by richard teague tinynascars@yahoo.com
Bummed. That’s what I am, Big Time. Why you ask? For several reasons. I feel really bummed out about Sunday’s race. Of all things for ESPN to do, they replayed the Watkins Glen race from last week? Why not one of the other two races they did so far this season? Heck, I didn’t watch it last week and I’m sure not going to watch it this week. Come on guys, ya’ shoulda’ shown another one. Yeah, I know they probably thought it was an exciting race but it was NOT! Pocono was a real snorer, but it wouldn’t have been much better. Now, Indy would have been just fine with me, only cause I got to see Tony and the guys climb up the fence a little ways. But to do the Glenn again? Now, I’ve gone two weeks without any racing, and that’s a bummer.
On that note, I now have got to go three whole weeks without a race because I have to work Monday, and I don’t think my boss would approve of me in the customer’s lounge watching it, but then again I bet ya’ David will be in there, and he’s the Big Boss, so what’s Donnie going to do? I can see it now, “Tiny what the heck are you doing in here watching TV? Oh, hi Mr. Hamm. Y’all enjoying the race? Tiny, when the race is over, if you can, we need ya back at your desk.” Now you see I would never put him in that position, so I’ll just miss the race altogether and keep up with it online. I guess I could tape it on the new 42” flat panel TV I bought last week, but then I still wouldn’t get to comment on it because by next Sunday, when I’m writing next week’s column, I’ll be talking about Bristol, and man, you know there’s always plenty to say about the BTB (Bristol Toilet Bowl).
So there’s two reasons I was not thrilled Sunday evening, but I still haven’t said the main reason. I’ve only touched on it. Last week my trusty 35” Mitsubishi TV decided to puke out, so I did my studying about televisions and finally figured out which one to buy. I read several web pages about “How To Buy a TV.” I thought I was confused before, well after that I was numb. You know I still remember when my Dad brought home our first back & white back in the fifties and I would watch it for hours (like we all did). Then one day a bunch of us went over to some guy’s house, I can’t even remember their name, and his family had a color TV. We asked his Dad if he would adopt the whole gang so we could live there.
Well, we knew that wasn’t going to happen so I made a pact with the guys to ask our own parents to get one, but we all lived on the poor side of the street with hardworking parents, ‘cause it was a long time before I got a color TV. Anyway, back to my story. I finally made my choice between set A or set B and went shopping. Wrong move. I’ll tell you right now that shopping at C.C. or B.B. really ain’t what it is all cracked up to be by their commercials. There aren’t any helpful salesfolks, like Lowe’s or Home Depot, that help you make the right choice. These clowns are either so smart that they can tell you anything about a sports viewing monitor from 12 to 60 inches of viewing pleasure, or you get one that can’t turn the blooming thing on and asks you if you know how.
I seem to be a lucky type of fellow, ‘cause I tend to get the latter type salesperson when I’m out shopping for those big dollar things for the home. Well I should have known, getting bummed so early in the week, that it would go right into the weekend. Then again, I normally have a good outlook on life. After all the BS at the big three electronics stores, my lovely wife said, “Honey, how about Sam’s” and I thought, now why didn’t I think about that? But then I remembered why. To make a short story long, I went to Sam’s and bought me a new 42” flat panel HDTV with 1080P and 75 plug-ins for all the stuff I’m going to run through that baby for the next 20 years.
Now, back to main reason for my bummedness. I’m telling everybody at work Thursday and Friday that I’m going to watch the Michigan race Sunday with a new 42-incher. I’ll get to watch the whole race from turn to turn with that flat, wide-ass baby. All day Saturday I’d been thinking, man it is going to be so dang cool tomorrow seeing NASCAR coming right at me out of the corner where I put that big mama. I will got up Sunday morning still thinking about the race that afternoon, so I started doing a few things before the race came on. I put a bunch of auctions on eBay and I fed the dog and, you know, things like that so I could have the afternoon free to watch the race. I’m back here on my computer checking the time and trying to miss the pre-race show, or getting just one more auction on.
OK, it was 2 pm and I headed for the TV room and my new TV. By the way, I told my wife I couldn’t do anything with her because the race was on, so she wasn’t real happy, but a good wife accepts it. So I see that they still have the pre-deal on with winkin blinkin and nod (y’all will have guess which is which on that cause I don’t want to even go there for now) and I look behind nod, who is sitting in the middle of this wide desk, which was the first time I’ve seen it all at one time (ah widescreens), and behind Rusty it looks like Dena was coming aground in Cuber or something. I figured perhaps they were at another track, not even at Michigan. So I go back and slam a few more auctions on and give’em a tad longer knowing the “Show” will start soon.
By the time I get me some munchies and a cold drink and sit down on the wife’s new couch and get ready, what do I see? A whole field of 600 horsepower racecars getting ready for the green flag and it’s not Michigan, it’s Watkins Glen. I just couldn’t believe my eyes! Then I see on the crawler at the bottom of my new TV, “NASCAR has postponed the 3M Performance 400 until Monday at 12 pm” and I almost started to cry. Like I said, not having a race in my system for two weeks (and now one more) is bad on a guy. But maybe it’s just what I got to do as some kind of payment to be able to catch the “Night Race at Bristol,” which, to me, is one of the most thrilling races of the whole season.
Just look at me, I’ve used all my space talking about myself and didn’t mention anything that has gone on this week in NASCAR. Let me give it a real quick shot right here: Junior not getting the #8 – well we knew that was going to happen. Kurt Busch going to Joe Gibbs Racing – even my Pomeranian, Coco, knew that two weeks ago. Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon getting their crew chiefs back – this made big headlines on NASCAR.com, heck all of us can count can’t we? Let’s see here, Rudd Man hanging up – well I thought he did that already, but he will maybe be available for part time work. Oh oh, how bout NASCAR getting a favorable judge (or rather three of them) saying that AT&T can’t run the logo on the #31 car. OK Richard, what are you going to do about that? Or rather, what is AT& T going to do?
See, I guess there was a lot to write about besides my being unhappy this Sunday. There will be another race Saturday and a few more after that, so I need to clam down. Gee, I really do hate being a martyr. I guess I could run over in the amount of words for this week to make up for last week’s shorty, but I won’t, Brother Will, so I’m done. Remember you can contact me at tinynascars@yahoo.com If it ain’t NASCAR, It ain’t s**t!!
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