The Steelers Won...

...and all I can say is, "Thank Goodness!"

Two weeks ago when the Steelers won the AFC Championship James asked if I wanted to have a Superbowl party. Not being the football aficionado that everyone else in Western Pennsylvania seems to be, I asked, "When's the Superbowl?" (For what it's work, I knew it was within the next few weeks.)

James answered, "It starts tomorrow and goes for two weeks."

I laughed. Oh how naive I was.

Sometime in the middle of last week I said, "That's about it, too: It did start after the last game and last for two weeks."

So all I can say is thank goodness we finally got "one for the thumb." I briefly thought that now that we do have one for the thumb that I wouldn't have to hear it all the time. Only to realize that of course I'll still hear it all the time, perhaps even more!

I always knew that Pittsburgh is a football town. But I never understood the length and depth to which this is true. I don't think a day went by in the past two weeks in which someone didn't say to me, "Go Steelers!" Professional colleagues that I only know peripherally signed their emails and ended their phone conversations with "Go Steelers!" Even the independent, public radio station that I listen to played the occasional Steeler song.

It's madness, I tell you. Madness.

If you live here, you can only imagine what a fiasco it would have been if the Seahawks had won. The people of Seattle are not like the people of Pittsburgh. USA Today reports that an estimated 30,000 people attended the Steeler pep rally last week. The local news had reports of people being stuck on the Parkway in traffic and not making it to the rally. When you talk about fans, Pittsburghers are true fanatics. (And perhaps not all that bright. One 20-something fan at the pep rally said that nothing would keep him away. He was quoted as saying, "If it was raining and minus 5, I'd still be here. It doesn't matter." Well, technically, it would matter. I'd like to see it be 37 degrees below freezing and raining. But now I'm just being mean.)

I don't know how many people attended the Seahawk pep rally, but I heard reports of 8,000. So like I said, can you imagine the disaster if Seattle had won? A few thousand fans would be a bit sad. Pittsburghers, on the other hand, would have been absolutely devastated. There would have been rioting. Today would have been a day of mourning. If you don't live here you may think I'm kidding. Alas, it's no exaggeration.

So all I can say is, Thank Goodness.

I mean, Go Steelers!

Comments

[Allyson]

You asked if the "Steelers' Fever" had reached into Ohio. Well, that's funny, because Cleveland people are not fond of Pittsburgh. And at our SB party yesterday, at least 75% of the people rooted for Seattle. We just can't help it. I DO appreciate the fan's comment about the -5 and raining. Hee hee! Genius!

[Jennifer]

For the safety of your people, DO NOT let them come to Pittsburgh any time soon. Save yourself.