Magazine Downer

During the summer months there is a certain day all college football fans anxiously await. The day the elite college football magazine comes out. Street & Smith as this magazine is called comes out not too early or not too late into the summer, but rather at the perfect time. You have just enough time to gather all the season's information right before the football year finally kicks off.

Yes, I understand there are numerous college football magazines (Athlon Sports) out there from the beginning of the summer, but Street & Smith is in a different league. Best way to explain it is with a Street & Smith college football preview magazine, you the reader are actually interested in reading about "great" teams such as Duke and Temple.

That's powerful.

This past Friday my dad got home from being out of town. He said he had seen Street & Smith's at a airport newstand. My whole day was set. I was getting my Street & Smith issue and for the next 72 hours my eyes were not leaving that magazine. But more importantly, I would finally be able to cease watching reruns of the Cosby Show.

I raced to the nearby Kroger, weaving through traffic like Stevie Wonder was behind the wheel. I ran into the store and looked down the magazine aisle. Nothing. Some NFL magazines, 400 fantasy football issues, and some low-quality college football magazines that seemed to only focus on the Big Ten.

I began to panic so I got in my stallion of a car and drove over to Barnes & Noble. As I raced inside, I bulldozed over any living creature in my way. Looked around and found the magazine section of the store. Once I arrived at my destination I saw to my dismay that again there was not a Street & Smith issue. Something was wrong. I called my dad asking for reassurance that he did indeed see a Street & Smith at the airport. I explained to him all I was seeing were Athlon Sport magazines.

Then I heard the words that will haunt me forever.

"Geez I thought I had seen one, maybe I was mistaken."

I bought the Athlon Sports copy and drove home. I still find myself waiting for the Street & Smith issue to arrive, but when I do I can't help but remember the day my dreams were crushed..

...crushed by a man who had simply mistaken one magazine for another...