Viva la Pittsburgh Fans! (or Hero of the Day, Vol. 4)

This morning, I was waiting for the bus to work. It was freezing. It was snowing those annoying tiny snowflakes that pop you right in the eyeball and kind of burn, and that sucks. The wind was blowing like 59 miles an hour and I was miserable, huddled in the doorway of some bar for respite. I really need to buy a winter coat. But I digress.

I heard a male voice yell, “It’s coming!” I thought he was talking about the bus, and I craned my neck down the street. No 54C. Whaaat?

I looked for the source of the sound— it was a grizzled, middle-aged man wearing a Steelers hoodie, his hands jammed into the front pocket. He pulled one hand out and pointed to the sky. “Three inches!” he shouted at me.

“Yeaaaaah,” I said. Because really, what else do you say when some creepy guy is yelling about snow at 8AM?

“BUT THE STEELERS ARE STILL GONNA KICK SOME FUCKING ASS TONIGHT!”

Huh.

Seriously, there’s something about the resilience of this town that gets me every time. This game really means nothing. The Steelers pretty much done for. What’s to get excited about? Nothing.
But this man, he’s still excited. He still believes.
I mean, it may just be naïveté, but I want to believe otherwise. I want to believe in the perseverance (instead of the stupidity) of the Pittsburgher. There's something to be said for wholeheartedly believing in something, regardless of the circumstance. Granted, he was probably drunk, and probably heading for the White Eagle to keep up the boozing, but it still touched me a little.

So today, Grizzled Steelers Fan, you are my HERO OF THE DAY! Keep on keeping on!

For reference, when you do a Google Image search for the phrase "Steelers Fan," this is the first hit:


The funny thing is, it was originally in the Post-Gazette, but was reprinted in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer in January 06, right before the Super Bowl. I don't think anyone else in the country gets it. The city of Pittsburgh truly IS the guy in that comic, and we're proud. What else can you say?

And one last thing! If you're looking for a place to watch tonight's game, I propose the 31st Street Pub in the Strip...where The Maxipads just happen to be playing.