good seats are still available

Well, sort of.  Lions individual-game tickets went on sale this morning at 10:00, and of course I had to pony up for the home opener.  Just looking for standard upper-deck seats, hoping to get a crack at the closer-to-midfield ones, like sections 335 or 327, right next to the pricier red ones:

Unfortunately, despite refresh-monkeying the Tickemaster site, when I got through it put me in section 315--the bottom right coffin corner, off the field in both directions, not even on the side with the tunnel!  "Wow," I thought, "they must already have nearly sold out!" I pounced on the tickets, very glad not to have missed out.

Then I got to thinking . . . these are basically the worst seats in the house.  They cost fifty bucks.  The "Roar Zone" seats are only $42 . . . where are those?  I went to look for the "best available" Roar Zone seats and, to my dismay, they were right in the middle of the end zone.  A call to Ticketmaster customer service, a wait on hold, and a transfer later, my tickets were moved from 315 to 345--in between the hash and the home sideline, in the corner with the tunnel, view to the street, etc.; much much better overall—and $16 went back on my credit card.  So, Lions faithful, a lesson learned: The Roar Zone is a great deal!

However, TicketMaster, let me address you for a minute.  While I certainly appreciated your “World Class Customer Service” moving me to a better, cheaper seat, your “shipping option” of printing a .pdf file of the tickets with my own ink and paper CANNOT ETHICALLY COST ME $2.50!  If that is not an unfair, abusive, monopolistic practice, then I don’t know what is.

Please excuse my rant, folks; you may resume paying attention.  I'm hoping that the Roar Zone will indeed be just that: a place where the less-well-heeled will be using their Outside Voices to support the home team.  I will cheer the home team, boo the hated enemy, secretly scratch “Watch Brett Favre Play Live” off my personal sports Bucket List, and—with a little luck—see the new Lions literally kick off the next chapter in their history.