It’s time to step into the 21st century, Jabber Nation.
For years, all you have ever seen were words on a page accompanied by a portrait of a smug, somewhat portly man, because we were bound by the lone, but lovely medium of newspapers.
Of course those words were pretty awesome, but we know sports are a visual medium. Sound doesn’t hurt either.
Take for example the story of 22-year-old Australian hiker Erin Langworthy, who decided it would be a good idea to spend her New Year’s Eve bungee jumping off the Victoria Falls Bridge — a bridge that stands 111 meters above Africa’s Zambezi River, a gorgeous body of water that happens to be infested with crocodiles.
Now the moment I heard this story being reported, I knew it was going to find its way into this week’s column. How could it not? A young girl doing something dumb and putting herself in the position to be devoured by crocs is too good to not write about.
But the journalist in me knew the one thing that would be better than reading about this would be to actually see it happen, which is something we can do now, thanks to technology and outlets like the Fort Meade Live blog, the installation’s website and Facebook page.
Just go to one of those sites and click on the link to see what I mean: http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/01/08/video-bungee-jump-a-near-disaster-as-australian-woman-plunges-into-african-river/.
Langworthy went on to say it was a “miracle” she survived the fall. I say it is a miracle someone got this epic fall on camera and maintained enough composure to keep the camera rolling as Langworthy rolled down river while those crocs were joking: “another chick on the barbee” or “a bird on a broken wire” or “mmm, lunch.”
Whatever those crocs were saying, the “miracle” put me in the mood to spend some government time trying to find some other clips. So do your best T.O. and get your popcorn ready as we watch some videos including this clip sent by my boy from Schofield Barracks in Hawaii — Kenny Washington — featuring high school football player Petey Williams: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qjsSzRkL8c.
Now, before I get too far into this, I do need to remind everyone, including myself, that this publication is for all audiences. So I avoided adding any of the Live Funny or Die “Gamechangers” videos, due to less than desirable language. Though “The Rant Writer” may be the funniest two minutes of video I’ve seen this decade. Almost as funny is this recent “Saturday Night Live” skit featuring who else — Tim Tebow: http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/tebow/1374394.
Disclaimer: This video came before the play that is being described as the “Mile High Miracle” or, as I like to call it, “Tebow 316″ because it gave Tim exactly 316 passing yards against Pittsburgh on Sunday.
Also, I would show you the video of the play that literally made my brother believe in the hereafter. But apparently, the NFL has removed all video evidence of this play from YouTube.
So, I’ve decided to share another great play in football history, brought to you courtesy of the greatest video game ever — Super Tecmo Bowl — and the greatest athlete in video game history — Vincent “Bo” Jackson: http://www.myspace.com/video/steve/tecmobo/1808770.
Tell me those graphics don’t make you want to run down to your aunt’s basement with a frozen pizza, a few 2-liters of pop (no cups, of course), and four of your best friends for an all-night Tecmo tournament.
I think I still have blisters on my thumbs from that game, just like my stomach is still queasy from watching this video of all-time sports injuries, accompanied by a little bit of Ozzy Osborne for your listening pleasure: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wxebhExcTk. By the way, this video has given me a whole new respect for soccer, which means I actually have some now.
And because it is always my goal to leave you all feeling good, whether with words or video, here is a final clip that is sure to bring a smile to your face: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TB7NXdYDtBs&feature=related.
This week’s playoff games:
Hopefully, New England will do what the Steelers could not and beat Tebow. The Ravens will be too much at home for Houston.
In the NFC, the Niners will beat the Saints and then host New York next week, after the Giants put the boots to Green Bay.
If you have comments on this or anything else to do with sports, contact me at chad.t.jones.civ@mail.mil.
This Fort Meade Live blog was written by Public Affairs Officer Chad Jones.
