Normally I will not post blogs about sports. This is a topic that is best discussed with good friends while consuming mass amounts of booze 'till six in da mownin. However, from time to time I will make an exception when I'm exceptionally irritated.
After watching the Rockets complete a meltdown during the final stretch of the game tonight versus the Lakers, I could not help but feel completely disgusted. Not just because of the degenerate Kobe grundel lickers that snuck into our suite and guzzled our booze, but because the Rockets did what the city of Houston does so frequently: choke.
Houston is a relatively acquiescent city without a winning tradition so there is a sense of apathy when we come up short. From the franchise owners down to team superstars, there's an attitude within Houston teams that encourages the idea that losing is acceptable. We've seen it time and time again after the spectacular flameouts; the "there's always next year" and "the ball just didn't bounce our way" routines are almost the norm now. The huge problem is that the fans are constantly let down and compared to other major market cities, they have endured more heartache and postseason failures then anyone.
Face it, Houston sports fans are not as passionate as New York, Boston, Chicago and even L.A. fans. Those cities have winning traditions that are unparalleled (with the exception of the Cubs). Houston fans for the most part subscribe to a instant gratification mentality. If you're winning, we're there; losing, fahgetaboutit. Still, this is not just because of a lasse faire attitude toward the teams, it's more that the personal investment that a fan puts into following a franchise known for dramatic failure can wear on the human psyche. After decades of failure, people just get to the point where they become indifferent to the whole thing because they'd rather not deal with the inevitable heartbreak they must go through annually.
I'm just tired of loser mentality that flows through Houston. We're essentially the little retarded brother of all the other major cities; we want to play with the big kids, but they just pat our heads and say "Maybe next time, Houston." From business (Enron, Stanford Financial) to sports (sorry Aeros, Comets and Dynamo - face it, no one cares about your measly accomplishments) we're more known for our notorious failures than anything else. It just gets old being a whipping boy for the rest of the nation and a majority of Houstonians accepting their role as the damned. Yet the sad thing is that there is no end in sight.
- Here's a great compilation of Houston's greatest sports choke jobs.
- The game that inspired this off-beat rant (We can't even get HD highlights)
- Two of the top ten all-time chokes were from Houston. Suprised?
Stay Ganxt.
