Okay, I'm feeling the need to sound off on a couple of things that are bugging me lately. The first is franchise restaurants; specifically fast-food establishments. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought the IDEA of franchising is to give patrons the same menu, quality(or lack thereof), and taste(see quality) at every restaurant whether it is in Pierre, South Dakota or Biloxi, Mississippi. But it has become increasingly apparent to this reviewer that this is NOT always the case. Let me explain ...
The incident that has led me to this revelation is my recent addiction to Frozen Cokes at Burger King. These were introduced last Summer and have become my main reason for visiting Burger King. In fact my habit has become so pronounced, that now I'm almost obliged to order them 2 at a time. But here's the problem. When they were FIRST introduced, you couldn't find them in ALL of Burger King's locations. The reason for this was that the machinery was expensive and therefore was not immediately available at all restaurants. But if this was the case then WHY roll out the ad campaign??? You could wait a few weeks 'til ALL your franchisees are up to speed! But this is a minor annoyance - there's something much more dastardly going on with these. And that is lack of QUALITY!
I have had at least one Frozen Coke at every Burger King that I've seen since their introduction, and there can be a VAST difference in taste from place to place. My question - WHY???? I mean all you have to do is pour the syrup into the damn machine, turn it on, and out comes frozen sweetness, right? Can it be THAT hard??? I know that the employees of these types of places are not exactly the cream of the crop when it comes to our nation's educational system, but this isn't Rocket Science. Just measure, pour, and serve. That's It! And don't try and tell me that I'm imagining this. I've noticed differences in color ranging from a very light tan (too little syrup), to a deep brown (too much melting.) Then there's the texture. It should be relatively smooth, not at all coarse. If you can feel each ice granule against your tongue, something is wrong. We need more stringent quality control to nip this problem in the bud. In fact, I'm willing to volunteer my services. If there's anyone from Diageo [ed. the parent company of Burger King] reading this, I can be reached from the Mail link off the Bio page ...
Okay, I've got that off my chest and I'm feeling a bit better. On to my next annoyance. And that is the Arena Football League! In case you missed it, the AFL is unable to reach a contract agreement with its players and has canceled the entire 2000 season. Now I realize that Union Contract Disputes have become commonplace in sports, but this is once again affecting the most maligned sports market in the Country (Connecticut), and more importantly it's affecting ME!
A bit of history on the sad state of Connecticut Sports. This is the state that the Hartford Whalers left after draining their loyal fans of every bit of cash they could muster. It's the state that was home to the most successful franchise in the ABL, but was soundly ignored by the rival WNBA when the former league folded and we begged for a franchise. It's the state that has been teased and tortured by promises of relocation by the New England Patriots every time the state of Massachusetts doesn't give them what they want. And it's the state that the AFL took the Connecticut Coyotes away from, even though in two years they maintained a solid attendance, though they only won three games during those years.
And now, it looks like we've lost another team - The New England Seawolves. The Wolves actually ARE the Coyotes, after two years of suffering in Madison Square Garden as the New York Cityhawks. And once again, the Wolves were drawing a solid 7,000 average attendance, with yours truly as a season ticket holder. Now normally in a dispute such as this, I can ALMOST understand the League's position. They are trying to make a profit and they don't feel the players are bargaining in good faith. And I can understand that the players feel that they are entitled to make a decent living playing football. But this situation is DIFFERENT. This time the owners have decided that they are tired of dealing with the players as individuals and what the players to unionize. And the players are BALKING!!!! How stupid is this? In the meantime, neither group understands how the people of Connecticut are being affected by this. We were sold out by Peter Karmanos and then Governor Lowell Weicker when the Whalers left town. We were toyed with by Pats owner Robert Krafft much like a kitten plays with a ball of yarn to the point that the state is now SUING the Patriots for lost money spent on environmental studies and planning at the proposed site for a new stadium. And we were told by the WNBA that we couldn't get an expansion franchise because we don't have an NBA franchise, even though we have the most fiercely devout fans of women's basketball in the country!
At least we still have the Huskies. But even in the light of the UConn Men's and Women's remarkable success of the past decade it's getting harder and harder to feel good about being a Connecticut sports fan. We just keep getting told that we're not a good market, without being given a chance. And as the WNBA has shown, we can't get a team until we HAVE a team! It's a Catch-22 situation that is seeing small market teams across the country struggling to keep their heads above water, and franchise free-agency killing off even the most ardent fan's love of their favorite sport. And it's going to get worse. Unfortunately I haven't got an answer. Because when I would normally be sitting in my seats above the time-out sign in the far end zone at the Hartford Civic Center enjoying the kickoff fireworks, I'll be sitting at home wondering if I'll ever see another Arena Football game. I think I'll just drown my sorrows. Anyone know where I can get a good Frozen Coke ??
ADDENDUM: Wouldn't you know it???? I go and get my shorts in a bunch over this whole AFL thing to the point that I put it on paper, and the next day the league and the new players bargaining committee agree to start talking and the season is back on! And to top that off, the NFL has settled out of court with the state of Connecticut for 2.4 million dollars to reimburse any costs incurred during the planning for a new stadium. One last note, if any of our intrepid readers out there are attending any games this season, I should be getting the same seats I had last season. It's the first row of one of the Three Hundred sections. If you're coming in through the mall entrance it's the first set of stairs on your left, right across from the beer stand. I'll be the tall, round, balding guy in the Black jersey, howling like a moron. GO SEAWOLVES!!!!