April 30th, 2007

The Rose-coloured Sports Report

Who could lie–tactical mistakes were made. The pre-game run-up and most of the first inning saw serious strategic errors, including one spectator taking an overlong sunlit jog in the ravine, making her late for the game. This was compounded by circling the stadium formerly known as Skydome (renominative efforts being another strategic mistake) in the wrong direction in search gate 10, assuming that gate 10 would be unlocked just because tickets asserted that it ought to be, falling up a flight of stone stairs in search of gate 14, and then circling the 500-level deck in the wrong direction upon arrival. And let’s not even mention the decidedly non-genius plan from the girl-with-braces that involved purchasing her tofu dog from an outside vendor, covering it with condiments and then placing it inside a tupperware container to eat carefully with a knife and fork once solidly seated in the stands. To be fair, that one almost worked, despite derision from the crowd.

By the bottom of the first, however, I was comfortably ensconced next to aisle 125 and the Jays were up by three over the jauntily attired but insensibly sloppy Texans. It was a great, if suspenseless game; the Jays took the lead while I was still rattling at the gate 10 doors, and never lost it, winding up the game at 7-1. Very nice. The sun was bright, the company stellar (although initially concerned that I was lost and/or injured en route to the game, having missed my beloved national anthems) and the tofu dog delicious, if ridiculous. There was one error, but unfortunately I was looking at a bird when it occurred, and so cannot report.

Post-game, we stopped at a sports bar to see Buffalo tie it up with New York 1-1 somewhere in the third period. Ok, technically, I was buying ice-cream and saw nothing, but I believe my colleagues. This brought about talk of which sports tolerate ties, and which will play on relentlessly until a winner is established. We think that it may be only non-playoff soccor and CFL football that permit ambiguous endings, and wonder if it is the athletic demands of the game or the emotional demands of the fans that force other sports into endless overtime in pursuit of definitive victory. Do you know?

In short, the day was joyful, although slightly darkened with the news that Rose-coloured will be losing a sports commentator, though gaining a Mideast correspondent; Dan will be relocating to Saudi Arabia at the end of next month. This announcement is cause for more excitement than dismay, and we here at Rose-coloured are campaigning for a Dan-based blog (“Dan-coloured”?) to record overseas events.

Finally, while not strictly a sport, Phon’s bachelorette also occurred this weekend. It was, if not athletic, certainly educational, and entertaining. Congrats, Phon and Brent, on the wedding and all future “activities.”

Little Miss Listless / A little bit of Christmas
RR