Twas the Night (Week) Before Xmas

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Blitz
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TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE XMAS

or an Account of a Visit from Leo Saint Wally

by Blitz

Twas the night before Christmas, all through Leo Land
Not a creature was stirring, heck, not even B. C. Fan
All Lionbacker's stockings were hung by their chimneys with care,
In hopes that St. Wally and his assistants would soon be there;

The Cardiac Kid and Hambone were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of two first round draft choices danced in their heads;
And Sammy Greene in his 'kerchief, and Ballistic Bob in his cap,
Had finally settled down for a long winter's nap,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
Dano T. sprang from his bed to see what was the matter.
While away to his window 'penw' flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave lustre to the face of our own West Coast Joe
When, what to Alputs wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,

With a old driver,who looked neither lively or jolly,
TheLionKing knew it could be no other than St. Wally
More rapid than eagles his assistant coaches they came,
And St. Wally whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;

"Now, Mark, now, Khari, now, Marcello and Adam
On, Robin, On Marcel, on Chris, and of course Dan
To the top of the stadium, to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"

As the sleigh first flew past the moon and then circled the sun
St. Wally mentored his assistants to never gamble on third and one
Then up to Rammer's house-top, the assistant coaches they flew,
With their sleigh full of footballs, and St. Wally too.

Then, in a twinkling, David went outside and looked up at his roof
And gazed at the "Living Legend", pleased he now had the proof
While at Gridiron Ernie's home, Ernie was just turning around,
When down the chimney St. Wally came with a bound.

He was dressed all in creamsicle fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;
Bundles of 2017 Leo season tickets he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler, just opening his pack.

His eyes -- how they penetrated, his rule absolute
His football was simple, play hard and "execute"
His droll mouth was curled up, like a bow
And the hair on his head was as white as the snow

St. Wally knew, as Leos HC, there was no time to rest
He was 'annointed' or he'd so convinced the press
His philosophy engrained, his scheme a belief
His halo encircled his head like a wreath;

He'd signed the Rain Man, the best thrill of the brand
And locked up Jeremiah Johnson as our 'main man'
As St. Wally pondered the recipe of his 2017 stew
He knew there were two dozen more to sign or bid adieu

He was slippery and conniving, a right mischievous old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;
He had a wink in his eye as he twisted his head,
I didn't play for him, so there was nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the Lionbacker's stockings; then turned with a jerk,
And laying his finger aside his strong Italian nose,
And giving a command, up the chimney he rose;

He walked to his sleigh, to his coaches he gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But then St. Wally exclaimed, ere he drove out of sight,
"HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO ALL LIONBACKERS AND TO ALL A GOOD-NIGHT!"


Merry Xmas to All Lionbackers!! :roar:

Wishing all of you a wonderful Xmas and very best wishes for 2017. :beer:
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
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B.C.FAN
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Well done, Blitz. Merry Christmas to you and all Lionbackers.
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WestCoastJoe
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Great stuff, Blitz.

Thanks for the chuckle and the good cheer. :beer:

Season's Greetings to you, Blitz, to all Lionbackers, and of course to all Lions' players and staff through the years.
John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
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Gridiron Ernie
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Thanks Blitz for that bit of fun, well done. And for perhaps unwrapping this winter's trend-setting fashion statement for all Lionbackers -- "creamsicle fur" -- what an image -- with big Wally in all his sooty splendor in the lead! I'll sure be keeping a wary eye on my fireplace for that grand entrance! But, really, as with the Leo's new uniforms this year, I don't care what anyone's wearing, so long as they deliver the goods.
Merry, merry, all you gentlemen -- one and all!
jwbavalon
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Merry Christmas to you Blitz. I've enjoyed your commentary in '16 and am looking forward to your wise thoughts in 2017.

Go Lions Go.
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Hambone
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Well done Blitz. I sure the hell hope that's separate beds Cardiac. Shouldn't be much fear of that I suppose as other than in a mirror I haven't seen any sign of Lions gear here in my 5th of 28 days in Mazatlan. I did see some of that Rider green stuff though.

Feliz Navidad :clown:
You're as old as you've ever been and as young as you're ever going to be.
TheLionKing
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Well done Blitz :thup: :thup:
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David
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Haha, great job Blitz! :thup:

(and I do remember him making the "Living Legend" comment). :wink:

Merry Christmas to you and all Lionbackers. All the best in 2017 to you and your families and, of course, our football club too!


DH :cool:
Roar, You Lions, Roar
Blitz
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Hambone wrote:Well done Blitz. I sure the hell hope that's separate beds Cardiac. Shouldn't be much fear of that I suppose as other than in a mirror I haven't seen any sign of Lions gear here in my 5th of 28 days in Mazatlan. I did see some of that Rider green stuff though.

