Over the past few days, I've been thinking about my blog. I hadn't actually given it much thought in quite some time. However, the start of a new year often brings with it new plans and new intentions, and this year is no different.
I have always enjoyed writing, and, to be perfectly blunt, I think I'm pretty good at it. While I don't mean to compare myself to any great authors past or present, I do feel I have a more than halfway decent ability to string words together in order to convey an idea.
I certainly write my share of emails while I'm at work, but the vast majority of them scarcely count as what I consider 'real writing.' I don't have much opportunity during the day to practice that skill, and I can't say that my Facebook status updates are much help in that department either-- which brings me to the point of this post.
I want to get back into blogging again, not only to share random thoughts and experiences with whoever decides to read them, but even more so, to practice and improve my 'real writing' skills. As an example, I just rewrote the second half of that sentence several times before I was happy with the way it sounded. I basically feel like I'm out of practice with writing, and I need a venue for practicing-- and just doing it for myself isn't enough. I need to know there's at least the possibility of other people reading what I write. Even though I never publicly stated it at the time, I do think that was a big reason for me starting this blog in the first place: to practice writing for an audience.
So here I am, back again, and with some fresh new updates to the page to emphasize my fresh start with blogging. To those of you who do happen to read this, welcome ('welcome back' may perhaps be more appropriate, as I doubt there will be that many new people finding this page), and thanks for indulging me. I promise the next post will be more interesting.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Limerick Day 2010
One of my first-ever posts on my blog occurred on May 12, 2009, which is Limerick Day. (Who decided that May 12 should be dedicated to recognizing limericks, I have no idea.) So, since I posted a limerick on this day last year, I thought I would share another with you again, sort of along the same lines as last year's.
I actually sent it to a bunch of friends and co-workers today via email, and several of them responded to my 'challenge.' I was very pleased, amused, and even impressed with their creations!
So if any of you feel so inclined as well, I would welcome your contributions in recognition of this fine holiday. :-)
Here's this year's limerick:
It's once again Limerick Day,
And so I would just like to say,
I hope you find time
To come up with a rhyme
That's written in this special way.
It's really not that hard to do:
You must rhyme line one and line two.
But then the third line
Starts a different rhyme
And line four goes along with that too.
The fifth line of your little verse,
Has a rhyme like the line that's the first.
And then you're all done!
So why not write one?
I'm sure yours won't be any worse. :-)
I actually sent it to a bunch of friends and co-workers today via email, and several of them responded to my 'challenge.' I was very pleased, amused, and even impressed with their creations!
So if any of you feel so inclined as well, I would welcome your contributions in recognition of this fine holiday. :-)
Here's this year's limerick:
It's once again Limerick Day,
And so I would just like to say,
I hope you find time
To come up with a rhyme
That's written in this special way.
It's really not that hard to do:
You must rhyme line one and line two.
But then the third line
Starts a different rhyme
And line four goes along with that too.
The fifth line of your little verse,
Has a rhyme like the line that's the first.
And then you're all done!
So why not write one?
I'm sure yours won't be any worse. :-)
Friday, April 16, 2010
It was a dark and stormy night...
Earlier this evening, we got a really big thunderstorm. The thunder and lightning really weren't too bad, but the wind was probably the worst I've seen with a storm in this area. And as proof I wasn't wrong in thinking that, I found out that the school that's almost next door to us, which is a WeatherBug station, recorded a gust of 54 mph this evening! That's definitely the highest gust I've ever seen recorded at the school.
With winds that strong, it's pretty tough to escape some negative consequences. Our neighbors on either side of us had large limbs break off of trees in their yards - just one more reason I'm glad we don't have trees in in our yard! Luckily, neither of them really had any damage from that happening.
However, I'm sure the winds were also in some way responsible for the power outage we experienced as the storm was winding down. The power went out several times during the peak of the storm, but after 30 seconds or a minute, it would come back on again. Finally, though, there was a time where it went off and didn't come back on. It didn't really affect us right away, since it's neither cold enough to need heat nor hot enough to need air conditioning, and it was still light outside.
