I have lived in the city of San Diego for over half of my life now, arriving in 1990 and (like so many others) never leaving. Along the way, there are certain things that I have heard so often, they have become ingrained in the brain, almost as if they were written in stone at City Hall:
1) “San Diego is not a good sports town”
2) “There is SO much to do here”
Normally, point #2 is used to explain away point #1. San Diego is NOT a good sports town BECAUSE there is so much to do here. Want to know why the Q is 85% empty for an Aztecs game? Point #1, followed by point #2. Why aren’t people plunking down their hard-earned cash in the summer to go watch the hometown nine struggle? Point #2. Why don’t they care enough? Point #1.
Today, I want to take this discussion and turn it on its head. See, we’ve been looking at it all wrong, all these years. From a top-down viewpoint, only examining the pro and top college teams and their attendance/passionate fans, it’s easy to arrive at point #1 and point #2.
But what if we approached it from the other direction? Come with me on a quick tour through some of the lesser-trolled waters in San Diego sports, and you’ll realize it’s precisely because of point #2 (there’s so much to do) that point #1 is exactly backwards. Continue Reading →
by Chris Ello on November 6, 2009
As the story goes….there were two monks standing alongside a shallow river when a beautiful young lady came across them and asked for a favor.
“I really need to get to the other side,” the damsel in distress said. “would it be possible for one of you to carry me across so I don’t get my new clothes wet?”
The first monk said of course, he would help. But the second monk warned: “We took a solemn vow of complete chastity…we are not even supposed to look at a beautiful woman, let alone come into contact with one and carry her.”
Nevertheless the first monk carried out his good deed…and with the beautiful young girl in tow, her arms wrapped tightly around him, he waded through the water and carried her to the other side.
An hour later…as the two monks continued walking along, the second monk was still quite troubled by the actions of the first….”I still can’t believe you went against everything we were taught, everything we committed to….and carried that girl across the river…I must tell you that I’m still quite distraught by your actions.”
The first monk paused…then quietly said: “My good friend…I dropped the young lady off on the other side of the river an hour ago…you, on the other hand, still carry her.”
Well…it’s a good old story, anyway…and in case you didn’t quite grasp it all…the moral is that the one who can move on is always going to better off than the one who carries resentment along with them.
Now…for why we bring it up today.
But first, a quick question: Of all of the athletes, in all of the sports…which athlete would you say the city of San Diego hates the most? Here’s a hint: Continue Reading →
