All My Exes Live in Texas...and Buffalo...and Chicago...and...
Lately I've been thinking about former players of my favorite team (Sharks) and finding it amusing how I view them differently after they’re gone. It’s very similar to how I view my ex-boyfriends. From what I can discern, there appears to be 3 different categories - the ones that got away, the ones that I was glad to be rid of, and the ones that I despise/left me for someone else. Note: I realize that as a fan we get maybe 1/10th of the real information about trades, etc. but I'm just going to use the information that the internet has given me (wait - you mean that everything on the Internet isn't based on fact?)
I'd like to say that I'm a mature female hockey fan and that I wish all former Sharks good luck on their respective journeys but hey, let's be real here. I'm hoping that by writing this it will either a)help me deal with my relationship issues and/or b)justify my crazy emotions ( and isn't that what blogs are for anyways?)
The ones that got away
Ahhh - these are the guys that gave their all to me (& the Sharks) but things just didn't work out. Maybe they were ready to settle down and I wasn’t, maybe it was a salary cap thing, maybe it was location - I honestly don’t care. I will continue to cheer for these guys no matter who they play for or what they achieve and if the Sharks aren't in the playoffs, I will root for them. Examples include Mike Grier, Craig Rivet, Steve Bernier, Brian Boucher, Jonathan Cheechoo
The ones I'm glad are gone
You know how sometimes when you're with someone they do douche-y things, but you don't realize that they're douches until after they're gone? Well, that's these guys. They didn't really harm the Sharks but they weren't that great either. They're like the guy you date senior of college before leaving school - you know he's not the one but.... Well, sometimes it's nice to have someone to snuggle with at night. Examples include Christian Ehrhoff, Marcel Goc, Vesa Toskala, Matt Carle, Scott Hannan
The ones that broke your heart...
Sigh...these are the guys that broke your heart and then hung out with the class slut the next day as if nothing ever happened (good thing I’m not bitter, right?) You really thought that they might just be the one and then for some reason (usually out of the blue) he broke your heart. These are players that I will boo forever - no matter how long it's been. Examples include Brian Campbell
In summary…
Yes, break-ups suck. They hurt your heart in ways that you never can imagine or prepare yourself for and can really debilitate you (i.e. you’re wearing your sweats all day long, eating ice cream out of the container & listening to “I Will Survive” on repeat), but just like in hockey, they sometimes lead to bigger and better things. Without losing Carle/Campbell, we never would’ve gotten Boyle. Without losing Cheechoo, we never would’ve gotten Heatley.
So maybe we need to treat our boyfriends like our favorite hockey players. Yes, cheer for them, but never get too attached ‘cause you never know who’s going to be around next season…
