We're all longing for some football. So let's talk about it.

For me, the lockout has profoundly transformed my summer. Usually by this time, the team's roster is more or less settled, training camp is about to open and there's a thousand stories to discuss, analyze and discuss and analyze some more. Usually by this time, I'm knee deep in preparation for fantasy football season, with the draft ranking among my favorite summertime activities.

This year, it's been awful. There are nights when I sit down at my computer to deliver the kind of (hopefully quality) articles that I love to write. For the first time that I can remember, I've honestly struggled to come up with topics outside of the lockout itself. Frankly, I'm aware no one wants to read that crap every day.

It's a brutal thing to suddenly lose one of your favorite pastimes, and that's exactly what's happened. It's still fun to speculate about who the Falcons will sign, who will win out at specific positions and what kind of season we can expect, but it sucks to do so not knowing if and when any of those things will come to pass.

I write this not to complain—even though it probably sounds like it—but because I recognize we've all been dealing with it. It's tough to gin up enthusiasm for sand if you're wandering in a desert, so to speak.

Talk about how the lockout has affected your spring and summer, if you can relive it.