Sports? I miss ‘em all
As I type this Tuesday morning, I’m keeping half an eye on the starting lineups of the Rizespor vs. Goztepe game. You know, Turkish soccer.
Why am I doing this? Well, partly because I’m a degenerate gambler, but more so because daily fantasy sports is my hobby, and, as it turns out, my respite from coronavirus lockdown.
And right now, at this moment, the only game being offered on DraftKings is Turkish soccer, and as such, I have four lineups entered for the 1 p.m. match.
L.A. and I - a pair of sports fans - decided to write about what sport we’re missing most during the crisis. For me, it’s not any one sport. It’s all of them. Not having sports as a way to keep my mind off what’s going on in this world right now is morale-breaking. I knew I spent way too much time in the past playing these fantasy games, but now that they’re gone - except, again, for Turkish soccer - I’m realizing how important they are to my suddenly unsteady mental health.
I’ve been scared of this coronavirus since day one. And the only times I wasn’t thinking about it was when I was neck deep in work or fantasy sports, in my own head, not interacting with those around me. Being with friends and family? For me, a sufferer of anxiety, I’d panic. I’d think of worst-case scenarios. Honestly, I’m having a tough time keeping my brain from spiraling out of control. I haven’t missed a 3 a.m. near-nervous breakdown in weeks.
And you know what I used to do during those times? I’d whip out my phone and start researching the day’s slate of sports action. I could happily spend hours doing that, and often did.
Now I don’t have it (outside of Turkish soccer) and man oh man, do I miss it.
So which sport do I miss the most? Every single one of them. You’ll know things are starting to get back to normal when you hear the blowing of whistles and the cries of “play ball” and me happily throwing money at all of it.