A cautionary tale about the personal perception of someone else as a fan. I greatly enjoy visits to my favorite barbershop, which I settled upon many moons ago. Talking about football is one of those fun things to do there.
A new guy showed up during one of my visits. Never saw him before. He asked one of the barbers if he needed an appointment. One said they could fit him in that time but to reserve a spot from then on.
We both sat in chairs next to each other when it was our turn. One of the barbers asked, as he always did, what I thought about the Cowboys' last game. I gave my two cents, which sparked all the barbers and almost all the other customers into giving their two cents as well. One thing is seemingly true about a Cowboys football conversation. It gets lively no matter what.
The new guy's barber asked him who his favorite team was. He said he was a Cowboys fan. That perked up my ears, so I started peppering him about key points during the game. All of his answers were deadpanned. Half of those were pretty dismissal.
I saw him at least twice (I think) at the barbershop afterwards. He was pretty static in discussing what happened in other games as well. My best friend was getting a haircut on last occasion too. He is a 49er fan.
It was then that I learned the new guy was a friend of his from work. My friend likes to constantly jab me about my team. For whatever reason, he asked both the new guy and me to come over for a
Cowboys game that Sunday. We both accepted.
Long story short, the sedated, didn't care, new guy turned into Dr. Ric Flair and Mr. Hulk during the game. The whole game, including some of halftime, was constant "WOOOOOOs!" or "<EXPLETIVE EXPLETIVE EXPLETIVE>! He jumped off the sofa a good ten times at the least. He almost picked up and through my friend's television remote twice. He sulked after drives ending in punts. Suffice it to say, the guy was extremely animated while watching his team.
Did I mention he said he did not drink alcohol? lol.
We met at the barbershop again about a month later. As usual, the Cowboys surfaced as the topic. He acted like he had before, AT the barbershop. Not the fan WATCHING a game.
Every member here has only two things to size up another member as fan: typed words and an avatar. And too many members have default Rowdy avatars
(shut up DE!) That is all anyone has to go on. Everyone knows basically squat about another member's team allegiance or how strongly they actually feel about the team beyond their words typed out on a fan board. That's it.
We can all be judgmental about who is or is not a fan. I have certainly passed judgement in the past myself. However. Is anyone's judgement, of people we know practically nothing about, the
right one?
"WOOOOOOO! How about dem Cowboys!" <new guy actual quote>