Breakfast With Dad - Week 1

            Every Sunday I go to breakfast with my dad. I don’t live in the house anymore but I am still one of his little girls (his favorite, might I add) so this is a way we keep connected. I usually see my mom at some point during the week anyway so this ends up being Father-Daughter time. We have yet to get my other sisters to come along but that’s just fine with me. I love listening to my dad. I could sit and talk with him for hours. Usually that’s what we do! Meeting time is 7:30 AM because he goes to church and I have to work on Sundays. He always orders the same thing: two eggs scrambled with cheese, bacon (every now and then he mixes it up with sausage), hash browns, and two pieces of white toast. Oh, and I can’t forget the coffee (black) and a strawberry pop tart. He is a pretty good example of a creature of habit. But what comes out of his mouth, especially when he gets to talkin’ about sports, that can go in so many different directions.

Strawberry Pop Tart from Ted's Bulletin. TRY IT!

            As previously stated, I work on Sundays. That kills my soul a little bit because this was the first football season that it was true. I couldn’t watch any games! I worked from 12:00 Noon through 8:30 PM. I work (in two weeks that will be past tense) at a hair salon that is open unusual hours on Sundays. I miss everything so these breakfasts were a time when I would catch up on the previous week, what all was in the news, and look ahead to that week’s game. This Sunday was February 1^st. Super Bowl Sunday. We had plenty to talk about.

            I am a born and raised Redskins fan. My daddy raised me to love my hometown team. Through it’s ups and downs we have been loyal. Needless to say we were not in the game and neither was our division. We didn’t have too many ties to the teams playing. I asked who he wanted to win and he gave his age old answer, “I just want to see a good game.” Unless the Redskins, Cowboys, or Eagles are playing, he tends to just want to see the teams play well.  I’m never like that. I wish I could be, but I always want one of the teams to win. I only have one game in my ENTIRE LIFE (or as much of it as I can remember) where the team I wanted did not win- Broncos last year. It broke my heart for two reasons. #1 it destroyed my winning streak. #2 IT WAS TO THE SEAHAWKS. Payton Manning owes me free Papa Johns and that’s just a start to make up for it… Just saying.

            Anyway, I got to thinking about the moral and ethical side of sports fans. This Super Bowl provided huge moral dilemmas for fans like my father and me who do not have ties to the teams playing. The Patriots have been accused (and found guilty of) cheating many times over the past 10 years. The most recent controversy, “Deflategate.” The Seahawks have a couple less than savory individuals on their team that no one seems to like. I’m not going to name names but Skittles, anyone? That problem was one that many people watching the game faced. It wasn’t a question of who we wanted to win but rather who we wanted to lose more. Sports fans are not known to be soft but we have moral compasses and they were really messed with during this game!  WHICH WAY IS NORTH?! WHO DO WE GO WITH?!

            My dad had an interesting insight into this. When it comes to the Super Bowl, it is a tradition. It is an American tradition. It is a huge event and we want the best of the best athletes participating in it. We want these athletes to be amazing. The purity of the sport is want is important. We don’t want people participating who will taint that purity. With that being said, no wonder we had issues picking which team we wanted to win! Geez, you had perceived cheaters on one side and people who were kind of jerks on the other. None of them deserve it! We do crappy stuff in our own lives. We lie, cheat, and steal to different levels. The difference? We’re just normal people! We are not athletes! We are not playing in a game that unites a country! Who are we as a country if we support these people?!

            That is basically my dad’s argument but I added some drama for effect. What can I say- I’m female. It makes sense though. We want the athletes competing to represent the best of the best in the country. Did this Super Bowl do that? Did it take the best of the best or is it just a league where they are the best of the worst? I’m going to try being an optimist today and say that we could do better. The players in the NFL need to realize that they not only represent a team, they represent the fans of the teams and even the nation. They could be the first exposure someone has to the sport. If that’s the case, I am hoping people don’t hate us now.