bravo colts

Go Colts! I reluctantly watched the game at a neighbors home. My reluctance stemmed from the pain and sorrow of watching the Colts in past play-off games, assuming victory and then watching some horrible disaster occur. Nothing like sitting with a group of friends and feeling pain together.

Two weeks ago, I watched the game with New England in the privacy of my home, just me and the cats and the dog. When it looked like a near shut-out, we decided to keep watching. It was an amazing come-frome-behind effort. And the Colts won. Not that I am superstitious, but I did at least think about the effects my being with other people or being alone had on the outcome of the game. That's the point where I remind myself that games played by athletic millionaires are neither won nor lost by how or with whom I watch them play.

So I went to the party anyway, and appreciated the generosity of my neighbors in the townlet who offered delicious food and drink. And nothing, not rain, not an exceptional Bears return on the opening kick-off, not a vaunted defense, prevented the Colts from winning the game.

There were several ironies last night. It was supposed to be the Bears' strong defense and controlled running game that would upset the Colts, and yet it was the Colts controlled running (and short gain passes) and defense that helped win the game.

All week, as it got colder and colder in Indianapolis, I kept thinking that the most doomed effort was the city's bid to get the Super Bowl in Indianapolis in 2011. And yet, if this year's game had been played in Indianapolis, fans and the team would have been playing in ideal weather conditions under a dome. And then I remembered how Chicago fans kept hoping it would rain in Miami because they knew how to play outside in bad weather.

Life will return to normal in Indy, but as cold as it is, there are a lot of blue smiles today.