Sprenzy Shopping Blog

I read the Man in the Middle by John Amaechi recently and thought it was a very good book.  Here’s the book description…

“Man in the Middle chronicles John Amaechi’s extraordinary journey from awkward, overweight English lad to jet-setting NBA star. Along the way, he endured endless obstacles to his hoop dreams—being abandoned by his father, being cut from his first college team, recovering from a life-threatening injury, playing for abusive coaches, and losing his mother – while also protecting a vital secret that could have ended his career: John Amaechi was gay.

Now in this poignant and intimate memoir, Amaechi takes us into the hypermasculine world of professional sports and into the very center of his soul. As tender as it is brutally frank, Man in the Middle follows him from the rough streets of Manchester to Penn State (where he first achieved basketball stardom and began to recognize his sexuality) to the cities (Orlando, Houston, Salt Lake City) and countries (Greece, France) in which he played. A moving story of adversity and diversity, Man in the Middle is a testament to the power of one man’s convictions and to the universal desire to make the world a better place.”

I admit that I’m a little biased about the book because I’m a Penn State alumnus. During my senior year in college, I watched Amaechi play at Rec Hall. So, I’ve always been a John Amaechi fan, since he is one of the very few Penn Staters to make it to the NBA.    

Nonetheless, the book is a good read, regardless of your alma mater or sexuality. Ultimately, it’s just an inspirational story about a clumsy, overweight English boy overcoming adversity to achieve his goal of playing in the NBA. I think all of us can relate to conquering obstacles to achieve a goal.

One of my favorite excerpts from Man in the Middle is…

“The NBA locker room was the most flamboyant place I’ve ever been. The guys flaunted their perfect bodies. They bragged of their sexual exploits. They primped in front of the mirror, applying cologne and hair gel by the bucketful. They tried on each other’s $10,000 suits and shoes, admired each other’s diamond-studded rings and necklaces. It was an intense kind of camaraderie that felt completely natural to them but was a little too close for my comfort. As I surveyed the room, I couldn’t help chuckling to myself: And I’m the gay one.”

I love this time of year! Two a day football practices are wrapping up, the practice reports are always positive from your college football fan site, your team has no weaknesses that it can’t overcome, and the expectations are sky high!

This is the best time of year for a college football fan because your team is still in the hunt for a national championship and you spent the last 8 months preparing for the college football season to kickoff. No more bickering with fan site posters about recruits, recruiting philosophy by the coaching staff, the sky is falling posters and the pie in the sky posters who think the coaching staff can do no wrong.

If you couldn’t tell from the picture of DWill (Derrick Williams), I’m a die-hard Penn Stater who bleeds blue and white! My expectations are very high this season despite what the media says about the 2006 Nittany Lions. It’s amusing last year the football media said Penn State couldn’t compete because there wasn’t enough talent on the team. So after an 11-1 record and a #3 ranking, this year the media is saying Penn State won’t compete for the Big 10 11 title because we lost too much talent.

I could go on and on but I would bore most of you who aren’t major college football fans. Another reason why I love this time of year is all the gear and toys required to get ready for the college football season! So for all you college football fans or if your significant other is a fan, here is some great stuff for the upcoming season whether you are tailgating at home or at the stadium.

• HDTVs - If you haven’t watched a football game in high-definition, don’t do it because it’s extremely difficult going back to watching sports on a regular TV and you know what’s next… a big credit card bill for a 60” plasma TV.

• DVRs - Just in case you have to miss a game due to a wedding, baby shower or other commitment, make sure you have a DVR to record the game. Be sure to tell your friends to NOT tell you who won the game before you can watch it.

• Slingbox - This is better than a DVR if you can’t miss the game but can’t get out of your other commitment. The solution is getting a Slingbox and sling your game to your Smartphone or Pocket PC device. Check out this video of slinging Tivo to a Motorola Q Smartphone.

• Team Clothing - The Oregon Ducks seem to change their uniform colors and style each year, so don’t fall behind or you will really show your age with that sweatshirt from 1993. Some more team attire: Penn State, Ohio State, Florida State & USC.

• Tailgating Gear - You can get some crazy stuff for tailgating like these hammock chairs. Here is some more Penn State tailgating gear. Just remove Penn State from the selected filters and select another team in the last column to get your team’s tailgating gear, e.g. Roll Tide!!

• Grills and Smokers - No tailgate is complete without some grilling or smoking of big hunks of meat. Portable grills are probably better if you are going to the stadium.

• NCAA 2007 Football - If your team doesn’t live up to expectations, then get the video game instead and win the MNC every week! And if your team is worse in the video game, I would just switch to Madden 2007 and forget about college football for a season.

So go get ready for the college football season! I’m heading to South Bend for the Penn State/ND game on September 9th. For all of you Notre Dame fans, I would like to remind you of 1990 when ND was #1 and playing an underdog Penn State team…

I’ve been talking a lot of smack with my Notre Dame friends so Penn State better win otherwise I’ll have to wait a long year for chance of redemption. WE ARE… PENN STATE!