30 Days of Thankfulness - Day 14

Today, I am thankful for football.

I love fall, not just because it means the 120-degree days are past us for the year, but because of one thing in particular.... football season. I grew up watching sports with my dad, going to card shows to meet players and get their autographs, and going to several sporting events. I picked up on baseball and basketball pretty quickly. Baseball was easy to learn, a little on the boring side, but easy... basketball, pretty simple too. Football on the other hand, was a little more tricky. Yes, the goal is to score a touchdown, I get it. But there are so many different rules, penalties, positions and plays, that for a girl trying to watch the game and learn--- it was tough. I had a lot of questions (I still have questions) but I wanted to learn and I've always been up for a challenge. I think that's why I love football so much. I'm a life-long learner and when I don't understand something, I want to figure it out.

Disclaimer: I do not claim to know anything and everything there is to know about football. I think that in order to fully understand a sport, you have to play. No matter how many games you've watched, you can't possibly pick up on everything from just watching. So with that said, clearly I am not an expert. I can barely throw a spiral from 10 yards away.

Now from a fan perspective, I think I'm pretty good. I have my teams and I stick with them... even when they're not very good. I grew up in Washington, so I naturally became a fan of the local professional teams. The Mariners, Sonics (RIP) and Seahawks. When you grow up in Washington and it comes to college teams, you're either a Coug or a Husky fan. Since we lived closer to Seattle than Pullman, I think our family naturally became Husky fans. Either that or I just liked purple better-- I'm not sure. Either way, we proudly rock the purple and gold.

I love Saturdays and Sundays in the fall.... whether it's watching the games on TV or going to the stadium, it's one of the best things about fall and one of my favorite things to do. We were on the waiting list for Seahawks season tickets several years ago and as luck would have it, the minute we moved out of the state, we were off the waiting list. We still have our tickets and will keep them in the chance we ever move back... and as an investment I guess. And by investment, I mean during the times when we play well. When we play terrible, it's hard enough trying to give away the tickets.

My favorite two games I've been to:

Huskies vs. Ohio State - We lost, but we put up a good fight. And we had a blast tailgating with our friends Lindsey and Bryce before the game... how many times have YOU had cheese fondue tailgating?!

Seahawks vs. Cowboys - Remember when Tony Romo fumbled the snap in the playoffs? Yah... we were there. I surprised Stefan with tickets for his birthday. Probably my favorite game.

Wanna know what I love the most about football?? A good win. We were at the Hawks/Cardinals game earlier this year in Seattle and won.... and then yesterday, beat the Cards again in Arizona!!!! Living in Arizona and being around so many fair-weather fans drives me insane... just five years ago when the Cardinals weren't very good and they played at Sun Devil Stadium, Mr. Seapimp (see below) was at the game and said there were nearly more Seahawks fans than Cardinal fans filling the stadium. Pretty pathetic, right? Well now all of the Cardinal fans have come out of the woodworks to support "their team" since they were good for a couple years. Beyond annoying. Pick your team and stick with them. It's much more satisfying when they pull off a good win.... or two good wins against the same division-rival team in less than a month. :)

This was us at the game in Arizona last year when we lost. :(
This is us with some Hawks fans from Seattle at the pre-game party Saturday night in Scottsdale at a Seahawks bar... The "seapimp" in the white suit has been to every home game since 1976 and came down to AZ for the game. Gotta love true fans...