Feliz Navidad :clown:
They're bunk beds Hambone!! :wink:

Wow, Mazatland was the first place I ever travelled to in Mexico. As I 'nestle' in my bed on these cold December nights, the sunshine of Mexico sounds enticing Hambone. Hope you are having a great time.

Thanks for all Lionbackers who have posted on this thread so far.

Proud to be a Lionbacker and to be able to wish my Lionbacker colleagues a relaxing Christmas holiday.

I'm kinda hopin' its going to be Santa and not St. Wally coming down my chimney. St. Wally is known to be a little on the cheap side and to eat all the cookies left out for him. :wink:
"When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team". (George Raveling)
Lionsfan65
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A very merry Christmas to all Lionbackers and their families. :beer:
Last edited by Lionsfan65 on Tue Dec 20, 2016 12:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Lionsfan65
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And a very Happy and prosperous new year, looking forward to see what 2017 brings. :roar:
:beer:
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Hambone
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Can't complain Blitz. Beers in the bars are running 25 pesos which is about $1.25US or $1.75CDN.
You're as old as you've ever been and as young as you're ever going to be.
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DanoT
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Blitz wrote:
Hambone wrote:Well done Blitz. I sure the hell hope that's separate beds Cardiac. Shouldn't be much fear of that I suppose as other than in a mirror I haven't seen any sign of Lions gear here in my 5th of 28 days in Mazatlan. I did see some of that Rider green stuff though.

Feliz Navidad :clown:
They're bunk beds Hambone!! :wink:

Wow, Mazatland was the first place I ever travelled to in Mexico. As I 'nestle' in my bed on these cold December nights, the sunshine of Mexico sounds enticing Hambone. Hope you are having a great time.

Thanks for all Lionbackers who have posted on this thread so far.

Proud to be a Lionbacker and to be able to wish my Lionbacker colleagues a relaxing Christmas holiday.

I'm kinda hopin' its going to be Santa and not St. Wally coming down my chimney. St. Wally is known to be a little on the cheap side and to eat all the cookies left out for him. :wink:

Blitz, your poem brought a smile to my face.

The "Creamsicle fur": :rotf: Those unis kinda grew on me and by the end of the season I decided that I liked them more than the black home uniforms. It might also have had something to do with the Lions greater success on the road.

Wally has indeed referred to himself as a "Living Legend". lol

Wally, in the past, has also referred to himself as a "benevolent dictator" although in fairness that moniker could be applied to most HC/GMs. Still could be material here for next year's poem.

Blitz, your comment about Wally being cheap reminded me of the PR video clip of Jennings signing his new three year contract:

One of the press asked Jennings if now that he has a lot of money is he going to do what most young guys would do and go out and buy an expensive car or other item. Jennings response, with a big smile was, "No, I am going to be cheap just like Wally and put the money in the bank." Then from the back of the room you hear Wally say, "That's frugal, not cheap". Then Jennings says something like, yeah I'm going to be frugal like Wally.

I thought the whole exchange was hilarious and a bit of a risky thing to call your HC cheap but it kinda underscores who Jonathan Jennings is; not only a gunslinger on the field but a bit of a risk taker, not afraid to take a jab in fun at his HC.

Thread drift over.
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WestCoastJoe
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DanoT wrote:Blitz, your comment about Wally being cheap reminded me of the PR video clip of Jennings signing his new three year contract:

One of the press asked Jennings if now that he has a lot of money is he going to do what most young guys would do and go out and buy an expensive car or other item. Jennings response, with a big smile was, "No, I am going to be cheap just like Wally and put the money in the bank." Then from the back of the room you hear Wally say, "That's frugal, not cheap". Then Jennings says something like, yeah I'm going to be frugal like Wally.

I thought the whole exchange was hilarious and a bit of a risky thing to call your HC cheap but it kinda underscores who Jonathan Jennings is; not only a gunslinger on the field but a bit of a risk taker, not afraid to take a jab in fun at his HC.
That is funny. LOL

True to form, methinks. As GM, Wally throws nickels around like sump covers. And JJ is his own man, not afraid to take risks. As tough as Wally can be, though, one gets the impression that his humanity does allow this kind of teasing. Ummmm ... maybe. :wink:
John Madden's Team Policies: Be on time. Pay attention. Play like hell on game day.

Jimmy Johnson's Game Keys: Protect the ball. Make plays.

Walter Payton's Advice to Kids: Play hard. Play fair. Have fun.
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SammyGreene
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Great read as always Blitz. Thanks for your fantastic insight throughout the season and beyond.

Merry Christmas to you and all Lionbackers. Long live this site! Thanks Derek.
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