A Philly Fan Laments

This guy is almost a good writer - in the way that Terry Harmon was almost a good ballplayer. You pull for him even though the talent is just a bit short. Still, it's a good read.

I struggled with whether to foster a rooting interest for Philly teams in my kids, and ultimately decided that they should cheer for whomever they want. Dom has become an anti-Yankee fan, and, like Emmy, pulls for the Indians. They don't get that excited about other sports. They pull for the Eagles mainly for the sake of household peace, but this season has been so deflating that the travails of the Birds aren't even worth pressing into service some innocent household object as a projectile or yelling at the TV. So they have the football blahs. Basketball hasn't ever reached a point of commanding significant emotion (the Hawks' NCAA run two years ago the only notable exception). The Flyers have had a couple of good playoff runs in the past few years, but hockey isn't something that moves them much, either.

Back to the Cleveland thing: I found it an amusing irony when a writer asked Phil Sheridan on his forum if Philly was the city that had gone the longest without a major sports title. The answer was no, we're in second place - behind only Cleveland! My kids - literally - can't win!