The national news is rough right now. What\u2019s happening in Minnesota is illegal, unconstitutional, unethical\u2014and really scary. I do take some comfort in watching people stand up for what\u2019s right, but sometimes the healthiest thing I can do is step away from the constant stream of headlines for my own sanity.<\/p>\n
Enter: the NFL playoffs. Few things can hold my attention for hours the way a close, well-played football game can, and the last couple of weekends have delivered. Bonus points for the nonstop motion and bright colors on the screen, which have completely captivated my cats.<\/p>\n
For as long as professional sports have existed, people have used them as a mental break from whatever is weighing on the world\u2014war, economic stress, or just the general chaos of \u201ceverything.\u201d There\u2019s something about spending a few hours fully absorbed in rooting for your team (or passionately rooting against one) that is good for the soul<\/p>\n
Football season is winding down, but the Olympics are on the horizon. College and pro basketball and hockey are in full swing, and before long, baseball will be back too.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s okay\u2014necessary, even\u2014to find joy and distraction during dark times. So yes. Go sports.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The national news is rough right now. What\u2019s happening in Minnesota is illegal, unconstitutional, unethical\u2014and really scary. I do take some comfort in watching people stand up for what\u2019s right, but sometimes the healthiest thing I can do is step away from the constant stream of headlines for my own sanity. Enter: the NFL playoffs. Few things can hold my… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":721,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"{title}\n\n{excerpt}\n\n{url}","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[24,25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5493","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advice","category-bright-shiny-objects"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t