The Pitt Football Experience

The Pitt football experience is a vivacious, intense, and social one. The preceding tailgate is loud, lively, smells of smoked chicken wings, and is filled with alcohol (Just to

clarify, I do not associate with underage drinking). I think it was especially a bacchanal because it was homec

oming weekend, not just Parents’ weekend. Although the tailgate is pretty wild,

nothing compares to the paroxysm of energy which fills the stadium when the Pitt football players step on to the field . There is an omnipotent brio, whether it is in the way in which the players rally together and perform on the field, or in the chauvinism which the fans exert towards the players. To give you a sense of just how much the football team means to the school, I’m going to explain the Cathedral of Learning.

The Cathedral of Learning is a building of approximately 600,000 square foot with 42 stories. It can be seen from just about anywhere across the entire city. It was originally built because a previous chancellor of the university (John G. Bowman) was driving to the school and could not discern the University of Pittsburgh from the buildings of city. So, he created a landmark that would essentially put the university on the map, and would later become the center point of the university. Today, it is the tallest educational building in the western hemisphere.

Going back to the idolized University of Pittsburgh football institution, whenever the football team wins, the top of the Cathedral of Learning is lit so that even the most disinterested of people are aware of the glorious status of the team. Even some major companies support it, like Heinz (yes, the ketchup one). Because the Heinz company is such a big supporter of the school and the team, the field is named after it (Heinz field is where the Steeler’s play, too). Behind the end zone, above the large replay screen, there are two monstrous replicas of open ketchup bottles. These bottles are pointed down towards the screen, as if they are pouring something into it. Whenever the Pitt Panthers reach the Red Zone (within 20 yards of the end zone), red “ketchup” fills the screen and it says “RED ZONE!!” It is implicit that it ketchup is filling the screen by the animation and sound effects. Maybe it is more something you have to see, but I think it is really clever.

Pitt ended up crushing University of South Florida (what a shocker). The team is currently 7-1. Any fan of great football should check them out.

Sincerely,

Blogger who has a football fanatic as a mother.

road trips

Written Friday 10/23, posted just now because I didn't have internet access in the car... I'm on my way to the University of Pittsburgh to visit my sister for Parents' Week and my body is in abeyance. Everything is numb except these typing fingers , from being in the car for so long. It is supposedly a six-hour drive but that does not include stops and traffic. I am quite aggravated because I cannot view the list of words from "Get A Clue." I specifically remember having the page open in a Safari window. I keep windows open for days, which is supposed to remind me of the things that I need to accomplish, but then the pages keep building up and the urgency of them fades. I end up closing them when I become overwhelmed by the number of windows I have open. That is not to say that my blog has a diminished status on my list of priorities. I like blogging.But I'm just so miserable in this car that my blog seems quite pessimistic and maybe even depressing. For that I am sorry Mrs. Abrams, because you are so jovial and you're going to have to read this.
My mom is listening to the Dixie-Chicks in the car and if I turn up the volume on my Ipod high enough to drown it out, I think I would damage my labyrinthine :[. I do not really like those tunes, they are a little too country for me. The lyrics can sound desperate yet romantic at the same time (if that makes any sense)... I don't know, I just am not in the mood for them. At the moment I would prefer the soothing melodies of John Mayer (shout out to all JM fans). For anyone who has not listened to his albums (Continuum, Heavier Things, Inside Wants Out, Room for Squares) I exhort you to check them out. But to my ears, the albums that are by far the best are the ones recorded at a live performance. Despite the fact that his live CDs do not get a lot of credit, one day they will be legendary . And yes, he always makes that funky face while performing. But, he is a great entertainer anyway :]
Okay, I'm going to go listen to a peculiar combination of John Mayer & The Dixie Chicks.
Sincerely,
Blogger who needs a nap
P.S Apparently Maryland is closer to the University of Pittsburgh (PA) than New Jersey. That's just preposterous.

¿vale la pena?

So I've been attempting to post a picture for the last 20 minutes. I am having limited success in that I cannot get blogger.com to enlarge more than the left most quarter of the picture , which clearly doesn't include the main subject. I might just leave it because I cannot deal with the meticulous process of formatting pictures. Chris just called me "blogger-challenged," which I think is an accurate description of my ability. Usually insults only exacerbate problems, but it was not a flagrant remark. He put it nicely to spare my feelings. It is taking me an inordinate amount of time to assimilate to the blogging world. I'm having qualms that I will ever learn to "blog well." In response to the question posed in my title ( for those of you do not speak spanish, it means "worth the pain?"), I do think it is a valuable skill to have. As my mom said "you never know what it could become." Shall I ever emulate the blogging expertise of say, Jamie Oh or Christopher Zamlout? I do not know. But, maybe blogging will become less of an aberration and more of daily routine. Till then, I sign off with an immense following of 0 people.

Sincerely,

Eminent Blogger