Modern mass media offers every which way to watch a Duck football game. From TV, radio, and online, to actually going to the stadium, I found a new way.
It turned out so good I’d do it again, but since it was an accidental discovery, let’s backtrack just a little.
When your kid announces he’s getting married to the best girl ever it’s a joy. Both of them are UofO grads and Duck football fans.
He proposed to her and she said yes. You ask about the wedding date and they say next year. You relax. No hurry, no rush. No shotgun.
Then it’s news of an impending bridal shower. It sounds nice for the moms and girlfriends to gather and celebrate the tradition.
At least that’s what I thought until I learned that all family members are invited, even the groom’s dad.
Is that different? Normal? Either way, support the home team no matter what. Right?
As the day grew closer I checked the calendar. The bridal shower is on the same day as the UofO vs USC game. The biggest game of the year? Now it’s Duck football and USC vs Bridal Shower.
Leading up to the game, two different friends offered tickets for Autzen and the game that means so much after an uneven start to the season.
The temptation to abandon the bridal shower tried to grow. Why not beg off off the event, play sick and stay home to watch the game in the quiet of a deserted house? Why not?
Because if you dodge important family time you miss the chance to man the hell up and plot a way around all obstacles. It’s always a challenge. And face it, who doesn’t need practice with that?
Besides, it’s not that hard to figure out. Record the game and go into media isolation until later when you can live the experience fresh. Done deal?
To add to the day, getting to the bridal shower on time required a 12:30 Portland departure. 12:30, the same time as the Ducks vs Trojan kickoff. No problem.
It’ll work out. At least that’s what you tell yourself as you load into the car and head to Washington with wife and mother in law, both luke warm sports fans.
That’s when things changed.
Saturday afternoon traffic backed up like a Friday commute before a three day weekend. The Ducks and Beavers both have home games. Washington plays at Corvallis. Where is everyone going on the road north when they ought to be going the other direction?
The freeway was so packed the ODOT sign at Delta Park reported a thirty-four minute drive to the interstate bridge. That’s when I broke. I caved and turned on the radio for the game.
Can you see it? Stuck in traffic on game day. Luckily it was an event I’d never miss, but I couldn’t help wondering when men started attending girlie girl events. When it’s your kid and the best girl in the world it starts right there.
Besides, listening to a game on the radio has a nice throwback feel to it. Words paint a different picture than video. More imagination. It was the best I had going so I turned it up to just this side of annoying.
The game sounded fantastic in the speakers and just primed the time I’d be back home watching the recording later.
A half hour drive turned into an hour and a half before I pulled up to a beautiful house near Vancouver Lake. The bridal shower would be at the bride’s friend’s parents house. The bride and friend have been pals since age four. That makes it even more special.
I steeled myself for a very mature bridal shower for grown up kids. What else could it be?
Once inside I met the host and his wife. He’s wearing Duck gear, said he has the game recorded, and just started. Beers are in the garage cooler. I heard the words, they just didn’t sink in. This is a bridal shower and Oregon Duck football party?
Things started to jell. All the action I heard on the radio now played out on a giant TV hung above a fireplace. I’d seen the game in my mind, now on the screen. Have you ever had this experience? Mind boggling.
The setting was perfect. The house included everyone with more than enough room but it was designed to separate the kitchen and living room for both college football and bridal showers.
To make it even better the host was the sort of experienced sports fan who fast forwards through commercials and keeps beer on ice in the sort of garage you might find on HGTV. Does anyone you know have an epoxy floor with color chips?
It felt like sports heaven with an extra dose of care. If that ever happens to you just give thanks for one of the best Saturdays you’ll ever know. Win that day from the start.
Between a kickass bridal shower and a kickass game with unexpected sports fans, everyone came away winners. The soon to be bride and groom opened gifts under the thumping Oregon put on USC. It was a parental moment of unimaginable pride. You can’t plan this stuff.
When events get in the way of plans, hope for the best and adapt. That’s my advice for newly weds and everyone else.
Does it work? On the best Saturdays in recent memory it worked out beyond expectations. I was stunned with happiness. You can’t ask for more. Beat Stanford, beat USC, and watch the most beautiful bridal shower ever given.
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