It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.
Well, actually it was just the worst. At least in Cincinnati. I'm sorry Jay. It was a beautiful night in Baltimore.
In a season full of highlights, under the lights last Thursday night was a low point. Something wasn’t right.
Carson Palmer completed first down passes with ease. Matt Stover missed a chip shot field goal after a bad snap. BJ Sams was lost for the year. The Ravens offense couldn’t get out of the mud. And I never got out of Maryland. Now I’m not saying I could have helped Matt Katula on the snap that led to Stover’s miss, or somehow alert Ed Reed that a flea-flicker was coming, but these are the facts – I was in Baltimore and the Ravens lost in Cincinnati. I’m just saying…
And I’m not the only one who thought my absence was a detriment to the team. Within two minutes of the final whistle, I received text messages from across the country (or at least New York and Baltimore) that I was at fault. I sent a note to Lauryn. I promised not miss another game.
Despite sticking around in The Charm City, my season in the spotlight continued as I watched the game with a few friends, coworkers (one of which decided NOT to wear purple), a Super Bowl champion, an offensive lineman, and the ABC news team at Shuckers in Fells Point. The waterfront restaurant was host to the local pregame show that featured Michael McCrary as a host and Edwin Mulitalo on the ukulele. I thought it might be worthwhile for me to inform the production crew that I was on-hand and available if they needed an emergency blogger (more on that later). I decided it was best to keep that to myself, but I kept my Treo by my side just in case.
The live audience also got some face time and lucky for me, I knew exactly where to stand. Just before the final sign off, we knew the camera was going to shine on our little corner of the bar before the network switched to the broadcast. Our resident Texan was front and center and attempted to flash the ‘Hook ‘Em Horns’ sign for all of Baltimore to see. What he didn’t expect was a sneak attack on his chicken fingers. As soon as the camera light turned red, I went in for the kill, gave a wink to the camera, and had myself a snack! That’s what Mik gets for trying to post inappropriate comments on the blog. And you wondered why they’re moderated now.
As I previously noted, the game did not go as planned. The bar was practically silent until the fourth quarter. A last ditch effort ended with a missed onside kick and the Shuckers crowd emptied into the Baltimore night.
Unfortunately for Lauryn and the RaveTV crew, they still had a flight home to catch. We traded text messages for an hour since the rain was keeping Lauryn on edge. I’ve come to learn that the most important part of my job on the road is keeping Lauryn calm when the plane hits turbulence (in addition to carrying our bags up the stairs). This week she had to rely on Don to keep her in conversation during takeoff. I think he’s looking forward to my return next week. As is Lauryn, the Speical Teams unit, and of course, I can't wait. Kansas City is supposed to have the best ribs in the country. And it's time to get back to what's best. With a few more wins, this season can still turn out to be the best of times.
Apparently I'm not the only advertising executive moonlighting as a blogger.
1 comment:
A pic and a shot out! That's what I'm talking about.
-Not Mik
Post a Comment