Purple Pride

I’ve outgrown the days when Minnesota Vikings telecasts were mandatory for me. Getting out of church by 12 noon during the autumn was essential for me throughout most of the twentieth century. In that time before Tivo I learned how to be rude, in a polite sort of way, as I rushed out to my car after the Sunday morning service. And then I (along with dozens of other male car-warmers) would sit with the radio blasting as I (we) awaited the spousal factor in our lives.

But then there were those special Monday nights, that extraordinary, almost magical, once-a-year evening when the Purple People Eaters would devour and humiliate a rival on national TV. The hardware stores were empty, the bars were overflowing, and I was usually home propped up in front of the tube. Vikings on Monday Night Football was huge.

So why did I not even think about turning on the tube last night? What has happened? I don’t think I can completely blame the men in purple and gold, although they’ve worked hard at alienating fans this season. It’s probably me. It wasn’t until about 10:40 last night that I turned on the game. And to my surprise they were actually ahead. And it was the fourth quarter with only four minutes left. And it looked like it was a great game. And it was against those dastardly Cheese Heads. But I did the unthinkable (at least it would have been a few years ago), I turned it off and put my head on the pillow.

The traffic was lighter than normal this morning. I think it’s directly related to having a Monday night game. But there were still people out and about. I hear that across the border on those kinds of Tuesdays the whole state shuts down, especially if the Packers have been humiliated.

In closing I can’t claim to have enjoyed a fine game last night, but this morning I could still feel great and gloat in the fact that the Pack lost another one, especially at the hands of a questionable team at best. Am I slowly becoming infected with purple pride again?