Save It

I thought about what to title this post and then "save it" came to mind. I have just watched my Lakers lose game six and the NBA Championship. They got out played and they lost. This is a premeption to the emails and G-Chats I expect tomorrow. It's pretty simple. I was over confident. I think the Celtics difficulty in the first couple of rounds made me think they weren't a good team. Wrong...they are very good. I was impressed by their defense. They beat the Lakers. The thing I learned from these playoffs and this series in particular is that I want to be a more consciences fan. I don't think I have and certainly never will get nearly the sense of joy from a team losing than I will from my team winning. I see no point in rooting vehemently against the team my friend wants to win if I have no vested interest in the game.

Here is my mea culpa. If I have ever been rude and rooted against your team simply to stick it to you, I apologize. After spending the last week listening to the most annoying and irritating comments from all sorts of sources, I realize that is not the kind of fan I want to be. The only time you will hear me make a disparaging remark about one of my friend's team is when they are competing against my team. I apologize to Josh Rose for calling him after the Lions lost on Monday Night football in 1994.

I am as passionate as ever about my teams (Niners, Angels, Lakers, and Cougars) but after the year I have had I have a much better perspective. Sports is a great way to feel connected to your community, a way to connect with your father, a distraction from the cares of the world, a way to feel part of a team, and that sort of thing. I still can not fully trust a man who doesn't like baseball. But sports (especially watching them) is not the whole world. Tomorrow I'll wake up, go to work, hang with President Bush, maybe dance at a party, and the world will go on. These playoffs have been great to root for my team, have a great time with my friends, and overall have a good time. This isn't loser talk, because I sure wanted the Lakers to win. I am not satisfied with second place, but I do realize that it isn't the end of the world. Tomorrow I will be living and dying with the Angels, with the 49ers and the Cougars just around the corner, and the Lakers shooting hoops again by Halloween. That is how this works. You see probably the best thing about sports is that there is always next season.

-Peter