Apartment Blog

Football is fast becoming the most popular sport in America.  Some people are purely Pro-Football fans and others purely College Football junkies.  However, one tradition that transcends both levels is tailgating. Because Football Saturday is one of the main attractions of a football city/town, people from all over come for tailgating and watching games. It doesn’t matter if you even like football or understand the rules. Tailgating is a wholesome and fun event that the whole family can get involved in. It is also a source of pride and bragging rights for a community to have a competitive football team. 

For those that aren’t familiar with tailgating in the football world, it’s not “driving dangerously close to behind another vehicle.”  It is a social event that is held around the tailgate of a vehicle that usually involves beverages and grilling.  Fans dress in their team jerseys and talk about the upcoming game and get excited for the festivities.  It used to be an “underground” activity but has gained mainstream popularity with ESPN’s College game day reporting from the tailgating scene of the most exciting games of the day.

South Bend is one of those cities where tailgating is commonplace.  It is is also the current home to the College Football Hall of Fame. In a sense, every college football players dream is to make it to South Bend.  Although the Hall of Fame is scheduled to move to Atlanta soon, the pride of housing the Hall of Fame will never leave.  South Bend is a small city with a very dedicated and hardworking people.  Their allegiance is to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.  Notre Dame has one of the most storied football teams in history; some of that history even being documented in the popular movie Rudy. Notre Dame is at the center of this tradition and it is something you will enjoy during the fall months in South Bend.  Who knows, maybe you can make connections that will last through all the seasons!

Get more information and search tips on South Bend Apartments, or view all Apartments for Rent in South Bend, IN.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Bend,_Indiana

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tailgate_party

Boston, The largest city in the commonwealth of Massachusetts and one of the oldest cities in the United States, offers a rich and inviting history.  Part of this history involves three storied sports franchises; the Patriots, Celtics, and Red Sox. All three are recent World champions in Football, Basketball and Baseball, respectively.   The hype surrounding each franchise reaches a fevered pitch once their season starts and that level of excitement is unlikely to die down anytime soon.

The Patriots are in the process of writing their story and three Super Bowl wins in the last decade is a great introductory chapter.  The Celtics are reviving their past glory and still remain the franchise who has won the most NBA Championships in history.  The new tandem of All-Stars Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen have already won a  championship ring together in 2008, but can’t wait for you to come watch them win a few more. Boston loves their baseball and the Red Sox have not disappointed in recent years. 2004 and 2007 were championship years for the Red Sox and they are in the hunt again this year.

The Patriots actually play about 45 minutes outside of the center of Boston, in Foxboro. However, there are many great apartments within minutes of Boston’s Td Garden Arena and Fenway Park.

Get more information and search tips on Boston Apartments, or view all Apartments for Rent in Boston, MS.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston

Remember in January, we wrote an article ‘5 Reasons to Get Fit in 2009′? The whole premise of that article was to give you five reasons why working out at your apartment community fitness center provides you with great benefits. Well, we’ve gone a step further to break down how doing other activities in your apartment community can really add up for shedding calories this year!

These numbers are for a 150 lb person and based on a work-out for 30 minutes.

**information collected from HealthStatus.com

We’ve all heard the story of Peter and the Wolf, right?  Well when I think about the roller coaster ride Brett Favre has taken the NFL and all of its fans on the fable is the first thing that comes to mind.  Favre recently signed a two-year, $25 million with the Minnesota Vikings.  I’m just as salty as the next real football fan because last time I checked, football is a team sport, not a ‘come and do what you please, when you please sport’.  I’ve got a few thoughts on what he should do.  But who am I to say what Brett Favre should or shouldn’t do?

Just your average sports fan.  Back in the day, about 10-12 years ago, I was an avid Brett Favre fan, especially when he led the Packers to their Super Bowl win in 1996. Reminiscing on the good ‘ol days, check on these apartments for rent in Green Bay.  But now, that’s a distant memory.  His indecision has begun to overshadow his immense accomplishments in the NFL.

Fran Tarkenton, former great Minnesota Vikings quarterback, described it best in a recent interview on ‘Outside the Lines’, an ESPN show focusing on off the field issues in different sports and athlete’s lives, when he said Favre signing with Minnesota was an ‘absolute circus’.  I completely agree, I don’t think it’s fair to football fans and the NFL, to take attention away from important football issues to focus on whether or not Favre is going to make up his mind this year.

Taking things a step further, a guest analyst on ‘Mike and Mike in the Morning’, an ESPN radio show which also airs on ESPN2, spoke on Favre’s daughter’s indecisiveness on whether or not he should come out of retirement.  Apparently, Favre’s daughter first encouraged him to join the Vikings in hopes that she would make new friends, but later expressed her hesitation to leave her current friends.  The analyst said, “I guess the whole family has a history of waffling.”  The greatest line ever!

It’s deplorable how some find it acceptable for Favre, or anyone, to waltz on to a team without attending training camp or any pre-season workouts.  Please explain this to me!  Favre’s inability to make a decision has caused some rifts in relationships, particularly with the Green Bay Packers.  Since March of 2008 Favre has retired first with Green Bay, came back, and when Green Bay doesn’t honor his ‘un-retirement’ he signs with the Jets.  Then, he retired again after an injury-laden season with the New York Jets. If New York is your scene unlike the ‘waffling’ Favre, check out these apartments for rent in New York.

