Alright folks, let me tell ya about how I finally got my TJ Ford and Spurs fix without losing my dang mind. For the longest time, I felt like I was always the last to know anything. Annoying as heck, right?
The Wild Goose Chase
It started simple. I needed my Spurs news, especially anything about TJ Ford – dude’s a legend to me. But I kept missing stuff. Felt like a fool finding out about a cool Ford interview days later because someone casually mentioned it at the barbershop. Embarrassing.
First try? Figured ESPN would send me alerts. Signed up for all the Spurs tags, even TJ Ford specifically. What’d I get? Mostly box scores and LeBron tweets. Nada on Ford. Total miss.
Then I thought, “Duh, Twitter!” Followed the official Spurs account, fan pages, beat writers – the whole nine yards. Refreshed that thing like it owed me money. What a mess! Endless junk tweets, fights about some player’s haircut, ads for stuff I didn’t want. Buried under nonsense, I completely missed when they announced Ford joining that youth coaching thing last summer. Saw it on local news that night. Seriously?!
My Nephew Kicked My Butt (Figuratively)
This is where it gets funny. My nephew Sam, he knows I’m a huge Spurs nut. He came over, saw me frantically scrolling Twitter like a maniac trying to find ONE update, and he just laughs. “Uncle Mike,” he says, “you still living in the dark ages? Why you using that? You gotta use an app, man. Like I do for tracking Fortnite tournaments.” He showed me how he sets up alerts on his phone for his favorite Fortnite players using a news app – just specific keywords. Genius, right?
Setting Up the Fort (Pun Intended)
Okay, I felt stupid. But I’m stubborn. Downloaded that news app right there with Sam.
Here’s exactly what I did:
- Opened the app and went straight to the alerts or notifications section.
- Started a new alert. Named it “TJ Ford Spurs Watch.” Made it official.
- Got specific with the keywords. I typed in: “TJ Ford” AND “Spurs” AND (“news” OR “update” OR “interview”). Used AND and OR like Sam explained – makes it hunt for those specific combos.
- Set the sources. Only trusted stuff: ESPN, San Antonio Express-News, a couple legit Spurs blogs I know, the official NBA site. Skipped the Twitter nonsense feeds.
- Hit save. That was it. Five minutes, tops.
Tested it immediately. Searched the app itself for “TJ Ford Spurs” using my keywords. Boom! Only recent, relevant stuff popped up. No more digging through garbage.
Living the Alert Life
Honestly, game changer. My phone actually buzzes now ONLY when there’s legit news mentioning TJ Ford and the Spurs. Was taking a leak yesterday afternoon? Phone buzzes. Pull it out, damp hands and all: “New Article: TJ Ford discusses mentoring Spurs rookies.” Right there. On my lock screen. Didn’t miss a beat. Took me less time than washing my hands to know the news.
No more constant refreshing. No more anxiety about missing the good stuff. It’s automatic. Set it and forget it. Now my friends are asking ME first about Spurs updates involving Ford. Feels good, man.
My sister even made fun of me at dinner last weekend, saying I finally “leveled up” from being a sports nerd to a tech-savvy sports nerd. I’ll take that roast any day over missing another TJ Ford gem. Seriously, if a tech idiot like me can figure this out? Anyone can.
