Judging by the fact that it's almost halfway through the term and my room is still without a cable box, it's safe to say that my roommates and I will not be investing in DarTV this quarter. That said, we're still human, and I know that for my survival at least, a steady diet of "Mad Men," "Eastbound and Down" and "Parks and Recreation" is necessary. To feed our appetites, we have decided to adopt the growing trend on campus of ditching the cable box in lieu of streaming Netflix, HBO GO and Xfinity from our computers and gaming devices to our TV.
I don't really miss the cable box that much. When it comes time to watch a big sporting event, however, like the upcoming soccer match between Barcelona and Chelsea on Tuesday, I am usually at a crossroad. Do I go to the basement of South Fay to use the common room cable box and pretend that I'm living in the '90s watching standard-definition TV? Or do I go to Collis, knowing that the likelihood of me not standing and cheering during the game is equivalent to the chances that the elbow that Metta World Violence threw at James Harden's dome was unintentional?
If you treat sports like a religion as I do, I bet you can understand the gravity of this situation. Thanks to the latest developments in technology, however, the crisp, clear picture we are now accustomed to seeing almost makes us feel like we are actually at the game.
I remember listening to Colin Cowherd on the radio a few years back, and he made the claim that he would rather stay at home and watch a game from his couch than attend it in person. He does have a valid point to some extent, but after attending a Champions League contest between Arsenal and Barcelona a year ago, even Cowherd would have to be a crazy person to skip out on the chance to attend a soccer game at Camp Nou.
I had the opportunity to study abroad in Barcelona during my sophomore winter. My relationship with soccer prior to the trip can best be categorized as flirtatious, meaning I got caught up in the 2010 World Cup and dabbled in FIFA, but at no point was I ready for a serious commitment to the sport.
That all changed once I arrived in Spain. The frenzy over the Catalan Giants in Barcelona is infectious it is impossible not to fall in love. To put it in perspective, think of New England's obsession with Tom Brady and the Patriots, and then multiply it by 1,000. If you think getting a ticket to a Sox-Yanks game is hard, try getting one to see Barcelona and Real Madrid face off, in what is known abroad as El Clasico. I actually did try, but I failed like many before me.
Although I was not able to go, a group of friends who traveled to Barcelona a year after I departed were actually fortunate enough to get tickets to a Barcelona-Madrid showdown. Dean Bakes '14 is a diehard Madrid fan. His relationship with soccer prior to his stay in Barcelona definitely achieved dating status. The only problem was that he was involved with the wrong team.
Bakes decided to honor his love for Madrid and rock a Cristiano Ronaldo jersey at Camp Nou. He was undaunted by the possibility of receiving worse heckling than LeBron in Cleveland. When Bakes got to the gate to show his ticket, however, stadium security demanded that he take the jersey off. This wasn't a Barcelona fan threatening to take action; it was security, legitimately asserting, "You cannot enter unless you take that jersey off."
I wish I could have been there for the occurrence, but I know exactly what the atmosphere was like. Although I wasn't able to get tickets for El Clasico during my time in Barcelona, I was lucky enough to score a pair of tickets to watch the second leg of the 2011 Champions League round of 16 contest against Arsenal.
During the game, the stadium was absolutely rocking, and there was basically zero dialogue between my friend and me throughout the game because it was too difficult to hear each other speak. Thanks to some Lionel Messi magic, Barcelona won the match, 3-1, advancing to the quarterfinals on an aggregate score of 4-2.
Although the Colin Cowherds of the sports world think it may sound nice to kick up your feet in your living room, I would not trade my experience at Camp Nou for anything. It was the most unforgettable sporting event I have ever attended. So as I slog through this term without my cable box, I can assure you I will be at Collis watching the second leg of Barca's semifinal match versus Chelsea on Tuesday. And not a second will go by where I am not wishing that I was at Camp Nou.
