True fans ignore location

Serendipitously, the Seakhawks and the Colts’ playing the late-afternoon slot last Sunday coincided with fall break being this week. Here Charlie is at midnight yesterday, hoping against hope that the Seahawks would pull out a victory against the Vikings (which unfortunately remained just that, hope). The power was out (contrary to the picture’s look from the flash), a storm was raging outside, and Charlie and I huddled around a computer. ESPN.com’s NFL scoreboard promised to automatically reload, but no true fan could resist hitting refresh over and over. (If you don’t think this is fitting for missionaries, don’t worry—we prayed together during half-time. That’s a joke, but we really did.) I think the reality of defeat had begun to set in at the time of the picture: Charlie began to drift off sometime in the 4th quarter.

I, on the other hand, was able to retire with the euphoria of victory. The Colts became the ninth team in NFL history to be 6-0 for two consecutive seasons. (The Chicago Bears? Who? ) Now if I can only find a venue to watch the play-offs…

[Editorial insert: As the publisher of this post, I must interject and say that the Colts will crumble in the playoffs as Belichick and the Patriots' defense once more gets into Peyton's head. Sorry Tommy, but winless starts in the regular season don't translate into playoff success. Just ask the Colts about last year.]

--tg