My fanpost should be generic enough to pass over and cryptic enough for some confusion, but here it is...

With Spring Training games less than a couple of weeks away, I have to ask:

I’m lucky enough to live in warmer climate and have already gotten a whiff of fresh cut grass and the sounds of bat on ball while lines are being painted. A few brews and some crawfish and I’m in heaven.

Bonne chance this season Brewers!

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How many "baseball" fans would cheer as enthusiastically if there were no city behind the team? No names on the jerseys of a solid plain uniform?

The game itself is the best GAME in the world, period. However, football is clearly more popular. Many of us would take baseball over football in a heartbeat. But do you only care about the Brewers and not so much about baseball as a superior sport?  I’m not saying there cannot be Brewers fans who are also baseball fans, absolutely there are many who are both. But the baseball fan takes baseball over the Brewers everytime and the Brewers fan visa versa.

Computer generate a great baseball play, ala a steal of home plate or a turned d-play in a crucial point in the game, and a baseball fan may rise up and cheer.  However take the same play and put the team in a rival uni and see if there is the same reaction from a Brewers fan.  Most likely not. A true fan of baseball can appreciate great baseball moments without prejudice. Do people still watch when their team is not involved?

There is a difference between a fan of the ‘game of baseball’ and a fan of baseball in Milwaukee, Houston, Boston, or Los Angeles, … wherever.  I think if you delved deeper you’d find many on here care more about the Brewers than they do about "baseball." Not that there is anything wrong with that, but so many are not even honest with themselves. There are biased so-called baseball fans who would never under any circumstances applaud great baseball if it went against their home team.

It’s easy for someone like me to say that baseball is much bigger than the name of the city and far bigger than the name of the player, but I find more and more that people are not baseball fans….. They are Brewers fans or Astros fans or Red Sox fans or Yankee fans - you get my point?

The fan of t-ball, Little League, high school, college, and Minor League baseball is more likely to "get" what I'm saying.   

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I admit, I have not been the most loyal fan of any one baseball team.  I'm from a place that doesn't have a MLB club to call their own, so I find myself still in search.  However, as one guy put it, "if you haven't found a team in forty plus years, you're not going to."  I don't know if that is true, but it sounds logical.  But I've never been one to be reasonable when it comes to logic.  Afterall, I believe that rally caps WORK.

Around here (south Louisiana) there are a wide variety of baseball fans, mostly parents of Little Leaguers and high school kids - baseball is still big on the lower levels.  Fans of UL Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns baseball can be seen at any given moment, as well as those fans of LSU baseball.  However, when it comes to the Majors it's just total chaos.  My neighbors wear Yankees and Red Sox gear.  The Cubs and Braves also have a following, mainly because of nationally televised games via WGN (Chicago) and TBS (Atlanta).  The Astros and Rangers must be really big here, too, because their games are constantly being blacked-out... afterall, it's just a short four and a half hour drive to Houston from here (rolls eyes - don't get me started on dat).

So I'm still in search of a team.  I once thought I was a Red Sox fan, but I eventually realized that I didn't love the Sox so much as I just hated the Yankees.  Throughout the years I have come to the conclusion that I am a BASEBALL fan (period).  I'll applaud good baseball moments in whatever capacity. 

My point is quickly approaching... hold tight.  The other day my wife brings home a baseball cap.  She said it had ME written all over it because of my hobby and unhealthy obsession.  It was a Milwaukee BREWERS cap.  What does this mean?  Probably nothing... but as stated before, I'm not one to understand the logic of a meaningless coincidence - I'm from the land of good gris-gris and voodoo, and I am a baseball fan, so I have a double dose of superstition.  Plus, it actually does fit who I am - an avid baseball fan and a homebrewer.

I suppose some could call me a "bandwagon jumper," but I always thought that bandwagon jumpers jumped to GOOD teams (ouch.... I know).  I love underdogs.  Sadly, if I root for a team it's probably because they are not at the top.   I understand pain and trial... I've been a New Orleans Saints fan for 44 years.  I also bring good LUCK, it only took us that long to win a Superbowl. (To the sarcasm impaired: I'm only "halfway" joking.)

