September 30, 2010

Darkest Before the Dawn




I don't care, you know.

I don't care about DeAngelo Hall's diarrhetic mouth, Clinton Portis' rubber legs or the vaccuum that is Albert Haynesworth's intellect.

I don't care if Mike Shanahan, Bruce Allen and Donovan McNabb are Sons of Washington or adopted sons passing through.

I don't care if Dan Snyder is sinner or saint.

For reasons that go way back, I do care whether the professional football team known as the Washington Redskins scores more points on a given Sunday than the team the National Football League schedules them to play.

It's a simple formula really:

1. Score more points than the other guy more often than not over the course of sixteen weeks, and chances are they will let you play another game.

2. Score more points than the other guy in that game and lo and behold they let you play again, and...

3. Everyone talks in reverential tones about how awesome, cool and sexy you are.

I vaguely remember the last time my favorite team was awesome and cool and sexy. I was 31 and had a full head of hair. I could still stomach cheap beer. Life was good.

Lots has happened in my life since then; stuff you don't care about and I don't feel like telling. Know what hasn't happened?

My favorite football team hasn't won.

Instead they have become an opponent. You know opponents. The Washington Generals are an opponent. Grenada was an opponent.

The Washington Redskins are supposed to be better than that.

I've had my fill of friends who don't follow football, or worse, root for other teams, looking at me Monday mornings with geniune pity or barely-disguised mirth.

I wish I could stop caring. Or at least I do for a few minutes after the latest soul-crushing loss. But of course I can't. I'm a lifer.

Then I wish like hell I could do something about it. Which of course I also can't. I'm a fan.

Tired of losing though. Like, alot.

I think it's time for a futile gesture.

Until the losing stops this dumb blog will wear black.

Hail dammit.

8 comments:

Lizkauai said...

HTTR!!
And I haven't been a fan as long as you... but gunfunnit... just ONE MORE POINT than the other guys every Sunday (Monday or Thursday)!

Mark "Om" Steven said...

Hopefully this won't sound creepy, but ... you are one of the few things that the past few years of Redskinsdom has done right, Liz. I sincerely hope the team repays you for your heart's investment one day soon.

How does one say "hail" in Hawaiian?

Mike D said...

and that's why it will be so sweet when things turn around, which could easily be this week in philly... it's always darkest before the dawn... if we beat the cowboys + philly to go 2-2, a new day may have arrived.

Mark "Om" Steven said...

Absolutely, Mike. There have been flashes--no one should forget the feeling we had at 27-10 in the 3rd quarter against Houston. The offense was flying, the defense was making plays and it looked and felt like the sun had finally come out again in DC.

They showed they are capable of playing at a high level. Since then they have also showed they are capable of playing at a very low level.

One thing about "new" teams like the 2010 Skins...they aren't consistent. Ever. They could very conceivably come out flying on Sunday and knock off the Eagles and give Redskins Nation yet another case of psychic whiplash.

In which case the black can go.

Butz said...

"It's always darkest before dawn."

That's an interesting reference to choose. I suppose "winning it all" in that analogy would not be "dawn" but would be "noon." And in that case, dawn is a long way from noon.

So if we have not hit dawn, we are far away from winning it all.

But the other interesting point is that you cannot tell it is "darkest" until the dawn arrives. In other words, it's a retrospective analysis.

One cannot take a point in time that is really, really bad and say "well, this is the darkest its going to get, so that must mean dawn is coming." Things can always get worse. ALWAYS. And they can get worse for us. We could be a long way from dawn still and even longer from noon.

We'll see. I better start seeing SERIOUS improvement this week.

Mark "Om" Steven said...

Very philosophical, Butz.

You're right, it's likely going to be a while before the Redskins win a title. I'd say a reasonable minimum expectation would be 3-4 years. So getting TOO worked up about a week 3 loss in year 1 is probably not the most rational way to go.

Just letting off some steam over a painful loss that took me by surprise. Figured going dark on the site was a semi-entertaining way to do it. The Om Field will go white again when the Redskins reach .500.

You seem a bit more intense. When you say you "better start seeing SERIOUS improvement this week" ... I have to ask ... or what?

BroodingDude said...

Hate the losing, but LOVE the black. Might be a nice permanent change (along with the gold pants).

Mark "Om" Steven said...

I've heard that a few times this week, Brood Dude. Not sure, but I think the plan is to go black when the team is under .500, white when they are even or better.

Dunno though. Maybe once the Redskins decide over-.500 is better, and we get used to it again, I'll go black throwback once in a while. :)