Friday, December 26, 2008
Christmas Eve
I was lucky enough to watch the homeless, drunk version of santa claus (riding a bike, in december, in Buffalo) yell "pornstar" loud and repeatedly at the uncomfortable hipster walking across the street. It made all of the hassles and waiting in line worth it.
Friday, December 12, 2008
The last Leaf game I attended...
Every year, I end up with tickets to several Toronto Maple Leaf games in Buffalo. It's almost impossible to get tickets in Toronto, so a lot of Toronto fans come down to Buffalo and buy tickets from season ticket holders who can pay for a seasons worth of tickets by selling them to Leaf fans. It's hard to describe the annoyance of walking into HSBC arena (the clever name we have here in Buffalo for our arena), hearing chants of "Go Leafs Go". Oddly, it's the only chant you hear (being one of the original six teams does not lend itself to fan creativity, apparently). Of course, they're much louder than anything you and your friends can muster, and it sets the tone for a night of annoyance.
Security at these games is much more visible and omnipresent. If this were Europe, you'd expect a soccer like riot. Ridiculous, nationalistic arguments abound, with Buffalo natives reminding the Leaf fans that Canada, does in fact suck, and Toronto natives reminding Sabre fans that we've never won a stanley cup. Sometimes these digress into serious discussions of national policy (Canadians are pussies, Americans are gun toting red necks) and sometimes you form a bond with your northern counterpart. There's been a lot of losing in Toronto and Buffalo over the years. Either way, you leave feeling violated in some way.
Last year, around this time of year, was the last Leaf game I attended (I'm torturing myself tonight). Walking into the arena, I am instantly bombarded by "Go Leafs Go", and throngs of fans wearing blue hair and Leaf flags as capes (some sort of weird Canadian super hero, I suppose). I check my ticket with the ticket holder and walk into the lobby. Almost instantly, I am slammed into by a short, fat man wearing a Toronto hat. I apologize, and he responds with "fuck you, eh". Not one to be out done, I push him, and he responds that he is going to kill me (I find this a dubious threat, we are amongst 18,000 people), and I respond with "go fuck yourself". I paid too much money to get into the game to get kicked out three seconds in, so I walk away. As I walk to my seat, I quietly curse every season ticket holder that sells their tickets...
Security at these games is much more visible and omnipresent. If this were Europe, you'd expect a soccer like riot. Ridiculous, nationalistic arguments abound, with Buffalo natives reminding the Leaf fans that Canada, does in fact suck, and Toronto natives reminding Sabre fans that we've never won a stanley cup. Sometimes these digress into serious discussions of national policy (Canadians are pussies, Americans are gun toting red necks) and sometimes you form a bond with your northern counterpart. There's been a lot of losing in Toronto and Buffalo over the years. Either way, you leave feeling violated in some way.
Last year, around this time of year, was the last Leaf game I attended (I'm torturing myself tonight). Walking into the arena, I am instantly bombarded by "Go Leafs Go", and throngs of fans wearing blue hair and Leaf flags as capes (some sort of weird Canadian super hero, I suppose). I check my ticket with the ticket holder and walk into the lobby. Almost instantly, I am slammed into by a short, fat man wearing a Toronto hat. I apologize, and he responds with "fuck you, eh". Not one to be out done, I push him, and he responds that he is going to kill me (I find this a dubious threat, we are amongst 18,000 people), and I respond with "go fuck yourself". I paid too much money to get into the game to get kicked out three seconds in, so I walk away. As I walk to my seat, I quietly curse every season ticket holder that sells their tickets...
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