However, after a while, we decided we should think about dinner. Probably most people in our situation would have just driven until they got to an area with power, and then eat at a restaurant, but that's not what we opted to do.
Brian suggested we go get propane for our grill, since it had recently run out, then go to the grocery store and get some food to grill for dinner. I could think of no reason to protest this idea, so that's what we did!
After we got the gas tank filled, we picked up a couple of little Delmonico steaks, some shrimp, some raw broccoli and petite baby carrots, and some potato salad.
By the time we got back to the house, it was dark. Luckily, I have a bunch of jar candles sitting together in one section of the kitchen, so I was able to quickly get them lit and distributed throughout the kitchen so we had some light. Brian quickly found our crank flashlight too, so we were all set.
Brian hooked up the gas and started the grill, and we started working on our veggie packets. We really like making packets of mixed vegetables for the grill. We normally have a larger variety of vegetables, but we didn't want them to take too long, so we only chose broccoli and petite baby carrots this time. We each had a sheet of foil and piled our veggies on the foil. Then we splashed some olive oil on them and seasoned them to our own liking. After that, we just folded the sides and ends up, leaving a little opening for steam to escape, and put them on the top rack of the grill.
The steaks were just as simple. We didn't have time to marinate them, so Brian just put some olive oil on them too, along with some kosher salt and black pepper.
For the shrimp, we tried something different. Normally we marinate them and thread them on pre-soaked wooden skewers, but we didn't have time for any of those things either. So we decided to try the foil packet approach with the shrimp as well. We put a slice of butter in with each packet, but no seasonings.
As the food was cooking, I suggested we have some wine, which Brian thought was a great idea - we already had the candlelight, so why not add some wine to the meal?! He took the flashlight to the basement and found a nice little bottle of Late Harvest Riesling from Stony Lonesome Wine Cellar along Seneca Lake in New York (which we visited last August). We sipped our wine in the candlelit kitchen as our food cooked outside in the dark, although Brian had to keep going out to the grill with the flashlight to check on the status of the food.
Finally, everything was done, and we sat down to eat our meal. And what do you know- just as we did that, the power came back on! We joked about it no longer being a romantic meal, but we enjoyed it just the same. Everything was cooked to perfection! I was pleasantly surprised at how well the shrimp turned out being cooked in foil packets, although they did take longer to cook than I expected.
So now the storm has passed, the power is restored, and life is back to normal. But we did have a neat little cooking adventure this evening, which we both thoroughly enjoyed!
With winds that strong, it's pretty tough to escape some negative consequences. Our neighbors on either side of us had large limbs break off of trees in their yards - just one more reason I'm glad we don't have trees in in our yard! Luckily, neither of them really had any damage from that happening.
However, I'm sure the winds were also in some way responsible for the power outage we experienced as the storm was winding down. The power went out several times during the peak of the storm, but after 30 seconds or a minute, it would come back on again. Finally, though, there was a time where it went off and didn't come back on. It didn't really affect us right away, since it's neither cold enough to need heat nor hot enough to need air conditioning, and it was still light outside.
However, after a while, we decided we should think about dinner. Probably most people in our situation would have just driven until they got to an area with power, and then eat at a restaurant, but that's not what we opted to do.
Brian suggested we go get propane for our grill, since it had recently run out, then go to the grocery store and get some food to grill for dinner. I could think of no reason to protest this idea, so that's what we did!
After we got the gas tank filled, we picked up a couple of little Delmonico steaks, some shrimp, some raw broccoli and petite baby carrots, and some potato salad.
By the time we got back to the house, it was dark. Luckily, I have a bunch of jar candles sitting together in one section of the kitchen, so I was able to quickly get them lit and distributed throughout the kitchen so we had some light. Brian quickly found our crank flashlight too, so we were all set.
