I am a big fat blogging loser. A big fat NHL fan blogging loser. Some time ago a bet was initiated via Twitter with a couple fellow bloggers Sean, aka Blue Note Backer and Jewels from According To Jewels. Like me, they are both huge hockey fans. Sean is a big fan of the St. Louis Blues and Jewels loves her Philadelphia Flyers.
This bet involved their favorite teams against mine, the Minnesota Wild. The rules were simple… the person whose team advanced the furthest this season wins something special and unique from the cities of the two losers.
I won’t bore you with how it happened, but Sean and his Blues came out on top. And I am a loser. Along with Jewels of course. There is something nice about sharing in the losing… thanks Jewels!
That left the question of what to send Sean. Lots of things are unique to Minnesota. Spam, Bundt cakes, Scotch Tape, Post-It Notes, Wheaties, Tonka Trucks, Roller Blades, snowmobiles and indoor malls were all invented in Minnesota. But I can’t send Sean a can of Spam. If someone mailed me a can of spam I’d poop on it and mail it back. Ok, that’s an exaggeration… I wouldn’t mail it back.
At first I thought of the gift of movies. Two movies are often associated with us here in Minnesota. Fargo and Purple Rain. Fargo is the movie with the over the top Minnesotan accents written and directed by the Coen brothers who are from the Twin Cities. Purple Rain is the movie filmed all around Minneapolis with that little purple dude Prince. He grew up just a mile or two from where I did.
But the problem is you can’t find Fargo or Purple Rain in any store. I tried a couple places and they just don’t carry older movies these days. So I gave up on those options and instead went with some authentic Minnesotan wild rice. It’s used in lots of food dishes here in the Upper Midwest and was first grown by Indian tribes in Minnesota like… I don’t know… 500 years ago or something What the hell am I, a historian? Oh, and chicken wild rice soup is absolutely amazing.
On top of that I am throwing in a book called “The Code” which is written by a Minnesotan author. It’s all about the history of fighting in the NHL and how the players all have a code by which they play… and fight. It’s a good book and with Sean being a hockey fan I am hoping he will like it.
Lastly I am including a Minnesota Twins keychain since one of my earliest happy sports memories was of my Twins beating Sean’s Cardinals in the 1987 World Series. Take that.
Enjoy the spoils of victory Sean… you’ve earned them.
SD
P.S. My Lady Friend and I are getting married in less than 2 weeks and my bachelor party is this weekend. YIKES!!