12/28/22 Nobody did it better. Thank you, J.J. – Radically Rational

12/28/22 Nobody did it better. Thank you, J.J.

Nobody has ever done it better. I’m talking about J.J. Watt. B.B. broke the news to me Tuesday afternoon that Watt had announced his retirement, effective at the end of this season. She thought I would be crushed, but I just smiled. Did you see J.J. play Christmas night against the Bucs? He was at the very top of his game. He looked 23, not 33. He played like a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year. He was unblockable. After all of those years, all of those injuries and all of those surgeries, he was J.J. Effing Watt. Think of all the wonderful things he has done for others that we know about. And realize he’s done thousands of other great things that we don’t know about. He’s a first ballot Human Being Hall of Famer.

I very much look forward to watching him play football two more times.

We’re all starting to realize the new chaotic landscape of college football. The “portal” is the gateway to insanity. NIL now stands for No Integrity Left. Look, I fully realize that players should have the same freedom of movement that coaches have always had, and that players have a right to a cut of the enormous revenue they generate. I get it. Legally, Constitutionally, I understand. It’s what this is going to do to the sport, and in fact is already doing to the sport, that I lament.

Will I keep watching? Will I continue to suspend disbelief? Will I show up? Will I celebrate victories and mourn losses. Will I continue to cheer my teams’ laundry? Will I pledge allegiance to my favorite helmets?

Of course. I’m an addict. The Pusher owns me.

I’ll be the first to admit that’s less than Radically Rational.

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Paul's Bio

I clearly have the attention span of your median fruit fly.Look! Airplane!

Sorry. I’m back.

It’s both a curse and a blessing. I’ve never bought this stuff about, “He who dies with the most toys wins.” But I do think that a wide range of life experiences helps us grow as people, and helps us better relate to other people. I’ve been fortunate. And I am beyond grateful.

I show up on time. I go like hell. I’m a good listener. I hold myself accountable. I own my mistakes. And I have a natural and an insatiable curiosity. I’m never afraid to say, “I don’t know,” when I don’t. But then I try to find out.

The flip side is I’m a lousy ballroom dancer and my clothes sometimes fit me funny.

Stuff matters to me. I care. But while I take that stuff seriously, I try hard to never take myself seriously. As a result, I have sometimes been told, “Paul, it’s hard to tell when you’re serious and when you’re just having some fun. Which is it? Serious or fun?”

My answer is “yes.” But I think that is a legitimate criticism. I promise I’m going to work on that.

This has been the quickest and strangest half-century I’ve ever experienced. During that period, I’ve been afforded amazing opportunities in news and sports journalism across all platforms. I have taught wonderful students at the high school and collegiate level. Always, I learned more from them than they did from me. I’ve been a high school administrator. I spent ten seasons as a high school varsity football coach. I’ve been an advertising executive. I’ve hosted nationally syndicated television entertainment shows. In maybe the biggest honor I ever received, I was selected by NASA to be “Chet The Astronaut” for the “Land The Shuttle” simulator at Space Center Houston. (All I can say there, is “Do as I say, not as I do.” I put that thing in the Everglades more often than not.) Most recently, I just wrapped up a decade as a television news director, during which time our teams distinguished themselves in holding the powerful accountable, achieving both critical and ratings success.

What does all that mean? It means I am profoundly grateful. It also means I’m ready for “next.” So here we are. Radically Rational. It’s an idea I woke up with in 2017. I scribbled “Radically Rational” on a piece of notebook paper and used a magnet to stick it on our refrigerator. I saw it every day, and it just would not leave me alone.

I am second in charge at Radically Rational, LLC. My wife, Jo (also known as BB), is the president. Clearly, I have failed in my attempt to sleep my way to the top of this organization.

I hope you will learn that I’m loyal as a Labrador. But I will admit that this doggie can bite every now and then. My promise to you? I will show up on time. I will go like hell. I will listen to you earnestly and attentively. I will hold myself accountable. I will never be the least bit hesitant to say, “I don’t know,” when I don’t.

But then I’ll try to find out. Let’s do it.