Brian hooked up the gas and started the grill, and we started working on our veggie packets. We really like making packets of mixed vegetables for the grill. We normally have a larger variety of vegetables, but we didn't want them to take too long, so we only chose broccoli and petite baby carrots this time. We each had a sheet of foil and piled our veggies on the foil. Then we splashed some olive oil on them and seasoned them to our own liking. After that, we just folded the sides and ends up, leaving a little opening for steam to escape, and put them on the top rack of the grill.
The steaks were just as simple. We didn't have time to marinate them, so Brian just put some olive oil on them too, along with some kosher salt and black pepper.
For the shrimp, we tried something different. Normally we marinate them and thread them on pre-soaked wooden skewers, but we didn't have time for any of those things either. So we decided to try the foil packet approach with the shrimp as well. We put a slice of butter in with each packet, but no seasonings.
As the food was cooking, I suggested we have some wine, which Brian thought was a great idea - we already had the candlelight, so why not add some wine to the meal?! He took the flashlight to the basement and found a nice little bottle of Late Harvest Riesling from Stony Lonesome Wine Cellar along Seneca Lake in New York (which we visited last August). We sipped our wine in the candlelit kitchen as our food cooked outside in the dark, although Brian had to keep going out to the grill with the flashlight to check on the status of the food.
Finally, everything was done, and we sat down to eat our meal. And what do you know- just as we did that, the power came back on! We joked about it no longer being a romantic meal, but we enjoyed it just the same. Everything was cooked to perfection! I was pleasantly surprised at how well the shrimp turned out being cooked in foil packets, although they did take longer to cook than I expected.
So now the storm has passed, the power is restored, and life is back to normal. But we did have a neat little cooking adventure this evening, which we both thoroughly enjoyed!
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Biking at Stony Valley
It's sad to say, but I hadn't been on my bicycle since the first day of spring! Yesterday, though, I finally had the chance to go out again. Brian and I met up with our friends Rob and EB, and we headed to Dauphin to the Stony Valley Railroad Grade trail.
I had heard about this trail from a friend at work who rides it regularly. We thought it would be good to try it out since it's not too far away and it's a rail trail, which means it's pretty level.
Well first of all, getting there was interesting. The last two miles of the trip were on a pothole-laden dirt road which was barely wide enough for two cars. The ruts and holes were so bad that we could hardly ever go above 15 mph - which made the hand-made sign at the beginning of the road, asking people to go slowly, laughably unnecessary.
We finally arrived at the parking area, got on our bikes, and started down the trail. I had read on one website that the trail was kind of rough and best suited for mountain bikes, but when I asked my friend about it, he said he had pulled a baby trailer on the back of his hybrid bike along the trail several times last year, and that we shouldn't have a problem with it.
Well, we were able to ride on it, but it was definitely not easy in some places. I thought because it was a Rails-to-Trails trail, that it would be much like the one in Newville, which has crushed cinders and some small gravel, and is pretty well-maintained. However, apparently the Stony Valley trail is not specifically designed for bikes such as ours - it's more of a hiking and mountain biking trail. We encountered a wide range of conditions and ground coverings on the trail - anything from packed dirt, to crushed cinders, to small gravel, to pretty large gravel - and there were a few areas with some pretty big puddles in the path. It was quite inconsistent: we'd be going along just fine on packed dirt, and then all of a sudden there'd be this section with some pretty good-sized gravel, and we'd have to slow down some to be able to get through it. Our tires are just not that wide, and don't handle rough conditions as well as mountain bikes do.
Having said all that, we did enjoy the trail, at least the portion of it we rode (it's about 20 miles from end to end, but we only went 6 miles before we turned around). It's out in the middle of the woods, and it was very peaceful and pretty. It was a beautiful day to be out there, and I took quite a few pictures along the way.
However, I don't think any of us are in a hurry to go back there anytime soon. The road to get to the trail, and the trail itself, are just a little rougher than we want to deal with. (I guess my friend - and his baby - are tougher than we are!) But at least now we can say we tried it.
