Monday Night Football--Vikings vs. Packers

Yes, it was last Monday when the Vikings whooped the Packers on ESPN's Monday Night Football at the Metrodome but it doesn't get old talking about it a week later. I've been sick since the game and haven't felt good enough to sit down and write about the big day. Sorry to keep you waiting, Julie!

As for my 2nd day at the dome in a row, the day started out terribly, as far as the weather was concerned. Just about tailgating time, about 2:30 pm, the rain started to come down and it wouldn't stop for a couple of days. This did not stop all of us from having fun tailgating though. We were a group divided. M, Lorrie and myself as Vikings fans and Dolly and Rick as Packers fans. And then there was Jim who was split down the middle. He was born and raised in Wisconsin and grew up a Packers fan but has lived in MN for quite some time and also likes the Vikings. His shirt proved his alliances. Half of his shirt was Vikings and half of his shirt was Packers. The Vikings/Packers game is always the most fun game of the year for the tailgating. There are almost as many Packers fans at Vikings or at least it seems like it while you are tailgating. We tease and taunt the Packers fans all in good fun with hardly ever a true argument or fight, which makes it light-hearted. Enjoy our tailgating pics!

Buttons that were for sale- My favorites: "We'll never forget you Brent" and "Thanks Wisconsin! For Fireworks, Beer on Sunday and Brett Favre"

We pinned "We'll never forget you Brent" to the back of Rick's jacket unbeknownst to him

We needed the tent to keep us dry. See Jimmy's half Packers-half Vikings shirt in the middle?


Some seafood at one of the tailgater's parties

A huge grill




Our group under the Vikings tent




I don't know who these people were but I wanted to get a picture of the people they were posing with



AKA: Jared Allen and Adrian Peterson






Inside the dome was warm and dry. The Vikings Skol line started things off

M and his debut of his Favre jersey



Here come the Vikings out of the ship

Hall of Famer Randall McDaniel getting ready to blow the gjallarhorn


Scott Stapp from the band Creed singing the National Anthem





The Vikes scored a TD, then the Pack. Then the Vikes, then again the Pack. The Vikes scored another 2 TD's and a safety before the Packers came back with TD with a failed attempt at a two point conversion and then finally a field goal. The Vikings beat the Packers 30-23. It was a great game with Jared Allen getting 4.5 sacks including a sack of Aaron Rodgers in the end zone resulting in a safety. That's the 2nd time we've sacked Rodgers for a safety in as many meetings at the Dome. Rodgers was sacked a total of EIGHT times throughout the night. Winfield got an interception and had 10 tackles and Favre finished with three TD's and no interceptions to bring the Vikings to a 4-0 record. Skol Vikings!

Friday's Fun Facts

Have a great weekend! Tanya and Chris are getting married tomorrow!

• It takes the average American four year to earn $100,000. Alex Rodriguez (A-Rod) makes $100,00 every six pitches
• The average American adult woman owns 4.2 bras and 12 pairs of underwear. Both figures are almost double what they were 35 years ago (Dana Interjection: 12 pair of undies? Seriously? If that's the case, I have a TERRIBLE underwear addiction with about 80 pairs!)
• More people die from malnutrition than any other cause
• There are only four words in the English language that end in "dous". Tremendous, horrendous, stupendous and hazardous

Last Twins Game at the Dome..Or was it?

I went to the last scheduled sold out home game of the season and in the metrodome for the Minnesota Twins today with my mom. Well, it turned out to not be the last game of the season, nor the last in the dome. We walked into the dome and they gave us a homer hanky. The Twins started play at 1:10 pm and after the 1st inning, the Twins were beating Kansas City, 4-0, thanks to a 3-run homer by Jason Kubel and a solo home run by Delmon Young. Fast forward to the 3rd inning and Jason Kubel hits ANOTHER 3-run homer and in the 5th Delmon Young hits ANOTHER solo home run. Woo Hoo! 7-1! A home run by Michael Cuddyer in the 8th and the final score ended up being 13-4.

The White Sox couldn't quite squeak out a sweep of the Tigers and ended up losing 5-3. The score of the Tigers/White Sox game would show on the baseball scoreboards and whenever we saw that Chicago had scored, the crowd would erupt and chant, "Let's go White Sox!". Believe me, that's a rare statement from a Twins fan. Had Detroit lost and with the Twins win, the Twins would have won the division and would be heading to New York to play the Yankees in the first round of the playoffs. But, it didn't happen that way and so we are left to play a tie breaker game with Detroit on Tuesday at 4 pm in the dome. The dome has seen quite a lot of action lately. Twins, Fri, Sat and Sun and the Vikes on Monday Night Football with the Twins again to follow on Tuesday.

