“Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.” – Arnold Bennett, author of many works, both non-fiction and fiction, including How To Live On 24 Hours a Day, which is still well known to this day.
Ohhhhh Movember! What a glorious month. It is indeed a month in which to celebrate. For one, you get NHL hockey in full swing, the Canadian Grey Cup (congrats to the BC Lions) and the ire of women everywhere for wearing a lip-sweater around the entire month. Also it’s American Thanksgiving which consists of turkey and football (That’s what America does! – prose taken from Wedding Crashers). A bunch of the boys got on board to support the cause of raising awareness for Prostate Cancer. Immediate kudos to my Canadian brethren who raised the most out of any country in the world during the magical month - $37 million to be exact. Here are a few of the boys’ muzzies…mine wasn’t voted the best – that award goes to Whitley.
Chris Whitley (okay this is not actually him but this picture is wayyyy better than the one of the actual Chris Whitley flexing topless with his mustache)
Jeff "I took pictures everyday of my mustache & put it on Facebook" Hutchins
Alan Mazur had to get stitches right before the end of the month but he had a great mustache going.
My classy Mexican duster (or James Brolin from American Gangster look-a-like)
He cheated though by using Just For Men applicator and actual grease in his hair.
November has also had us see some other visitors from across the Atlantic. My roommate Jarrett Konkle’s father and grandfather both came over, uniting a trifecta of generations of the Konkles. We thoroughly enjoyed the week that they spent with us and, like most other visitors, we’re grateful for the bottle of Crown Royal that they left us (you might consider it a toll or tax for coming to visit). We were also treated to the feast of a lifetime prepared by now-coach Brent Hughes’ mother (more on the “now-coach” part later). Shake-and-bake chicken, scalloped potatoes, red onion & tomato balsamic salad, and a little bit of red vino to top it off. Oh snap. I forgot the most important part of the meal: Swiss Chalet sauce. For those of you unfamiliar with this Canadian delicacy, it’s basically a combination of sweet’n’sour sauce and awesomeness. It’s like the beer they make in Beerfest but for sauces. You might say our hockey “sauce” was powered by the Swiss Chalet “sauce” in practice the following day. It’s THAT good.
Shake 'n' Bake - Ricky Bobby & Cal Naughton Jr. - Talledega Nights
Also another nice visit but not in Dundee but down in Coventry was from a good friend and fellow Athol Murray College of Notre Dame Class of 2005 Hound, Dan Marashi. Dan and I both headed to Wilcox in our Grade 11 years and as I headed to Yale, he returned to England to attend Kingston University, continued to play hockey for Bracknell (in the EPL), and got into natural body building. Needless to say, the guy now squats and benches a bit more than when we last saw each other in June 2005. This absolute beauty drove the 2 hours up from London and watched us lose 7-2 to the Coventry Blaze but said it was worth it for the fight I got into and the goal I scored near the end. Great guy and I can't wait to return the favour by heading down to London to have him show me around.
Dan & I after the game in Coventry. He may be smaller than I am but this guy can throw some weight around in the gym.
And as this post finds us already in December, I’d like to say Happy Birthday to my brother (Dec. 1), my dad (Dec. 10), the legend Gary Wishart (Dec. 11), and roommate Jarrett Konkle (Dec. 18). My own birthday was Dec. 5th (thanks to all that gave a mention) but it started out in a dentist's chair. Unfortunately I took a puck in the face in the game the preceding Friday which cut my bottom lip open (hello stitches!) and chipped my tooth. Needless to say, I spent the part of my birthday in a dentist chair having the nerve from my front left tooth extracted. As I apparently do not take to freezing well, I usually take nitrous oxide (laughing gas) to get numb. However, that is not a common practice over here so I had to take 3 needles of freezing but still felt a fair amount of the drilling going on. As the French would say: “Tabernacle” (in English, this means “not so pleasant” in a few not-so-pleasant words). Since then, I’ve headed back to the dentist chair for a root canal which required 4 needles worth of freezing but got the repair done to make my tooth look normal and aesthetically pleasing again. Nonetheless, on the celebration of 25 years, the boys and I enjoyed a solid meal together over a few pints and some good laughs. It should be noted here that in lieu of birthday cake, we found a “kebab shop” that was willing to make us another Canadian delicacy: POUTINE! Chips (fries), cheese, and gravy. Spent a few extra minutes on the bike for that one. I’m guessing we’ll be back tho for more Canadian goodness.
