On Friday, I got to go see my very first professional sporting event, and I'm STILL buzzed from it.

Coincidentally, it was the best defensive hockey game I've ever seen in my LIFE! The Chicago Blackhawks were facing the Minnesota Wild.
Blackhawks lost, only scoring 2 goals against the Wild's 5. Here's the kicker: The Blackhawks shot at the Wild's goal about 50 times, but the Wild only shot at the Blackhawks goal 15 times.

Lots of things contributed to the Blackhawks' loss, but Wild's goalie was just plain superior. Seriously. He remained diligent throughout the whole ordeal. During the ice scraping breaks, he was commonly seen stretching to keep himself limber (whereas the Blackhawks' goalie was skating around or chatting up the ice girls). The man was awesome. He had excruciatingly sharp eyes, catching slap shots that were coming in excess of 100MPH like they were nothing. He knew they were going to try to tire him out, so he played an ultra-efficient game. A lesser goalie would have lost the game for sure.

He was also helped by his teammates... They did a really good job of keeping the Blackhawks from taking decent shots (to be fair, the Blackhawks weren't passing as much as they should have been). Even when two of the Wild's guys were in the penalty box, and they were heavily outnumbered, they held the Blackhawks like they were nothing.

It was such a beautiful defensive game. Seriously. These days, you don't see beautiful defensive hockey much any more. It's such a rarity that when you finally see defensive hockey overtake such heavy offense, it's nothing short of amazing. Just watching it was nothing short of inspirational.

It should bear noting, though, that a lot of hockey fans seem to know nothing about strategy. They complain when the puck is passed around a lot; they complain when no one is getting hit; they complain when the puck is dumped; and they complain when no one is shooting (even if no one is in a decent position to shoot). What the hell?

I guess it's nice to go out and have some fun every once in a while. Anyone reading this journal should remember that. Seriously, I was working myself into a depressive stupor before I went to the game.

Also, it seems that on the Pay it Forward front, that only one person responded to my notes (to that one person - your piece is under way). I can only assume that the other two people are too busy to do such a thing... Therefore, I guess I'm gonna have to handle this a little differently. . .

For the particulars of the Pay it Forward meme, check my last journal. I have two slots open. First two people to note me with a request for a piece are the folks I'm drawing something for. Before noting me, though, for the love of God, check the particulars. Seriously, I don't wanna be the guy who ruined the meme.

Perma-footer'd

The 100 drawings thing.
01. Introduction - Check.
02. Love - Check.
03. Light - Check.
04. Dark - Check.
05. Seeking Solace - In progress
06. Break Away
07. Heaven
08. Innocence
09. Drive
10. Breathe Again
11. Memory
12. Insanity
13. Misfortune
14. Smile
15. Silence
16. Questioning
17. Blood
18. Rainbow
19. Gray
20. Fortitude
21. Vacation
22. Mother Nature
23. Cat
24. No Time
25. Trouble Lurking
26. Tears
27. Foreign
28. Sorrow
29. Happiness
30. Under the Rain
31. Flowers
32. Night
33. Expectations
34. Stars
35. Hold My Hand
36. Precious Treasure
37. Eyes
38. Abandoned
39. Dreams
40. Rated
41. Teamwork
42. Standing Still
43. Dying
44. Two Roads
45. Illusion
46. Family
47. Creation
48. Childhood
49. Stripes
50. Breaking the Rules
51. Sport
52. Deep in Thought
53. Keeping a Secret
54. Tower
55. Waiting
56. Danger Ahead
57. Sacrifice
58. Kick in the Head
59. No Way Out
60. Rejection
61. Fairy Tale
62. Magic
63. Do Not Disturb
64. Multitasking
65. Horror
66. Traps
67. 67%
68. Hero
69. Annoyance
70. Playing the Melody
71. Obsession
72. Mischief Managed
73. I Can't
74. Are You Challenging Me?
75. Mirror
76. Broken Pieces
77. Test
78. Drink
79. Starvation
80. Words
81. Pen and Paper
82. Can You Hear Me?
83. Heal
84. Out Cold
85. Spiral
86. Seeing Red
87. Food
88. Pain
89. Through the Fire
90. Triangle
91. Drowning
92. All That I Have
93. Give Up
94. Last Hope
95. Advertisement
96. In the Storm
97. Safety First
98. Puzzle
99. Solitude
100. Relaxation