Packer Fan in a Cheese-Free Land

Posted by Holly Phelps on April 29, 2010   Jump To Comments

Friends, I have a confession to make.  I haven’t lived in Wisconsin for over 15 years, and I’m not expecting to move back anytime soon.  I am resigned to be, unless something big happens, a transplanted Packer fan.  But I stand firm, for yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of…uh…burgundy McNabb jerseys, I will fear no rival fan: for the Packers art with me.

As I’ve gotten to know more Packers fans, through blogs and now Twitter, I’ve been struck by the ability of Packer Nation to transcend geographic borders.  On game days, you can find live-blogs and chats all over the web.  Throughout the season, there are tweets flying furiously after big plays and roster moves.  Still, there’s something about that human connection.  I recently traveled to Taiwan for work, and in the space of two weeks, I saw no less than four people wearing Packers gear (yes, there was a Cowboys sweatshirt as well, but I figure he was just out of clean clothes).  It got me thinking about what it means to be a Packer fan outside of Wisconsin, where every G you spy on a T-shirt or hat is a friendly “hello” from a fellow fan of the green & gold.

I live in Washington DC, which is an interesting place in general, if only because it brings so many people together for so many different reasons.  When watching at the bar, along with the locals, you’re likely to meet a guy in town from Milwaukee for a conference, who delayed his flight to catch the game.  You may also meet the college kid from Oshkosh, aghast that the dorms at Georgetown don’t carry NFL Sunday Ticket, or the congressional aide from Madison, stopping by to see the score before heading back to Capitol Hill.  And, sometimes you’ll also see that fan who’s never lived in Wisconsin, who’ll never get to Lambeau, but who bleeds green and gold just the same.  It doesn’t matter how you came to cheer for the Packers, once the game starts.  It’s a fantastic mixture, and we’re a friendly bunch.

Since I moved out of Wisconsin, I’ve never felt embarrassed about cheering for the Packers.  While in Cincinnati, it was frequently the “Bungles” fans that hung their heads and made excuses. In college outside New York City, the Giants and Jets fans harassed each other and left me pretty well alone (except when Brent threw crazy picks).  Regardless of how the home team was doing,  after the initial trash talk was past, there usually came an admission: “Yeah, but the Packers are OK, too.”

In many football cities, team loyalty is preached early and often.  (In Pittsburgh, priests wash their hands at Sunday Mass with Terrible Towels.)  Yet, some who’ve grown up in Washington cheer for Dallas purely to spite the Redskins (somehow, it’s never the Eagles).  Some take the “everybody but the local team” approach.  My cousin, who grew up in Normal, IL, rejected the nearby Bears (a smart move) and chose the 49ers instead (eh).  There are ways to buck the trend, but in many places, the alternative teams are few and far between.  In Washington, however, where there are at least 3 people from each state (1 congressman and 2 senators), you can take your pick.  (You can even find fans of the Jaguars!)

As far as I’m concerned, DC is a pretty easy place to be a fan of Green Bay.  I know there are other, less Packer-friendly football cities out there.  So, to Packer fans who live in Minneapolis or Dallas, I salute you, for you are strong and worthy.  I don’t know how you can manage.  And for any who happened to choose the Packers over the local team (or who chose the Packers when there was no home team to speak of), I’ll raise a glass to you, for thou restoreth my (football-loving) soul.

Holly will usually write about the other 31 teams, but she doesn’t really care at this point who Carolina drafted (although Tebow-to-Denver was hilarious).  Got a good story about being a fan in a cheese-free land?  Leave a comment here, or you can contact Holly by email or on Twitter.