I had heard about this trail from a friend at work who rides it regularly. We thought it would be good to try it out since it's not too far away and it's a rail trail, which means it's pretty level.
Well first of all, getting there was interesting. The last two miles of the trip were on a pothole-laden dirt road which was barely wide enough for two cars. The ruts and holes were so bad that we could hardly ever go above 15 mph - which made the hand-made sign at the beginning of the road, asking people to go slowly, laughably unnecessary.
We finally arrived at the parking area, got on our bikes, and started down the trail. I had read on one website that the trail was kind of rough and best suited for mountain bikes, but when I asked my friend about it, he said he had pulled a baby trailer on the back of his hybrid bike along the trail several times last year, and that we shouldn't have a problem with it.
Well, we were able to ride on it, but it was definitely not easy in some places. I thought because it was a Rails-to-Trails trail, that it would be much like the one in Newville, which has crushed cinders and some small gravel, and is pretty well-maintained. However, apparently the Stony Valley trail is not specifically designed for bikes such as ours - it's more of a hiking and mountain biking trail. We encountered a wide range of conditions and ground coverings on the trail - anything from packed dirt, to crushed cinders, to small gravel, to pretty large gravel - and there were a few areas with some pretty big puddles in the path. It was quite inconsistent: we'd be going along just fine on packed dirt, and then all of a sudden there'd be this section with some pretty good-sized gravel, and we'd have to slow down some to be able to get through it. Our tires are just not that wide, and don't handle rough conditions as well as mountain bikes do.
Having said all that, we did enjoy the trail, at least the portion of it we rode (it's about 20 miles from end to end, but we only went 6 miles before we turned around). It's out in the middle of the woods, and it was very peaceful and pretty. It was a beautiful day to be out there, and I took quite a few pictures along the way.
However, I don't think any of us are in a hurry to go back there anytime soon. The road to get to the trail, and the trail itself, are just a little rougher than we want to deal with. (I guess my friend - and his baby - are tougher than we are!) But at least now we can say we tried it.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
A Day of Firsts
I haven't posted for a while, but I haven't thought of anything that seemed worthy of an entire blog post. Now that I'm on Facebook (yes, finally), I've found that to be a useful venue for sharing brief and random thoughts, both of which the majority of my thoughts seem to be. :-) However, today I finally have what I feel is information worthy of a new blog post. So here goes!
Today, as most of you probably know, is the first day of spring. It's a day welcomed by many who are ready to say goodbye (or maybe even "good riddance") to the crazy winter of 2009-2010. I actually didn't mind the winter - I thought it was great to finally have a snowy winter again, like the ones I remember from my childhood growing up outside Chicago. But I'm also quite happy to welcome spring back today.
Well, today was about the best day you could have asked for, if you were wishing for a perfect first day of spring. Beautiful blue skies, a slight breeze, and temperatures hovering around 70 degrees! OK, so that's actually more like late spring than the beginning of spring, but I haven't heard anyone complaining yet!
Several of my friends and I were discussing Saturday's forecast earlier in the week, and we agreed that it sounded like a perfect day to begin another season as well - bicycling season! We made plans to meet at the Cumberland Valley Rail Trail, and then we decided it would be even better if we brought a picnic lunch along!
So, that's exactly what we did. We met in Newville around 11:30, got our bikes ready, and headed down the trail.
It really was a gorgeous day for a ride. And I was so happy to see signs of life returning to the fields and trees. I may be wrong, but it seems like some of the trees are greening up this year earlier than usual.
I even got a couple pictures of my Holstein friends, which made me very happy. (You see, in addition to liking groundhogs, which I mentioned in my last post, I also like cows - especially Holsteins - and have since I was really young. I even have quite the collection of cow items - but that's a story for another time.)
You might think that our first ride of the season would be a pretty short, easy one. Well, it was pretty easy, since it was very level, but it was not short. In yet another first today, we rode all the way from Newville to the Shippensburg Township park! Of course I had to take a picture of the park pavilion as proof that we made it there.
