that sportswriter Doyle Woody isn't the most technically proficient guy in the place. Could be true; I knew him so long ago that we didn't even have technology.But the guy knows hockey, and he's in the blogosphere now. If you're thinking about bloging yourself, I thought you might find this illuminating – or entertaining, anyhow.
Aces blog: Renowned technophobe Doyle Woody has been dragged kicking and screaming into the blogosphere, and to no one's surprise, he has turned Woody on Hockey into the definitive source for Alaska hockey. Here's a quick Q&A on his expanded role at the Daily News, brought to you by Daynote correspondent Casey Brogan.
Q What do you like most about it?
A It gives me something fresh to bitch about because, you know, my usual host of complaints were, frankly, getting kind of stale. On the upside, it gives me a place to give puckheads news about various Alaskans we otherwise would not have room for in the paper made of trees. And I'd like to correct that introduction. I was not dragged "kicking and screaming into the blogosphere.'' I distinctly remember I was bitching and moaning.
Q Least?
A When the brutal %^$#@*&$#@! wireless at Sullivan Arena cuts out right in the middle of posting a blog. Or every couple months when I am denied access to my own blog and I think, 'OK, I know the blog's lame, but it's not that lame.' Then I have to call Human Resources to check whether I am still actually employed at the ADN and I get that uncomfortable "We'll have to get back to you on that one'' response. Also, knowing there's probably no end to the damn thing in sight now. Remember, kids, this is what happens when you say 'yes' to an editor without thinking it through. This is what happens when you enter unarmed into a battle of wits. Plus, I feel like I should post frequently, so I find myself doing it at home, at the office, at rinks, which sends a terrible message to the kids out there, being all co-opted by The Man. There's gotta be some kind of 12-step program for this.
Q How disturbing do you find it to see yourself staring you in the face when you go to the blog site?
A Slightly less disturbing than if my burgeoning bald spot was evident in the mugshot. Of course, one of my "best friends'' says my blog picture looks like the "after'' photo of Nick Nolte, which I don't believe is a compliment. And probably not quite as disturbing as it is to fans who sit behind me at Sullivan Arena, see the blog up on my laptop, and probably think I'm such a self-absorbed tool that I'm re-reading my own stuff for pleasure.
Q. Have you found it technically daunting to produce?
A Not really, because my blog is pretty modest on that front -- no pictures, no video, no audio, no bells, no whistles, though I will occasionally link to video of a hockey fight for kicks. Plus, Brian Stone gave me a pretty by-the-numbers tutorial quickly and Josh Niva set up a bunch of my hyperlinks (I think that's what they're called). I'm still kicking myself for not using Josh's suggested name for the blog: "Jaromir Blagr.'' Granted, that name would have been very 'inside' hockey, but, c'mon, Woody on Hockey? I didn't exactly use up my cleverness quotient with that one, although the ego quotient looks pretty used up. The only ADN blogs with the author's name in them, I think, are mine and Andrew Halcro. I'm not sure what that says about me or Hair Boy, but I'm fairly certain it's not flattering.
Q Tell us a story too good to put in the blog.
A Oh, it's the usual mundane stuff, like the time I visited the home of a pro hockey player, went to use the spare bathroom and discovered an entire four-foot countertop covered by (unused, thankfully) condoms. I thought, 'Man, I knew this cat had a good life, but I never knew it was this good.'' Or there's the time recently I watched an Anchorage TV crew taping an interview with a pro player in an empty Outside rink while some of the player's teammates stood behind the cameraman and made faces, trying to get their teammate to crack up on tape. Both interviewer and interviewee maintained their composure -- well, until one of the player's teammates raced naked out of the nearby dressing room, stood behind the cameraman and began mock-pleasuring himself. That's hockey -- Sport of Kings.
No comments:
Post a Comment