It's All Over But the Fishing

It's been three days since Brett Favre announced his retirement, and it's STILL all that's on TV and news reports. "Oh, by the way, 52 poeple were killed in Iraq" gets a mention right before the commercial breaks. They will replay his final news conference in its entirety without commercial interruption every night for the next week. I even got a special edition of the local paper featuring 12 pages of highlights...it's probably already going for big money on EBay. It is a phenomenon, to be sure, and I really don't know what to make of it.
I'm not a huge football or Packers fan, but even I know a legend when I see one (and hear about it over and over). My buddy Joseph today (who is from New Jersey) was lamenting the ad infinitum coverage and wishing for any kind of respite. I had to set him straight.
People lead rather ordinary lives, they feel. I think we underestimate ourselves, but we all think we're rather ordinary. Brett and all other personalities grab our attention and hold it...whther it's the money, the fame (tha financial ability to retire at 40!) or something else, these people actually mean something to us. While we all realize that there's no way our fifteen minutes of fame will compare, the vicarious enjoyment we get compensates somewhat. Of course, Joseph sees it differently.
He is completely satisfied being himself, having done all the things in his life that he's done, and perfectly willing to go on without Brett, or Paris (the person not the city), or Barack or anyone else. Great attitude, but he needs to understand that many people aren't all that satsified...for them, the comfort of watching someone like Brett Favre week in and week out makes life seem, well, more livable. It makes going to work on Mondays more fun because there's a topic of interesting conversation. Like it or not, we're usually all joined by something like this, and sports seems to be the most accessible. Wear a hat with the "G" on it anywhere in the mostly civilized world, and I guarantee that you'll be recognized...and respected. And when you consider that Green Bay is three stoplights bigger than a small city, it is even more amazing.
We now return you to your regular programming, already in progress.