55fan

I wasn't referring to Dumba specifically. I'd actually shared the thoughts you'd quoted on another forum before Dumba did it. It was regarding why hockey players in general haven't been kneeling when other leagues have been. I'd had to explain to non-hockey fans why we haven't. Dumba kneeling for the US anthem and not the Canadian did not sit well with me. However the Wild are my second team (after the Wings, natch) and I have been a fan of Dumba for his on-ice abilities. Off the ice, he has been vocal about minority rights, but has been equally vocal against violence and destruction as a means of protest. He has personally donated money and has raised money to rebuild and help those who have been victimized by the riots in Minneapolis. I see his actions of kneeling for one anthem and not the other as a very poor choice on his part, which probably wasn't thought out. The next game, he did not kneel, but had his fist raised (although it was hard to tell in a hockey glove) for both anthems. Honestly, the whole thing has become worrisome. Some "they" out there (because there's always a "they" who say things) says that if you don't act a certain way, you disagree or are the enemy. If you don't kneel for the anthem, you are automatically a racist. This puts some people in a bind. There was a football player who was also a veteran who would not kneel. He became a hero to some and a goat for others. By not kneeling, he was doing his sworn duty as a military man, but he was also against racism. Because "they" said he had to kneel, they put him in a bad position. I understand this. I have relatives who serve in the Armed Forces. I have relatives who are black. I have one who is black and serves. How do I honour her? By standing or kneeling? I have always stood (at games). At home, I put my hand on my heart and sing along. I do this for both anthems because I lived in Canada for a while as a child and consider it a second home. I honour my country because it is mine and Canada as one would stand to honour a best friend who was being honoured. None of this has anything to do with my hatred of racism against all minorities, and quite frankly, I feel that "they" have overstepped their bounds by telling me how I must act to reflect my feelings. Sorry. This turned into a rant. I'll shut up now.

So.... not racial diversity, but other kinds..... Mike Milbury made a comment about how there are no women to distract the players in the bubble. Women got offended. I understood from context that he meant puck bunnies and/or WAGs, but they took it as all women- including reporters and trainers, etc. Milbury "stepped aside" for the rest of the playoffs. Days later, in the studio, Anson Carter was taking about racial diversity and causing offense. He compared it to when he had referred to the "ladies' tee". Kathryn Tappen had taken offense and he apologized to her and never used the term again. His point was that he had never heard that the term was offensive to women, but if she was offended by it, that was enough reason for him to not use it. Now tonight, Pierre McGuire referred to left-handed goalies as "silly siders". AJ Mleczko replied that she had two left-handed children. McGuire told her that he had been told by a scout that that is what they were called. So, does left-handedness fall under the whole "diversity" umbrella? Should Pierre be apologizing or whatever? As a left-handed person, I laughed, but then again, I also laughed at Milbury's comment and was confused by Carter's, so maybe I'm not the one to gauge whether or not something is offensive. What do y'all think? How far does "diversity" and "everyone" and all that go?

Racism is real. Racism is stupid. On the other hand, if we look at how many players in the league are from Canada (almost half) and Europe (over a quarter) it seems out of place for the players to do things the way that the other leagues have been doing. Kneeling for anthems comes to mind. It's one thing to disrespect one's own flag and military. It's quite another to disrespect one's host country's flag and military if one is a visitor. Taking a couple of days off for reflection on the state of racism in the world and its implications on the lives of people everywhere is a reasonable action for a league with a lot of national, if not racial, diversity. I am glad to see any group of people acknowledge the need to improve racial relations without doing anything which is violent, destructive, or insulting to another group of people who likely despise racism as much as they do. Now if only we could convince racist people that their actions are stupid. Unfortunately, stupid is not fixable. All we can do is prevent it from spreading, and for that, we all need to speak up.

Avery was one of the first to be an activist for marriage equality because he has a lot of *** friends living in NY and being in the fashion industry, and was outspoken about it (because he's Avery). He and his wife just had a kid.

Married, two sons. I saw an interview. I didn't peek in his window or anything. Promise. Even in the years where he was single, he dated. The rumours were because he didn't seem to have really long-term relationships. I guess he found the right one. There was also a short-term rumour that Homer's wife and kids were a cover, but IIRC that was a rumour spread by someone on a puck bunny site. Never caught steam, which is good. I feel sorry for kids who google their famous parents and get hit with something like that, especially if the parent didn't even know about it and warn them.

I got accidentally locked out of the site, but Matt fixed it. Then life was very busy. Now I do nothing, but I still lurk.

Was I gone? Or are you welcoming back the playoffs? Or the site in general, which has been down forever?

I still have my red and white thread. I also put beads on my threads with the initials of each scoring player. My beads and thread are as dusty as this thread. Looking at the recent posts, that's not the only thing that isn't getting used regularly. I miss being in the playoffs.

So who are they going to get to replace the interim coach? Who is out there that could take the heat in Toronto?

I did not like Dirty Dancing.

When I come here, it re-directs me to a "Firefox update". My antivirus alerts me that this is a bad thing and neutralizes it. I hit the back key and go on browsing the site without further complications. Is this an LGW thing? Or does this happen all over the internet but I only see it here because this is the only site where I turn off my adblock? Is it happening to anyone else?

She saved that information for the first intermission. You, my friend, have the Spouse of the Year.

I root for three teams: the Red Wings, the Wild, and whoever is playing the Penguins. Unfortunately, only one of those teams has made the playoffs. What I'd really like to see is a Toronto/San Jose final. For all the years that people have been rooting for Marleau and Thronton to get a Cup, it would be sure that one would get it- and it would be nuts to watch. That said, I'm on the Sharks bandwagon. Go Nyquist.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Lions trade Golden Tate to Philly. WTF.

I'd do Vladdy with Lids. Like it was meant to be.

They just said on TSN that Gritty looks like Youppi after watching too much Breaking Bad.

My first exposure to Gritty was a picture on my Facebook feed captioned "Meth on Ice".

I was pleased with the first snap of the season- by the other team. It may be a long season....

Oh, lack-a-day. I've been gone for months and now finally reinstated, there are shenanigans afoot and I, being aged, do not know how to meme. I shall instead leave a picture for you as a show of support.

I'll take AA. Cap space can be cleared if necessary, even if it means waiving someone. Pizza Hut or Papa John's?

I am self-taught, so it may not be "swimming" but I can get from point A to point B in water. The person below me is pleased that AA is signed.

One "I am your father" moment may occur...

I never even got to the Joe. The person below me is satisfied with the new rule regarding challenging an offsides.

Depends on the situation, but if you're just talking about eating them plain as a snack, I'll go with mozzarella "string cheese". Spring or fall?