And now for something completely different...

Instead of writing about CATS or CARDSTOCK, I thought I'd start the day by writing about something completely different...

FOOTBALL! And to get us all in the mood for football, I'm sharing one of my favorite pictures. Mind you, this is a very UNNATURAL looking photo. I do believe this was the only time I've seen my daughter throwing a football. And yes, there was a boy involved.

Since our daughter is now in the marching band at Indiana University, I've been a bit more attuned to college football than I normally am. Which isn't saying a lot. But in this short time, I've made some observations about football that have me fairly agitated. As part of my personal therapy program, I've decided to share them here:

* Why in the world can't they EVER broadcast the halftime show? The ONLY reason I'm watching football is for the band. I have to suffer through hours of football only to see a bunch of pundits talking about other games during the halftime! If you're interested in other games, people, watch them! Don't be taking up the entire halftime droning on and on about obscure statistics while my adorable daughter is playing the fight song!

* And they almost NEVER show even the slightest glimpse of the band in the stands during the game. Band parents would kill for a glimpse of Joey with his saxophone. Would it be so difficult to pan over the band during one of the 1,000 time-outs which seem to occur in college football?

* And don't get me started on trying to find the game in the first place. Sheesh! Is it on ABC, the Big Ten Network, ESPN, ESPN2, or ESPNU? Do you have Direct TV, Mediacom, Dish, or rabbit ears? And what market are you in? The game showing where you live is not the same one showing everywhere else. It's the most convoluted arrangement I've ever seen.

* And you cannot watch the game on the internet unless you've got some kind of paid subscription. And why would I pay to NOT see what I really want to see -- the band???

* So you decide to look on one of the websites to try to find your game. HA! Ever visit the ESPN or Big Ten Network website? These sites are surely the MOST jumbled, confusing, sensory-overloading places on the internet. I assure you, once you find the minute piece of information you're seeking, you'll NEVER find it again!

* And what's this about the BCS? What a convoluted (yes, I realize I've used that word twice now) system for determining bowl bids. Good grief! What about simply going with the teams that win the most games? Too radical a concept, huh?

* And with all of these bowls, why can't there be a national champion? I'm aware enough to know that pro football has a national championship game, as does baseball (okay, Spouse shared the baseball thing with me). At the end of the college football season, nobody really knows which team is best overall. Maybe nobody cares. Or maybe lots of people want their team to be best and without one clear winner, then everybody CAN be best.

* And let's not get started on the whole conference thing. Now why in the world are teams allowed to join conferences that are nowhere near them? I love TCU but when we visited last summer, I sure didn't see any mountains in Fort Worth. So why the heck is TCU in the Mountain West conference? And why, now that the Big Ten Conference includes 12 teams, don't they rename the conference -- or make 2 teams leave? Let's make the conference names accurately reflect the teams they include, people. Doesn't seem that difficult to me. Give me a map and a spreadsheet and I'd have the whole conference system fixed by the end of the Halftime Show That Isn't Shown.

If there are any football people reading this, I assure you I don't really care to learn the justification for anything other than the first point on my list. If they'd broadcast the halftime show, I'd be a happy band mom and would completely forget about my other issues. As it is, I've taken to listening to the student-run internet radio broadcast of the IU games. They don't broadcast the halftime either, but at least I can hear the band in the stands.

It's a whole lot better than what the Big Ten Network offers me. Obviously the fine folks who run that place have never met a band mom.