I'm not alone anymore!

If you know me, you know I'm a huge Houston Texans fan.  If you know me and you didn't know that yet, well, we obviously met this year before football season. But just so we're clear - I love the Houston Texans.  With all my heart.  More than chocolate.

You might be asking yourself, "How does a born-n-bred California girl become a Houston Texans fan?"  Well, let me shed some light on that.  

I great up in the foothills of the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area, on the eastern edge of LA county.  Growing up, I played lots of sports; AYSO soccer, little league softball, high school volleyball/basketball/softball, and club volleyball.  And street hockey of course (this is where I would usually tie in a story about growing up with Jessica Alba and playing street hockey with her bro Josh and the rest of the neighborhood kids: Marcy, Nicole, Scott, Michael, Ashley B, Brett, Julene, Ashley C, etc., but that isn't really that interesting, is it?).  As a family, we would go to Dodgers games regularly, and Angels games on occasion.  I remember my Grandpa P sitting on his back patio in his pants and undershirt, smoking a pipe, listening to whatever baseball game was on at the time.  The radio is something my generation will never appreciate as much as my grandparents' generation.  Sports and athletic stuff was always a part of my life, but football was one game that kind of escaped influencing my childhood.  In high school I loved seeing the boys out on the field, and I'd root for my friends even though I really had no clue what the heck was going on out there.  All I knew is that I really wanted Darrin to notice me and my sweet letterman's jacket and the football was supposed to go toward the huge tuning fork at the end of the field, and then at some point it was supposed to go toward the other one.  And that's all I really knew for many years.

By the time college had started, I'd figured out that I really liked watching men in tight pants run around and crash into each other.  The testosterone!  The teamwork and camaraderie!  The tight pants!  The competition!  What's happening on the field?!?!  My freshmen year of college I went to UC San Diego, an amazing school that did NOT have a football team.  I finished school at Cal Poly Pomona, another school without a football team. I started watching pro football with friends on occasion, and I started asking questions and learning about the game.  I also learned that every single person I knew had a favorite team.  Candace loved the Vikings because of her ex-boyfriend.  Jamie S. loved the Packers because of Brett Favre.  Tony loved the Raiders because they used to be in LA.  Brian loved the Browns because his grandpa had played for them back in the day.  And on and on, everyone had a team that they loved and rooted for no matter what.  When asked who I was rooting for, I'd respond, "Ummmm, I don't know."  I felt like I was missing out on some big party (and you all know I have FOMO so I couldn't stand for missing out).

You might be wondering, "What about her father?  Didn't he like sports or have a team?"  Well, my Daddy-O likes sports, always loves going to a Dodgers game as a family, and was always cheering me on at whatever game I was playing - with gusto!  At 6'5'' he was always able to make himself heard over the crowd with a booming, "Great job, Kelly!"  And he was an avid runner and a great partner for playing catch in the backyard, so he is athletically inclined.  But a pro sports fanatic he wasn't, and isn't (although I keep trying to recruit him to the Texans fan base).  My Dad is a car guy, a gearhead, a motor dude, and he was always wrenching on one car or the other.  Some of my favorite memories of childhood are when Dad would get a new car (new to him), and he'd work on it in the garage/driveway.  Dad would get the engine tuned up just so, with fancy spark plugs and spark plug cables and air filters and finding more horsepower in all sorts of ways that I have no idea how to describe.  He'd polish up those old cars, bringing them to a gleaming finish, restoring them to their true beauty.  It was so much fun to watch.  And for the past decade? or so he's had this gorgeous 1929 Ford Model A Roadster:

I asked my Dad about the car, and this is a little of what he told me, "It's been a hot rod since 1948, raced on El Mirage dry lake back in the late '40s early '50s. The owner in the '60s used it as a push car for his fuel-altered drag race car called "Monkey Motion". I've drag raced it a few times my own self about 10 years ago. I think you've been with me a few times when I've hit that GO pedal so you know it'll haul a little ass. The car's been on the road all it's life, never hidden away in a barn."  I'd love to have Pops write a blog on his cars through the years and upload photos, etc.  He would do much more justice to his vehicular legacy than I can ever do.  But back to football.  Oh yeah, so Dad doesn't have a favorite football team.  He just supports my love for the Texans and even asks me about them from time to time.  Love you, Daddy-O!  My Mom doesn't have a favorite football team either, even though she was a flag girl in high school and maybe dated a player or two?

