Thursday, April 5, 2007

Karma, sports, and secrets...

I’m a huge believer in karma. I’m currently about 90 pages into the book, The Secret. You may have heard about it, it’s been on talk shows and whatnot. Anyway, it’s about how you can view how you want your life to be, and if you believe enough, it will come true. If you truly believe say, that you are going to be rich then money will be attracted to you. The “secret” is that the power of positive thinking is enough for good things to happen to you in all aspects of life.

I’m no a huge believer in religion. I do believe that there is some higher power and that you should try to have good morals, help your fellow man, but I don’t go to church, believe all the Catholic doctrines, ect. As far as The Secret is concerned, I don’t want to say that I one hundred percent believe this in every instance. I don’t think that health is necessarily controlled by what you believe, or what you attract to yourself. I don’t think you can choose to be killed in an accident or lose a loved one. I think that some things are completely out of our control.

However, I’ve been realizing since I have been reading this book that “the secret” is exactly how I view sports.

I once wore the same pair of tall red socks in 2003 until Aaron Boone hit a towering HR to left field off Tim Wakefield. I had, up until that point of course, believed these socks to have special winning power (because they had never been defeated). I did, after that hit, throw them away promptly. Also during 2003, we watched a 1:00 start in our PJ’s. The Sox won, and we all, of course, had to wear the same PJ’s for the next game.

After wearing my new Richard Seymour jersey with mixed results during the season, I gave it one last chance against the Jaguars to get itself straightened out before the playoffs. It responded with big wins against the Jags and Titans, and I gave it my faith for the playoffs. After beating the Jets I had full, 100% faith in my shirt. A marinara sauce mess during the San Diego game wouldn’t soften my resolve. My shirt hadn’t been washed in four games and I certainly wasn’t going to start now. When the Patriots staked their lead against the Colts, I was confident that the game was in hand, after all, I had on my lucky shirt Then my family got in the way of a duck boat parade. They started making comments like,

4 Super Bowl rings in 6 years!

No one can beat Tom Brady and Bill Belichick!

What are we going to do for the Super Bowl? We need to have a big Patriot’s party!

Peyton Manning makes A-Rod look clutch.

As soon as these comments started coming out, my panic attack began despite the 3 touchdown lead. If there is one thing that can screw you over it is planning ahead for the next game before the clock has run out. I couldn’t take it anymore at this point. I had to seclude myself in my bedroom because I was hoping I could avoid the wrath of karma. Of course, there is no hiding from karma.

Karma of course does not always work against you. Case in point, October 2004. I believe that karma is sometimes enough to sway the way a game is going to go. I believe that one person wishing for the World Series win isn’t enough, but maybe the force of an entire Nation, wishing to knock of the Yankees might be enough to find its way to the Bronx, or to Busch Stadium, and somehow will the outcome of a game.

Last night I was telling my dad how I got two pretty good seats for two different Yankee games this season. He told me I should put them on eBay for 500 bucks each and see what happens. The thing is, I’m pretty sure that David Oritz would foul a ball of his foot and break it if I was ever to do that. It’s not my place to make money of the Red Sox. That is Larry Lucchino’s job. I love them too much. The karma of selling the tickets to the game would be enough to end our playoff chances right there. Seriously. I have first hand experience in this department.

Wednesday, August 2, 2006, 7:05 start against the Cleveland Indians I had four tickets to the game. It was a 100 degree day and it was going to be a hot sticky night at the ballpark. After conferring with the other people who were supposed to go, we all decided it was too hot and we’d be better off watching the game from the comfort of our central aired houses. So I sold the tickets. That night, Loretta hit a walk off home run and it was pretty much the last great thing that happened to the Sox in 2006. The following weekend in Tampa, we won the first game (with David Wells pitching), and the lost the next two, the third with Papelbon blowing a save…then we couldn’t beat Kansas City, the MFY came in and took 5 games in one weekend (two of which I attended = bad times), Lester was diagnosed with cancer, then David started having stress related heart problems (and then inducing them on all of RSN), and the Red Sox limped (literally) into a 3rd place finish. Now, you may think this is all coincidence, however, there is a part of the story that I have left out. I was undefeated in 11 games leading up to that game. And suddenly the Red Sox season just unravels right before my eyes. This was not coincidence, but rather karma punishing me and my team, for being a baby and not going to a game because it was too hot. I’m completely serious.

I should have known better. After the disappointing seasons from both the Sox and Patriots (I know, a ton of teams would love to have their team lose in the AFC Championship, but they have a name for those cities. Jacksonville), it’s time for this to stop. The high experienced with the 2004 World Series and Patriots Super Bowl wins took the ache out of disappointing 2005 seasons, but that hangover is long gone, and I’m expecting big things in 2007…you know, just so long as I don’t change my socks, wash my shirts, or sell my tickets.

4 comments:

KP said...

i still cant believe you sold those tickets

Amanda said...

um, excuse me, I know you were one of the people who didn't come with me. Pot, meet black kettle please.

KP said...

ACTUALLY, I WAS NOT INVITED TO THAT GAME BEYOTCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Conor said...

I already have it stuck in my head that unless I drink Asahi Super Dry today, Dice-K won't win.