Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Time to be Thankful

I know you might all have been confused by the Christmas decorations at your local mall, the Christmas music playing in your favorite stores, and the Christmas cups your coffee has been served in ever since Halloween came and went, but I promise you have not missed Thanksgiving. Which (with a runner on third) begs the question: is there any other holiday that gets the shaft like Thanksgiving? [Editor's Note: no, Holiday down at your local Spearmint Rhino is not an acceptable answer . . . funny, yes . . . acceptable, no.]

Here at GameTime, TBD©, we love us some Thanksgiving. For those of you who have been around since the beginning, you will recall the fifth post The Chief ever wrote was an homage to his favorite Turkey Day Traditions. No one, and I mean no one, will stop us from enjoying our Thanksgiving day. Sure, some things have changed over the past three years (really, three already? *patting myself on back*), but they have not changed how much the love we have for Thanksgiving. So, I thought it might be nice if I let you all know about the five things I am most thankful this year:

5. Dean Lombardi: the man has single-handedly returned my beloved Los Angeles Kings to greatness. Okay, maybe not single-handedly, but he has been the most important piece, far and away. Yes, I know the team has hit a bit of a bump in the road (more on this in my quarter-season report coming soon . . . and in a more timely manner than my preseason report), but I have no doubt this team will play through it, regain their early season form, and make their way into the playoffs. Thanks Dean.

4. My Family: even with the death of my Grandpa in January of this year, the GameTime, TBD© family has had a great year. I became an Uncle twice over to two happy and healthy (ten fingers and ten toes!) nephews, got to visit with family members more often than usual, got to congratulate my Brother and Sister-in-Law on one year of marriage, discovered just how great in-laws can be (even as an out-law), saw Dad go back to work a full two-and-a-half years after "retiring" (officially making it two years longer than I expected), had a great family vacation in August, have another great family vacation lined up for New Years, and made more unforgettable memories than I can even begin to list here. I am thankful for the health and happiness of all of my family and am looking forward to another great year.

3. My Better Half: (oops . . . totally forgot about that disclaimer: this list is in no particular order) after seven years, of which we have been married for fifteen months, I can officially say I love her more today than did yesterday, and the day before that, and so on. I mean, seriously, this is a woman who puts up with me . . . if that is not three miracles for Sainthood, I do not know what is. Beyond the love and support I get from my family, I am beyond lucky to have the love and support of this amazing woman. Doing you know anyone who would so willingly let her life be played out over the internet on website devoted to sports and women? I certainly do not. And for that, amongst the many other things she does, I am thankful.

2. All of You: yes, I am thankful for all of my avid readers, those of you who keep me wanting to do more with this site every day. Do not be silly, I know many of you fall into one of the categories above (especially you Dean *wink* . . . wait, my Better Half, definitely meant my Better Half . . . if only there was some way to magically make that first part disappear), but I also know several of my friends have become avid readers and, at least according to my Google Analytics, some people I do not even know who keep coming back for more. As long as you all keep coming back for more, I will keep giving you more (that's what she said . . . ba-ZING).

1. Matthew Stafford: because now he is a man, apparently . . .


I hope all of you out there have a happy, healthy, and safe Thanksgiving weekend. Enjoy your long weekend. We will talk to you next week.

No comments: