Tonight I watched the season opener of Pro Football, and was delighted
that it was being played in my hometown of Pittsburgh with my favorite team, the Steelers. To my delight it started with the Black Eyed Peas performing live on stage at Point State Park, with the city of Pittsburgh shining in the background. Tim McGrawl also performed but without his better half, Faith Hill.
The main attraction Steelers vs. the Titans, was kind of a disappointment. It was a very boring game and the Steelers running game was horrendous, along with way too many blitz's of Roethlisberger. One of the announcers referred to it as Blitzburg. But as my sister said, a win is a win.
Pittsburgh was a fun city to grow up in despite the poor air quality from the steel mills.Where else could you see fireworks every night of the week from the blast furnaces that made up so much of the landscape? We had our fair share of rivers, better to look at than to swim in, and more than our share of snow. We're talking lots of snow. From October to April with many snow days where the schools were closed. Lots of ice skating, sled riding and hitching rides on the back of cars on icy roads.
Texas has nothing on Pennsylvania when it comes to Friday Night Lights. Football is king, and no wonder I grew up loving it. My dad took me to games from the time I was five and I knew he loved me, when I watched a Pitt or Steeler game with him. If he couldn't have sons, by damn, his daughters were going to know about football.
It was fun being a teenager and not having to depend on drugs or alcohol to have a good time. We loved to dance and there were public dances Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights with dancing to the Golden Oldies. Sunday was especially exciting, because of the Blue Laws, night clubs were closed and one was converted into a teen night without the alcohol. How cool to be able to go to a night club while still in high school. It sure beat the American Legion Hall (which was a blast in itself).
It's hard to go home again when you no longer have the home or parents to return to. But I have the memories that will live with me forever. Today was my second round of chemo, and how appropriate I take a trip down memory lane.