Any given Sunday

I am not a fan of the bye in the NFL. I would rather see my team play than let them have a week off. Sure it is selfish but why wouldn't you want to see your team play every week?

This year I learned to appreciate the bye. After the debacle in Kansas City (yes, a win can be a debacle. More on this later), I was glad the Cowboys had some time off to let players get healthy and figure out what it going wrong. What I didn't expect was a big gift from their foes in the NFC East. Each one of them lost. And they were all embarrassing defeats. The Giants got blown out by New Orleans. The Deadskins lost to the win-less Chiefs (had a little coin on that one) and the Eagles lose to a pathetic Raiders team in the stunner of the day. It doesn't get any better for a Cowboys fan.

It is like earning a W while on a bye. It is like going into the fridge and finding a 6 pack you didn't know you had. It is like being invited to a nice steakhouse with someone else picking up the tab. It is like discovering the cable company has given you access to all the nudie PPV channels for free. It is Christmas coming early.

So I may begin to embrace they bye week in coming years. Hopefully it can be the gift that keeps on giving.

Now back to how a W can feel bad. Lots of talk from the Packer people about their win yesterday and how it doesn't feel good. Sure the game was even close but the Pack had a lot of errors. Stupid penalties. Some dropped balls. Rodgers still getting knocked around like a pinball. The Lions had 5 sacks. 5. They still can't stop anyone from not getting to the QB. So there is some people a tad upset around here. I understand how they feel. But I would take a comfortable shutout against a bad team that an OT squeaker that shouldn't have to have been.

I watched a documentary on Saturday about a band called Anvil. The Story of Anvil was rather interesting. Washed up rockers wanting desperately to have the shot at stardom they feel like they were denied. To say the lead singer, Lips, is dedicated is an understatement. He puts his heart and soul into the band yearning to be the star he is sure he is to be even though his heyday was 30 years ago. It is a story about the drive of the human spirit and people who do not want to be denied even though they get denied again and again.

There was one thing that had me scratching my head though. I could give an opinion about why they never made it big. I think it is an easy answer. What I wonder is why some of the people in the movie don't help them? The movie starts with Lars Ulrich of Metallica, Scott Ian of Anthrax, and Slash of GnR/Velvet Revolver talking about how they were blown away in their youth by this Canadian band called Anvil. They praise the guitars and sound as being extraordinary. So if the band is/was that good, why aren't they opening for Metallica right now? They could fit them on the tour. These guys have the clout to make it happen so why don't they? Just wondering.