Now, a major reason Favre’s signing with Minnesota is so tough on Packers’ fans is because the Vikings are a division rival.  This is the ultimate sin in the NFL.  But, I guess Brett thinks he’s above the NFL, right?  He doesn’t even have to come to training camp to play!  All I’m saying is, we need to focus more on the game of football and less on turning Brett Favre into a god of the NFL.  Because that, he is not.

 Hyped that you’ve got Favre now?  Check out these Minneapolis, Minnesota apartments for rent. 

 It’s the most wonderful time of the year.  My cousin’s favorite song to accompany her favorite sport - football.  We’re going to focus on college football for this one though. 

The Florida Gators are the preseason #1, no surprise there.  I’m not a Gator fan by any means (FSU all the way!), but I’ve heard it is a pretty nice area.  If you’re starting school in the fall you may want to check out some off campus housing near Florida State University or the University of Florida.  With Tim Tebow returning for his senior season, the Gators are predicted to win their third national title in four years.   The top ten also includes:  Texas, Oklahoma, USC, Virginia Tech, Ohio State, Ole Miss, Alabama, Penn State and Oklahoma State, in that order.

The top ten rankings don’t show it, but the SEC is going to be a lot stronger this season with five teams in the top 25 (Florida, Alabama, LSU, Mississippi and Georgia).  LSU has been known for their defense in the past, but have struggled since power defensive lineman, Glenn Dorsey left in ‘08.  I have high hopes for the Tigers, though.  Georgia is a school that continues to go after it year after year; they finished last year with a very respectable 10-3 record.  Coach Mark Richt has a no nonsense attitude and apparently so does the Bulldogs’ mascot, UGA.

It’s clear that quarterbacks dominate discussion for this season with the top three Heisman candidates, Colt McCoy (Texas), Sam Bradford (Oklahoma) and Tim Tebow (Florida) all starting in the QB position.  Two of them hail from the Big 12 conference; Colt McCoy and Sam Bradford.  Out of these three, my vote goes to Colt McCoy because I’m neither a Florida nor Oklahoma fan.  My hatred for Oklahoma stems back to 2003 win they gave Jason White the Heisman trophy.  Larry Fitzgerald got robbed!  What ever happened to Mr. White anyway?  Has anyone seen or heard from him?  Is he even in the NFL anymore?  That would be a NO!  This is one of the many reasons why I’m looking forward to the Red River Rivalry even more this season.     

Last season Texas beat Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry even with the horrible officiating throughout the game.  And I will never understand how the Sooners jumped the Longhorns in the rankings last season when they clearly beat them in the head to head.  There will never be a logical explanation for that mess.  That’s the BCS ranking system for you.  But if you’re thinking about moving and you’re an avid college football fan like me, think about Texas as many would argue the Lone Star state is home to the best college football athletes in the country. Check out some apartments for rent in Dallas, Austin and San Antonio.

Schools in the rebuilding phase:  Notre Dame.  They are currently listed as #23 in USA Today Poll.  I think that’s rather high especially with Charlie Weis’ job hanging in the balance.  If the Fighting Irish don’t come through this year, he’s probably done.  The Irish have ranked in college football’s elite throughout history, but you wouldn’t know it from recent seasons.  They finished last season with a less than respectable 6-6 record.  That’s not going to get it done this year.   But if you’re still holding on to the Irish’s old glory days (like my father) then you’ll want to check out some apartments in South Bend. 

Miami is another school that’s had its share of struggles.  Miami really hasn’t been the same since the Ken Dorsey/Willis McGahee era (I’m not a Hurricanes fan, but I’m secretly a WM fan).   Even though they’re not ranked in the top 25, the ‘Canes have a lot of returning talent and look to start the season strong.  However, their first game is against the ‘Noles on 9/7 so that’s a guaranteed loss.  Sorry Miami. 

It looks like this is going to be a pretty eventful season.  Many analysts predict the Gators to win the 2010 National Championship, but I think it’s still up in the air.  Either way, I can’t wait for the season to start.  Everyone mark your calendar for Thursday, September 3^rd.  Hard hitting and pigskin, that’s what I live for.

When post people search for super bowl facts, the more interesting they are the better! So I searched through many websites and weeded out the not-so interesting stuff, to compile a list of 10 random facts I found interesting. I thought I’d share them with you….

1. The name “Super Bowl” was not used officially until the 3rd championship game in January 1969.

2. No NFL team has ever played the Super Bowl in their own stadium.

3. New Orleans and Miami have hosted the Super Bowl the most at 9 times.

4. Mike Ditka, Tom Flores, and Tony Dungy have all won a Super Bowl both as a player and a coach.

5. The following things have never happened in a Super Bowl: a scoreless first half, a shutout, an overtime game and a punt return for a touchdown.

6. 30-second TV commercials are believed to be costing close to $3 million this year. If this reported rate is true, how is it that we are in an economic crisis??

7. According to About.com, the amount of chips consumed on Super Bowl Sunday is over 14 tons!!

8. Eight million pounds of guacamole is consumed on Super Bowl Sunday.

9. An average of 6% of people will call out on the Monday following Super Bowl Sunday.

10. The Super Bowl is measured in Roman numerals because a football season runs the span over two calendar years.

Now granted I’m a football impaired chick, so these facts may not be an over the moon spectacular or anything. But they sure made me say ‘uh…’ when I read them. Hope they gave you a little something to think about, or a least a much needed break from your busy day!