Symphony orchestra over football?

There comes a time in the life of every married man where they have to make a tough decision. Do I take my wife to the symphony or do I go the big football game?

It's a plot to 10 episodes of Home Improvement where Tim Allen would debate his options and try to do both, it seems. Of course, it would backfire.

Saturday, I made the decision to take my wife to the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra instead of attending the Big Ten Championship Game where I was invited to buy a ticket. In the end, I am glad I did.

The Terre Haute Symphony is really good. That’s not my opinion. That’s my wife’s as she actually understands quality music. They had their annual Christmas show on the campus of Indiana State University and they knocked it out of the park.

The tickets were a fraction of the cost a football game would have been. In that game, Michigan unloaded on Iowa 42-3. Imagine being an Iowa fan and paying at least $100 a pop for four tickets to watch your team lose by 39 points.

That is the problem. High-level sporting events have priced themselves too high. The one time I decided to splurge on a Colts game a few years ago and get good seats, I ended up spending close to $500 when parking was added. Even after the game, I found myself watching highlights on my computer to see things I missed. I will never spend that type of money on a sporting event ever again unless the Pacers are in the NBA Finals.

The symphony and other forms of live entertainment have more value now. Until then, big college football and NFL games are better left on television.

Nathan is the Sports Editor of the Greene County Daily World and can be reached at npacegcdw@gmail.com. His “Low Budget Sports Show” airs weekly on Facebook Live.