The Championship Hangover

I haven't ranted in a long time. Almost 2 years. But recently a lot of friends have asked for my obnoxious, outwardly-opinionated-self to restart. I've had trouble coming up with something to rant about that wasn't political so I've avoided it.

Until now.

I need to rant some sports a little bit. Everyone knows I'm a huge Yankees and Giants fan. My father is both, and thus I really had no choice in the matter. But I'm so thankful for being a fan of both teams, so thanks Dad! But I'm also a fan of sports in general. I love sports. I get sports. Sports bring cities together, they bring people together. Black/white, male/female, young/old: none of that matters when you rally around your team.

I've been blessed in my short time on earth to witness my teams accomplish some great things. The Yankees won 4 world series in 5 years, including 3 straight from 1998-2000. They also went to the WS in 2001 and 2004. And of course they just won again this past season.

The Giants have won a Super Bowl in every decade of my life thus far. 1986 I was too young to remember. 1991 I was young but I clearly remember it. in 2000 they went and lost but of course I was still proud to be a fan. And we all remember 2007 when they were underdogs throughout the playoffs and beat the 18-0 hated New England Patriots in the Super Bowl. That may have been my greatest sports moment. I hope I get to experience that again one day.

So, I've been blessed to witness my teams win championships. Isn't that why we watch every game? For that shot to be the last team standing? We all know going to into a season that the our teams have a far greater chance of NOT winning it all. I've seen my teams do a lot of winning, but I've also seen a lot of losing. But we watch every pitch, every pass, every play until we know for sure they won't be crowned champs at the end of the season.

I know what it is like to be a fan and know that feeling of a championship. And I wish that every fan out there could experience it at least once. Hey if Red Sox fans can feel it, EVERYONE should!! After the Yankees won the World Series a friend of mine said to me "I hope I can experience that champsionship hangover at least once in my life." Unfortunately he's a Mets and Raiders fan so its not looking good! But I really truly hope he does. Again, every fan should.

And this brings me to my point: The Jets. I know a lot of Jets fans. It ain't easy being a Jets fan, and I can appreciate that. In fact most Jets fans are by default Mets fans, so their entire sports fandom is a miserable existence. And like I said earlier, I feel so blessed that I've experienced my teams winning multiple championships in my lifetime and I'm confident that I'll experience more in the years to come. And I really hope that Jets fans get to experience it too. Maybe this is their year. Maybe not. But I do hope that one year soon they get to experience it, because EVERYONE should (have we noticed the theme of this rant yet??).

I have one Jets-fan friend in particular who thinks because I'm a Giants fan, I automatically hate the Jets. That is so completely and utterly untrue. The Jets play for my city and my friends too, just like the Giants. And I'm rooting for them! They're a great story and I'd be very happy for my friends, (like Rich Verde) who've long suffered, to feel that high. Sure its fun to banter with friends. Who's team is better, which team will get further in the playoffs, etc. We've all had these arguments. But at the end of the day, I hope that as sports fans, we can appreciate the feeling of winning, and be happy for the fans of the team that did.

I love being a Yankees fan and a Giants fan and I love that I've witnessed a championship for each team over the last 2 years. We all want to win every year, but that's impossible. So sometimes other teams have to win.

To all the Jets, Mets, Cubs, Browns, Eagles, KNICKS, etc fans out there: I really hope that you all get to experience what my friend Dave calls "the Championship Hangover." It's like no other feeling in the world. And as a fan of Sports, I wish you all the best.