Let's Go Buffalo!

Ah, the Buffalo Bills. The lifeblood of Western New York. I should probably say a word or two about them. The first season I remember following the Bills, and the NFL in general, was 1990. That year, we (and I will say we, even though I, unfortunately, never took the field as a player) won the AFC east with a 13-3 record, beat Miami in the first round of the playoffs (a game I am pretty sure I was at though I don't remember very much from it), and pummeled the Raiders 51-3 in the championship game. You may ask, "What happened in the Super Bowl?" Um, I don't think they played one that year...

Of course, that was the famous "wide right" game. I will say no more about this (look it up in wikipedia if you must). But since that year, the Bills have been a huge part of my life. I always try to go to at least one game a year, and, in the last two seasons, I went to a total of 6 games. The parking lot at Ralph Wilson Stadium (Ralph Wilson is the Bills long time owner; he just got into the Hall of Fame today in fact) is a magical place. You get there at 10 am, and the lot is already full of tailgaters; a huge collection of people who are as devoted to this team as I am . Out in the real world, Bills' fans are scarce, but we all come together on Sunday.

There is something special about being a fan of the Bills. This is because we simply don't have the national popularity that teams like the Patriots have, so when you see someone wearing that charging buffalo logo, you know that you and they share a common bond. I can't tell you how many times that people have come up to me at hotels, in bowling alleys, on airplanes, and in plenty of other places, and struck up a conversation with me just based on the fact I was wearing my Bills paraphernalia. And let me tell you, I own a lot of it.

Unfortunately, the last few years have been tough, but it helps to commiserate with fellow fans. I found a group of people here in Los Angeles who get together every Sunday, no matter how lousy the team is, to watch each and every game. Rooting for the Bills just feels right. Someday in the near future, I will live close enough to Buffalo, and I will get season tickets. Then, for at least 8 Sundays out of the year, I will be where I belong.