Bhagwan @ Large

Links, pictures, and scribblings from my never-ending program of dissipation.

You are currently browsing the archives for the day Saturday, October 9th, 2004.

Game 1

And it’s about time.

Season opener for the Seattle Thunderbirds, and warm on the heels of today’s Pac-10 escapades.

Leaving the Duchess, Eric and I swing by and pick up Bree, who has come up for this event. After some traffic hilarity (game traffic always sucks in the U-district after a game) the three of us join Jen at the homestead, while we wait for the Mindy unit to pick us up. We three have tickets, and Eric decides to take the gamble, and buy on-site.

Success! Not only do we secure free parking within a reasonable walk, but Strand gets a seat in our same section. Given Seattle sports attendance this year, it is a virtual lock that he will be able to upgrade to our level of cool seatness.

Dinner is good (as always), and our football buzz carries us through the meal and into the opening ceremonies. On the way in, I stop to arrange for a tape of the game, but then discover that DVDs are an option this year from TRG video. Since my ultimate goal is to transfer the games over to that media, I decide to wait until more data can be collected on pricing and availability. Plus, I can always pick up the season series later, like I did last year.

Lots of new kids this year, and plenty of time to get to know them better during the long lineup session. Some kids like Dustin Johner are gone, and replaced by new faces with little english. We expected that, since he was playing semi-pro hockey at the end of spring. Other veteran names like Zach Fitzgerald are still around, but in a surprise move by new coach Rob Sumner (yay!), fan favorite Tyler Metcalfe has been named team captain.

How about that?

For Portland, the only two names I recognize are the kids we love to hate, Robin Big Snake and the goalie, Kevin Butler. That’s not bad at all, since both are effectively out of the game by the end of the first period. the t-birds go up 3-0 with lightning speed, even after one goal is called back.

Silly Zebras, you can’t keep a good puck down. And neither can the Winterhawks, who make 35 shots on the night, only two of which get between the pipes.

T-Birds win, 4-2, claiming a 2-0 lead in the season series. It’s so nice to see a Seattle team win.

Probables for my next game are Friday night here in Seattle, and Saturday up in Everett. But since both conflict somewhat with other activities, I’ll need to play it by ear.

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Game 3


Location: The Duchess Tavern

Early mornings always bite, but I’m somewhat inured to them by now. So I’m finally able to enjoy the mythic Duchess pre-func with Strand.

I’ve been hearing about this for a long time, and have been invited more than once. But today was the day.

Jen and I send waves of collective guilt to Eric, who rolls out of bed right when we are supposed to arrive at the bar. We get in 15 minutes late, but are greeted with smiles and beer.

(I’ll let you fill in the blanks on time, but the sun was not yet over the yardarm in Chicago.)

The table is there for us, as it always is. In attendance are TF, SF and Indigo Cheryl, Lisa from HR, Kitty Toi (also from HR, so don’t get any jokes ready, she’s already heard them), and the hunting shirt guy (whose name I did not catch, although it was thrown at me several times). Rod, Stacey, and the Weatherman join us later, filling out the Breakfast table of Champions.

The Duchess is a fine local establishment, revered in Husky lore. Generations of Husky fans have taken their first drink there, and it is steeped in school pride. As a non-Husky, it was cool to soak up the ambience, and drink Husky beer. And since USC isn’t on the home schedule for another year, I won’t have to take any crap from my compatriots when when the Trojans go 7-0 on them in two weeks.

But back to the game. Or really, the lack thereof. As was previously mentioned, we got an early start, and not everyone in the party was ready to walk down and sit in the rain for what looked to be another Washington loss. I was game, as was Strand. But SF , Indigo Cheryl, and the Weatherman wanted to stay a little longer, so we ordered “just one more” a few times, and then a few more. Through the magic of Digital PCS service, we kept track of the Dawgs as they CRUSHED the Spartans 21-6, and watched on the big screen as the Trojans held on over the Bears, 23-17. (Next week, I’ll pack the extra battery, as we used up the slim one pretty thoroughly.)

This, of course, avenges our ignominious defeat last year at their hands, which marred an otherwise perfect NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON.

After a full day of working our livers, we had to pack it up, and move on to our next sporting event of the day. Perhaps next week, we’ll leave the bar, and watch the Dawgs flail against Oregon State, a Pac-10 rival which they actually stand a chance of beating.

More later.

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