Sorry if this should go in the hangout, but it just didn't feel like the right spot. Today, we played the biggest game the Rockets have played since 2009. I had to work. I thought long and hard about calling in, but it wasn't worth it with how many absences I've used already. Luckily, I work at the most hated cable company in the world, Comcast. Unfortunately, I work in Denver, and I'm the only Rockets fan within our call center. I came to work decked out in my Rockets gear like always. We have TV's around the call center to help customers troubleshoot. I put the game on and plan all my breaks according to the time left in each quarter. With the game on the line and 4 minutes to go I decide to take my last 15 minute break. I get off break and back out on the floor late at night when very few customers are calling in, hoping to catch the last minute in peace. On the last two possessions someone, who thinks they're hilarious, starts making the TV flicker by changing the resolution every second. I have no idea who was doing it. I jump with joy as I see that Parsons shot goes in. But they keep doing it making the screen flash. It goes to timeout. The inevitable happens... I go silent and sit back down... all eyes on me. Why don't they get it? I know that they think they're being cute... being funny... being slick. But why? I'm slouch down in my chair thinking. Thinking about how I may have just seen some of my absolute favorite Rockets play there last game. Why do people not understand the emotional investment of being a huge fan of your favorite team? I sat damn near tears the last 30 minutes of my shift as people came to LITERALLY point and laugh at the fact that a team they don't care about lost. One of the managers who HATES basketball was completely focused on the game early in the fourth when someone comes up to him and tells him that they're surprised to see him so into it. His reply, "Yeah I just think it's awesome cause Ryan's team is losing." I know that 26 years old is too old for Rockets basketball to be the main driver in one's life, but that's how it is for me. I have no wife, no kids, a job that I hate, and all I got excited about these last 6 months were Rockets basketball. Now it's done. I'm now 8 shots of whiskey deep, and wondering if this thread has any business the the GARM, but I'm ready to hit submit. WHY do non sports fans not understand how much it hurts to see your team lose!?!?!?
Jesus how many 15 minute breaks do you get there? Comcast is a joke of a company, honestly. Answer the damn phones.
No sarcasm intended, none, but you need to consider therapy. Please consider it. Seriously, no joke. And your coworkers sound like a-holes, and a-holes should never ever know what you are emotionally invested in, because it makes it easier to push your buttons.
2... is that a lot? Sorry. Now I wish I didn't post this. I know you all hate Comcast... sorry for that. I hate working for them, but it pays the bills.
Oh, that is not a lot then. It's okay how you feel, I hate sports now and don't know why I even bother with this **** tbh. I only care about the Rockets, like you, and some soccer team. Other than that I can care less. Rockets were the only ones to give me joy, but I was young. I long to relive those moments, but they break my heart again and again. I just wish we lost by 30 tonight instead of 1. Would make things easier.
That part was mostly the whiskey speaking. I do indeed get excited about other things. But the 26 and no kids part? I hope you're not referring to that, cause I'm nowhere ready for kids. I do appreciate the advice if you are being serious, but the only thing I need therapy for is my drinking problem that gets me loose enough to post embarrassing stuff like this. As a Rockets fan, Rockets b-ball is something I get really excited about, but I do have more important stuff in life. Nights like tonight are just tough though and make me post dumb stuff thinking it's normal. I think the most frustrating thing is how young I was when we were good and how much I took it for granted. I was 8 during our last championship and remember playing games with my skittles like "whoop-de-doo, who cares, my team wins the championship every year." And yes, I was thinking the same thing... I'd be far from sulking if we got blown out.
This is what I was thinking at the moment Rockets lost. That instant Lillard hit that shot will be replayed over and over again... probably through the rest of our lives and beyond. Whereas, if we lost by a big margin, nobody will remember that except us and Blazers fans. We lost by 40 against the Mavs in a game 7, but nobody remembers that except us and the (serious, not bandwagons) Mavs fans. And you won't see a lot of reruns of that game.