An example of the guilty pleasure from home that we've found in Scotland (not actual picture of what we ate here but you can understand the mouth-watering, delightful shame that goes into it).
All in all, I enjoyed my Movember (and the first week of December). Congrats to Lee Mitchell & Chris Whitley for sharing players of the month. Both guys had a great couple weeks and Whits is starting to show why he was a CHL All-Star. Also, best of luck to fellow blueliner Steven Chalmers as he heads over to Germany with U-20 Great Britain World Junior team. They don't play against Canada or any of the other big name hockey countries but it is a significant accomplishment for him and we're proud to have him on our team. Despite personal strides being made, our team record currently is no true indication of what kind of team jumps on the ice every night. The large majority of our losses have been by 1 goal. Nonetheless, we sit in a place in the standings that none of us are proud of. Inevitably, there was change that needed to be put into action. Having player-coach Dan Ceman relieved of his duties is a decision neither I nor any of the other players are in a position to make, so I won’t comment on that, but I will comment on the premise of “change.”
Change is defined as something becoming different. Change can be gradual or it can be expedited. It can be radical or conservative. Regardless of the nature of this change, the outcome is expected to be different than those before the alteration was made. And history proves to us that change is not always for the better (as Mr. Bennett alludes to in this entry’s quote at the top). Regardless, it is a change. It is meant to invoke a different result. Look at the rise and fall of the Roman, Ottoman, or even Nazi Germany empires. All of these situations required a change and then fell, either in a few years or a few hundred years, fell because of a need for change that rose up again. The perceived status quo needed to be broken, and as I said, with our team, change seemed to be inevitable. With this change, we hope to rise out of the position we’re in and up into a place that we can hold on to into the playoffs.
I was recently reminded while watching the movie Braveheart for the umpteenth time (although first time in Scotland…and how fitting!) of how significant character is & how it can overcome in times of a disadvantage or change. It matters not who goes into a physical battle with the best men or the best weapons, but those with the most character, most conviction within their hearts & minds, and the belief that they will undoubtedly be the victor. In terms of our team, we have the ability to skate with the best of teams in the Elite League and have proven so by recent games against Nottingham and Belfast. We have the character to play with the best and it is with this attitude, we draw a line in the sand and focus on the remainder of the season. Newly-appointed head coach Brent Hughes has made it clear the direction we need to head in and I believe all the boys are on board.
A bunch of Scotsmen rose up against a superior English force in the late 1200s/early 1300s. They pride, character, and conviction in their goal of freedom never tired.
With this new direction, the themes of change and character have never been more present in my mind. In our situation, this change should be for the good, especially when you have nowhere to go but up, and that character and will are the most important factors in driving this change. As tough as it is to see a good man in Dan Ceman go, we must rise up and ready ourselves for the rest of the season; ready to fight and claw for every puck, every scoring change, every goal, and every point towards making the playoffs. Now is not the time to roll over and die but to turn the page and Carpe Diem (“Seize the Day” in Latin). It other words, it’s time to prove that we will never give up.
And now I gotta give it to my man “Dancing Rick” (Astley) to tell you that I’m
never gonna give up.
never gonna give up.
(Okay…the song is a little out of context but this guy is more ridiculous than Will Ferrell in the latest Old Milwaukee commercials and I enjoy smiling. A lot.)
Let the change be for the better. And let's hope Will Ferrell didn't get paid for this.
Until next time,
Brennan Turner
