i didn't get to watch the canada-usa hockey game live yesterday. i think my canadian citizenship will be revoked now. i was out doing manual labour of all things! but i had a toque on all day and i had tim hortons coffee after, so i think that evens it out.

i did watch the replay later though. an exciting game, but some of that excitement is lost when you already know who won and exactly when each team is gonna score.

i'm not really a hockey fan, but i know how to give the illusion that i am. if i see friends having a detailed conversation about hockey, these are a few of the lines i throw in so that it appears i know a lot:

"i like players like Forsberg, Shanahan, and Lindros. they're big, physical players and they can score"

"oh man, Sakic has such a sweet wristshot"

"Lemieux makes it look so easy"

"they lost because they were playing too much of a defensive game. you've gotta attack and be more physical if you want to win games"

"they should put the checking line out against their scoring line."

that last one is my favourite. it implies i know all about lines and matchups, when in fact all i really know about lines i learned from playing EA NHL 2001.

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my proposal for the closing ceremonies of the olympics: the IOC president walks out into a spotlight in the middle of the stadium, flicks a switch that extinguishes the olympic flame, taps the microphone once or twice and says "The End. Release the hounds!"