the cliffs of insanity!!

[meitachi]

The chronicling of Mei as a sports fan when she doesn't go in with an ingrained bias (see: UNC, Canes, Hawks I guess kind of, Knicks):

1A. Randomly pick a team, or
1B. Be influenced towards one team due to friends (2naonh3_cl2 and the Flyers) or a vague sense of obligation (Caps, since I'm in DC...)
2. Watch their games, distantly hoping they do well
3. Make noncommittal and/or philosophical comments when they don't do well
4. Get sucked in when they start playing well
5. Get invested
6. Get overinvested
7. Curse a lot
8. Watch them lose
9. Throw self off cliff of emotions in despair
10. ???
11. Profit

I started playoff season with two teams, okay: Canes, my forever team (thank you, Carolina) (and thank you, Jeff Skinner and Estaal - I acknowledge they are the best and my favorites) and Hawks, my "hey if it weren't for their fandom, I wouldn't even be watching this" team.

Having now watched the Flyers and Caps through Round 1 out of minor obligation, I'm now apparently invested in them as teams. Too bad Round 2 is destined to bring me nothing but despair because, again, OPTIMISM IS FOR LOSERS. It's not just how they (occasionally) play good hockey - it's that I've also now spent more time watching interviews and random videos of the teams and their players and now - now I care. Even more than I did! Let me tell you all of my feelings for G, Ovie, Holtby, Backstrom, Bryz, Semin, BOBBY RYAN. Wait, sorry, I mean.

There is no way to go backwards from investment.

According to "real" sports fans, you can't have more than one team you get crazy emotional over. (According to my obnoxious sports fan guy friend, that team can only be your "home" team - I got so much shit for supporting Spain in the World Cup, to which I say: "Suck it!" Or, uh, the Spanish equivalent, if I remembered any of my Spanish.) Whatever, "real" sports fans. I'm an overachiever, okay? I am overflowing with feelings! These feelings cannot all be contained within one team (especially if that team doesn't even make the playoffs, sigh) AND I CANNOT BE HELD BACK.

Well, until Round 3 is a Rangers-Devils match-up, of course, in which case I will just root for the Kings to win the Cup (from my location at the bottom of the cliff I've thrown myself off). (Don't worry, I'll climb back up that sheer face and fight a man whose father I killed, first with my left hand and then with my right. And then I will die. But probably I will come back to life again.)

Uh, I think I lost my point. Did I have a point?

Oh, yes. Have you seen how built Jeff Skinner is? I cannot even deal with this picture, even ignoring that really NSFW MS Paint addition to it. Those arms.

So how's hockey been for you guys? Fun? Full of anguish? Emotionally exhausting? Filling you with the desire to write lots and lots of Ovie/Semin, Getzy/Ryan, or Danny/Claude? :D? Richards/Carter? Segs/Marchy? Ebs/Hall?

Comments

[meiface.livejournal.com]

IGNORE THE MS PAINT, JUST LOOK AT SKINNER. I mean, look at those biceps. Why is he wearing a shirt?!

I would seduce you over to supporting my teams, but the ones that are still around are probably doomed to lose, haha. So I'm not sure that would be any better. Kings are looking to make a deep run - possibly all the way! So they might be a good one to cheer for?

[meiface.livejournal.com]

Sometimes I forget the rest of Jeff is built like a hockey player because of his 12 y/o babyface, augh. Cognitive dissonance??

To be honest, all I know about the Kings is the epic Broken Bromance (and reunification) of Mike Richards and Jeff Carter, and the fact that they killed the Nucks and are killing the Blues, lol.

[downtohades.livejournal.com]

And they have the awesomesauce goalie that is Jonathan Quick....I mean, his last name is Quick! :P

[acornmama.livejournal.com]

I love your enthusiasm and over flowing feelings of love for them all. It should be this way.

[meiface.livejournal.com]

New fandom, same overflowing feelings. /o\ I just have too many!

I'm glad you don't mind, at least? :D

[downtohades.livejournal.com]

More people should love the Rangers, they are such giggly, kissing (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAZJOKiPBPs&list=FL0iPYPUAZ1LRrnSfpFavcgg&index=2&feature=plpp_video) failures (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSvTFd-7YI8)!(I am in no way trying to spread Ranger love, like, not at all!)

BOBBY/GETZY! OH MY GOD WHY DOESN'T MORE OF THIS EXIST!? Everything about that pairing hits my kinks and demands all the filthy porn in the universe.

(And hi there, I have decided to delurk in the hockey fandom! :D)

[meiface.livejournal.com]

I don't actually hate the Rangers - I just wish they would fall over and die in this series because I want the Caps to win. :( Although back at the beginning of playoffs before I'd gotten myself invested in the Caps and Flyers, I was totally willing to take a Rangers win (since obviously the Hawks weren't going to win it) just so Ginger Staal could finally win the Cup too.

