Why Doesn't ThisSurprise Me?

Seeing Patrick Kane and Miley Cyrus together doesn't surprise me one bit--they're both classless assholes.  Now where did I leave that eye bleach...?

Definitely Not Hockey

I've decided to ignore hockey for a little while.  Other than wanting the Hawks to crash and burn, I have very little interest in the Stanley Cup finals.  And other than Yzerman moving to Florida, there really isn't much going on with the Wings right now, so it is a good time to have a bit of a hockey break.  So today, we will talk about another sport altogether:  the sauna world championships.

As I have said ad nauseum, I am a Finn, 100%.  I grew up with saunas and the only thing that keeps me from going in one every day for the rest of my life is the fact we don't have one of our own.  (Hopefully, that will change, but until then, I'm shit out of luck.)  I probably was in the sauna before my eyes completely focused after birth.  Both of my girls had their first sauna by the age of three months.  Actually, they had their first saunas while they were still in the womb.  So, anyway, I have done the sauna bit for a long, long time.  (Here you can read more about it.)  All of my experiences don't come close, in any way, to what goes on at the sauna world championships.

The sauna championships can be summed up very simply:  the winner is the person who can sit in the sauna for the longest amount of time and leave under his own power.  Easy, right?  Not quite.  First, the sauna temperature STARTS at 230*.  I'm not too sure I've ever been in a sauna that was more than 200-210*.  Then, water is sprayed on the hot rocks every 30 seconds, producing blister-inducing steam throughout the room.  I don't 'steam' too much while in the sauna--however, at my preferred temp of 150-175, the steam isn't overwhelming.  Along with having to sit in the intense heat, the contestants can only wear shorts of a certain length, canNOT wipe the sweat from their bodies, and can't cool themselves with water.  They just sit there and broil.  And many have blistered terribly from attempting this.

So, just where is this insanity taking place?  For the past 10 years, this contest has been held in Finland.  It is televised nationally.  As of last year, in the men's competition, only Finns have won.  However, there have been Russian and Estonian women who have won the women's competition.  I don't EVER have to worry about winning in this sport.

You can read more about this in the Wikipedia article here.  Another very good read is this article that excerpts part of Rick Reilly's book.  He made an attempt at competing in this event in 2007 and wrote about his experience.  Yes people, insanity runs rampant throughout the world.

And That Was That

There we have it...the end of the season.  While I feel badly for the players--and us fans--my first emotion isn't sadness.  I really think I expected this for most of the year.  After all, they didn't play like the Red Wings we all know and love, for most of the year.  And they really faced an uphill battle in order to go deeper into the playoffs.  A battle they just couldn't win.  I think this whole scenario was inevitable.

First, I will NEVER say that the better team won.  I'm that much of a blind, homer fan, that I can't see anything but the team I love.  I see everything bad that is done to them, as well as everything they do right.  I don't see the penalties NOT called against the Wings, but I certainly see everything that the other team gets away with.  I guess I'm the kind of fan that gives fans a bad name--and I don't apologize for that.  So, BITE ME!

If the Wings were/are the best team in the NHL, why aren't they still in the playoffs?  Simple:  they didn't play the best they can.  With everything that happened this year, it was as if everything came together in a perfect storm and derailed them in the worst way possible.  Injuries all season, the fact that the team didn't play together enough to get a rhythm going, battered bodies playing in the playoffs, strong teams in the playoffs, officiating, players that probably had no business playing for the Wings, etc, all played a part in this early end to the season.  No one thing can be pointed to for this situation--and it is pretty futile to try and give a concise explanation.  And so I won't.

I think the hardest part of all of this is having to endure all of the Red Wing haters.  Again, I am a blind homer, but I cannot understand HOW people can't see what a great team the Wings are.  I can't abide the laughs and derisive comments, the chants of 'dead wings' and proclamations that the team is done for.  It HURTS!  It hurts as badly as if someone was saying terrible things about one of my own kids.  And that is what I hate the most about them losing.  I guess I just have a thin skin, but that is the way it is.  I won't apologize, and again, BITE ME!

After a very difficult year, the Wings did pretty well.  I don't think they have (much) to apologize for.  I have faith--well, as much as my pessimism allows--that they will be back next year, better than ever.  And that they have a GREAT chance at bringing the Cup home, back where it belongs.

Don't Want To Sound Negative, But...

The way things have been going this entire series, the Wings are done for the year.  If they can manage one win, that is about all they will get.  A week from tonight, I will no longer be watching hockey.  Count on it.

I know the Wings didn't play well enough to win this series.  But, they also got absolutely no breaks by the refs--and the Sharks got every break possible.  No one can honestly say that the refs didn't favor the Sharks.  Really.

I just can't go on...my thoughts are all over the place.  This is something I have to forget about--or bury--for a time.  And I'm not sure when I will be back to this blog--maybe never...

You've Gotta Be Kidding

After the way that game was officiated, all I want to ask is this:  When the f*** is the government going to investigate the NHL?  The government sticks its nose in every other f***ing area of life, you would think this is a no-brainer for them.  With the amount of money involved in the NHL, you would think thoughts of fraud would be going through some minds.  Something is wrong--very, very wrong.  And I'm very close to washing my hands of the NHL completely.  I'm getting embarrassed to admit to being a fan.