As I mentioned earlier, I'm not part of the BlogPoll (I'm considering applying though), but this roundtable was too good to pass up, so I'm answering it anyway. Also, I figured it would let the readers know a bit more about the author of this blog.
1) Education. List the region of the country you were born in, what universities you attended and at least one other you would have attended if your alma mater didn't exist.
Born: Birmingham, Alabama.
Undergraduate: B.A. in History from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Grad school: After taking one course at the University of South Florida, I transferred to the University of Alabama where I am currently pursuing a master's degree.
Universities you would attend if your alma mater didn't exist: I'd more than likely go for somewhere in California or Hawaii just to experience something a world away from the Deep South (which I dearly love.) Ideally, I would like to study in Europe and I'd go to Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece.
Their American football team probably isn't very good
2) Sports Affiliations. List your top 10 favorite teams in all of sports in order. For instance, your alma mater's football team may be number 1, but perhaps there is a professional team that squeezes in before you get to your alma mater's lacrosse team.
- Alabama football
- US national soccer team
- UAB soccer
- Alabama basketball
- UAB football
- UAB basketball
- Chicago Fire
- Alabama baseball
Movies I've watched the most: Growing up it was goofy comedies like Weird Science or Spies Like Us. As an adult, it's been more serious fare like Vertical Ray of the Sun or oddball movies like The Royal Tennenbaums.
Favorite Sports Related Movie: As a general rule, I don't think sports related movies are very good. The only one I can think of off of the top of my head that I've enjoyed repeatedly is Mean Machine, an English version of The Longest Yard featuring soccer instead of football. It stars Vinnie Jones and it's hilarious.
Secret movie love: Spanglish. Perhaps it's because my own son will grow up "multi-ethnically" (my wife's family immigrated to the US from India), but it really struck a chord with me and I've seen it several times.
Summer movie I'm looking forward to: I'm in grad school and I have a one year-old. It'll be a long time before I set foot in a movie theater again.
4) Music. List your favorite band from middle school, high school, college and today. Also, as with the movies, include the song you secretly love but don't like to admit. If Nickleback is involved in any of these responses, please give a detailed explanation as to why, god, why.
Ridiculous heavy
Middle school: Anthrax. In seventh grade I got introduced to the wonderful world of heavy metal by some of my football teammates.
High school: Helmet. Heavier and more efficient than Anthrax? Yes please!
College: Phish. Saw them 25 times in eight different states ranging from Louisiana to Massachusetts.
Today: My tastes are more eclectic than ever today. I'm just as likely to be listening to a Shostakovich string quartet as I am to Nelly Furtado's "Promiscuous" or to sitar music or a bluegrass CD. Many of my favorite bands have split up, but there's still new stuff that I like. One of my favorite bands that's sprung up recently is the Benevento Russo Duo, an experimental duo that only utilizes organ and drums.
Song you're embarrassed to like: Mya's "My Love is Like...Wo"
5) Books. Favorite book you've finished, worst book you've finished and the book you really should read but haven't gotten around to it.
Favorite: Spring Snow by Yukio Mishima. It's the first volume of the Sea of Fertility tetralogy, but can be read alone. Mishima was a Japanese nationalist, novelist, poet, playright, actor, swordsman, bodybuilder and all-around modern Renaissance man. He was as crazy as can be, but he could write like no other.
Worst book I've finished: The Body Artist by Don DeLillo. I hate that book with the white-hot fury of a thousand suns.
Book I need to read: I must concur with Peter of Burnt Orange Nation and say Robert Penn Warren's "All The King's Men." That's been on my "to read" list forever.
6) Travel. Favorite city you've ever been to and the one place you still must visit before you shuffle off this mortal coil.
"The Land of the Long White Cloud" is incredible
That's a tough one. I'm certainly not going to pretend to be some super-jaded traveler that's been everywhere, but there are tons of places I've been that I've loved for various reasons. I'm going to cheat on this one though and say the entire country of New Zealand (it only has a population of 4.5 million, so it's actually like a really big city.) The place is incredibly beautiful and the people are beyond friendly. I had countless people invite me into their homes for meals, for a place to sleep as well as people just being generally hospitable.
Place I must visit: Greece
7) What do you love most about college football in 20 words or less?
Tradition, passion, legends, glory, victory.