Fumbling Upon a Topic

www.bobleesays.com

     What a difference a year makes.

     Last year I was chomping at the bit to write, write-on, and then write some more. Last year I had topics galore. Everywhere I looked there was something to write about. 
     This year, and I know this will change, it is January 4th and I am struggling with what to blog about. Really? Yes, for sure. I find myself writing about not having a topic to write about. I suppose this could be considered a writer’s block. 
     There are plenty of topics. A Democratic controlled Congress is in place and they are squaring off with President Trump. Both sides are huffing and puffing about the government shutdown and the proposed wall for the US – Mexico border. When I worked at General Dynamics Land Systems, this is what we used to call a target rich environment. There is no limit to what one can rant and rave about. But then, I would be mimicking Fox News and MSNBC. Furthermore, if I were to go down that slippery political slope, it would consume me as it has others on Facebook. I have seen friends and relatives lash out, rant, rave, and more. They irritate everyone they know, burn-out, disappear for a while, and eventually return posting only kitten and baby goat videos. Nah, that’s not for me. 
     There is the upcoming College Football Championship on January 7th; as I seem to like writing about football and probably consider myself a sportswriter wannabee. This is the fourth year in a row that Alabama and Clemson have squared-off in the College Championship series. In 2016, 2017, and now 2019, they are playing for the National Championship. As evidenced by really lackluster ticket sales, the country is taking a big yawn about this game. Yeah, Alabama. Sure, Clemson. Again? Ho-hum. Maybe, something needs to be done to ensure parity in College Football. Short of limiting scholarships or paying the players and having a draft, I am at a loss here.

The average resale cost of a ticket has gone from $1,043 to $533 in a matter of days, according to secondary ticket site SeatGeek. And you can still get tickets for much cheaper. Upper-deck seats, which had a face value of $475 each, were going for as low as $114 on StubHub, and $139 on SeatGeek, on Thursday. ~ Market Watch 

     Tickets are actually going for less than face-value. That is unheard of in a championship game like this one. I teach Principles of Microeconomics. I always refer to the secondary ticket market for sporting events as pure supply and demand. In this game, there is not very much demand, in fact, the demand curve has probably shifted. 
     There are certainly plenty of games during the regular season where there are empty seats. This certainly happens when two lackluster teams play each other, but I have seen it at Michigan Stadium where we boast a record string of 100,000+ attendance. It happens everywhere. 
     Part of this has to be due to people simply wanting to watch a game in the comfort of their own homes. Everyone has amazing televisions these days. There is instant replay. It really is a great way to watch football either alone or in a watch party. The older I get the home option sounds and better to me. No travel. No lines. Snacks at reasonable prices. Apparently, I am not alone in this. 
     There is also the fact that our passion for football has peaked. If the TV viewership for this game dips as well, the powers that be will have to do some thinking and planning on the state of the game.