Welcome!
Opening
message from the Commish
Hello
again out there sports fans, your beloved Commissioner here. It's
Labor Day and that can only mean one thing,
<<
Give me an "F"! >> - F
<<
Give me a "B"!! >> - B
<<
Give me an "H"!!! >> - H
<<
What's that spell?!?!?!!! >>
<<CHEEP,
CHEEP>> This is your referee: I've got
a false start - over-exuberance - on the Home team Quarterback.
We'll replay first down!
(Give
ME a penalty, will ya'?!? I mean, exclamation
point acceleration is especially tricky punctuation business.
You try it!)
Hello
again out there sports fans. It's Labor Day and that can only
mean three things: We're looking forward to a serene Indian summer,
folks are flocking to Westfest, and dada is on the stereo.
(If you're not up on Westfest, it's an annual Czech festival held
in West, Texas - which is actually located in Central Texas. People
from all over flock there to eat kolaches, drink pivo and folk
dance to music from Brave Combo, the world's only nuclear polka
band.)
It
also means the Jets are already fighting for their playoff lives.
And how have I been preparing for the upcoming season? I've
been Xeroxing my eyeballs for six straight months going between
PC monitor, TV, and PlayStation2. Thank the good Buddha that Ralphie
has been awake in the wee hours on our behalf.
But
then, there will be much to consider over the course of the next
four months. First, though, a few words about a subject that I
love to talk about, one of our sweet Country's most-hallowed institutions:
FootballHappenings.
Yes
Ladies and Gentlemen, soon pigskins will be flying. Most will
count for something; some won't. But, what does it all mean? Has
the NFL become too over-marketed for your tastes? Are you sick
of owners and players greedily wrestling over a dollar like two
seagulls over a french fry on the boardwalk? Do you still like
football but not the football aftertaste? Well, not to worry.
FBH
is literally your least-demanding relationship (and, rest assured,
your love-beaded Commissioner and sweat-beaded AssCommissioner
will make sure it stays that way).
You
literally do not need to know anything to participate. And even
if you did know something, it wouldn't have to be about sports,
much less football.
Just
send in your $25 entry fee to the Commish and choose between the
teams that match up that week. Convenient point spreads even the
teams out so accurately that it's almost impossible not to get
at least a few right. If you wish, you can set your picks up to
be done automatically based on a prescribed formula.
We'll
announce divisions and prize money in a couple of weeks once we
figure out who all is in. All the rules are still the same. Check
out the rules page if you need a refresher as you're touring the
renovated FBH site. Kudos to Ralphie for his fine work getting
the old girl spiffed up for the new season.
It's
great to see you back and I'm looking forward to spending some
time together. Remember, the season starts this Thursday, September
4th. Good luck!
FBH
Icons
The
New Look
icon
(COMPUTER SYMBOL) noun
a small picture or symbol on a computer
screen that you point to and click on (= press) with a mouse (=
small control device) to give the computer an instruction
icon
(REPRESENTATION) noun
a very famous person or thing considered
as representing a set of beliefs or a way of life
When
I set out to design the newest look for the Football Happenings
website, I wanted to do something a little sleeker and more "business-like"
than we've had in the past. But while simple text buttons as links
to other areas of this site might be the latest web trend, it just
seemed dull. My next idea was to use some cartoon character icons
to represent the links here. While I was building that, I decided
to throw in the infamous RoyHead we've seen so much of on these
pages. Then, like a lightning bolt of inspiration it hit me. Why
not use other FBH "icons" as the icons?! And a legend
was born. Anyone who has been to this website more than a few times
over the past 6 (going on 7) years should instantly recognize each
of the figures used above. These are truly FBH Icons.
You'll
also notice up above an area that will be a fixture for the 2003
season, at least: A quick glance at the week's Current Standings.
I've aslo updated the All-Time Standings to include 2002. And last
year's NFL Films music on the Make Picks page is being replaced
by something else that will change on a regular basis (likely more
than once a week) so that if you take a glance at the point spreads
on Wednesday, you'll get a different background "sound"
on Sunday. Go there now for a sample!
These are small and mostly cosmetic changes, but I strive to keep
this website "fresh" as best that I can. I have some more
changes in mind, not that any of them will actually come to fruition.
I'm a Graphic Design guy, not a programmer, and I'm also lazy. Ideas
I have floating around include a new look for the Member pages and
some things having to do with Database integration (which I'm trying
to learn) including one day having a full blown database driven
Picks/Standings engine. My goal for that idea is 2010. Wish me luck!
Also under consideration is making the FBH Icons seen above
(and others) available as Desktop Icons for your own personal PC
enjoyment. If you'd like that, let me know. If I get enough positive
response, I will make them available for everyone here. Maybe. And how
about a bulletin board area for comments and banter? We can get
one going easily, but it'll cost a few bucks. Something to contemplate.
Whatever
the future holds, we always invite and welcome your comments, contributions
and criticisms. (Well, maybe not those.)
Line
up all the excuses you can about why the NFL needs
pre-season games: the teams need time to work together, evaluate
players, get into "game shape", blah blah blah. I ain't
buying it, mister! Four games is at least two games too many.
I know, back in the day, they used to play 6 pre-season games
and only 14 "real" games. Thank the Lord the owners
decided that more regular season games was the way to go. Attendance
was declining rapidly for these "exhibition" games and
the money hungry owners realized the real cash was in games that
count. So they cut the pre-season and
extended the real-season. But that wasn't enough for them. These
days, the typical season-ticket holder is forced
into also buying all the pre-season games the owners can justify
putting on. It's bad enough that in absolutely ZERO of these pre-season
games does a team's starters ever appear for more than 3 quarters.
Exhibition Game 1 features the starters for 1 quarter, maybe.
For Game 4, you can find almost every starter sitting on the bench
before the opening kick-off. Why? I thought the teams needed these
games to get ready for the season? So why aren't the starters
playing the entire game? 
Finally, the coaches have come to realize what the owners can't
see, for the cash piles are covering their eyes. It makes NO SENSE
to play these guys any more than they have to. If an injury occurs
during a regular season game, there's nothing you can do about
it. It's part of the game. And if a key injury ruins a team's
chances at glory for that season, so be it. Those injuries I can
accept. The injuries that occur in pre-season, can not be justified.