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Woe, Canada
This has not been a good road trip for the Winnipeg Jets.
And I’m not talking about the three straight losses in Florida, Tampa Bay and New York to the tune of 16-5.
No, I’m referring to the singing of the anthems, particularly O Canada the last two games against the Lightning and Rangers.
First up was the fellow who completely forgot the words mid-song and cobbled together this bit of verbal diarrhea: “The true north stand and strong.”
Say what?
Then came the performance on Broadway the other night, which you could have timed with a calendar instead of a stopwatch.
I’ve often seen arguments that sporting events ought to scrap anthems entirely, that they serve no real purpose. I generally enjoy them — Hoosli, for example, at Canada Life Centre is stellar stuff, as is the incomparable Jim Cornelison in Chicago (who gives me chills every time I hear him).
But a few more ones like we’ve witnessed lately and I think I’ll be switching to team “Just drop the damn puck and get on with it!”
WINNIPEG FREE PRESSThe Hoosli Ukrainian Male Chorus sang the Ukraine and Canadian national anthems before Tuesday’s Winnipeg Jets game. (John Woods / Winnipeg Free Press)
Gonna have a ball
Anyone out there planning to be down in the Twin Cities during the first weekend of August?
I’ll be heading down, along with my 20-year-old son, my brother and my father. We’ve planned a fun little family getaway built around our beloved Toronto Blue Jays playing four games at Target Field against the Minnesota Twins.
No doubt there will be plenty of Manitobans in the park, the first time in three seasons that will be the case owing to the global pandemic. I already have a few friends I know will be there at the same time.
We’re going to squeeze in a couple rounds of golf in addition to at least two of the baseball games, which we snagged our tickets to earlier this week. And I, for one, can’t wait.
Just the thought of green grass right now is enough to get my heart racing.
It struck me the other day how much I tend to build vacations around “events,” whether that’s a game, a show or a concert. I guess it’s because I’ve never been a “go somewhere and sit on a beach” kind of person.
No, I want action and adventure.
For example, my wife and I are heading down to Las Vegas for a week in late May to see our favourite comedian, Sebastian Maniscalco, perform live for the very first time. We were supposed to go a couple years ago but his show was ultimately cancelled owing to COVID-19.
We also snagged tickets to opening night of a new Cirque du Soleil show called Mad Apple.
My wife, our son and our 16-year-old daughter are then heading down to Minneapolis in September, where we have tickets to see my all-time favourite band, The Killers, perform at Xcel Energy Center. I’ve been a fan forever — I’ve seen them play before in their hometown of Las Vegas, and also in Calgary — and now both my kids share my love for them as well. Should be a fun experience for all.
How about you? What’s been your most memorable out-of-town event you’ve taken in?
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Have a great week.
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