So as you can see, I was in a pickle.  I didn't have a legacy team to glom onto, I didn't have a favorite college player to follow to a franchise, and I didn't have a local team either - the Raiders and Rams had long departed Los Angeles.  Another thing you should know about me, I am absolutely bothered by bandwagon fans.  Growing up in LA, I would hear lots of friends and acquaintances claim their dedication to one team or the other, depending on how much they won.  USC always draws a lot of new fans when they're winning, and I find it funny.  "Yeah!  You were a hardcore USC fan since you went there right?!  Oh, you didn't.  Wait, how long have you liked the Trojans?  Oh since they started winning... I get it."  It drives me bonkers.  Obviously, I could never be a bandwagon fan.

Around the time I was going through such an existential quandry, the Texans were forming themselves into a team.  In 2002 I learned that there was a brand new team in the NFL, the Houston Texans, and they were playing their first franchise game against the Dallas Cowboys.  I figured, hey, I should be a Texans fan.  Lord knows nobody in California is going to be a Texans fan, I like country music well enough, and I can say I was there from the very beginning.  On September 8, 2002, I remember watching that first game and seeing the Texans in their patriotic red, white, and blue uniforms.  They beat the Cowboys 19-10 and as I was hooting and hollering in my excitement, I realized that I had found my team.  I was a Texans fan.  Little did I know that the expansion franchise was actually awarded to the city of Los Angeles in 1999, but because of challenges with ownership and stadiums, LA lost the bid to Houston and owner Bob McNair.  Fate?  They would have been my local team if LA hadn't screwed up bringing an NFL back to the city.  I still have a lot to learn about my Texans and their history.

Fast forward to the present.  It's now the 11th year that I've been cheering for the Texans, mostly by myself.  My good friend Richard claims to be a Texans fan, but fan means fanatic so I'd have to actually say that Richard is more of a Texans admirer (haha... love you Richard!).  I've seen horrible losses, been subjected to lots of taunts and jeers, I've had to see Peyton Manning (a football genius) take division rival Colts to the playoffs too many damn times, I've watched most games on TV either at home or at a sports bar, I've had to watch game updates on my computer or phone when I didn't have access to a TV, and I've even sought out the game while on a Christmas cruise last year.  I was the only XX chromosome in that cigar bar...  I've made lots of friends through the years watching football, I've learned a lot about the game, and I have amazing memories and stories about football.  I've planned to go to many games, but due to forest fires, planning conflicts, and a lack of fellow Texans fans, most plans have fallen through.  But I have been to one Texans game in person, at the Arizona Cardinals back in 2009.

Me and my friends in Arizona for the Texans game!  Richard, the Texans "admirer" is on the right.  I joke with him that he looks like J.J. Watt, the charismatic and philanthropic defensive end on the Texans, affectionately known as "J.J. Swatt" for his ability to knock passes out of the air. 

I was very excited and proud to be at the game.  It was HOT, even though I'm wearing jeans.

And of course... the year that I move to NYC is the year that the Texans plays three teams in western divisions and doesn't play anyone in the northeast.  Isn't timing everything?

When I lived in Pasadena, I was lucky enough to meet and hang out with a great group of people who loved football.  There were fans of the Steelers, Packers, Patriots, Colts, Vikings, and then there were the Bengals fans.  One of my friends, Sam - a Cincinnati native, created a Meetup group for Bengals fans in Pasadena, years ago.  Last year there were dozens in regular attendance, and I heard that this weekend there were more than 40 Bengals fans for the game on Sunday.  How awesome!  I miss those folks, and I miss the friendly chatter that would happen during the game, what great memories.  One of the things I remember the most is that I was always (with rare exception) the only Texans fan at the bar.  I grew used to getting to the bar early so I could make sure a TV was set up with my Texans game, I am not a quiet person so I can cheer loud enough for a couple standard fans as needed.  Of course, being the only Texans fan that most people know means that if my team screwed up in any way, I would receive multiple text messages, emails, and Facebook posts about it.  Talk about rubbing salt in a raw wound!  But my Pasadena football crew was always friendly and supportive, and the Bengals fans were always gracious - even the past two years when we played them in the Wildcard round, and beat them both times.  Talk about having to be sensitive with your joy, but the Bengals group were good sports even though they were angry and bitter and hurt.  I think a little part of me will always secretly root for the Bengals, except when they're playing the Texans.

Last night was the first Monday night football of the 2013-14 season, a double header starting with the Philadelphia Eagles at the Washington Redskins, followed by the Houston Texans at the San Diego Chargers.  Inspired by my Bengals friends, I had already looked up and found a Meetup group for Texans fans in NYC - located at the Idle Hands bar in Alphabet City, Manhattan.  I reserved a table for 4, even though only one guy responded that he'd be at the game for sure.  About a dozen others RSVPd for the event, but didn't respond when asked about table reservations, so I figured they might not show up.  Little did I know...

