Does the fanatic reality ever lessen your hype?

[Virgil]

I found myself in the situation again of explaining why no other sport compares to Bills Football season to me.  I like the Yankees and am emotionally attached to them too, but it's nothing like the Bills  I'm going to the preseason game next Thursday, two camps, the season opener in Baltimore and the home game against the Titans.  I've been on here for over a decade and can remember so many genuinely emotional moments when watching this team.  Almost all rants on my Facebook are Bills related and I watch the draft like it's a holy event.

 

With that being said, do you ever stop and think about the fact that our starting MLB just turned 20?  That most of these guys are millionaire kids who play a game?  

 

Even though it's about the Red Sox, I love the movie fever pitch.  There's a scene where the Sox just lost a playoff game and they are seen out after the game having dinner.  They are relaxed and having a good time while onwatching fans miserable from the game.  And at that moment, the fan realizes that he cares more than the actual players.

 

So I ask, ever have those moments where you ask "What am I even getting upset about?"  That at the end of the day, it's a game and you're reaction on the couch or in person is completely irrelevant to the actions on the field?

 

And I recognize the irony of posing this question as I'm nearing my 4,000th post on a Bills Message Board ?

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

4000 lol

[RyanC883]

4 minutes ago, Virgil said:

I found myself in the situation again of explaining why no other sport compares to Bills Football season to me.  I like the Yankees and am emotionally attached to them too, but it's nothing like the Bills  I'm going to the preseason game next Thursday, two camps, the season opener in Baltimore and the home game against the Titans.  I've been on here for over a decade and can remember so many genuinely emotional moments when watching this team.  Almost all rants on my Facebook are Bills related and I watch the draft like it's a holy event.

 

With that being said, do you ever stop and think about the fact that our starting MLB just turned 20?  That most of these guys are millionaire kids who play a game?  

 

Even though it's about the Red Sox, I love the movie fever pitch.  There's a scene where the Sox just lost a playoff game and they are seen out after the game having dinner.  They are relaxed and having a good time while onwatching fans miserable from the game.  And at that moment, the fan realizes that he cares more than the actual players.

 

So I ask, ever have those moments where you ask "What am I even getting upset about?"  That at the end of the day, it's a game and you're reaction on the couch or in person is completely irrelevant to the actions on the field?

 

And I recognize the irony of posing this question as I'm nearing my 4,000th post on a Bills Message Board ?

 

this may win the award for most "philosophical" post of the year.   Yeah, sometimes I'm like, "why do I care," then I can't answer it.  I think people are naturally competitive and want to win, and when you have less control over the outcome (such as being a fan at home), you become even more crazy about it!   

[Virgil]

12 minutes ago, joesixpack said:

4000 lol

 

Dick ?

[Steptide]

I find the older I get, the less fanatical I am. Don't get me wrong, I'm still a die hard bills fan. Instill feel the emotion after a crushing loss or a huge win. However, I don't get all worked up about what's being said in training camp anymore. "so and so looks great, this guy stinks" etc. I fully expect over reaction once the pre season games start, but I've just learned not to let the small stuff bother me anymore. 

 

No matter what though, I'm always hyped for the bills season. Even in some of the worst seasons (ie 2010) I will watch every game start to finish 

[GunnerBill]

36 minutes ago, Virgil said:

I found myself in the situation again of explaining why no other sport compares to Bills Football season to me.  I like the Yankees and am emotionally attached to them too, but it's nothing like the Bills  I'm going to the preseason game next Thursday, two camps, the season opener in Baltimore and the home game against the Titans.  I've been on here for over a decade and can remember so many genuinely emotional moments when watching this team.  Almost all rants on my Facebook are Bills related and I watch the draft like it's a holy event.

 

With that being said, do you ever stop and think about the fact that our starting MLB just turned 20?  That most of these guys are millionaire kids who play a game?  

 

Even though it's about the Red Sox, I love the movie fever pitch.  There's a scene where the Sox just lost a playoff game and they are seen out after the game having dinner.  They are relaxed and having a good time while onwatching fans miserable from the game.  And at that moment, the fan realizes that he cares more than the actual players.

 

So I ask, ever have those moments where you ask "What am I even getting upset about?"  That at the end of the day, it's a game and you're reaction on the couch or in person is completely irrelevant to the actions on the field?