In all seriousness, to you true Brewers fans..... STAY LOYAL.  You don't need a guy like me pretending to be a fan for one season. But I will come by from time to time and talk baseball.  I might just pull for y'all in secret  ("Geaux Brewers in 2011!").     

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By the way, I should have played Professional Baseball when I was younger and the ONLY reason that I didn't was that, as it turns out, I wasn't very good at throwing, hitting, or catching a baseball.

Dave had a good idea for me to brew something for CSC. 

http://www.canalstreetchronicles.com/2010/12/3/1850881/4th-and-geaux-saints-at-bengals-edition#comments

I'm all for it and think it's a cool idea, but we need to get a flood of opinions as to what style of beer is best fitted for CSC ... AND... what do you want to name it?  Some of you artsy folk can come up with a label. 

My suggestion is a Brown Ale, mainly because brown ales pair well with HAMBURGERS, baby!  Actually, the burger itself pairs well with a brown ale, but you can spice up a burger and pair it with an American Pale Ale nicely.  But whatever and whichever the group decides would be cool.  This is kind of a fun idea to toy with, but there are complications that I'll explain below.  I'm pretty sure this was suggested as a joke, but let's just say this site had a beer - what would it be and what would you name it?

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By now you've seen the Andre Johnson / Cortland Finnegan fight at least 52 times and if you watched Mike & Mike in the Morning, ESPN First Take, The Herd w/ Colin Cowherd, and SportsCenter, then you'd know that everyone to a man has sided with Andre Johnson on this deal.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=5860086

I didn't exactly know Finnegan's reputation before yesterday, but I certainly have an idea of it now.  He's been called out as being a dirty player.  Okay.  Fine.  However, when Malcolm Jenkins plays dirty in games, most Saints fans applaud it.  Whatever.  Dirty is dirty, I don't care if they have a fleur-de-lis on their helmet or not.

I've been itching to call out another player who wore the Purple and Gold for LSU who I always thought was a dirty player... LaRon Landry, who now plays for the Redskins.  He was a dirty player at LSU and he's a dirty player now.  What do I mean by "dirty?"  Pushing, grabbing, holding, punching, kicking, and laying on a player after the play is over pretty much sums that up.  Landry has had his share of calls, but not nearly as many as was deserved. 

I like hard-nosed aggressive play, but I also know what goes around comes around.  Bravo Andre Johnson!  Bravo! 

Well, mostly beer.

The Saints Bye-Week is a bit slow for news, so today I wanted to address some "really important" issues. In order to make this post relevant to the New Orleans Saints I may just give a random Geaux Saints every now and then. However, many will agree that there is nothing more relevant to football than beer and boobies.

This post isn’t about me trying to convince you that there is really good beer available. I don’t really care what you drink, well sorta. The craft beer movement is in full swing and you’d have to live under a rock to not know there are styles of beer other than pale or premium lagers here in the USA. To those of you who don’t drink beer or don’t even like it at all, I have no problem with you. That is your choice and I will not picket the streets in protest like some of my beer enthusiast brothers. To each his own. Geaux Saints!

I also can understand how some beer drinkers will stick to their mass produced pale lagers. One beer guru said this: "I like ketchup just fine. I don’t give it much thought when I’m at the grocery store other than I’m out and need some. I will pick up Heinz (or insert any well-known name here) because it’s a well known brand and I like their commercials. It meets my ketchup needs and I don’t have to do anything but buy it. But I’m sure there is some ketchup nerds out there that would be appalled at the thought of buying Heinz. To them, ketchup should be made of organically grown tomatoes, with no HFCS, and all the finest ingredients that a "craft" ketchup is made with. The same is true of beer. If Bud, Miller, Coors (BMC) meets your beer needs, then okay. However, there is better beer out there if you are searching for it." Geaux Saints!

If I told a wine connoisseur that I don’t really like wine, but all I’ve had was MD 20/20 or another cheap "wine" then, would he not try to give me some wine suggestions that might change my mind about wine? Coffee, bread, cheese, beer, wine... they all have web sites dedicated to them.

