MGoProfile, Volume 24

Submitted by M-Wolverine on

This feature highlights some of the more famous personalities here at MGoBlog and beyond. Without pulling back the infamous veil of blog anonymity, we’ll get to know some of your favorite posters better and possibly shed some light on their definition of why it’s so darn Great, To Be, A Michigan Wolverine.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW PREVIOUS EDITIONS OF MGOPROFILE

(Scroll down to the MGoProfile section of the User-Curated HOF).

(Note: Posted early because of Friday availability. Regular schedule should resume next time.)

 

SIX QUESTIONS WITH PROFITGOBLUE

 

If you’ve been here for more than 3 months, the man probably needs no introduction: profitgoblue.  A long time mod, and a longer time member, he’s been in the trenches, been here for the Rich Rod ups and downs, the coaching search, the schism, and witnessed every battle. So much that he might have gotten a little shellshock, and isn’t around as much. But like Superman, or the Lone Ranger, after they’ve rode into the sunset, when you need him, he’ll be there.  So find out what we’ve been missing: profitgoblue.

 


 

1.      You were a long time mod...without getting into why you're an "ex-mod" again, what don't we know about the experience of being a mod after hearing from all the others that we should really know? 

I’m not sure if any of the others mentioned it or if it was just me, but I always felt a pretty good amount of pressure to perform.  Not pressure from Brian or Seth, per se, but my own internalized sense of duty to this site that I love and take more from than I give.  And to be honest, I was always a bit self-conscious about whether my performance was what those two were looking for out of a moderator.  I think people sometimes forget that this is Brian’s creation, his body of work, in addition to being his source of income.  In a way, moderators are almost like babysitters of Brian’s first-born child.  And I didn’t want to ever draw Brian’s attention as someone who was not taking good care of his child.

My number one priority as a moderator was to make sure people were civil to each other.  (I think this came from my experience as a poster during the Rich Rodriguez MGoFiascoTM, but more on that below.)  I may have been a bit too harsh in some threads and a bit too hasty to delete comments or levy fines but I like to think that my actions made many people feel more comfortable contributing to the Board.  Unfortunately, my approach also resulted in the creation of a few MGoEnemiesTM or at least posters that did not appreciate what I was doing.  In fact, I found that my actions were questioned much more often than my colleagues and I really regret that to be the case.  It was always my intention to be fair but, looking back at some of my old posts, I now see why some people reacted that way.  Having stepped down, some of my moderator posts read as though I was preaching rather than being matter-of-fact, which is interesting given my background.  To my defense, I made it a point to try to reconcile with people whenever possible – it was never my intention to create enemies or step on toes.  Maybe that came with the territory or my approach but it was never my intention.

Nonetheless, I enjoyed my time as a moderator, if only because I felt like I was giving more than just donations to the site and serving as an asset to Brian.  It was a pretty good feeling and, believe it or not, I think I learned more in the past two years about public communication then I ever did in my 7 years of higher education.  I would happily accept the job if I had to do it all over again.

Everyone wants a cop when they need them, but no one wants to get a ticket. Now that you're not on here as much what are you doing with all your extra time? Working more? Spending time with the kids? Or is it all video game time?  (What ARE you playing right now?)

Public Service Announcement:  Anyone who says that having a second child is easier than the first is an asshole.  They are evil sorcerers trying to get you to procreate so they next generation is able to siphon every last drop from this generation (to make up for the shortfall in their Social Security benefits?).  You will find that once you have your first child people will incessantly ask about your plans for a second child, as if it was unfathomable to only have one child.  Ignore them!  Run for your lives!  And make sure you bring your more susceptible spouse with you!  (Disclaimer:  I love my second born.)

Anyway, since the birth of my second last year I tell people that I am operating at about 99.9% percent capacity.  I think (?) I’m a bit different than many fathers in that I’m very hands-on.  I spend all of my time with the kids that I can possibly afford.  To be honest, would LOVE to be a stay-at-home father.  (Unfortunately, those two sets of law school loans aren’t going to pay for themselves.) 

Any and all of my free time comes after everyone is in bed and the house is quiet.  I finally embraced the fact that I’m a video gaming nerd so most of that time is taken up playing Battlefield 3 on PS3.  I’m excited about the release of Grand Theft Auto 5 - it looks amazing! - but am going to be moving to PC in the next month or two as I am building my own gaming PC.  (For anyone interested, building a PC is exciting and stressful but not as difficult as it might seem.)  Once on PC I’m definitely going to be playing Battlefield 3 and Battlefield 4, plus DayZ, ArmA III, probably some SimCity, and maybe even some Euro Truck Simulator and Train Simulator.  Whew!

Other than gaming in my free time, I watch as many Barcelona soccer games I can find on TV, watch all Michigan football and basketball games (obviously), go fishing whenever possible, tend to our vegetable garden with my oldest, try to find time to write new chapters in my novel, and still find a way to sneak 4-5 hours of sleep in there as well.  I was not born to work – I have too damn many extracurricular interests!