 

And I recognize the irony of posing this question as I'm nearing my 4,000th post on a Bills Message Board ?

 

The movie Fever Pitch is NOT about the freaking Red Sox. The pathetic American remake is. 

 

Fever Pitch is a film based on a book about the single most climactic moment in English football (soccer to you) league history. 

 

Thomas..... it's up for grabs nowwwwwww!

[Virgil]

9 minutes ago, GunnerBill said:

 

The movie Fever Pitch is NOT about the freaking Red Sox. The pathetic American remake is. 

 

Fever Pitch is a film based on a book about the single most climactic moment in English football (soccer to you) league history. 

 

Thomas..... it's up for grabs nowwwwwww!

 

What the hell is soccer?

[aceman_16]

Posting this: I am unsure (to try to get 4000).

[Logic]

Are you asking if the existential reality of the utter meaninglessness of football, of sports, and of life in general cause me to enjoy watching the Bills less?

 

[The Red King]

In the end it's just a game.  I used to let painful losses ruin my whole day until I realized the futility of it.  Still, we're emotional beings, so I have an arrangement with my family.  After every loss, I can take up to a half hour to vent and let it go.  Run through emotional cleansing, gripe about performance, bad calls, whatever.  But when that half hour is up, I'm done letting the game bother me and I make the most of the rest of the day with my family.

 

Now, I'll admit, the JAX game took a full hour, but can you blame me, given the circumstances?

[Flip Johnson]

3 hours ago, Virgil said:

 

Even though it's about the Red Sox, I love the movie fever pitch.  There's a scene where the Sox just lost a playoff game and they are seen out after the game having dinner.  They are relaxed and having a good time while onwatching fans miserable from the game.  And at that moment, the fan realizes that he cares more than the actual players.

 

 

Fever Pitch the book, which is about soccer has an incredible paragraph about loyalty and sports, that describes a lot of what being a Bills fan is like.

 

"I had discovered after the Swindon game that loyalty, at least in football terms, was not a moral choice like bravery or kindness; it was more like a wart or a hump, something you were stuck with. Marriages are nowhere near as rigid - you won’t catch any Arsenal fans slipping off to Tottenham for a bit of extra-marital slap and tickle, and though divorce is a possibility (you can just stop going if things get too bad), getting hitched over again is out of the question.” - Fever Pitch

[chris heff]

3 hours ago, Virgil said:

I found myself in the situation again of explaining why no other sport compares to Bills Football season to me.  I like the Yankees and am emotionally attached to them too, but it's nothing like the Bills  I'm going to the preseason game next Thursday, two camps, the season opener in Baltimore and the home game against the Titans.  I've been on here for over a decade and can remember so many genuinely emotional moments when watching this team.  Almost all rants on my Facebook are Bills related and I watch the draft like it's a holy event.

 

With that being said, do you ever stop and think about the fact that our starting MLB just turned 20?  That most of these guys are millionaire kids who play a game?  

 

Even though it's about the Red Sox, I love the movie fever pitch.  There's a scene where the Sox just lost a playoff game and they are seen out after the game having dinner.  They are relaxed and having a good time while onwatching fans miserable from the game.  And at that moment, the fan realizes that he cares more than the actual players.

 

So I ask, ever have those moments where you ask "What am I even getting upset about?"  That at the end of the day, it's a game and you're reaction on the couch or in person is completely irrelevant to the actions on the field?

 

And I recognize the irony of posing this question as I'm nearing my 4,000th post on a Bills Message Board ?

I love you man.

[xxxxxxxx]

When fans put their fandom ahead of decent human behavior, it does lessen my like of a team. And the fans that do that are often the loudest and dumbest and sometimes the organization is dumb enough to listen. Case in point, from the world of basketball, years ago Vince Carter went to his college graduation the morning of a playoff game, and when the Toronto Raptors lost that game some fans roasted him for it--saying that it showed that he didn't care about basketball. He was traded for nothing soon after, and the team sucked for a long time because of it. Oh and he is still in the league today, and is one of the most respected veterans around. Dude should have never left, but got chased out because alot of people, including a portion of the fan base, were dumb. And I have barely followed the Raptors since then, for that reason.

