I really should have learned this by now, but football time is in no way related to real time.  Not even close.  There are 60 "minutes" of game time in football, four 15-minute quarters.  So how is it that football games last 4 hours???  I just do not understand.

Being a person who played sports that had running clocks (soccer, rugby), I just don't understand how you can get so many breaks in a game with a clock!  I mean, seriously.  There is no way that during a bike race, we would get to the top of a big hill and say, "Phew.  That was tough.  Why don't we all just pull over here, have a rest, maybe warm our feet by the fire..."

So, why did this matter tonight?  Well, I went over to the gym towards the beginning of the Ravens/Steelers game and decided I'd hop on the treadmill and run until the end of the first half.  There were 5 minutes left in the 1st quarter, so there were 20 minutes left of game time in the first half.  With commercials, time outs, etc, I figured I'd get a nice little run in.  Well, an hour and over 6 miles later, the half was over...  Not QUITE what I had bargained for.  And that was just the first half, where they don't go unimaginably slow during the last 2 minutes like they do at the end of the game.

So, I came home at half time, ate some yogurt, stretched, paid some bills, took a shower, got dressed, made dinner, made and drank a giant glass of blue gatorade, ate my dinner (giant mound of roasted broccoli, less giant mound of mac and cheese), answered some emails, and they game just ended.

I think they should have a running clock with the exception of time outs. 

Good thing the NFL cares about my opinion...