OK, so the trail from Newville to Shippensburg is only about 9 miles, but then, of course, we had to ride all the way back! So on the first ride we've done in I don't know how many months, we went 18 miles! And to put this in a little better perspective, the longest ride I have ever done was 21 miles - and that was in the middle of summer after many weeks of riding. Today my quadriceps were crying out for a large portion of the ride back - it's a good thing we were on level ground, because I don't know how I would have handled any hills at that point!
When we got back to our cars, we broke out the picnic fixings and started eating with reckless abandon. And because I was too busy feeding my face with things like peanut butter and jelly, grapes, exotic crackers, cheeses, and ham (the last three items courtesy of our friends EB and Rob), I didn't take any pictures of the spread. But rest assured, there was a nice assortment of goodies to help us refuel after our long ride!
So, it's been a good day. I was so glad to be able to get outside and see the signs of spring arriving across the countryside - and to not yet be affected by the tree pollen, which is the one bad thing about spring. And hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to get out of bed without groaning in agony!
Today, as most of you probably know, is the first day of spring. It's a day welcomed by many who are ready to say goodbye (or maybe even "good riddance") to the crazy winter of 2009-2010. I actually didn't mind the winter - I thought it was great to finally have a snowy winter again, like the ones I remember from my childhood growing up outside Chicago. But I'm also quite happy to welcome spring back today.
Well, today was about the best day you could have asked for, if you were wishing for a perfect first day of spring. Beautiful blue skies, a slight breeze, and temperatures hovering around 70 degrees! OK, so that's actually more like late spring than the beginning of spring, but I haven't heard anyone complaining yet!
Several of my friends and I were discussing Saturday's forecast earlier in the week, and we agreed that it sounded like a perfect day to begin another season as well - bicycling season! We made plans to meet at the Cumberland Valley Rail Trail, and then we decided it would be even better if we brought a picnic lunch along!
So, that's exactly what we did. We met in Newville around 11:30, got our bikes ready, and headed down the trail.
It really was a gorgeous day for a ride. And I was so happy to see signs of life returning to the fields and trees. I may be wrong, but it seems like some of the trees are greening up this year earlier than usual.
I even got a couple pictures of my Holstein friends, which made me very happy. (You see, in addition to liking groundhogs, which I mentioned in my last post, I also like cows - especially Holsteins - and have since I was really young. I even have quite the collection of cow items - but that's a story for another time.)
You might think that our first ride of the season would be a pretty short, easy one. Well, it was pretty easy, since it was very level, but it was not short. In yet another first today, we rode all the way from Newville to the Shippensburg Township park! Of course I had to take a picture of the park pavilion as proof that we made it there.
OK, so the trail from Newville to Shippensburg is only about 9 miles, but then, of course, we had to ride all the way back! So on the first ride we've done in I don't know how many months, we went 18 miles! And to put this in a little better perspective, the longest ride I have ever done was 21 miles - and that was in the middle of summer after many weeks of riding. Today my quadriceps were crying out for a large portion of the ride back - it's a good thing we were on level ground, because I don't know how I would have handled any hills at that point!
When we got back to our cars, we broke out the picnic fixings and started eating with reckless abandon. And because I was too busy feeding my face with things like peanut butter and jelly, grapes, exotic crackers, cheeses, and ham (the last three items courtesy of our friends EB and Rob), I didn't take any pictures of the spread. But rest assured, there was a nice assortment of goodies to help us refuel after our long ride!
So, it's been a good day. I was so glad to be able to get outside and see the signs of spring arriving across the countryside - and to not yet be affected by the tree pollen, which is the one bad thing about spring. And hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to get out of bed without groaning in agony!
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Groundhog Day
I like groundhogs.
There, I've said it. I realize this statement probably won't win me any new friends, and may jeopardize some already-existing friendships, but I can't help it. It's the truth.