So you've never made fun of a kid who obsessively plays World of Warcraft, DOTA, or Call of Duty, never judged someone who religiously watches the Bachelor/Bachelorette, never were weirded out by someone who makes ships in a bottle or sets up elaborate train sets? Not everyone likes each other's hobbies. In fact the odds are usually greatly stacked against your favor unless you happen to frequent a meeting place with similar weirdos and obsessives. When it comes right down to it, our collective investment in the success of the Houston Rockets is one of the dumbest things possible; we don't influence the outcome of the game, we cheer or feel depressed by random events occurring on a court. At least the guy playing WoW 60 hours a week has some agency in his hobby. Just remember this: When the Rockets win a championship, I guarantee that this loss is going to make it all the sweeter. Someday in the future, there will be a 10 minute Youtube clip, with an intro that includes the Malone Bear Hug (and Stockton Shot), the 40-point massacre in Dallas, the Brandon Roy Prayer, the Retirements of Barkley and Yao, the GET A DAMN REBOUND Utah Game 7, and yes, that Damian Lillard 3. And god damn if that's not going to be your favorite part of the clip, as you feel the disappointment wash away, when you've crawled to freedom through five hundred yards of sh-t smelling foulness, and come out clean on the other side. Nostalgia means "the pain from an old wound", a twinge in your heart far more powerful than memory alone. We all as Rockets nation were wounded today, but I look forward to that time when we'll remember tonight's failure and simply smile at how far they have come.
Well anyway, you might have a ****ty job but at least you have a job. I know someone that lost his last night. The guy coaches basketball teams or something.
I think you guys are being a bit hard on him. We are die hard fanatics, and many of us watched games on ****ty streams all season long. Some of us changed cable providers and even paid huge fines to break contracts. Others signed up for league pass and ballstreams. I was ready to drop over $200 on game 7 tickets and switched to Comcast myself. I've been to a few games this season as well. I've never cried, but I was so upset when we lost to the Mavs, and angry when we couldn't grab a rebound against the Jazz. I could not deal with the fact that the calls changed on us in games 3-7. Don't worry OP. Remember it's just a game. Drinking won't solve problems in life and not everyone gets it. If you were a fan of the Lakers, Heat, or even the Spurs they would think that's cool. But because you choose the Rockets they will always question why you are a fan of a team that loses. They didn't watch the NBA when Jordan played baseball and don't know the Rockets won back to back. They have zero opinion of Houston and everyone is convinced they live in the best city. They only believe what they hear and that's Dwight sucks, Beverley is dirty, Harden flops, choke city, etc. Your manager was watching because it was a damn good series and he wanted to know what all the fuss was about. He wasn't invested in it like us, but he witnesses some of the greatest basketball ever played. It's not a coincidence it takes a team that feels a different kind of pressure (not facing elimination, already won twice in Houston) to bury us with a dagger 3 playing 8v5 all series long. The same can be said of the 97 series the last time a 3 won a playoff game. We know the Rockets are the team everyone hates/wants to see lose and for no good reason other than we are a tough team to beat every time. Let them make the excuses I mentioned above, we know they're not good. We follow this team because they leave everything out their on the court. Every single game this series has came down to the wire and you can blame poor coaching for losing so many close games, but I digress. I know other Rockets fans have noticed a huge difference in the intensity between this series and others (especially in the joke EC). Just try not to get so invested and remember there's a good chance the Rockets won't win based on their playoff numbers. I regret not enjoying this series more, because it was amazing. I let winning and the officiating ruing what was a great series for me.
I forgot to mention, I was thinking the same thing OP. I kept thinking this could be the last Rockets game of the season. This could be the last quarter, last few minutes of Rockets basketball...that helped me enjoy game 6 even though we lost.
Your co-workers are just showing off to each other. It's bonding them at your expense. You need some **** and balls kid. If anybody touched my TV I'd break their kneecaps. Subsequently nobody touches my TV's. Don't worry, the Rockets are young and have a good future. All good things come to an end, some just sooner than others. We probably weren't winning a championship this years anyway.
Solid post. All the heartache will make the victories feel that much sweeter. Even Portland had to go through some serious down years before finally breaking out. Keep the faith, man
There's a difference between poking fun at someone's hobbies and actively bullying them from doing them. That's just rude and being a bully. There's also the fact that they take laughter and joy in rocketfan21's suffering and sadness by rubbing in the fact that his team lost. There's a time and place for ball busting and being hard on someone, but right after a heartbreaking loss wasn't right. His coworkers are douchebags.
This game and this series is why we watch sports. We watch it to experience the feeling most of us had when Parsons hit that shot. Unfortunately the feeling we had when lillard hits his shot comes with fandom. Non-sports fans think its all a waste of time...oh well their loss not ours.
