I have been moping about recently and I think you all know why. The Redskins lost the Super Bowl to the Bengals last Sunday night and it was painful. I was saying as much to a friend of mine, and he had a puzzled look on his face: Friend: Um, dude, why are you so hung up on that Bengals game? Master of the Universe (aka me): Um, duh, the ‘Skins LOST THE SUPERBOWL Friend: I hate to break it to you this way but that was the first game of the PREseason, not the last game of the POSTseason MotU: Are you asserting there is a difference? Friend: Why yes I am, pre season is the part before the regular season, the post season is the part after the regular season. MotU: Ohhhhhhhh … it is, like, soooooooooo helpful that you speak in hyperlinks, I really must learn that trick. But, I mean, the game was still a loss, I should tear my clothes and beat my chest and say things like ‘woe is me’ right? Friend: Um, if you want, but while the game was technically a loss, it has no bearing whatsoever on the regular season. MotU: But that’s all I can focus on right now, we lost man, we looked awful. Friend: Yeah but reacting to this part is akin to walking out of ‘Empire Strikes Back’ when they freeze Han and screaming: ‘Well, the Jedis are all going to be dead soon, no point in carrying on.’ MotU: They made a movie after ‘Empire’? You’re not counting the holiday special are you? Friend: OK, so that point was lost on you … um, I suppose what I am saying is that you have to learn perspective as a fan. It’s ultimately self-defeating to become hyper-focused on one game, it serves as much purpose as becoming focused on one player or one series, etcetera. That isn’t to say you can’t objectively come to the conclusion that the performance in the first preseason game was less than stellar. But we’re in the opening moves of a chess game, to panic at this point would be akin to flipping out the minute you lost a pawn. MotU: Lost my pawn? Are you hitting on me? Friend: No … sigh … I’m just trying to make the point that just because the ship rocks doesn’t mean you scream ‘women and children first’ and jump into the water. MotU: Well, duh, I’m not a jerk, I’d throw the women and children in first. Friend: OK, so analogies are totally worthless … to be clear, I’m saying that we have just as much reason to be excited and hopeful about the regular season as we did three weeks ago, it’s far too soon to worry that this experiment is a failure. MotU: BUT WHAT ABOUT THE INJURIES?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! Friend: … please never scream in my ear again … MotU: My bad … holy mother of all that is holy, I have hurt your ears, your life is going to screech to a halt … er … it will flutter to a halt, since you won’t actually ever be able to hear a screech again … oh my god, it must look to you as if I am simply flapping my lips as you are trapped in your prison of silence, your fortress of silent solitude, your … Friend: I’m OK man, some injuries are temporary, they aren’t fun and you hope to avoid them at all costs but they come with the territory and you have to learn to step back and assess what they actually are and what the pragmatic results of those injuries might be. MotU: IT’S A MIRACLE, YOU CAN TALK AGAIN Friend:
Saturday, December 09, 2023
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