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Category: Observations Page 4 of 88

Naming rights are weird brought to you by StitchFix Field at Roku Park

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On November 17, 2021

In Observations

Staples Center is now Crypto.com Arena.

I saw this tweet recently and it reminded me of a curiosity I’ve had for ages. Why do companies pay money to put their names on stadiums? Is it to remind us they exist? Do they hope for some goodwill between going to see basketball and buying office supplies (and now Crypto?)

The current home of the Washington Capitals and Washington Bullets/Wizards has changed names a number of times since I’ve lived here. Throughout it’s life, this building has been called:

  • MCI Center
  • Verizon Center
  • Capital One Arena

Have I ever associated the venue with any of these companies? No. Have I ever thought about the company names when I was there? Absolutely not. When I hear other venues and their names, even when it’s a well known and obvious one (Fed Ex Field?) I never associate it with the company behind the name.

Other than changing names on signage, I wonder how many years it takes for people to start calling the venue by its new name. Jiffy Lube Live used to be called Nissan Pavilion. I called it Nissan for years after the name change and still catch myself referring to the MCI Center. Did I ever think about cars when I went to concerts? No, other than the one I used to drive there.

In my head, the name of a place is completely divorced from the company paying to name it. Other than hilariously stupid or weird names (Jiffy Lube Live!)

And I’m sorry, “Anything Dot Com” Arena/Center is a terrible name.

Tell me how it feels to use a week later, not how it smells out of the box

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On October 19, 2021

In Links and Quotes, Observations

I recently posted my review of the iPhone 13 Pro, which I thought was a fun review, but didn’t rack up the same number of views as I had hoped it would. When I mentioned this on Twitter, someone mentioned that they expected people were burned out on reviews of the phone already, so they weren’t looking for another one. They were totally right, too! I personally watched a bunch of reviews of the new iPhones when the embargo dropped, but I’ve skipped the rest in my feed that happened after the embargoed ones dropped.

Why Reviews are Hard for Smaller Reviewers

I saw this post by Matt Birchler earlier today and it struck a chord with me and I replied to his post on Micro.blog but also wanted to share it here because it’s something I’d like to see more of in the review world.

Everyone and their 7th cousin is out there writing unboxing and Hot Takes™ on the new things.

Who is out there writing the “I’ve had this a week or a month and here’s how it feels” posts?
What about Here’s the X things I felt right when I got it. And here’s how I feel now after using it for a 2 weeks?

The world is flooded with people giving their First Looks. But there’s much less real world experiences. How does it actually feel to use day-to-day. Maybe it’s because the views aren’t there for it? Or maybe it’s not sexy because the First Lookers have already abandoned their device for the New Thing™.

I don’t have an answer but the first one out of the gate can tell me what I can see with my own eyes. I want something more.

  • Tell me what annoys you that you did not think would matter?
  • Tell me about a feature you were excited for but haven’t used since Day 1?
  • Tell me about something you didn’t know about and how can’t live without?
  • Tell me something that made you smile.
  • Tell me something that made you mad.
  • What’s something you didn’t know about until a friend’s friend told you? Or you saw in a Tiktok comment on an unrelated video that changed everything for you?

There’s such a gold rush to be first and earliest and loudest out of the gate. But you’re also saying the same thing as everyone else. Give me your impressions as a consumer.

At the end of the day, I trust and enjoy the reviews of people people with devices instead of the Tech Reviewers who have already moved on to the next device, computer, phone, gadget.

Visiting old friends in the garden

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On October 10, 2021

In Observations, snapshots

Brookside Gardens will always be a special place. The gardens are always beautiful and every time I visit, there’s always something different in bloom.

This weekend’s visit was special because the indoor garden building was open. It has been closed last year and every time we went this year it was a little too late to go inside.

We were able to see the cacti, orchids, palms, and other beautiful indoor dwellers. It was like revisiting old friends. Such a peaceful place to sit and breathe deeply and take in everything around you.

I struggle not to take a thousand pictures every time we visit. I limited myself to just a few. Including the obligatory proof that I leave the house at times.

Zombie theory of the COVID World

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On October 1, 2021

In Introspection, Observations

In the course of making small talk tonight I mentioned my zombie approach to Covid.

I love a good zombie movie and I look at other people I don’t know as zombies. They’re walking through the world and they may be infected.

Zombies

They’re infected. They know they’re infected and they’re doing their best to infect others. Maskless. Unvaccinated. Going about their lives like nothing has changed.

The Unturned

They might be bitten and waiting to turn while trying to convince themselves they’re ok. Meanwhile surrounding themselves with other who may get hurt when they do.

Survivors

They’re perfectly ok and trying to navigate the infected works and trying not to get bitten. Or put themselves in situations to get bitten.

It’s exhausting. Trying to remain uninfected in a world filled with Zombies, the Unturned and Survivors.

That’s a major deduction, Olympic announcers

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On July 28, 2021

In Observations

I love the Olympics. Every four (or 5) years the world comes together to show off such immense and diverse talents across a mind-blowing array of sports. I love watching.

I saw a man take gold in a Triathlon he was never expected to win. I saw an Australian swimmer upset Katie Ledecky. I saw that same Ledecky out-swim a field of other world class athletes in 1500 meters like she was out for a morning warmup. I saw the world talk about Simone Biles take herself out of the team competition. (Good for you! Take care of yourself. You owe nothing to anyone but yourself.)

I love watching women’s gymnastics possibly the most of all. (But did you see the synchronized diving??? Those British lads were stunning!)

What I could not stand was the commentating for the gymnastics tonight. We saw Simone Biles take herself out of the competition. What we then saw was the rest of the team perform extremely well. Better than Biles had been up to that point. We saw young athletes with the weight of the world and American Media on their shoulders go out and deliver superb performances.

We saw athletes at the height of their sport.

But what we got from NBC was criticism and negativity. Nowhere was there a cheer of excitement or praise for a well-landed tumbling pass nor tricky maneuver. We got moans and gasps of disappointment as every deduction was dutifully called out. Every failure remarked upon.

And when they weren’t criticizing, they were silent. Terry Gannon, Nastia Liukin and Tim Daggett called the night and while I don’t recognize Tim or Terry’s voice. It was a male voice leading the complaints. They were no Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir.

All three of them could take a page from Dan Hicks and Rowdy Gaines. They are calling swimming and doing a much better job. The excitement in their voices. Reminding us all of the amazing feats we were witness to.

I almost turned off the coverage after the gymnastics portion of the night. But the swimming restored my enjoyment of the night and the games.

Maybe it’s harder for the commentators to remember we are witnessing thrilling races head-to-head and stellar individual performances. But when we tune in to a sport for the first time in 2016, I want more than a frustrated sounding announcer to point out every little flaw and failure of these athletes.

Share the wonder. Marvel with us. This is a treat to watch. You have an opportunity to improve our understanding and enjoyment of an event. Or you can remind us how easy it is to fall into the trap of negativity and nitpicking every mistake and misstep. Choose enjoyment.

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