D'oh!

In retrospect, maybe we shouldn't have thrown the ball to the other team so much. *Sigh*

Black And Gold, Even Out West

My Team is in the Super Bowl again. I've seen four of these games; two back home, and two out West, counting this Sunday's game. The best one by far was Super Bowl XL. My sister and brother-in-Law Drove up from DC to watch the game at Shootz Cafe in Pittsburgh. With the possible exception of being at the 50 Yard Line during the game itself, there is nowhere better to be than in the Home Town when your team wins. The joy is tangible. You can reach out and grab a handful. For one night, total strangers, who's names you don't even know, are your best friend for one night for no other reason than you both cheer for the same team. Walk outside from the bar, and the streets are teaming with cries of joy, car horns honking. You just feel Good to be in the middle of it all.

Then, I moved to Wyoming two years later, and decided not to get TV service. This means, I can't watch my guys during regular season, unless I want to spend an afternoon inside the local bar. I feel like such a bad fan because I barely keep up on my Steelers during the regular season, and only start watching when they play in the post season. It's partly because I don't have that city full of voracious fans to remind me of my football roots.

But this is not to say that there's no fans here. There's a local man here, drove a truck for years. His name's Verne. Let's visit his home, shall we?

Ah... that just makes this place a little more friendly for me during the days of Football. And it's not just him. There's the wife of the guy that owns the Grocery Store. The Lady from Accounting that married a Pittsburgh native. In the bar, I'll see a person wearing a Steelers shirt or jacket, he'll see my Steelers Hooded sweatshirt, and we'll exchange knowing glances that convey the same. "Hail Brother/Sister! We are from the city of Champions! Six times over!"

I don't have the numbers on my side like I did back in Pittsburgh, but rest assured, there are pockets of fans here, and we all salivate with anticipation. of the Seventh Trophy.

And now, one more picture of Verne's tastefully decorated home:

Victory - We Has It!

Superbowl XLIII Breakdown:

First Team to win six Superbowls - Pittsburgh Steelers
Longest Returned Interception in Super Bowl History - James Harrison for 100 Yards
Most Epic Choke - Thowing an interception on the opponent's 1-yard line, resulting in the above mentioned return.

Total Yards:
Pittsburgh - 292
Arizona - 407

Penalties:
Pittsburgh - 7
Arizona - 11

Amount of Money I won in the Football Pool - $250
Amount of Money I lost - 2 bets of $5 each to coworkers. (Pittsburgh didn't beat the 7 point spread)
Net Gain -220 ( 250 - 20 in the pool - 10 to my coworkers)

Total Bullets sweated out by fans on both sides - 253,476
Cries of Grief - Approximately 6.5 million

Summary: The Cardinals' Offense overran our Defense, and certainly could have pulled it off, but in the end, made a lot of mistakes and penalties, and proceeded to choke.

Best anecdote from the night:
{After an interception by Pittsburgh was ruled as an incomplete on review}
Jim: *smugly* Sorry. :-)
Me: So instead of a turnover, you're on 4th and 6 on your own 35. You DO realize that you're just gloating over the fact that you suck less than was previously thought, right?
(Note: Jim is from Yuma, Arizona, and was able to provided me with a real home team vs. home team rivalry)

Best Pun: (From former coworker) I was really hoping Arizona would win, but it looks like it just wasn't in the Cards.

And now... a victory pose!