| | By Doug Brien
Special to ESPN.com
Editor's note: What is life in an NFL training camp like? Kicker Doug Brien took you inside the camp of the New Orleans Saints with his weekday diary for ESPN.com. Here is his final entry.
Wednesday, Aug. 16
THIBODAUX, La. -- The end is finally here. After 31 days in Thibodaux, we get to go home. The city of Thibodaux has played a great host to us throughout our stay. I think camp went very well this year and I personally would like to come back to Nicholls State.
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| Brien |
I am actually writing this entry on Tuesday afternoon. We have practice tonight and then we lift tomorrow morning. Our afternoon practice tomorrow will be our last in Thibodaux. I write this entry today because in my free time Wednesday I will pack up all of my stuff (and if you read my first entry, I brought a lot of stuff). Bringing my desktop PC to camp was a lot of work, but well worth it. I could not have kept up my diary trying to use the Saints' computer equipment. So, tomorrow morning I have to pack up my computer, TV, office supplies, clothes and all of my miscellaneous junk and cram it into my car. I plan to have my car packed and parked right outside the locker room for Wednesday afternoon's practice. Parking could be difficult since I am not the only one with this idea. My goal is to be home for dinner and Survivor at 7 p.m.
This is the last of my daily diary entries. Throughout the rest of the season, I will update my diary a few times a week. In addition, I know many of you pick up my diary on other sites like ESPN.com. I am not sure if they will continue to pick up my diary in the future, so you may have to come to www.kicking.com to find my entries during the season.
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I plan to have my car packed and parked right outside the locker room for Wednesday afternoon's practice. Parking could be difficult since I am not the only one with this idea. ” |
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Writing this daily diary has been a great learning experience. Like I said yesterday, writing a journal on a daily basis has given me a new appreciation for beat writers. It is difficult to come up with interesting information every day. In fact, some days I didn't feel like writing at all. I may have had a tough day kicking, felt like doing something else or just plain got tired of writing. And since this isn't exactly part of my job, I sometimes thought I was crazy for trying to maintain a daily entry. However, I got the impression that people enjoyed the entries so I persisted (I actually had to have my wife substitute for me once, but who's counting?).
I feel that in professional sports today the importance of fans is often overlooked. With free agency and new stadium deals, the ticket prices keep getting higher and the player/fan relationship has become strained. Players move from one team to the next and the fans never know who will be lining up for their team each season. I have been blessed to be in the great city of New Orleans for five years now. I have had the opportunity to establish a relationship with the community and fans that I value immensely. My web site and this diary are my way of thanking Saints fans and football fans in general. I hope that my entries reveal a unique perspective of life in the NFL that you find interesting. I look forward to a great season and hope to hear from you soon.
Material from kicking.com.
Visit Doug Brien's web site at http://www.kicking.com
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