But now I'm invested in Caps and Flyers so - PLEASE FALL OVER AND DIE, RANGERS. When they're not playing my teams, though, they're pretty great. :D

UGH, AGREED SO HARD ON BOBBY/GETZY. ALL MY BUTTONS. ALL THE PORN. ALL THE FIC, PLEASE. I would also be happy to take a gazillion more words of stepbrothers AU.

Also, hi!

[kitschful]

Yeah other than the hawks that is pretty much my process.. UGH hockey.
Next watch as we start low-key rooting for the kings and oops out they go OTL

GIMME ALL THE FIC. AALLLLL THE FIC. I am slowly going back through the tag on ao3 for stuff I skipped/read without knowing the players sigh running out reaaal fast. More for allll of those pairings.

/sits sadly refreshing the sort by updated hockey tag.

[meiface.livejournal.com]

DON'T JINX THE KINGS, CATHY. STOP IT. What will we do if the Rangers end up winning it all?! Or worse, like, the Devils. Ugh.

I feel like I've legit read 90% of all the fic on the AO3 Hockey RPF tag, regardless of pairing. :| I now want soooooo many ships to have more fics. Long fic! /so demanding without producing anything lol

[altri-uccelli.livejournal.com]

The Worlds are starting to get me out of my playoffs funk which is on the verge of being dire if the Flyers fuck their shit up tomorrow. Cam Ward! Jeff Skinner! I have ties to the Triangle so maybe I can be keen on the Hurricanes next season. I'm going to need it if the Blackhawks keep tragically and inexplicably underperforming.

I might be about to start having a massive crush on Bobby Ryan, woo hoo. (Maybe I should just give up on the West, though.)

[meiface.livejournal.com]

UGH THE FLYERS TONIGHT ALSKDFJSLK MY SOUL I CAN'T DEAL WITH THIS GAME.

But! On the bright side! Yes, Canes, Caaaaaaaanes. I totally support you supporting them! Then we can cry together over them haha. I am cautiously optimistic about the next season under Muller though. ♥

Bobby Ryan is basically made of adorable, but to tell the truth, I have difficulty getting to know/caring about/keeping up with Pacific Division teams due simply to their games being so late for me. /bad fan

[darkunicorna.livejournal.com]

I'M KIND OF ROOTING FOR LA KINGS?? BECAUSE 1) JONATHAN QUICK 2) JONATHAN QUICK 3) I guess they are kind of sort of my home team now because I picked a college 1 hour outside of LA, so? 4) THEY ARE THIS CLOSE TO SQUISHING ST. LOUIS INTO THE GROUND, TAKE THAT OSHIE. WHICH IS NOT A REAL NAME. (it was kind of ironic because the 2 colleges I was picking between were in St Louis and near LA, so I was just like HAHA WHICHEVER ONE WINS HAHAHA so now that I've picked the Cali school the LA Kings better win. Just saying.)

Aaaand I'm like casually watching random bits of the other games that I can catch, leaning towards the Flyers and the Caps, and that goal Backstrom made today in the 2nd period was really sick. AND ALSO HOLTBY. Idk I just really like goalies

Also wow, I heard it was really lame to root for your home team? I only heard it from one person, though, but whatever, people who only root for one team have such a limited view of the sport and then they don't get invested in the playoffs if their team doesn't make it/gets eliminated. Which I guess is actually a good thing.

Aaaaaand uh Eberle is beasting it in iihf, apparently, as is Skinner! And then Hall and Ebs had a mini twitter moment:




True love <3

[downtohades.livejournal.com]

JONATHAN QUICK!!! :DDDDD *is random and creepy just ignore me*

[darkunicorna.livejournal.com]

YES, JONATHAN QUICK!! HE'S JUST SO GREAT, HE NEEDS MORE LOVE, EVERYONE SHOULD LOVE HIM. THAT IS ALL.

[meiface.livejournal.com]

So your teams are now Oilers and Panthers and now Kings? :D I'M REALLY HAPPY THE KINGS SWEPT ST. LOUIS. The Flyers are not looking so hot against the Devils so I think I'll be throwing my support behind the Kings to go all the way.

(Ahaha I have no loyalty whatsoever to St. Louis despite having done schooling there. CAROLINA FOREVER.)

Caps are great though. Holtby is a total weirdo (but all goalies are) but I love him. And ugh Flyers asdkfjslk so many feelings.

I'm barely paying attention to World's but I hope all these kids do awesome for Team Canada. :D Though I, uh, guess I want Team USA to win...? /bad at supporting national teams

THAT IS THE DUMBEST TWITTER MOMENT. ♥ Their affection is so 12 y/o boyish. My 15 y/o brother is more mature.

