It’s incredible to see the outpouring of support and congratulations that have been expressed for the Chicago Cubs.
After a total of 108 years of baseball futility, the Cubbies finally wrenched the monkey off their back and won the World Series.
As a baseball fan, it’s not hard to understand the long-suffering and emotional attachment that Cubs fans have endured for generations. The disappointment, heartbreak, anger and exasperation have all been a part of watching the Cubs for the club’s followers, with the majority of them never wavering in their support.
Considering I’m still not over the loss of the Montreal Expos and can’t find it in myself to replace them with another team, I wholeheartedly sympathize with Cubs fans.
Watching social media after the Cubs broke the ‘curse’ as it was known, seeing the explosion of other teams’ fans (even some from Cleveland) sending out the compliments and best wishes demonstrating something you don’t often see nowadays — sportsmanship.
Normally, you don’t witness the fan base of other clubs going out of their way to give someone else’s team a pat on the back when they win a game, let alone a championship.
Heck, you even hear about fights taking place inside and outside of stadiums between fans after a rather contentious game or series.
So, it was pretty satisfying to see all of the kindness being spread to the Cubs players, the organization and its fans by nearly everyone.
Granted, I doubt you’d see that same type of courtesy extended to a certain hockey club if they somehow managed to create a miracle and capture something that has eluded that franchise for almost half a century.
However, considering that team’s current state and just how fanatical those followers are, I doubt any other team’s fans have to worry about congratulating those from the ‘centre of the universe’ any time soon.
Oh and before I forget — Go Habs!
Wacky weather
Turning to another cause for celebration and something else I’ve never seen in my lifetime, when did the calendar flip July and November?
With temperatures reaching into the 20-above range on a few days during past two weeks to go along with warm sunshine, the weather has definitely felt like what we missed during much of the summer this year.
The unseasonable heat saw people breaking out the shorts and light shirts, eating copious amounts of ice cream and downing any cold beverage they could get their hands on.
On the positive side, it also dried up fields and crops that allowed farmers to take off nearly all of what had been sitting or standing on the land since the snow fell back in mid-October.
Now, I’ve heard a number of people hoping that this weather will stick around for a while.
Call me crazy, but I’m hopeful of a return to snow and more average temperatures. Why, you ask?
Now that the majority of farmers have gotten the crops off, there is a need for the snow cover and the moisture that comes with it. As well, the lifecycle of certain plants and animals depend on the cold winter weather as do many human activities many enjoy. How would you like to try skiing or sledding on dry land?
Sure, I don’t necessarily like driving in the snow and ice, but I don’t think I want to deal with the consequences of not having snowflakes falling on my head this season.
But that is…just an observation.