…Not long after that, I was blessed to actually witness my team defeat the Oakland Raiders to claim Super Bowl XXXVII. With Brad Johnson as his QB, and too-many-other-great-characters-to-mentions-in-this-short-blog, Jon Gruden took down his former team, and made me proud to be a fan. Those were the good ol’ days, full of interesting characters, and attainable statistic records.

In the years following, despite a cornucopia of games, spectacular plays, and new players to join the league, something was lost for me. There seemed to be more hype than ever, and I continued to join my friends for fantasy football drafts. However, my season ending rank gradually dropped as my interest did. For an unknown reason, and for me at least, the game had lost its luster... 

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This season had began relatively similar for me as it had in the several years past. There were minor excitements when I got to see my old friends that I really only meet with once a year at the Saturday draft, the week before the season officially kicks off.

I couldn’t help but notice the gathering has humbled quite a bit, and there were noticeably more wedding rings and mentions of new babies at home. I think these new concepts actually drove our typical humour in a new direction, and for the better. I must admit. 

When it comes to the actual “watching” of the games, it can be quite a commitment over the course of the season. I have always appreciated the NFL more than other leagues for having a more modest 16 game schedule. Compared to 82 hockey games a year, or the seemingly endless baseball season, this is much more manageable with my schedule. Having most of the games are on Sundays like clockwork, is a thing of genius.

At the beginning of the season of the past few years, I would typically watch several games. However by week 2 or 3, I would alway seem to find a more more productive way to spend my Sundays. Before long, football was on the back of my mind, and without keeping up with the players, my fantasy team would be lacking. Before I knew it, I would be out of playoff contention to those much more dedicated than I.  

I can’t quite put my finger on it, but for whatever reason, I craved that excitement that I used to hold so dearly., and I definitely believe that the current state of national and international politics has at least partly to do with it.

The more turmoil and uncertainty in the world, the more we need our comfort zones, and to know that there is stability somewhere around us. This year, I found my solace with the fun and energetic youths of the NFL. (Not you, Kaepernick)

For this, I want to thank the NFL and to thank those players who have worked so hard this year to offer us some much-needed relief.  

​For many of us planning a Christmas party 4-5 months ahead is considered too early and a little hard to do, because of our busy work schedules. But people often ask how early should they start planning their Christmas parties? Is early Spring or the month of August too early to start thinking about having a perfect date to book the best Christmas party entertainment in town? Most employees and party organizers are busy planning Christmas parties throughout the year. If you are planning to book the best service and venue, it is high time to start your search from now. 

It is important to book a perfect Christmas Party Entertainment on account of various reasons.
 
First of all, you have a variety of venue options to choose from. In order to make the party memorable, you would not want to compromise on anything and won’t like to leave out anything that will make your party the best of Christmas party of the year.
 
Planning to book a Christmas party entertainment service beforehand gives you the advantage of determining your budget. It will give you an insight on the scope of your party. Always remember that high-end venues are booked months before the actual event date. So if you are ahead of the main wave of Christmas bookings, not only will you get your hand on a perfect venue, you will be in a better negotiable place with your client, like catering, bands, DJ, etc.

​Booking early will also give you the liberty of picking up the most suitable venue for you and your colleagues. While picking a date, always remember first two weeks with Fridays and Saturdays of December are most favorable time for everyone. The nearer the date of the event, the harder it is to book your desirable venue. This becomes even more difficult if you want to have your entertainment party on weekdays. Book up fast in December for Saturdays and save money on early bookings.
 
Most venues offer special packages in September and October. As the Christmas day gets closer prices skyrocket due to increased demand. This is the reason why they offer special discounts for early bookings them, and this includes entertainers and caterers as well.
 
It is essential to book your Christmas party entertainment way before so you can get time to focus on other essential things, like sending out invitations and planning everything systematically. Your entertainment event will turn out amazing when you send out invitations to your colleagues early. In the midst of the mad rush of planning, sending out invites in the last hour means plenty of people are not going to show up. This is because most people have their Christmas holidays booked in advance. 

Live entertainment has the power to bring together a spectrum of people with a broad and varied range of cultures and ethnicities. It has the ability to enrich and promote community living.
 
Live entertainment has been growing around the world with festivals, cultural events, fairs that do not only bring people and communities together but gives a big boost to the economy. 

Programs usually feature singers, music bands, stand up comedians, entertainers, educationists, public speakers, street performers, pub bands, buskers, and Trivia Game Shows. These live entertainment events are also packed with activities for people from fun games to music trivia, rides, art stalls to food stalls. Another main attraction of these events is its vibrant themes that attract people towards them. Because of their low cost, people belonging to all strata of society come and enjoy at these live entertainment events.

​Presence of huge crowds of people under one roof not only helps the sponsors of the event, but also the community as a whole, by bringing them together.
 
For instance, a concert or an orchestral recital brings a wide range of audience together, united with their mutual appreciation for the recital or music. As they sing along and sway to the music. Whether it’s music, art, theatre or game shows, they all have the ability and power to bring people of all races, colors and regions together in their hearts, stimulate their senses by transcending the boundaries of their hearts and minds.
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A recent example is of the World Orchestra for Peace in Abu Dhabi. Every year, the event brings together talent from 30 countries from the world of orchestra. They are selected regardless of their culture, region, religion and color, the only thing in common is their passion, talent and skill. This event connects people from around the world having a mutual love and appreciation for orchestra. Thus, live entertainment strengthens the community through its promotion and encourage of music and culture.  

​Countries around the world promote live entertainment events as they help people come together and have fun by participating in game shows, performances, competitions and much more.
Festival of Cultures is another live entertainment event that aims to bring people of different ethnicities together. Every year, more than eleven cultures from eleven different countries participate in this festival, including First Nations, India, Canada, Jamaica, Mexico, Ukraine, Thailand, Philippines, Serbia and United Kingdom. The event seeks to build a mutual understanding among people and their neighbors.
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Raquel Salalia is the coordinator of the Festival of Cultures, who describes the event as a place to gather talented people from Yorkton and mingle with people from different cultures who have made Yorkton their home. “It is now very diverse. Yorkton, with its multiculturalism has become an adventure for people, who come across to enjoy the versatile food, delicacies, crafts and theatre.’’
The trend of live entertainment is here to stay because it helps in bringing together people of mutual interests, strengthens community and bring peace and harmony among communities.