Life has Rules

I have very few Life Rules. I have a Blueprint built on values and nature-vs-nurture, coloured with personality, fueled by a joie de vie. But it has been rev’d up with Experience. Most of my game plan is a fluid set of guidelines that act as a safety net after I’ve been spring-boarded into battle; I like calling audibles, it keeps things interesting. However, there is a time and place for structure, for familiarity, a time and place for an unwavering certainty. There can be a comfort in knowing the answer before the question is asked, but sometimes it’s more than facilitating preparation, sometimes it is about the need to respect Right vs Wrong. Sometimes it is about the need to respect Greatness. Sometimes it is about the need to respect the Post-Season.

“Spring is Off Limits!”

The key to a good Life Rule is simplicity, simplicity and proper punctuation. No sense in making things confusing, keep it simple: Spring is Off Limits! Spring is off limits to everything, always. Don’t sign up for a team, don’t register in a class, don’t book a trip, don’t schedule anything. It’s only going to get in the way, because Spring is Playoff Season. Playoffs Baby, Playofffffffffffffs!

You know that saying “It must be too good to be true”? Yeah, that doesn’t apply here. When it comes to the ‘mid-April to June’ chunk of calendar it is both Too Good and True. December has Christmas, Fall has football, Summer has the heat, but only Spring has both the best of the best in B-Ball and Puck. It’s the flash of the Court and the speed on the Ice, it’s highflying and sacrificing, it’s defense, it’s offense, it’s heart and soul, it’s blood, sweat, tears, and fears, upsets, blow-outs, underdogs, dynasties, it’s ‘the unbelievable’ meets ‘the unattainable’, it’s pure beauty, it’s villains vs heroes, it’s highlights, it’s history, and it’s happening every night. It’s too good to be true, but it’s happening every night.

The NBA vs the NHL, and the winner is… the Fan. You don’t even have to like sports to get into this stuff, you just have to like Life. Halak beats Washington, Magic sweep 2 straight teams, Devils are upset in 5, the Champion Pens get taken to game 7, Celtic Pride tip off against King James in round 2, and that’s the surface. It’s only been three and a half weeks and the storylines continue to take off. And none of it gets old either. In the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs not a single series went 4-and-out. There were 5 game-6 decisions, 2 game-7s, and a lone ‘Blow Out’ that had number 7 Phili upset number 2 Jersey. The second round has been more of the same, with the only set of teams to not need at least six games to decide things, battling it out in the closest 4-1 series you could put together. The NHL has been nothing short of perfect competition, with the tournament sorting itself out to create better and better match ups. On the other side of freezing, the NBA has run the gauntlet on potential outcomes, yielding every possible scenario in the opening round; there were a couple of upsets, a couple of marathon showdowns, some pure domination, an injury or two. And then in total contrast to the tight work of hockey’s second round, the NBA’s conference semi-finals had 3 of 4 series blown wide open in 4 game eliminations. Just when you think you might have a feel for how this Post-Season stuff work, Orlando crushes Atlanta by a series total of more than 100 point over the course of 16 quarters of basketball.

Despite the ‘Anything can Happen’ attitude of these two leagues, I can guarantee one thing; Amazing has just begun. So figure out your picture-in-picture, warm-up that PVR, get yourself home early from work, and don’t be afraid to forget your team and just cheer for Sport, cause it doesn’t get much better than Spring in front of your TV.

I have very few Life Rules, but “Spring is Off Limits!” is not one I mess around with. Love Life, Watch some Playoffs!