Therefore, I'm very excited that there's a holiday that centers on them. I know it's probably the silliest holiday that regularly gets a space on our calendars, but I can't help but enjoy this fact as well. I think at this point in the winter, a lot of people are ready for any excuse to celebrate, so why not celebrate the emergence of a mammal from a hole in the ground (or a specially-constructed shelter, in the case of some of the more famous groundhogs)?
Speaking of "more famous groundhogs," I actually got to meet the most famous groundhog of all a couple of years ago. In 2008, Punxsutawney Phil made a rare January appearance at the Pennsylvania Farm Show, and I simply had to go see him. Well, not only did I get to see him, but I got my picture taken with him and some of the members of The Inner Circle! (Astute observers will recognize my profile picture as coming from this photograph.)
And a couple of years before I met Phil, I wrote a poem about this holiday, which I've posted below, even though at this point in the day we don't know if Phil has actually seen his shadow. But even if he doesn't (which I think is pretty rare), I thought I should share it anyway.
There’s a certain little mammal
with fur that’s mostly brown,
who’s really good at digging holes
and lives under the ground.
This guy is called a groundhog
--but he’s called a woodchuck, too,
and on this day each year he has
a special job to do.
His job is not too difficult,
in fact he does it well—
he simply climbs out of his hole,
the weather to foretell.
For if he sees his shadow
when he looks upon the earth,
it means we’ll have more winter—
another six week’s worth.
But if he sees no shadow,
that predicts a different fate.
It means that spring will be here soon
and we won’t have long to wait.
This year the famous groundhog
known as Punxsutawney Phil
said that we will have more winter—
and you know, I think we will.
So keep your snow boots handy
and find your shovels, too,
cause although Phil is a groundhog,
I think his words are true.
Happy Groundhog Day!
There, I've said it. I realize this statement probably won't win me any new friends, and may jeopardize some already-existing friendships, but I can't help it. It's the truth.
Therefore, I'm very excited that there's a holiday that centers on them. I know it's probably the silliest holiday that regularly gets a space on our calendars, but I can't help but enjoy this fact as well. I think at this point in the winter, a lot of people are ready for any excuse to celebrate, so why not celebrate the emergence of a mammal from a hole in the ground (or a specially-constructed shelter, in the case of some of the more famous groundhogs)?
Speaking of "more famous groundhogs," I actually got to meet the most famous groundhog of all a couple of years ago. In 2008, Punxsutawney Phil made a rare January appearance at the Pennsylvania Farm Show, and I simply had to go see him. Well, not only did I get to see him, but I got my picture taken with him and some of the members of The Inner Circle! (Astute observers will recognize my profile picture as coming from this photograph.)
And a couple of years before I met Phil, I wrote a poem about this holiday, which I've posted below, even though at this point in the day we don't know if Phil has actually seen his shadow. But even if he doesn't (which I think is pretty rare), I thought I should share it anyway.
There’s a certain little mammal
with fur that’s mostly brown,
who’s really good at digging holes
and lives under the ground.
This guy is called a groundhog
--but he’s called a woodchuck, too,
and on this day each year he has
a special job to do.
His job is not too difficult,
in fact he does it well—
he simply climbs out of his hole,
the weather to foretell.
For if he sees his shadow
when he looks upon the earth,
it means we’ll have more winter—
another six week’s worth.
But if he sees no shadow,
that predicts a different fate.
It means that spring will be here soon
and we won’t have long to wait.
This year the famous groundhog
known as Punxsutawney Phil
said that we will have more winter—
and you know, I think we will.
So keep your snow boots handy
and find your shovels, too,
cause although Phil is a groundhog,
I think his words are true.
Happy Groundhog Day!
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Championships!
Wow! I have to say that after years of not being a fan, Brian and I are certainly getting quite the introduction into all the excitement NFL football has to offer! Amazingly, both the Vikings and the Jets won their division games on Sunday, and so this coming Sunday, they're playing in their conference championship games!! And this also means the possibility of a Vikings-Jets Superbowl is still alive!