I guess that answers the “What do you do for fun?” standard. A videogame inspired your probably best known avatar. How many different avatars have you had, anyway? Did you have a favorite?

You know, that’s a great question.  I’m not sure why but I changed it several times over the years . . . 

I didn’t know what to start with when I first signed up to be an MGoMember so I chose:

Maximus (Russell Crowe) from "Gladiator." I like the movie but not really enough to choose it as an avatar. I quickly changed it after someone on the Board made fun of me (I told you I was self conscious, especially as a noob!).  My next choice was:

Claire Forlani (from the movie "Meet Joe Black"...terrible movie, pretty lady). I quickly realized that was pretty lame so I went with the safe and obviously appropriate:

Desmond Howard in the famous "Heisman pose." But that one felt a little generic and non-expressive so I went with:

 

The Futbol Club Barcelona crest. I stayed with this one for a long time because I love watching Barca and Lionel Messi play (the style of play is both mesmerizing and explosive) and the avatar was kind of unique (until I noticed that use Swan Flu has the same one). My last one was:

The Battlefield 3 jacket cover for reasons you now know.  Now that I'm on MGoEmeritus status and I got rid of an avatar altogether.

I saw that CooperLily21 is using that same avatar, the unoriginal plagiarizing bastard, but he seems like a decent kid who might be able to carry on the BF3 tradition in my stead.  Of course, I reserve the moderator power to relieve him of the honor and reward you with a My Pretty Pony avatar if he bad-mouths me on the Board again.

2.       Ah, yes.  Once a mod, always a mod. (You are on notice CooperLily21!)  And frankly, as often as I’ve been on and had to stare at your posts, I would have very much rather been staring at Claire. (I have an urge for Scotch right now.)

As someone who's been intimately involved with it for a while, how have you see MGoBlog and its constituents evolve over the different eras (of the site and Michigan Football)? And having experienced all that you have experienced, do you still have the same joy for it when you had started for Michigan Football/Athletics, or has it been tempered by everything that has gone on?  As someone who I think is in the median range of MGoBlog readers/commentators, not still in college, not really "old" yet, do you think fandom evolves over time? Has it for you?

I still love Michigan Football as much as I ever have, but it is definitely a different kind of love.  One that has been tested, that’s for sure.  Kind of like your first true love that calls you up in the middle of the night, drunk and high, laying in another man’s bed, explaining that she won’t be able to make it to breakfast tomorrow because “her friend needed to talk through some things.”

Wait, what?  Did you ask me something? Oh, yeah.  Nevermind what I just said.  Its nothing like that.

Anyway, I’ve been watching and attending games for as long as I can remember (as far back as the early 80s) and until 2008 never knew a losing season.  That’s pretty damn unbelievable, if you think about it.  An entire existence of watching a team that wins significantly more than it loses!  But, for some reason, the winning was starting to feel too familiar, almost to the point that it was getting dare I say boring.  I was in school in during the 1997 championship run and it gave me a taste of true greatness.  After that, other than the near-championship caliber team in 2006, each season ended with a feeling of disappointment.  We were watching amazing players and great plays but never really reaching the pinnacle of the college football world.

Enter Rich Rodriguez and his spread option attack and it felt like a breath of fresh air.  Of course, there were a lot of people that were not too excited.  Vocal ones.  And that pissed me off.  Not because they did not feel the same as me, but because they wouldn’t shut up about their displeasure.  I am someone who believes people are entitled to their views and opinions but I take offense to those that try to impress their views and opinions on others in unkind ways.  That is what happened in the “Coaching Change” discussions and it really upset me.  It made me realize that Michigan fans are not really all that different from fans of any other school and that was a pretty hard realization for me.  I guess that was the “coming of age” event in my Michigan Football fan life.  And I don’t think I handled it all that well (see, e.g., http://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/ot-prohibition-coaching-change-posts-act-2010), or at least not in a very mature way.  That and the losing sucked.  Watching the offense was amazing from my standpoint, but the defense was so hurtful that the end result was pain and suffering.

Since that experience I have become a different type of fan, I guess.  With children that are still too young to watch a full game, I have to DVR games and watch them at night.  That definitely changes the gameday experience as I have to spend all Saturday avoiding college football like the plague so as not to see the final score.  But it’s not all bad.  It may be that I’m just getting older and being a lunatic fanatic is no longer my style.  Of course, I still yell like a college kid when I attend games (my father and I try to go back to Ann Arbor once a year).  And it’s definitely a lot more fun being a Michigan fan now than it was a few years ago, what with basketball being great and Brady Hoke changing the football tide (of both the rivalry – heck, he’s selling jerseys in Ohio, something I never thought was possible! – and the sentiment of fans in general).

3.       What do you do for a living now?

I am an corporate lawyer for a Fortune 500 company.  I do mostly commercial finance (secured finance) work but also still work on a lot of bankruptcy matters (creditors rights these days).

Public Service Announcement:  Do not go to law school.  That is all.

4.       And you have time for all that other stuff?? (Family, games, football) Describe the perfect meal.

Ahhh, that’s an easy one:  Chick-fil-A #1 on wheat bun with no pickles, large fries, and a large Coke with Chick-fil-A sauce on the side.  I’m convinced they put cocaine in their chicken!  My “Chick-Fil-A Fridays” are my favorite days.

