My fantasy, my nightmare

For reasons that aren't relevant to this post, I am in the 11th week of my first fantasy sports experience. I've heard a lot of people talk about it, about how fun it is, how it makes sports come so much more "alive," that it re-creates the experience of playing — the nervousness, the anxiety, etc.

What a load.

Anyway, to get the experience I joined the fantasy league for Barclay's Premier League. Yes, English premier league soccer. Don't ask me why I thought I could do it, just go with it.

Well, as you can see by the picture, after 10 weeks, I am near the bottom, particularly for the month of October. To put this in a bit of perspective, there were about 1.4 million people who joined the first week (when I did), and about 200,000 more who have joined over the past 10 weeks. So, that means overall, I am about 150,000 from the BOTTOM of people who have been playing all 10 weeks. October, as you can see, has been a really fine month, with my 120 points 80,000 from dead last.

Dead last. Holey-Moley is right! My fantasy dream season has turned into a fantasy nightmare. Except without the whipped cream of my real nightmare fantasies (don't ask).

But no more. From this day forward, I plan to take a real interest in what I'm doing. To be honest, I chose my team on what little name recognition I could muster. The other nine players I chose just because their name sounded cool. That explains why I chose Kitson, from Stoke City. His 18 points over the past 10 weeks explains why I traded him.

So, to set the record straight, my fantasy is to struggle through a season in which the futility of my efforts is surpassed only by the futility of my understanding of the league, its team, its history, and its players.

(Note: This originally appeared in my other blog: 10 Minute Ramble, in case you're wondering.)