Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

My son watched most of the last World Series with me. We also watched the Patriots/Chief championship game together. So of course my boy had to watch The Super Bowl with Dad! (we also sat in the same places) Rituals! We enjoy our treats from great local eateries such as Victor’s Deli or do it yourself feasts with stuff from McKinnon’s and BJ’s.

Do you have to wear the same exact clothes for every single Patriots game? Do you have to be sitting in the same seat whenever you watch the Patriots game? Do the same friends have to be watching with you? I’m so steeped in superstition that I have actually thrown Patriots articles away after a loss. I felt like my plastic Patriots helmet/chip and dip dispenser jinxed them. One year after the first loss to The Giants in The Super Bowl, I threw out my 6-foot cardboard Tom Brady stand up.

For the first Super Bowl, one of my kids made a paper Patriots hat in school. It hung over our TV for years. Someone moved it one day and I freaked out. I put it back above the TV until the Patriots lost one of the Super Bowls. Then it was filed off in a box with kids’ school projects. (P.S. that son who was in elementary school then just graduated from college! A great 18 year run!

I’m sure people don’t throw away the recliner they were sitting in if they lose, because that would be kind of dumb. I felt it was stupid throwing away items that I paid good money for, but what can I say? I’m a very superstitious person. Someday I may tell you the story of my great grandmother who they say was a witch-like old lady in Italy that could cast curses.

One of my friends says, “When I watch at home, they win. If I go to someone else’s house, they lose. I stayed home on Sunday.”

In the 80’s, my Dad was so fed up with the Red Sox that he bought a Yankees hat and wore it proudly. I recall the Yankees having a pretty good run, thanks to Dad! I still have that hat.

Check out this story from a friend: “My Dad died in 2007, then they lost to the Giants. He loved the Pats and Giants. When his teams were playing he would put that team’s hat on the TV. When the Pats were losing to Seattle a few years ago, I put his Pats hat on the TV, they came back. The Atlanta game I was out, my stepdaughter called and said where is your Dad’s hat? She put it on the TV and biggest comeback of all time. I went out Sunday but didn’t forget the hat.” What a great heartwarming story.

Food is a big part of important sports games. Some folks make ribs, and a sauce, and appetizers galore. We still have three types of dip and two unopened bags of chips. There are also plenty of chicken wings in the fridge.

TV will be pushing every type of Pats/Super Bowl commemorative items. How about a set of Brady/Edelman salt and pepper shakers? A talking Belichick employee motivator that says “Do you Job!!”

Whatever ritual you used during this latest NFL playoff and Super Bowl winning streak, keep it up! To the friend who hasn’t washed his Patriots shirt and sweats since 2001 (a salsa stain from Super Bowl XXXVl, a barbecue sauce stain from SuperBowl XXXVIII, etc., a smorgasbord of memory stains!), you may want to toss those bad boys in the dryer with a few sheets of Snuggle just to freshen them up a bit.

And to all my fellow superstitious sports fans, keep doing what you doing!