Those of you who know me well know I go a little overboard with my hobbies. When I got into golf, I also got into everything that was tangential to golf. I bought a set of clubs, signed up for lessons, found all the cutest clothing brands and got a smartwatch that downloaded courses and doubled as a sort of rangefinder. I became obsessive about tracking weather and finding tee times.
I, personally, still think all of that was necessary for a brand-new golfer. Especially the cute clothes.
But that’s just one example. I got super into skiing again a few years back. I got super into biking along the lake here in Chicago. I go through these brief spells where my newest hobby is the only thing I want to do.
Which brings me to mahjong.
I have become totally obsessed with mahjong. My friend Arielle taught me and my husband how to play a few weeks ago, and I got hooked immediately. I bought a gorgeous new set of tiles and a travel set. I downloaded an app that lets me play whenever I want against bots. I love the game itself, but I also love the act of playing this game with other people over a period of hours. It’s tactile, which I enjoy. But it’s also slow-moving enough that you can chat or listen to music or drink adult beverages throughout.
It reminds me of golf in that it’s usually an activity that requires you to commit to it for a few hours. That allows my work brain to turn off, and it allows for genuine joy (or frustration) and human connection. I can’t recommend it enough if you’re looking to slow yourself down a bit.
And, yes, I know that basically every 30-something woman in the world is playing American mahjong these days, so this all might sound super cliche or rather basic. But it’s been a highlight of my summer as I prepare to say goodbye to the offseason and hello to college football once again.
What I’ve been up to:
Lots of preseason college football! You can always hear my thoughts on the latest in the sport on the podcast I do with former Ohio State linebacker Joshua Perry. We’ve covered a lot of ground this summer, from the Brendan Sorsby saga to the ongoing CFP expansion debate and everything in between. We’ll be previewing all four Power 4 leagues over the next few weeks, so stay tuned for that. I’m also doing written previews — here’s my Big 12 preview, and you can check NBCSports.com each week for more.
Lots of swimming! Last week, I covered the U.S. National Championships out in Irvine, Calif. I had such a blast getting to chronicle some breakout moments for young swimmers as well as the triumphant return of Caeleb Dressel. We’re less than two years away from LA28, and the times are fast, the swimmers looking so good.
My upcoming schedule:
Football season may be just around the corner, but the swimming season hasn’t ended just yet! We’ve still got the year’s biggest international meet for Americans coming up, and it should be a monster of a meet. I’ll be covering the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships next week in Irvine, Calif. My reports and interviews will be part of the NBC highlight shows that air Saturday (8/15) and Sunday (8/16) afternoon. And I want this on record: At least two world records will fall at this meet — at the hands of Gretchen Walsh and/or Kate Douglass.
I’ll be making a few more training camp stops between now and Week 0. I’ll be in Bloomington, Ind., to visit the defending national champion Indiana Hoosiers on Monday, and then I’ll hit both LA schools the following week. If you’re interested in USC, I recommend my sitdown interview with head coach Lincoln Riley from Big Ten media days. It’s the most confident I’ve seen Riley since he got to SoCal. He knows this team is going to be good … but he also knows these Trojans are going to be tested. I’ll also hit up Notre Dame, Wisconsin and some others before the season kicks off.
Please subscribe, download, rate and review episodes of my college football podcast Rushing The Field. Joshua and I are biased, obviously, but we think we do a pretty good job of identifying storylines in the sport before everyone else catches on. We’ll also tell you the strengths and weaknesses of teams before they win ‘em or cost ‘em games. It’s a show that will make you smarter as a college football fan, and it would mean a lot if you could help us grow the show even more this fall. We’ll actually be taking it on the road a bit — more details to come.
We’ll get our Big Ten College Countdown season started with Week 0 this year! We’ve got USC-San Jose State on Aug. 29, so get that DVR ready.
That’s all I’ve got for now. Hit me up if you want to play mahjong!