Why The Blog?

As an young boy growing up in Oregon, whose father died at the age of 5, being raised by a drug and alcohol addicted mother trying to care for 6 other siblings, I found myself wanting to be lost in something that would temporarily take me away from the chaos of life.  Football became that getaway.

One typical misty Sunday fall day in Woodburn Oregon, I wanted to play some football with a friend up the street, Dennis Canady.  I knocked on his door and heard the constant crowd drone from the TV, it was a football game.  Dennis wanted to go outside, but laid on the floor, hands holding his cheeks and was glued to the TV watching "his team", the Vikings.  I asked who was playing and Dennis said, the "Vikings and the Niners", I questioned, "...the Niners? who are they?" Dennis mumbled "Oh, there not that good...it's a team called the 49ers, you know like gold miners from the 1800's, they're from San Francisco"  

That was 1967.  I like there Gold and Red uniforms, Red was always my favorite color plus, I liked the guy with the #12 on his uniform, 12 was my favorite number. So, I decided to cheer for that underdog team.  

As the game played on and I cheered for that Red and Gold team with the cool looking SF on their helmets and that #12 guy, Dennis was getting angrier and angrier.  See, that team that wasn't "...that good", won the game 27 to 21 on the road, in Minnesota.  Dennis was PISSED !  The rest of the afternoon our football play was really rough, Dennis was taking out the loss on me.

At sunset I went home and told my mom about the game, the team the colors and that they were from San Francisco.  She said, "I grew up in the 'Bay' area, I loved that area, you would love it too".

From that date forth, I became a DIEHARD 49er Fan.  Through the good, bad and sometimes awful times.  Remaining Red and Gold thru and thru.  I eventually became familiar with the names like #12 (John Brodie), Parks, Willard, Crow, Nunley and as time passed...Washington, Wilcox and the list grew and grew throughout the years.  Now as I live in Los Angeles, even my kids and now their kids are growing up Niner Fans.  Not to miss quote the Bible, I'm a true Christian man, but I'm reminded in Proverbs, 22:6 "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.  And I know that applies in other aspects, but it also applies to the Niners in my household.

It's a little quirky why someone would like a team because of their colors, a number and a city you don't even live near, but hey that's the reason for my collection and passion.  The Niners.