to the Iranians. Gene said that the sailors should have given up their lives to save the boat, and he referenced several heroes such as John McCain and Audie Murphy. I emailed Gene to say that England wasn't at war with Iran, hence the sailor should be judged differently. Gene read my email on the air. But he wasn't persuaded.

Later, I realized that I tend to use newstalk as a surrogate for sports, and maybe I'll need to give it up along with traditional spectator sports. But I suppose a difference is that the newstalk format allows authentic involvement. After all, we are a government of the people, and one of the things the people should do is debate issues that affect the country. Very different from a fan debating whether or not a certain pitcher should be dropped from the starting rotation. Managers don't care at all about the fans' opinions.

No More Sports Spectating

I am a spectator sport addict. My addiction is not particularly extreme. Over the years, I've probably spent--wasted--10 hours a week on average watching, listening to, and/or reading about the exploits of pro athletes.

No more! Starting today, I will not watch professional sports live or on TV. I will not listen to broadcasts nor read about games and players online or in newspapers. I will not discuss sports with friends.

I will engage in sports actively--basketball, biking, whatever--but that is something totally different.

I should have quit spectating long ago. Actually, I tried to give it up in the 1990s, but my best friend bought season tickets to the S.F. Giants and the S.F. Forty-niners. I felt it was in poor taste to turn down his many invitations to join him at games (he had terrific seats). Now I realize that taste had nothing to do with it. I was hooked. If I didn't go to games with him, I watched them through the media. I thought about sports often and felt excited when the local teams did well, and felt bummed when they failed. I used sports as a conversation crutch, and I turned to sports for consolation when I was disappointed with my own life.

Going cold turkey will be tough. For example, this is the year that Barry Bonds will likely become the all-time home run champ. In days gone by, I'd devote a lot of time and attention to his pursuit of Hank Aaron's record. But if it weren't Barry, there'd be something else. I know it. Addicts always find a reason to go to their drug.

Of course, even if I'm strong, avoiding sports won't be easy, not in our culture. Often, sports news is teased on the front page of our newspaper. And two powerful radio stations are devoted to sports. When I visit the Yahoo! home page, there's also a link to sporting news. Today, I was greeted by a photo of a guy who beat Tiger. I quickly clicked out of there, but for that moment, I caught the whiff of it and was nearly drawn in.

Still, I think I can live without spectator sports. Hopefully, I'll eventually not even notice that March is a time for madness, or that the "boys of summer" are hard at work.

I'll give my reasons for breaking the addiction next time.