Why is it that everyone who ever knew you, said you're a sick son of a bitch?

I finally had a day off today, after a hectic work week. I worked 2 doubles, closed three times and worked 40 hours for the first time since January. I know its only 40 hours, but i spent all of them running around on a hard floor and my legs back felt it. I did get buckets of duckets though, but on the downside it all goes to bills.

After closing on Sundays, i went over to Josh's house, which i hadnt been to since we helped them move in months ago.

Possible quote of the Year:

Me: "i'm flicking ear wax on your bed."
Matt Constein: "Richard, Amy Bixler's head has been in this room. Shelly Michales' pussy has been in this room. You better have 2 pounds of ear wax if you want to phase me."

How great is that?

I guess i covered my big football stories here already, so here's the hockey story. I am THE New Jersey Devils fan. I've come from being a gigantic Raiders fan, to being a bigger Patriots fan, to the present state of Devils Devotion. As the Devils go, so do i. Playing the Flyers? They better win, or i will have to deal with it. The playoffs? Fuhgettaboutit. Stanley Cup on the line? They better win, or crimes may have to be committed. I thought about writing about the Devils 2000 Stanley Cup Championship. It was the very first time one of my teams had won anything. It was something i'll never forget and really is a story in itself. I also thought about the Devils 2003 Stanley Cup win over Anaheim. Heck, the last 3:44 of Game 7, after Jeff Friesen scored to make it 3-0 and officially seal the Cup, was probably the greatest 3:44 of my entire life. But i decided to go the opposite route and tell the story of Game 6 and 7 of the 2001 Stanley Cup Finals which pitted the New Jersey Devils and the Colorado Avalanche. That series still bothers me to this day, and i'll probably never get over it. After the Devils won the Stanley Cup in 2000, i wondered if i could still be the crazy fan i was before they won the Cup. I worried that i couldnt get into the game anymore now that they had won it all. I found out in 2001. The Devils were champs, and i wanted more. I wanted everyone to know it wasn't a fluke. I wanted the 2001 Stanley Cup more than i ever wanted the 2000 Cup, or a Red Sox World Series or a Patriots Super Bowl. The Devils made it threw the Eastern Conference Finals with ease. They met the Avs in the Finals and were in for a tough test. They got smoked 5-0 in Game 1. I was worried. The Devils bounced back and won game 2, and after game 5 they had a 3-2 series lead, and best of all...they hade Game 6 at home. They could win the Stanley Cup infront of the home fans, something they missed out on in the previous year against Dallas. The night of Game 6, i prepared. Soda-check. Snacks-check. Martin Brodeur Jersey-check. Warning to parents not to bother me until the game was over-Check. This was it, the Devils were winning the Cup at home. Very early in the first period, Scott Gomez scores for the Devils. I immediately go mad. Until i see the refs checking the instant replay. Trouble. It appears Scott Gomez accidentally kicked the puck in. He didnt intentionally, but all the same the goal was waved off. Im thinking, Big Trouble. There was the chance to strike first blood, and they lost it. Patrick Roy must be thinking this is his repreive. And it was trouble for the Devils. Before the Devils or I really knew it, it was 4-0 and there was a very troublesome Game 7 to deal with---in Denver. I was incensed. A soda bottle is throttled into the floor, exploding sheets of Coca-Cola over three walls. I wanted the Devils to win the Cup at home and they had blown it 2 years in a row. I come out of my self imposed shelter of my bedroom defeated. But there still was a Game 7. They could win it, on the road, and i still very much wanted it. Prove 2000 was for real, and the workings of a dynasty are being laid out. Game 7. I dont really remember much about the game itself. What i do recall is Alex Tanguay scoring on Brodeur on a horrible angle. 1-0. I remember Sean O'Donnell, who i hate to this day, high sticking Joe Sakic and giving Colorado a power play. A PP they used to make it 2-0. I recall the third goal, but the anger and frustration do not permit me to remember who scored it. Ah, it was Tanguay again, who i hate to this day. 3-0. I am not well. I am a boiling pot of rage ready to burst. Before i cross the line of sanity, which i never would return from, the Devils finally score off of a magnificent set play off a face off. 3-1. Right as the 2nd period ends, Petr Sykora ripped a wicked slap shot past Roy--and off the post. I fall to the carpet. I realize this is likely their last chance to score in the game. The third period begins, the Devils have 20 minutes to score 2 and tie it, or their reign as Champs ends, and Colorado's begins. As i watch the third period transpire, it becomes apparent the Avs are prepared to shut down the offense and play defense for 20 minutes and win the Cup. This becomes more apparent every time Colorado dumps the puck into the Devils zone. More so apparent as they let the Devils skate into the neutral zone, break up the pass and dump the puck back into the Devils zone. I realize whats happening after approximately the 15th this happens. Each time Colorado steals and dumps, my anger rises. Rises. And Rises. Around dump in #17, i punch the screen off my fan. #18, the wings shatter off as i punch it again. Later, 5 lb. bar bell is launched into the VCR, shattering its casing and lcd display. My room and everything in it, is quickly becoming a danger zone. I can take no more. If i stay and watch this progress any further, i might cause irrevocable damage to my room, the house, or myself. I speed off to College Boy's house. I will get him, we will find Pappy, we will get beer. I get to Kyle's and those insane bastards think it would be great fun to be sitting around the TV watching Colorado win the Cup. I walk in, see 30 seconds left on the clock, storm thru Matt almost knocking him down the stairs backwards, and make my way out the back door. I never saw the end, but i knew Ray Bourque had his Cup. I've taken some playoff loses badly, but never one that nearly pushed me to the brink of self-restraint. Every so often, i still think back to those 2 games in June of 2001 and think of what could have been. Even now that the Devils had won the Cup in 2000 and 2003. They could have had 3 Cups in 4 years. It bothers me still that they could have been one of the dominant NHL teams of this generation and missed out. What a shame.

Current TV: Austin Powers baby yeah!
Current Mood: If only they had won.