I was buying some bread one day when I got into a conversation with a man who seemed to know a lot about bread. He shook his head about my choice and told me, "Well, if you wanna call that substance they put into plastic bags that stays fresh for two weeks bread, then okay, but it’s not real bread." Then he picked up a 12 pk of Bud Light and put it in his buggy and then I shook my head and said Geaux Saints!

Most of my homebrewers club members are pretty gung-ho about changing other people’s minds about beer. Walk into their man-cave / brew stations with a BMC in your hands and you’re subject to getting shot. Me? I don’t care, cher. Sure, I’d like for people to enjoy the same things I do, but I know that most people have a routine and this gets more solid with age. When I complained about the food in London, one Brit was determined to change my mind all in two minutes. I told him that I was from a place where when we’re having breakfast the main conversation is what we’re going to eat for lunch. I know what good food is. If you wanna change the mind of an American, start with a New Yorker. If you wanna change the mind of a BMC drinker, start with a youngster, like me. Well, young at heart anyway. GEAUX BEER! So if any of you youngsters want to learn homebrewing and more about beer, let me know. I’ll be here all week.

Oh! I forgot.... BOOBIES!

Night and day. That’s the difference between the Saints team that took the field against the Browns and the one that showed up against the Steelers. Yes, a night and day performance and a literal night and day. Same players, same Dome. How much does motivation play a factor? Take out the different coaching scheme.

I’ve learned through personal experience that a blanket style of managing (or coaching) doesn’t work for me. It might work for others, but I haven’t seen it. Outside of technical changes in the way things are done, there is only a factor of effort and even then many areas are situational.

If we are talking about motivation only, then management needs to understand the personnel. Case in point: I have two employees in particular that I simply cannot treat the same way and get positive results. Both are hard workers, but if there is a time where improvement is needed I have to be firm with one man and the other I have to pat on the back. The guy I patted on the back for the things he does well will kill for me. That’s the way he works. He needs some reassurance that I find him a valuable employee and he’ll make the needed adjustments that I ask of him. The other guy I can pat on the back and nothing is changed, but when I kick his ass he goes into red-alert mode and is basically one of my best people. I have many more that are pat on the back type employees.

I don’t think that making people fear for their jobs is a good motivational tool. Other members of management have disagreed with that thought, but I’ve been doing this a day or two and I know what works and what does not.

What does this have to do with football? Maybe nothing, maybe everything, maybe I’ve had too much coffee and just like typing. However, don’t you think that some players need a kick in the ass and some need a pat on the back to perform better? Some people will say, "Oh no, no, no. Those guys are ‘professionals’. They shouldn’t need any ‘motivation’ from the coaching staff." Wrong. They are professional, but they are still young people. They are human and it is human nature to be influenced one way or another by outside factors, whether it be from their peers or their wives or the coaching staff.

In life, whether it be in sports or your place of business, negatives are constantly highlighted so improvements can be made.  It's important, I think, how those negative issues are handled. 

So, how much does the crowd make a difference? Isn’t a "BOO" and a "CHEER" from the home crowd similar to a kick in the butt or a pat on the back? "Nah, they’re professionals, they are not influenced by the crowd." Or are they? 

Any thoughts on motivation, whether it be athletes or a regular job? Any thoughts on the crowd being a factor? Any thoughts on what I should eat for lunch because I’m getting kind of hungry?

Me:  (Where's my snare..... I have no snare on my headphones) Testing.   Hi, I'm CajunCavern here with the Madden Curse.  You are a hard curse to track down.  I've been all over the place hunting you down....

Madden Curse: Yeah, I've been to Pittsburgh, Tennessee, Philadelphia.  Lot of places, but I'm loving me some New Orleans now.  Great food.

Me:  You know, many people don't think you even exist.

Madden Curse: (munching on shrimp po-boy)  Oh, I don't.  I'm not here.  You never saw me.  (evil grin)

Me:  Yeah, but here you are, spicy ketchup dripping down your chin.  I'd just like to know why?  Why New Orleans?  Why now?  Can't you go back to Atlanta or somewhere?

