Ahhhhhh .... this is it!

If I was destined to have an appendicitis attack and subsequent surgery, I can think of no better time of year for it to have happened.  No one wants to be sick around the holidays, birthdays, wedding anniversary or - horror of horrors - right before our BIG vacation to Europe next month!  But July?  Well, that's a horse of a different color in our household.

NFL summer camps start in July, you see.  Around the second week of July, daily news stories crop up in the paper.  How many millions will it take for that first round draft choice to make it to camp?  Is that off-season surgery really going to work?  How many players are going to be late to camp because they (1) are still fulfilling their probation requirements, (2) haven't managed to lose that extra 45 pounds, or (3) failed the random drug test?  Is the new coach a miracle worker?  Has Al Davis' money run out or will this be the year he finally buys his dream team?  Is Brett Favre retiring?  Thinking about retiring?  Talking about retiring?  Texting about retiring?  Ahhhhh ..... gotta love the NFL.

My Raiders cut JaMarcus Russell so shouldn't be bothered by his recent arrest for possession of a controlled substance (cocaine syrup, whatever the heck that is).  Mommas - don't let your babies grow up to be NFL quarterbacks.  They have way too much money and way too little common sense, it seems.

By the third week of July, summer camps are underway, the news gets even juicier, and my blood pressure and sense of excitement start to climb.  Can't be too long now until the first exhibition game in August.  This is also about the time that the subject of football creeps into my conversations and eyes roll.  I am sure my family starts to think, "Here she goes again."

So, if I have to be sore, fatigued, and totally lacking in motivation, I can still read about my sport.  I can get Howie Long's book down from the shelf ("Football for Dummies") and once again try to learn the intricacies of this game.  I can ask someone to buy a $5 bet for me on the Raiders to win the Super Bowl.  Don't laugh.  Real fans are ever hopeful.  I can wonder what an NFL season would be like without Brett Favre.  Not a nice thought.