I got to Idle Hands around 7:15pm, the PHI-WAS game was already on.  It's a classic NYC bar - downstairs, kind of small, and pleasantly dark.  There were a bunch of folks seated at the bar and nobody else at the tables, so I sidled up and took a barstool.  The patrons and bartender were friendly, the food from upstairs was tasty, and they have a ridiculously large selection of whiskey (although I am no expert on this subject) and a decent beer tap.  I noticed another Texans fan down the bar, so I went and introduced myself.  "Hi, I'm Kelly, are you a part of the Meetup group?"  he responded, "Hi, I'm Eric, and no - I'm just a guy who comes to the bar to watch the Texans game all the time."  Hmmmm, strike one on the Meetup front, but add one to the random friend list!  

A bit later, the Raiders fan to my right had left and another fellow sat down.  I heard him talking to the bartender and I would have SWORN that it was my cousin-in-law, Will.  I turned to look, expecting a surprise from Will (even though he lives in San Diego with my cousin Robin and their beautiful kids), and it was a nice guy in a red collared polo shirt.  He even looked like Will!  Bizarre.  We chatted, and he's a Houston native and taught me a lot about the Texans, like the fact that the first player drafted in the expansion draft in 2002, Tony Boselli, never even logged a second of active play for the Texans.  Turns out that Lance (Will's doppelgänger) was also not a part of the Meetup group. What now?  Where are all of the Meetup people?  

Megan was a good sister and came to support me, arriving around 9:45pm. Meg is not a football follower, and not a big sports follower in general.  But I convinced her that football is a great way to make new friends, and possibly meet eligible men.  Plus, she signed me up for some Junior League orientation (so not my thing), and I told her I'd go to that if she came to MNF.  What a bargain.  Not long after Megan arrived, a guy came up and asked if I was Kelly, the organizer of the Meetup group.  I confirmed I'm Kelly, but advised that I'm not really the organizer, I had just reserved the table.  No matter, he was here for the Meetup!  Hooray!  A Montana native who lived in Houston for a while, Matt sat down and joined us at the bar (I retrieved the sign from the table so others could sit there since we were at the bar).  

Megan and I at Idle Hands in Manhattan

Much to my amazement, more Texans fans trickled in.  In ones and twos and threes, they arrived.  Wearing all sorts of Texans gear - jerseys, tshirts, hats - they just kept coming!  I expressed my amazement to Lance and Matt and they assured me that this was normal, and that usually there's at least 40 Texans fans at the bar for a regular season game.  Apparently last year for the playoffs there was something like 80 fans squished into the bar.  My mind was blown.  Finally, the game kicked off amid cheers from me and my fellow Texans fans (Megan cheered too).  The first series included an interception from our quarterback, Matt Schaub, whom I have affectionately called "Schauby" for years now - I swear I started that nickname.  But the fans stayed positive, all the way through a rough first half where we ended up trailing the Chargers 21-7.  I met some more new friends, Ben and Jason, and chatted with everyone about sports and LA versus NYC, and how much of a pain it is to get from Prospect Heights to Williamsburg via subway.  Megan asked some questions and started to catch on a bit.  The second half started, Megan took a taxi home around 11pm (didn't want to be tired at work), and the cheering and jeering continued.  I was in heaven.  Finally, other people who were as passionate about the Texans!  People who knew statistics and history and the ins and outs of my favorite franchise!  I'm horrible at sports stats, so I feel like I'll learn a lot about my team from my new friends.  The last quarter was very intense, a lot of stress and high fives and shouting, but this time I wasn't alone!  We even did a "rally shot" of Maker's Mark bourbon whisky.  Whoa boy, that'll put hair on your chest!  Whether it was that rally shot, or Brian Cushing's interception, the tide turned and our Texans gained momentum and came back for an amazing win.  We beat the Chargers 31-28.  The last 3 points were scored by our kicker, Randy Bullock, in his first regular season NFL game.  He's a cute little teddy bear of a guy.  After that kick flew through the uprights, the bar exploded with cheers!  High tens all around, happy smiles, whooping and whistling, and if I knew people better, you KNOW I would have hugged somebody.

As we celebrated an amazing comeback and a great start to the season, I looked around smiling, and just soaked it in.  There are other Texans fans!  They live near me!  I have a place in the football world!  And again I knew that I am where I'm meant to be.  New York City.  I'm not alone anymore!