But before I go into that, let me talk a little about last Sunday's games. The Vikings-Cowboys game was great because the entire Vikings team looked good - including the defense. The defense had been a little sketchy the last few games, but on Sunday they looked more like they had back in October. Even my favorite defensive player, Jared Allen, had his first sack in several games! And he wasn't the only one who had a turn knocking down Tony Romo. The Cowboys really just seemed unable to do anything, as evidenced by the very lopsided final score of 34-3. But that didn't bother me one bit! I thought it was great to see the Vikings on fire!
And as I think about the Jets-Chargers game and why that was exciting, I'd have to say that it was pretty much for the same reason - the entire Jets team looked good too. There was no question in my mind that the defense would perform well - after all, they have the number one defense in the NFL - but I was kind of worried about the offense. However, they warmed themselves up slowly, and by the second half, they were looking good and scoring points. And they actually scored enough points to win the game!! At the end of the fourth quarter, when there was about a minute left, it slowly dawned on me that the Jets really were going to win, and the Chargers couldn't do anything about it! I really was quite astonished - but thrilled as well!
Of course, this means we have at least one more Sunday of nerve-wracking excitement in our household! And I really don't know what to think at this point about who's going to win each game. It boggles my own mind when I think about how many articles and interviews I've read about these upcoming games and the reasons why each of the four teams could win or lose. I mean, I have really become a football fanatic! Although I wouldn't be able to have a very long, complicated conversation about technical aspects of the game, I think I could probably keep up in a simpler conversation for a good while. And at this point, I think I can list the names and numbers of more Vikings players than Brian can. (I'm getting there with the Jets - but we haven't seen as many of their games on TV because they weren't broadcast in our area.)
So, back to the idea of a Vikings-Jets Superbowl - I guess it really could still happen, but do I want it to? I'm not sure! I will be sad if one of the teams loses on Sunday, but if they both win, I really don't know who I'm going to root for! There are so many good reasons to root for both teams! But I guess I shouldn't worry about that yet... right now I just have to make it through this coming Sunday!
But before I go into that, let me talk a little about last Sunday's games. The Vikings-Cowboys game was great because the entire Vikings team looked good - including the defense. The defense had been a little sketchy the last few games, but on Sunday they looked more like they had back in October. Even my favorite defensive player, Jared Allen, had his first sack in several games! And he wasn't the only one who had a turn knocking down Tony Romo. The Cowboys really just seemed unable to do anything, as evidenced by the very lopsided final score of 34-3. But that didn't bother me one bit! I thought it was great to see the Vikings on fire!
And as I think about the Jets-Chargers game and why that was exciting, I'd have to say that it was pretty much for the same reason - the entire Jets team looked good too. There was no question in my mind that the defense would perform well - after all, they have the number one defense in the NFL - but I was kind of worried about the offense. However, they warmed themselves up slowly, and by the second half, they were looking good and scoring points. And they actually scored enough points to win the game!! At the end of the fourth quarter, when there was about a minute left, it slowly dawned on me that the Jets really were going to win, and the Chargers couldn't do anything about it! I really was quite astonished - but thrilled as well!
Of course, this means we have at least one more Sunday of nerve-wracking excitement in our household! And I really don't know what to think at this point about who's going to win each game. It boggles my own mind when I think about how many articles and interviews I've read about these upcoming games and the reasons why each of the four teams could win or lose. I mean, I have really become a football fanatic! Although I wouldn't be able to have a very long, complicated conversation about technical aspects of the game, I think I could probably keep up in a simpler conversation for a good while. And at this point, I think I can list the names and numbers of more Vikings players than Brian can. (I'm getting there with the Jets - but we haven't seen as many of their games on TV because they weren't broadcast in our area.)
So, back to the idea of a Vikings-Jets Superbowl - I guess it really could still happen, but do I want it to? I'm not sure! I will be sad if one of the teams loses on Sunday, but if they both win, I really don't know who I'm going to root for! There are so many good reasons to root for both teams! But I guess I shouldn't worry about that yet... right now I just have to make it through this coming Sunday!
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