Packer Football!

Football is in the air here. The high temp today was 62 degrees. And the honey wagon is making its appearance at farms all around –the honey wagon is the nickname for the manure spreader. The high school team here has won two football games in a row to be undefeated after two years of nothing but L’s. And tonight, the Packers had their first regular season game against their rivals, the Minnesota Vikings, AKA the Queens.

People associated with sports often have good luck charms or rituals. My college boyfriend played football (UW-W) and his ritual was to buy a new pair of tube socks before every game. All around town today, people were wearing their green and gold. My ritual is to precisely pop a beer at the kickoff –when the foot hits the ball if we are kicking, or if the opponents kick, when our player catches the ball. This has been a really good method of bringing luck to the team for many years.

Well, tonight before the game, I was on the internet reading about the game and ended up reading some Queen newspaper site and their fans’ smack about the Pack. I wanted to add a comment about a state that would elect Jesse Ventura, but I believe the site was closed to Wisconsin addressees. One of the comments said kick-off was at 6:15. And I was fool enough to believe it.

My husband, Bob, is on his 15th month in Afghanistan and he and I try to watch as many Packer games “together” as we can. Armed Forces Network only carries a couple of games on game day, and his schedule is always packed, so he doesn’t get to see the Packers too often. Tonight’s game was on Monday Night Football at 3:30 am there (Tuesday), so he would be able to watch it. I was typing Bob an email with my thoughts on the game and missed the kickoff—damn, I thought I had a few more minutes. I was able to pop my beer when Aaron Rodgers took the first snap, but that is not as solid of a good luck charm. Bob cannot pop a beer (General Order Number 1—no drinking). It’s all on my shoulders.

He was able to get through to me on the phone during the game, one bonus to getting up at 3:30 am is that phone lines are not as clogged. He still has to dial the 32 numbers from the calling card. We talked during some of the plays and at one point, a rocket landed down the street from him. Talk about excitement. I laughed out loud when Bob referred to the Vikings as the “enemy.” I think he needs some cuddling.

The game was exciting and Bob called me twice more to telephonically high-five, once notifying me I needed to put more money on the phone card. Even with my bad start as a provider of good luck, the Packers were able to win. Whew, I did not let them down. So, here’s what my poster board for the game says:

Days apart from Bob—435
Phone card add’l minutes--$30
Rodgers’ Score & Lambeau Leap--Priceless