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Observation 4.14 October 14, 2004 I'm not sure where I am going with this, so bear with me. I went to Baltimore last weekend to visit a college friend of mine - a kind of "end of summer" party. And, after "talking" with Herr Jager at least five times, I got to thinking (I guess it only happens when I'm inebreated). Matt, the towering friend I visited, originally hailed from just outside of Harrisburg, and moved to D.C.'s minor league town in the mid-to-late 90's. Most people from Harrisburg follow Philadelphia sports teams, although some misdirected souls choose eternal damnation by rooting for Pittsburgh or Baltimore teams. Matt was originally a Philadelphia sports fan, cheering, alongside me, the Phillies to an NL pennant back before the advent of electricity (or at least it feels that long ago). But when Matt, and his buddy Gallagher, moved to Baltimore, they decided to shed their "ties" to Philadelphia, and root for all of the Baltimore teams (I think there are only 2). They've gone so far to eliminate Philadelphia from their blood, that they created a website dedicated to reminding people that the Eagles have never won a super bowl. Obviously, these two chaps have far too much time on their hands, and probably should consider quilting, knitting, or something more productive. But why such disdain for Philadelphia? I couldn't see myself rooting for another sports team as hard as I do for any of the Philadelphia sports - even if I moved. If I had the misfortune of having to move to Dallas, I could never see myself rooting for the Cowboys - even if I lived their for 20 years. I have a friend, Steve, who moved to the Boston area for college, and became a huge Boston fan - although he will never root against a Philadelphia team if Boston were to play them (except for the Bruins, which I had a whole different rant about. I think Steve knows that he is wrong about this, though, because the Bruins stink, and there may be no hockey to talk about anymore anyway, so it doesn't matter). I don't think I'd be as disappointed in Matt's fickle sports tendencies if he didn't hold such disdain for a city that he used to like. I'm sure his friends from Harrisburg are part of the reason he puts up this front, but he is at least partly to blame. Matt could like both teams, but chooses to only like one, and to wish bad things on the other. Personally, I don't hate the Ravens, mainly because I don't feel they deserve the time that I would have to invest to hate them. I really only hate a handful of teams: Giants, Cowboys, Redskins, Raiders, Bucs, and Niners. There may be more that get put on the list from time-to-time, but that's about it. In fact, I believe that I am going to a Ravens Monday night game with Matt next week. I'm not sure if this is still the case, as he has not given me directions back to his house or provided an agenda (I guess I was a little too vocal about my displeasure with his actions this past weekend). Anyway, I will be a polite fan, rooting for the Ravens in this game, not because I like the Ravens, but because I will be in a stadium full of Ravens fans, and I don't have anything vested in either team (plus my fantasy football opponent has Tony Gonzalez and Priest Holmes, and I need both to do poorly). Would you like to see other observations? Go to here: |