5.       You know, if we’re going to a bowl game anywhere other than Pasadena, I have to find me one of those.  Can you explain why you are a Michigan fan?

I couldn’t imagine being otherwise.  I’m from Michigan originally (though I haven’t lived there since the late 80s) and my grandfather, father, and 3 cousins all attended Michigan.  My father took me to games for as long as I can remember and I got to see all the greats.  After that upbringing, my only dream as I got older was to attend the University of Michigan for college.  It was awesome but once I fulfilled my dream and got further along I realized that I had no idea what to do with my life from there.

6.       Well, the second child gives you two chances to get it right as a parent and send the next generation to Michigan. Who’s your all-time favorite Wolverine?

It’s a toss up between Desmond Howard, Charles Woodson, and Denard.  I had the great pleasure of getting to watch each of them in person and they were all exciting.  Each of them were players that electrified the stadium whenever they walked onto the field.  I guess if forced to choose I would pick Charles Woodson because I was in school when he was there.  On the basketball side, I will always love the Fab Five.  I attended every basketball game during my 4 years in Ann Arbor and I wouldn’t trade that experience for anything.  (Yes, I’m selfish - I left school before the penalties were levied.)

6.5     So, this isn't actually quite riding off into the sunset, but will we see you on and around much? Are there any last thoughts you've had about your time here?

I plan on lurking like so many former moderators (except BiSB who just can’t seem to stay away).  If Brian and Seth will allow me, I’ll jump in and moderate if I see catch any glaring transgressions to help out the crew.  But I’m definitely enjoying being a lurker and not having to bite my lip – it’s much more fun being able to be a bit more smart-assed in my comments.  The Board has definitely changed since I first started participating in the discourse but that will never change my love of the content.  I will continue to read every front page article, that’s for sure!

 


 

Sometimes controversial, sometimes maddening, sometimes the white knight bringing down the banhammer and keeping the peace, but ALWAYS interesting, profitgoblue.  I think for all the complaining people like to do that we want guys like profitgoblue on that wall, we NEED them on that wall, and they protect MGoBlog and make it a safe place to be (Rather than one that makes you want to gouge your eyes out reading the comments).  And like so many you don’t really appreciate what you have until it’s gone. But they come and they go, Hobbs, they come and they go.  Much like this feature, who will come back highlighting another member of MGoBlog, same Bat-Time, same Bat-Channel!

 

 

Comments

lbpeley

July 31st, 2013 at 3:34 PM ^

glaringly obvious follow up question in the Claire Forlani section: What did you think of her gripping portrayal as Sean Connery's daughter in "The Rock"?

On a less serious note, I got winded just reading about your average day and jamming all that stuff into it. Kids do that to you, though. Wouldn't trade it for anything.

 

justingoblue

July 31st, 2013 at 4:08 PM ^

just how introspective of a guy you are. I think there is/was a misconception about the way you go about things that just could not be further from the truth. Obviously you keep your own counsel (law school paying off FTW) but maybe reading some of those old posts from a friendlier perspective would be useful every now and then.

Also you guys both missed the time PGB was the Supreme Court. I seem to remember he said something to the effect of "Hey guys, look! I'm the Supreme Court" when he uploaded that one.

Njia

July 31st, 2013 at 7:54 PM ^

I LOVE those sandwiches, but - damn it - they fry everything in peanut oil and my son is very, very allergic to peanuts so I take no chances when he's with me. Same deal with Five Guys, only they go one incredibly assinine step further and have peanuts on the counter by the shovel full. 

Anyway, enough of the aside. Great MGoProfile. Although I don't know why, but the voice in my head reading PGB's responses was that of Ed Grimley. Weird.

profitgoblue

July 31st, 2013 at 8:24 PM ^

Thanks M-W!  It was fun answering these questions.  You're doing a great job on these.

I can't believe its been 4 years since I joined MGoBlog.  There's many more senior posters than me, for sure, but 4 years is a long time.  Thanks to everyone for putting up with me (or at least trying) and more.

P.S.  Yes, I posbanged my own profile and it felt good!

charblue.

August 3rd, 2013 at 4:26 PM ^

I have been here for a long time. I just haven't been a regular contributor...here. I have been prominent mostly in past messaging on the digital doggerel space of MLive.com, hated by virtually all here.

The fact that this site thrives is a tribute to both its creator and the audience that so loyally supports and maintains it, including those who referee the intramural squabbling that periodically challenges the Michigan experience and the perception of it by those who have most personally experienced it, alumni and current students. I don't share your brotherhood. I am not a Michigan man by education. And I think it matters not, because I love the school and the program and all it stands for. And I base that on personal connection with those I met who made me such a proud Ann Arborite for nearly a decade. And the fact is, I haven't missed a game in person or on TV since 1994. 

It's all about point of view, not lack of passion. There is no lack of that here, ever. And that is what creates the Michigan experience, in my humble opinion, and makes it so great.