Welcome to my wonderful world of fantasy football

Home > Culture > Features

print dictionary print

Welcome to my wonderful world of fantasy football

It’s good to be a geek. No, let me correct that. It’s absolutely GREAT to be a geek. That is, if you are a fantasy sports geek.
Even if globalization is not your thing, the taste of a fantasy championship will make you thank the Internet for this blessing.
The plain experience of this imaginary world where you are pitted against a legion of fans around the world is enough to make you yearn voluntarily to become, well...a geek.
The hook is simple in this game in which real players’ stats are translated into points for your own handpicked team. It makes you feel like a manager of a sports franchise.
Since 99.9 percent of us most likely will not become owners of any sports team in our lifetime and ever after, this simple game lets you experience what it would be like to run a team while it raises levels of adrenaline and passion that you never had for your spouse.
There are symptoms that will tell you whether you belong in this world.
You find yourself doing a spell check on the third draft of a league letter you are writing.
You don’t care how much the Internet bill is as long as you have premium broadband service with a 24-hour, around the clock help line.
You ponder whether you should call in sick to the office on draft day.
Your stock portfolio’s net worth just crumbled to a tenth of what it was before, but you won a division game and catch yourself thinking “life is good!”
You contemplate whether to send a virus to the computers of all of your friends who happen to pick from the free agent wire before you do.
You think that $350 for a combination of a dozen strategy guides and tip sheets is “a pretty good deal,” and adding only another $150 for a live players’ injury update instant text message service is a “real steal.”
You don’t tell your wife about it.
Yeah, if you have checked any one of the items mentioned above, welcome on board, my friend. Congratulations, you are a fantasy geek.
But that’s okay. In a world where fans at a ballgame watch the sky like Londoners during World War II, sitting at home in front of the computer may be the best option to enjoy sports from a safe distance.
Yes, you may sleep a combined eight hours on weekends for “research” purposes.
Yes, you may put your client on hold to work out a trade via phone.
It’s all good in the fantasy world because, unlike other things, addiction here won’t ruin your body.
For me, a new season of fantasy football is about to start and with so little time for so many things to do, I find this a great tool to keep in touch with my friends.
This isn’t better than a face-to-face meeting over a cold one but we all know how hard it is to place even one single phone call nowadays.
Especially when you have friends abroad, getting everyone on the same page once in a while is an almost impossible task.
As it is, being a geek pays in this case.
Fantasy sports is a hobby that pays dividends. Just try it.


by Brian Lee
Log in to Twitter or Facebook account to connect
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
help-image Social comment?
s
lock icon

To write comments, please log in to one of the accounts.

Standards Board Policy (0/250자)