Well, I tried... still not a hockey fan

Last week Oli was given a pair of tickets to Saturday's Canucks game. Though most people would probably be pretty thrilled to get free tickets to an NHL game, particularly given how bloody expensive they are, I wasn't. I initially didn't want to go, as I'd be rushing home from a full day of classes to do it, but I soon changed my mind & decided free tickets would be a good opportunity to see what a live NHL game was like. 

Though I am definitely not a fan, I'm not a total hockey virgin--I've been to several Vancouver Giants games over the years. (For those not in the know, the Giants are a junior feeder team for the NHL) I enjoyed myself there & it gave me an idea of what to expect at the Canucks game. The scale of everything was larger with the Canucks--the stadium held more fans, the beer & food cost more, the entrance of the players was even more over-the-top with glowing red lights, fake smoke & flashing lights everywhere.

The ticket cost is probably what makes the biggest difference to the atmosphere of the games. For a front row seat to see the Giants play at the Pacific Coliseum, it's $22 (or was last time I went--don't quote me on that). For a Canucks ticket like we had, about half way up the stadium in the 19th row, you'd pay $330. The Canucks crowd was a lot more well-heeled, a lot fewer children & not that many big groups of people that I could identify. The Giants games have a real community feel & the stands are generally full of little kids & families. 

Maybe the serious hockey fan could tell the difference between the game play & the skill of the players from the Giants to the Canucks, but I didn't really see it. I'm glad I had the experience, but I wouldn't pay for tickets to go see an NHL game.

What about you? Are you a die-hard NHL fan? What do you like about the game? Or are you like me & couldn't really care less about pro sports?

List #2: Things I tried to like, but just don't

1. Sashimi. I tried for a long time to eat a piece every time I went to a Japanese restaurant (nearly every week) but after five years of gagging on the raw fish, I admitted defeat.

2. Hard liquor. Being a connoisseur of single-malt scotch or drinking dry martinis seemed so cool. But I still can't help making a lemon face every time I drink that stuff without a mix.

3. Swimming in the ocean. Too cold & I always wonder what's down there in the murkiness of the water in Vancouver. (Swimming in tropical seas is different. That, I like.)

4. Rock climbing. I got pretty gung ho years back, bought myself some shoes, a harness & a belay device. I went to some indoor gyms a few times & a great trip to Skaha Bluffs, but it just didn't stick.

5. War and Peace. Tried reading this recently & couldn't get more than a few pages in. Tolstoy just annoyed me.

6. Hockey. I know, I know, I'm a bad Canadian. I've enjoyed going to some Vancouver Giants games, but I lose interest easily & can only stay focussed on the game if I am in the front row in a corner so the players get smushed into the glass inches from my nose on a regular basis. I will do the wave & wear the goofy foam goalie mask, but I can take it or leave it.

7. Electric toothbrush. I got one of those fancy ones with a rotating head on it that my dentist recommended. I think I used it less than a year & went back to the old-fashioned kind.

8. Papaya. When ripe, I find these weird fruits smell like a cross between old lady perfume & vomit. I haven't liked them since I had my first sniff of one in high school.

9. Knitting. Every five years or so, I give it a try again. I will start a scarf or something, but somehow the tension on the needles gets insane & I can barely get a stitch on. The whole knit-purl thing somehow defeats me every time & I don't end up with an orderly rib knit but a lumpy hodge-podge. Crochet is & always has been my thing.

10. Playing guitar. I love hearing other people do this, but when I took lessons years ago, I just didn't click with it. All the random finger configurations for making chords just confused the hell out of me. Piano makes more sense to me, as it seems so much more linear. Not that I really know how to play that either.

11. Glasses. Another thing I don't mind at all on other people, but not on me. I begged & pleaded with my parents for years until they let me get contact lenses for my terrible myopia. I've worn contacts probably 99% of my waking hours for the last 21 years & I wouldn't have it any other way. I splurged on a funky pair of red frames a few years ago, thinking they'd get me wearing specs more, but nope. Contacts every day.

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Why Monday lists? Reading the lovely Chloe's blog, Tea Swamp Park, I found an idea I had to 'steal': a list of all her Halloween costumes, with quite a few photos. She got the idea from Hula Seventy's List Project. I've decided to do the weekly lists for a year that Hula Seventy is doing.