Madden Curse:  Look, I don't choose where I go.  I really don't.  Someone in marketing does that kind of thing.  I just go where they tell me to.  But, I'm not here.  I don't exist.  You never saw me.  Where can I get some good jambalaya?

Me:  I'll hook you up with all the jambalaya you can eat if you just back off of my QB and my team for a while.  What you did to Drew Brees on Sunday against the Browns was brutal.  Please, just go away.  You've already taken away Reggie and Pierre for now.  Did you have to mess with Drew?

Madden Curse:  He's on the cover!  I'm just doing my job.  But, it was two-fold.  I wasn't just picking on Drew... I figured David Bowens was due for a career game.  But, really, I DON'T exist.  So this "interview" is bogus. 

Me:  Just please, .... please back off.  You don't have to leave town.  There are plenty of tourists who need shaking up, but please just lighten up on the Saints.  We've been through enough.

Madden Curse:  Okay, we'll see.  I'm not making any promises..... but like so many have said... I DON'T EXIST!   (evil laugh)  MUUUUUAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! 

This question has so many answers.  Possibly the comments will be all over the spectrum since this is a personal question with no right or wrong answers.

Why do you care?  About what?  ABOUT THE SAINTS.  ABOUT THE NFL.  What makes you watch, and more importantly, what makes you get frustrated, stop watching, and then ultimately return to watching?  As fans we have highs (goosebumps, if you will) and lows ..... but ONLY if we CARE.  You really, truly cannot get angry or excited or upset over something that you don't care about.  You have passion for something that is out of your control - WHY?   I know MY answer.  I'm interested in what you fans think.  Mainly what you NFL fans think.  I know a guy that doesn't watch the playoffs or Superbowl unless his team is involved (um, no, he isn't a Saints fan).  No matter the team or the year, I will watch the Superbowl and ultimately choose a side and cheer them on.  It may be different in your households.  I've cried  a few  times in my lifetime: when my children were born, mourning the death of a loved one, and when the Saints won the Superbowl.  Perhaps my life perspective is out of balance.  Is yours?  And WHY? 

Why does a diehard LIONS fan care about the LIONS?  

Roy Halladay just threw a no-hitter against the Red, only the 2nd no-hitter in the HISTORY of MLB) and I called my son to tell him about it and he couldn't care less.  WHY?  Why do baseball fans care and others don't? 

Why do hockey fans care about a sport I know absolutely nothing about?

Why do we care about sports in general?

Give me you best answer ..... bring it!  --  (pure poetry if you must).   

Now that I have your attention, please hear me out.

No, I don’t really miss losing. What I miss is people who were not Saints fans at all and wouldn’t raise an eyebrow to a Sunday game, who are all of a sudden Who Dat crazy to stop talking to me about the Saints.  I’m not exactly talking about traditional bandwagon jumpers, as in fans who jump from one team to the next (whoever is winning at the time), but more to the fair-weathered Saints fans who have always "claimed" to be Saints fans, but don’t really know jack-squat about the Saints. You know these people... you’re related to them.

This is why I enjoy coming here to CSC because the majority know this team and know football. You guys (and gals) didn’t just put on a black and gold t-shirt, slap on a foam finger and anoint yourselves experts. Before last year these fans I speak of would rather go hunting on a Sunday afternoon when you asked if they’re going to watch the game, but now, they are right smack dab in your living room! You could tell them that Jeremy Shockey is our backup QB if Brees gets hurt and they would believe you. They know the Who Dat chant, but couldn’t name our O-line to save their lives.

I remember 2005 when we went 3-13 and it was just me and my brother in-law watching the games and talking about the games. Now I get opinions from the "Housewives of Lafayette." (rolls eyes)

I guess losing is not worth packing up the family and moving to St. Louis or Detroit. Can’t you just imagine the diehard Lions fan if the Lions win it all in, say, the next 20 years? They’d be asking their neighbors "Where were you when we were losing?"

Maybe I just want my living room full of knowledgeable fans....what are you guys doing this year? (lol)

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Note: To the sarcasm impaired, this is tongue-in-cheek.