Mmmm Mmmm Good

"That's what Jason Campbell is....mmmm mmmm good!" No? OK...how about this? (Sing to the tune of "I Feel Good" by James Brown)

"I feel good.....I knew that I would now.......I feel good.......I knew that I would now....So good....so good...cuz we beat you! I feel nice.......cuz we put Dallas on ice now...I feeeeel nice...cuz we put Dallas on ice now...So nice.. So nice..cuz we beat you!"

Yeah..that's more like it..don't you think?

Well, well, well...it's been a great day to be a Skins fan if I do say so myself. All is right in Redskins Nation! According to the "powers that be", the Skins just pulled off a football miracle! "This team can't compete with the Dallas Cowboys", "this team is going to come into Dallas and get blown out by a much better Dallas team", "this team is no match for the high powered offense of Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys".

Yeah..ok...how'd that work out for ya? Hmmm?

I was on edge all week long in anticipation of this game. It loomed on the horizon like an angry storm cloud. Caught in the unending cycle of "I know we can win this game...but will we?", "I know we can win this game...but (insert excuse here)". This ever present lack of confidence came about from years of "snatching defeat from the jaws of victory" at almost every venue we played in. It's not something that I hold in high esteem about me. I've been burned so often by the Skins that I rarely "trash talk" anymore. Gun-shy is what it's called. It's amazing what a string of losing season does to one's psyche.

Anyhoo....Sunday came. No skipping church this week as the game was set to go at 4:15pm. So I could relax after church for a few moments. I decided I was going to contribute chicken wings to the buffet eau'de Brinkley(my in-laws' abode). I stopped at the local grocers and as I was perusing the vast array of chicken wings(who knew there were so many different brands?), I came across something interesting. A bright red bag loaded with Tyson's Any Tizers. On sale..cha ching! Got em. 2 bags...1 buffalo style....1 honey BBQ style. Have you seen these little bits o' Heaven in your frozen foods section? Pre-seasoned, frozen wings ready to heat and eat. 18 - 20 minutes in a hot oven and viola'...chicken wings! There were about 20-25 wings per bag...plenty for a guest list of 5-7 people! Best invention since sliced bread! And yummy to boot! Less work...great taste! Check 'em out!

• 3:20pm - Load stuff(camera, tripod, chicken wings)into car. Drop daughter off at job(thank God for fast food joints..they employ 18-20 somethings..yay...less empty pockets for me).
• 3:35pm - As I'm getting ready to pull away from the daughter's job when I saw a young man heading for my car. He stopped at my window, with 3 Miller Lite beers in a bag and a backpack that was overloaded with God only knows what. He asked me for a ride "just around the corner from here". He seemed nice enough with red hair and freckles. He assured me he was no ax murderer and then he added the "coup de grace"..."I'm a Redskins fan too(with a way too cheezy grin). How could I say no? He jumped in the car, introduced himself as "John"(nicely done..indiscreet name), showed me his HVAC tech credentials(I don't know either..but he was proud of it just the same), we chit chatted the whole 2-3 miles that I drove him down the road. Dropped him at a convenience store, he offered to pay me for the gas, I turned him down because sometimes it feels good to be nice just because.
• 4:05pm - Park at the in-laws, grab my stuff and run upstairs to their apartment. Everything was set up and ready to go; the Skins rug was in place, the Skins chairs were in place(2 of those btw), the Skins chip holder helmets were on the table and filled to the rim with Doritos (nacho cheese and cool ranch for those keeping score) We are so pumped we can hardly contain ourselves! We wait with bated breath for the Fox crew to throw it to Troy and Joe!
• 4:15pm - Kickoff! We've welcomed another member of our Redskins family tree to the party! Andre'(nicknamed Beep... for reasons I do not know). We watch as we get the ball and proceed to punt after few good plays. "It's early" we say. What did we expect? So we settle in for what may or may not be the most wonderful game this season. The 'other team' comes in before we know it...TD for them! Uggghhhhh! We can't believe it! But we remind ourselves that it's early yet and we don't need to panic. Beep brings his 9y/o son, Andre' Jr(better known as lil Beep)who has taken up the role of antagonist. Little did he know that Uncle Drew had a big surprise in store for him. So as lil Beep ran around saying, "deadskins suck" and "yall are going to lose this game 0 - Dallas' infinity", he was oblivious to the fact that the abundance of food was intended for Redskins fans ONLY! He soon found out that Redskins vs Dallas at Uncle's house isn't for the weak or the hungry! No food for lil Beep until he cooled his heels with the trash talking. I felt sorry for him at times but I did wave a few Doritos under his nose before crunching down on them in his tender, youthful ears! He held his ground for about 1 hour. Then it happened. After being mad, hungry and doggedly determined, he fell because of his lust for Doritos! Those dastardly, triangle shaped bits o' heaven. They've been the downfall of a many young kid. Mission accomplished! Lil Beep was a Skins fan! Well at least until next Sunday!
• Halftime - We're happy! Things have gone well for the most part. We all think there's too much time left and that it should be the 4th quarter by now! We're not comfortable at all. But we do eat. Wings, pork BBQ sandwiches w/cole slaw, mac and cheese, beer for the drinkers, sodas for the light weights(that's me!)
• 3rd Quarter - Not feeling the "squib" kick off to start the 2nd half. Blame that for the ensuing TD by "that team"! Midway through this quarter, our resident Cowboy fan makes an appearance, complete with a girlfriend in tow wearing a Cowboys jacket. They sit, they can't believe the score.
• 4th Quarter - Time is running out for the fan of the evil ones! We are laughing..he is not! He's pouting! Honest to goodness pouting! He attempts to argue that with no timeouts and a minute something left on the tick tock, his team "can still win this thing". We ignore him and start the countdown, like we're about to do the NASA shuttle launch! 12, 11, 10, 9, 8......YAY! It is finished! We're ecstatic...he is NOT! Drew asks him..."what does that make you Cowboy fan?" "I'll tell you what it makes you...tied with the Redskins!". It's too much for his fragile Cowboy fandom! He retreats with Ms. Cowboy fan looking totally disinterested in everything including this game! We celebrate! What a day! What a game!

The team looked really good. Minor things that can be fixed hopefully will be. Campbell continues to improve. We looked comfortable in that place! We came, We played, We conquered! We still endure little to no respect. Cowboy fans, licking their wounds, lash out, trying to steal our joy! (FAT CHANCE!) Telling us that "we only won by 2!" Ummmm..you do know that means that you LOST by 2 right?

We know the gravity of what occurred there in "Big D". Something so outrageous that the talking heads can't wrap their lips around the words. Here let me help you...Redskins go into Texas stadium and get a win..outplaying "America's Team" in every way on this day! The numbers don't lie. Take a gander if you must! It's good stuff! The score is not indicative of the dominance that was Redskins football on this day!

It does feel good! Aaaaahhhhhhh..."I'll take a steak-medium well, a baked potato with sour cream, a side salad, and a helping of Dallas Cowboy whip arse to top it off!

Well done Skins...well done! On to Philly, home of the less than human fans! Enjoy the new "Dallas chant"!