[darkunicorna.livejournal.com]

Haha this is late because I was busy )))): BUT I would actually consider the Canes one of my teams! And then the Panthers and the Kings would be like my biases that I like a lot but if it came down to Canes/Oilers vs. Panthers/Kings, I would be rooting for the former (: If it came down to Canes vs. Oilers, though... Oilers, which I think you already know ~

Aaaagh at the Rangers and the Caps being the only ones left. Here's hoping they go to game 7! If not, blaah this playoffs season is going in a weird direction. What am I talking about, it's already going really weirdly. Sadface at the Flyers, too ):

Lol it's so much easier to support your country's team when you literally have no idea who any of the players are, though. Like, I support Canada because I'm Canadian, and before I'd just boo USA, but now I'm like wait, I actually like some of the people on that team! And I want good things for them, but CANADA.

ALSO YES. Like the prank calling incident, loool they're little children doing these things to each other because 20/21-year-old men don't talk about feelings, what.

[meiface.livejournal.com]

:O AW CANES. ♥

SO THEY'RE GOING TO GAME 7 ASDKFSKJ. I'm not sure how I can deal with this and the fact that I don't think I have that channel at home where I'll be tomorrow night. Hopefully my streams will work...if I am near a computer at the time... CAPS, CAPS, YOU CAN DO IT. PLEASE.

Jeff Skinner is being beastly at World's. But still giggling adorably everywhere. :D It fills me with delight.

[darkunicorna.livejournal.com]

WOW OKAY CRIES. I was out to dinner with friends while the game was going on and I was just refreshing every 10 seconds, but I have an itouch so we left to go to some yogurt place THAT DIDN'T HAVE WIFI with 5 minutes of the game so I texted my friend and she destroyed my hopes and dreams so I made embarrassing "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" noises and faces in public. Sighh and I'm totally rooting for the Kings, but I know it in my heart they'll be slaughtered because they don't actually know how to score goals ):

JEFF ON THE OTHER HAND. JEFF IS SO (http://theflyingfrenchmen.tumblr.com/post/22632131848) FREAKING (http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m3q2i76Nz41r6j6rio1_500.png) SASSY (http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m3u0wauvTw1r76ghzo1_500.jpg) AND GOOFY (http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lopmirKaZh1qc7rlto1_r1_500.gif), THIS CHILD. HOW IS HE ALMOST 20 TELL ME.

[meiface.livejournal.com]

It says something about the way I lurk the Jeff Skinner tag on tumblr (even though I don't have a tumblr) that I've already seen all of those gifs... Ugh I LOVE HIM. 20 MEANS NOTHING, HE NEEDS TO TURN 21 SO MY FRIENDS CAN STOP MOCKING ME ABOUT NOT EVEN BEING ABLE TO BUY HIM ALCOHOL. In the US anyway. He's legal; leave me alone. ;__;

aslkdjf ugh still upset about the game last night. :( Caps. </3 They played SO HARD in both rounds. I really think they deserved to advance. But, uh, I guess go Rangers? I hope they destroy the Devils at least. And then go Kings? ...is it next season yet? :(

[darkunicorna.livejournal.com]

HAHA YOU SHOULD GET A TUMBLR! But yeah, I lurk allllll of the tags of the hockey players I like, since I only follow like 2 hockey blogs and I just want their faces on my blog ): As for Jeff: ONE MORE YEAR, JUST ONE MORE YEAR

Yeah, I basically rooting for the Kings and the Rangers too, but really tired of the teams I like getting knocked out. At least June is the NHL Awards!! Hoping for happy things then! After that it's just waiting for next season )):

[meiface.livejournal.com]

NO THAT WAY LIES MADNESS!! lol I already have my soul sucked out enough through fic and LJ, I really need to be less attached to my computer 24/7.

But sometimes I lurk tags and make :D faces at them. :D

I am looking forward to Roland Garros, Euro 12, and Olympics distracting me until next season!

[darkunicorna.livejournal.com]

LOL TRUE it does consume a lot of time ):

But yay Olympics! I can't believe I forgot about them! Although I pay more attention to Winter Olympics, but I'll probably pay attention to diving and gymnastics (:

[meiface.livejournal.com]

I.e., the only sports China doesn't suck at? /o\ That's why I watch those. But no seriously GYMNASTICS.

[darkunicorna.livejournal.com]

Loll oh man I totally forgot China rocked those. Buts yes GYMNASTICS.

[papered.livejournal.com]

is it terrible that this post made me laugh? ilu and your overflowing feelings, Mei. <33

[meiface.livejournal.com]

YOU ARE JUST A MEAN PERSON, LIZ.

I have many feelings, it is true. .__.