I got this in an email today!
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Being a Steeler fan means so much more than football.
It means being from a corner of the world unlike any other.
It means being from a place where the people are so tough-minded that they
have survived the Homestead strikes, the Johnstown flood and most recently
the Etna Floods.
These people have the DNA of hard work, in mills and mines, without the
necessity of complaint.
They live simply, with no frills. They don't have movie stars or fancy
cars.
Instead, they have simple traditions like kielbasa, Kennywood, and
celebrations.
They live in distinctive neighborhoods like Polish Hill and the Hill
District and all of the surrounding counties.
These people are genuine.
They don't have chic internet cafes and cappuccinos, but they have
Primanti's, Eat n' Park and Iron City Beer.
People from Pittsburgh don't have sunny beaches or fancy boats, but the
rivers roll gently, connecting the small towns of people whose histories
have been built on strength and humility.
People from Pittsburgh don't have the biggest shopping malls or the best
nightclubs, but they'll take Friday night high school football and Steeler
Sunday over anything.
Steeler football means so much more than you think. It symbolizes a
Diaspora of generations who had the best childhood they could imagine.
They ran free without a care or concern in the valleys of those Allegheny
Mountains. Their blue-collar world was easy ... there was no one to tell
them that they lacked material things. There was no one to tell them that
they needed more.
As the steel mills closed and the jobs disappeared, some of these people
had to leave. While the world benefits because they spread their
Pittsburgh values, they long for their home where things were simpler and
more pure.
They teach their kids about Jack Lambert, Lynn Swann, Terry Bradshaw,
Franco Harris, Jack Ham, L.C. Greenwood, Joe Greene, and Myron Cope in
hopes of departing not just the knowledge, but the feeling that they
represented.
They are everywhere, those Terrible Towels. They wave, not just for the
team, but for the hearts they left behind. They wave in living rooms in
Fort Lauderdale and in the bars of Washington, D.C. They wave all the way
to the Seattle Superdome! They wave for the Rooney family, whose values
mirror our own - loyalty, grit, and humility.
They wave for football players like Jerome Bettis whose unselfishness and
toughness have allowed sports to be about the game and the team.
Make no mistake that Steeler football is not just about football.
I could not be prouder to be from the Pittsburgh Area than I am right now!
Even if you no longer live in the area, you have South Western
Pennsylvania in your blood no matter where you go. And deep down in your
heart of hearts, you can still hear the Super Bowls of times past, the
excitement in everyone's voices especially our fathers, cousins, and
anyone else who gathered around the TV on Football Sundays!! Make no
mistake, its just as exciting right now!! It's not just about rivalries
and who is better than the other, it's about family, tradition and roots!
It's more than football, but its football at its finest!! If you now live
in Arizona, Colorado, Ohio, Indiana, California, Florida, Nevada, or
Texas, be proud of where you were born and who your FIRST favorite
football team was!
, but someone near him asked, "dude, what's up?", so dh lifted his shirt to reveal a Steeler's shirt on underneath and dh said the guy was trashed and his reaction was hillarious....over the top shocked and then he couldn't stop laughing and then he started ssshhhing and promising to keep his new bff's secret
but it's fun.
