10 Things to Look Forward to Since the Steelers Lost

by Big Snack and Diego

pierogisnat@gmail.com

Since we saw the Steelers season end against the Jag(off)s, I've been wondering what I can look forward to in the sports world to help ease my pain...So here's ten things that your average Pittsburgh sports fan has to look forward to (in no particular order) in the near future...

PS – This is by no means a comprehensive list, so feel free to post any other exciting events you may know about or anything you think we overlooked in the comments section on this post…Maybe it’ll lead to another top 10 list in the near future…)

Doing Your Taxes - I know, not real exciting right? It may be something that no one really enjoys doing, but hey, you might as well get it out of the way now that your Sunday schedule is wide open. Besides, no one wants Uncle Sam and the IRS to come knocking on their door. Federal time is no joke (ask Michael Vick). Also, with all that money you get back in tax returns, you can start planning next year’s trip to a couple Steelers away games, or at least buy a couple cases of Iron.

If you don’t pay, this man will come a knocking

The Super Bowl - Even though our beloved Black and Gold won't be making an appearance in this year's Big Dance, it's still a spectacle to behold. And hopefully, some NFC team comes in and knocks the snot out of either New England or Indy, whichever one of those God-forsaken teams makes it. And if that's not enough for you, there's always the tradition of betting a mortgage payment on whichever team you "have a feeling" about. You know, the one your bookie is still laughing at you about.

The NFL Draft- I know, I know, the NFL playoffs aren’t even anywhere near over and I’m already bringing up the draft. For real though, the NFL draft is the only Steelers action we will get between now and the middle of July (or whenever the team reports to training camp). That is, if you would call two days of guys sitting around in suits speculating endlessly on 40 times, vertical leap, and intangibles. The draft is an essential part to the following football year, and there is usually some type of action that happens during it; a trade, a player slipping, a bonehead top 10 pick. Who are we kidding anyways? We all know that draft weekend we will all be sitting on our asses, eating Doritos and staring at Mel Kiper and that creepy haircut of his all day long.

Gotta respect a dude who only works one day a year

Sleeping in on Sundays - Believe me, I enjoy waking up at 8 AM after a long Saturday evening of boozing to start all over again for the Steelers game. I really do. But it'll be nice to kill those hangovers the old fashioned way - sleeping it off. Plus, for those of you normal people with jobs, it'll mean not showing up on Monday with urge to kill the lady a cube over who insists on gabbing your ear off about her collection of Beanie Babies and her weekend trip to outlet mall.

The NHL Playoffs- The Penguins are finally starting to look like the Penguins from last year, and that is definitely a good thing. Sid the Kid is the best player in the NHL, and with him leading the way, the Pens should be able to make a deeper run in the playoffs then they a season ago. The Pens are red-hot, having won eight of their last nine. Plus, Ray Shero hasn’t even made any deals yet, and word on the street is he’s looking for a scoring winger to play along side Crosby. All in all things are looking up for the Pens this year.

Come April I’m looking to be seeing a lot of this

NCAA March Madness - Hopefully our boys in Blue and Gold make it back to the Dance this year, but without Fields and Cook it's gonna be tough. I still like our chances though, and even if we don't end up making it, it's still a great time of year for college hoops. There's upsets galore, pretty much non-stop game action and of course, the betting. There's nothing more satisfying then losing your NCAA poll to some 19 year old college girl who picked the games by "going with the team name I like" or by "seeing my favorite color on their uniform" or some other B.S. excuse for being lucky as hell. It really makes you feel like a man.

Spending some QT with the Lady-You know you’ve spent every Sunday for the last 4 months doing nothing but sitting around and watching football, but now you finally have enough free time to make it up to your significant other. Show the little lady how special she is by doing what she wants this Sunday. Maybe you’ll go see a chick flick, maybe you can just go for a long walk in the park or maybe you can go to Macy’s and pick out some curtains together. Either way, at least you won’t have to hear her complaining about how you never do what she wants, and you might even get lucky, you motor-boating SOB.

Gangsters need love too

The Summer Olympics - I personally dig the Winter Olympics a helluva lot more then the Summer Games, but they're something to see nonetheless. I guess there are some events worth seeing, if you like watching men grappling in tights or some idiots on HGH sprinting down the track. Plus, no matter which Olympics it is, the US is always high on the medal count list, and this year's events are held in Bejing, China, which should be entertaining as hell. The only thing that may kill the games in the US is the time difference, but I'm sure it'll be like the World Cup with me, where I watched everything anyway, not because I was interested, but because I'd always rather watch live sports then some damn morning show.

Watching The Wire on HBO - To put it simply, this is the greatest show in the history of television broadcasting. If you don’t have HBO or haven’t seen the show you deserve a smack, but luckily every season is on DVD. The Wire is a drama that takes place in inner-city Baltimore and follows the story of drug dealers, the police trying to catch them, and all the other people affected by this war going on between the two. This is one of the realest shows ever made and the final season is going on right now. (It’s a damn shame that this show is coming to an end…) If you start to watch the show you will be hooked immediately, and you will unquestionably have a reason to look forward to each and every Sunday!
One of the realeast shows

The Sopranos got nothing on these two

Spring Training is Right around the Corner - The Pirates suck. We know that. And to be honest, nothing they’ve done this off-season has really inspired me to think any differently. But we love them anyway. Now our boys are about to head down to Florida to kick off yet another season of Bucco baseball, and if there was ever a time for optimism, it’s now. We have a new president, GM, manager and coaching staff, and, let’s face it, we haven’t lost a game yet. Nothing kills our hope for the Buccos more then watching them get smacked around by some mediocre squad, which, sad as it is to say, will probably happen at the very beginning of the season. So get on the Bucco Bandwagon while you still can; it’ll be empty by June…