After the game, there was a ceremony to honor the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome as the 28 year home of the Minnesota Twins. Throughout the whole season, they have counted down the top 100 moments in the dome and today they did the top 10. They also introduced many of the Twins executives, current and former Twins players, including many players from the 1987 and 1991 World Series teams and the All Star Metrodome Team as voted by fans. And of course it was sad to know that Kirby Puckett wasn't there to enjoy the final ceremony, especially since one of his moments was the #1 favorite Metrodome moment...his game winning home run in the sixth game of the 1991 World Series allowing for the Twins to force a game seven.

It was a perfect day. We first arrived just 2 blocks from the dome while a person was leaving their metered parking spot. We pulled right in. Bonus! Only a $1 an hour for parking! (Perfect thing #1) Then we walked over to Peavey Plaza and had lunch, a North Shore Lunch, which consisted of walleye and potatoes. Yummy! (Perfect thing #2) Then a Twins win! (Perfect thing #3) After the game, tickets for Tuesday's tie breaker game went on sale. I thought I would just go to the box office outside and see how long the lines were. The lines were just starting to form so I jumped in line and after having three people in front of me, I purchased my tickets for Tuesday's game. (Perfect thing #4) We walked back to the car and found there to be only 8 minutes left on the meter. (Perfect thing #5) I dodged traffic by going through NE Mpls to University and jumped on 35W and headed home. (Perfect thing #6) And finally, the most perfect thing was being able to spend time with my mom at the game. What a great day!

Vikings Home Opener

As we are days away from one of the most anticipated games of the year, I need to share the details of last Sunday's Vikings home opener. Week 3 in the season yet only our first home game. Unless you live in a cave, you are already aware of the A-M-A-Z-I-N-G end to the game. Here's a play-by-play of our day:

Tailgating:

8 am--Arrive in our new favorite tailgating spot, only just across the street from the dome. It was a little chilly and windy in the morning but once the sun started to come out, it was warm. We mixed with the other tailgaters well. We played games, ate, drank (just vitamin water for me) and took in the tailgating atmosphere. I bought a Favre jersey the day he signed with the Vikings and it felt very odd to do. I debuted my jersey at this game.

Guess which burger is Michael's? (Yes, the grill is dirty)

You can barely see the top of the dome with the sky

In the Dome:

Minutes before kickoff and the Vikes coming out of the tunnel

Vikings lead 13-6 just getting ready to go in the half with only six seconds to go when our attempted field goal is blocked and ran back 59 yards for a 49er's touchdown and the Vikings all of a sudden trail 14-13 at halftime.

At the start of the third quarter, the momentum has been taken away and the crowd isn't that into the game until about 5 minutes left of the third when Percy Harvin returns a punt for a 101 yard touchdown one of the longest in Vikings history. This was a defining moment of the game and the crowd was back into it. Score: 20-13, Vikings. Fast forward to less than two minutes left in the game and the Vikes are down by a field goal and are trailing 23-20. Throw in six incomplete passes and with 12 seconds left, Brett Favre throws a 32 yard pass to Greg Lewis in the back of the end zone for a (wait, a challenge in the booth...OK...) TOUCHDOWN! A great pass, some fancy feet and with two seconds left, the 49er's cannot do anything and a Vikings win! The first win at home for the team, for Favre as a Viking at home, for Lewis as a Viking, as well as his first play, catch and touchdown!!! As you can imagine, the crowd erupted and I almost fainted...literally. I know as a Vikings fan that people have left the games early as they did with this game. We stayed until the end and I bet the estimated 20,000 people that left early were kicking themselves. I hope this is a different era.

Today is Saturday and it is a MN sport(wo)men's dream this weekend. The Twins are fighting to be division leaders with only 2 games left to be played, today and tomorrow and it's the last game in the dome for the Twins...EVER. The Gophers vs. the Badgers, the MN Wild's first game tonight and the Vikings vs. the Packers on Monday night. Go MN!!

Friday's Fun Facts

I apologize as I forgot about my Friday Fun Facts. So now they become Weekend Fun Facts. Just for keeping you waiting, I added an extra fact. I hope you still enjoy. (This is mostly directly to you, Ang!)

• In one year, Americans will unknowingly consume enough industrial-grade steel, plastics, glass and rubber to build three Mazda Miatas
• The walls of an igloo, made entirely of natural material, stand up better to modern artillery than a concrete barricade, according to tests conducted by a Swedish army. The walls absorb an artillery blast, are almost invisible from the air and can't be spotted by the infrared sensors that guide today's missiles.
• An Apple Computer engineer invented an iPod-like digital music playback device in 1982, but since it was the size and weight of a brick, Apple decided not to pursue its development at that time.
• 68 percent of attempted internet connections are malicious in nature. This includes spam, viruses, port scans and other attacks.
• A recent NASA publication stated that the most common cause of UFO reports over the past decade has been due to "optical fluorescence of oxygen and nitrogen in the ionosphere".