As a fourth grader, I used to set my boxy alarm clock to wake me up with 560 WQAM South Florida sports talk radio. Can you imagine?
A young bookworm girl waking up to the incessant banter of old men complaining about Dan Marino’s declining accuracy or whether or not first-year Florida Panthers really had what it takes to capture The Stanley Cup? Oh, and what about throwing rats on the ice rink – love it or hate it? (Personally, I LOVED it. In fact, I remember going to one hockey game at the old American Airlines arena where my dad picked a parking lot specifically because they gave you plastic rats to take into the arena!).
Why did I start my elementary school days this way? Why didn’t I pick a more pleasant way to start my day? Of course I can’t be sure of what motivated me then, but I can make some guesses here in the present moment.
For one, listening to talk radio felt like an adult thing to do, and as a ten-year old, I longed for the obvious wisdom and surety that must come from adulthood.
Second, I must have been influenced by my father. Not only did he love sports, he always had 560 WQAM on the car radio as he shuffled me from a softball practice to a soccer game on Saturdays. Between listening to the radio and reading the sports section of The Sun-Sentinel every morning, we both had a common set of issues to discuss.
Finally, what can I say? This childhood habit simply revealed a preference and part of my personality – my love for sports, culture, and communication – early on. In fact, I can now look back and see what a consistent theme this has been in my life. From anchoring the sports section of the daily Tequesta Trace Middle School video announcements to spending four years working for Duke Sports Promotions on public announcing and contest duty, I have always loved to watch, analyze, and express my views on sports.
My connection with sport has been ever-present. I spent my entire senior year as an undergrad researching and writing about global soccer fan identities, while also playing goal keeper for the Duke Women’s Club Soccer Team. I wrote extensively about my experiences as a member of the maniac Barra Brava fan club for the D.C. United Soccer team as the played in decrepit RFK stadium where beer throwing and cigarette smoking were encouraged.
During the men’s and women’s World Cups, I listen religiously to Total Soccer Show to understand the tactics of the best national teams. On Mondays, I listen to Equalizer Podcast, which focuses on women’s pro soccer in the U.S. and abroad. The hosts are curmudgeonly and pessimistic, but I enjoy it nonetheless. Suffice it to say, I love listening to sports talk radio (and today, podcasts) and, I guess, always have.
At times I have judged this attraction as frivolous and non-serious. How can a “smart person” like me “waste time” on game predictions and starting line-ups?
Why am I sharing this?
As a reminder to me – and hopefully to you – that there is beauty in whatever we find ourselves attracted to and interested in, especially if it is something that started in our youth and has stayed with us long into adulthood. The intersection of sports, culture, and communication has always had me hooked.
Which of course makes sense when I go deeper and see that:
- sports = high-performance (people, strategy, focus, commitment, triumphs, failures)
- culture = ideas for living (trends, society, norms, beliefs)
- communication = passion and expression (having a voice, stating an opinion, engaging in a conversation)
So there it is.
Maybe beneath all of this is my desire to contribute high-performance ideas for living that enable one to express with passion. In short, Soul Excellence.