 

Edited August 3, 2018 by MURPHD6

[Doc Brown]

6 hours ago, Steptide said:

I find the older I get, the less fanatical I am. Don't get me wrong, I'm still a die hard bills fan. Instill feel the emotion after a crushing loss or a huge win. However, I don't get all worked up about what's being said in training camp anymore. "so and so looks great, this guy stinks" etc. I fully expect over reaction once the pre season games start, but I've just learned not to let the small stuff bother me anymore. 

 

No matter what though, I'm always hyped for the bills season. Even in some of the worst seasons (ie 2010) I will watch every game start to finish 

I'm the same way.  I pay less attention to training camp, preseason, looking at the draft five months out, etc... like I used too, but still feel the same sting of a bad loss and the elation of a great win.

[Buftex]

7 hours ago, Virgil said:

I found myself in the situation again of explaining why no other sport compares to Bills Football season to me.  I like the Yankees and am emotionally attached to them too, but it's nothing like the Bills  I'm going to the preseason game next Thursday, two camps, the season opener in Baltimore and the home game against the Titans.  I've been on here for over a decade and can remember so many genuinely emotional moments when watching this team.  Almost all rants on my Facebook are Bills related and I watch the draft like it's a holy event.

 

With that being said, do you ever stop and think about the fact that our starting MLB just turned 20?  That most of these guys are millionaire kids who play a game?  

 

Even though it's about the Red Sox, I love the movie fever pitch.  There's a scene where the Sox just lost a playoff game and they are seen out after the game having dinner.  They are relaxed and having a good time while onwatching fans miserable from the game.  And at that moment, the fan realizes that he cares more than the actual players.

 

So I ask, ever have those moments where you ask "What am I even getting upset about?"  That at the end of the day, it's a game and you're reaction on the couch or in person is completely irrelevant to the actions on the field?

 

And I recognize the irony of posing this question as I'm nearing my 4,000th post on a Bills Message Board ?

I remember going to a Sabres game in the mid-80s.  Tom Barasso was the Sabres goalie.  He was having a particularly bad stretch of games...fans at the Aud were booing him, and chanting "asso, asso".  He had lashed out at fans in the press in some way, can't remember what he said...but he was on the fan **** list.  I remember you could just tell the guy was being rattled by the crowd hostility.  Then, at a break in the action, they announced it was his birthday...it was a few days after mine...we were the same age.  I just remember thinking how absurd it was that the moods of an entire fan base rested on the shoulders of a 21 year old kid.

[Domdab99]

When I was young, if the Bills lost, my week was ruined....until the next game! It was life or death. For some reason.

Now that I'm older, I still get real excited and I yell at the TV when the Bills win or lose...but now, it's all laced with some humor - with a realization that it IS just a game.

 

And now when they lose, I'm over it in about ten minutes.

 

But I still love following the team and posting on message boards and stuff. 

 

[Foxx]

5 hours ago, chris heff said:

I love you man.

dilly, dilly!

[BillsFan692]

2 hours ago, Doc Brown said:

I'm the same way.  I pay less attention to training camp, preseason, looking at the draft five months out, etc... like I used too, but still feel the same sting of a bad loss and the elation of a great win.

Lol you've been posting on these boards all spring and summer. Its okay, we are like BILLS ADDICTS ANONYMOUS.

[GunnerBill]

1 hour ago, Domdab99 said:

When I was young, if the Bills lost, my week was ruined....until the next game! It was life or death. For some reason.

Now that I'm older, I still get real excited and I yell at the TV when the Bills win or lose...but now, it's all laced with some humor - with a realization that it IS just a game.

 

And now when they lose, I'm over it in about ten minutes.

 

But I still love following the team and posting on message boards and stuff. 

 

 

That has always been my Bills fandom to be honest, probably because I didn't come the sport or this team until I was 18 and something approaching mature. I understand exactly what you mean though, because as a kid and a young teenager Arsenal losing really did F my weekend up totally. Luckily around that time we were pretty good and didn't lose too often. 

[BritBill]

9 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

 

The movie Fever Pitch is NOT about the freaking Red Sox. The pathetic American remake is. 

 

Fever Pitch is a film based on a book about the single most climactic moment in English football (soccer to you) league history. 

 

Thomas..... it's up for grabs nowwwwwww!

 

I'm not an Arsenal fan but that moment...... The celebration when in the Anfield Road End when that went in were the best I've ever seen from a sport crowd. Ever. And won't be beaten due to ground regulations. Limbs everywhere.