marinolives1331
veteran
Neat story I wanted to share.
I flew up with my family to DC this weekend for the game. We have never been to DC before so we thought it would be cool to fly up and tour the city this weekend before going to the game Sunday. We did the whole tourist thing Friday and today, walking around to all the different museums and attractions the city has to offer. We ended up at the Lincoln memorial and had to wait around for my cousin who lives near by to come meet us before we planned to head to the Arlington National Cemetery which was one of the last places we were hoping to see. We met a few random fin fans and starting chatting while we were waiting for my cousin to arrive who was running late. Then all of the sudden a few buses, with police escort pull up within feet of us and someone yells out, "it's the Dolphins!" A few seconds later, to my total shock and surprise, the freaking Miami Dolphins are getting off the buses and walking within inches of me towards the reflecting pool in front of the memorial!
Are you kidding me?! I was in total disbelief! Was this really happening?! It was like a dream. It happened so quickly. Suh, Pouncey, Juice, Reshard Jones, you name it are suddenly bumping shoulders with me and just seconds earlier I was getting frustrated that my cousin was taking so long to get to where we were because we wanted to get to Arlington. I had no idea the fins would be coming to this very spot.
Philbin gathered the team around about 5 feet in front of us and gave the team a speech about the history of where we were standing and a few other things that I could not really hear because of all the commotion. (No I did not see him reading off of any cue cards lol). The speech lasted a min or two. Then afterwards the players started interacting with each other and the people that were around, taking pics, etc..
I usually try to act cool and nonchalant whenever I am around or meet pro players. I have had a few friends that have played in the NFL over the years and realize at the end of the day most of these guys are just like you and I, so I try to treat them as such. I usually will not ask for a pic or autograph, rather just choosing to treat them like I would anyone else. Not that it's wrong for anyone to do that but that's just me, even though inside I am just as giddy as a school girl who gets to meet Justin Beiber for the first time lol. But today, I said screw it and went into full fan mode and started taking pics with a few guys. I will admit I was a little nervous about getting shot down but I grabbed my 1 year old son and figured they would have a hard time turning down any picture requests with me holding him in my arms lol. The amazing thing is these guys were just as cool as the other side of the pillow and could not have been more approachable and willing to take a few pics and I saw some guys signing autographs as well.
Ryan Tannehill really made our day. I was one of the first people to approach him for a pic and the guy without hesitation and with a huge smile on his face agreed to take a pic. I still remember when I was 9 and met Dan Marino in Tampa at the team hotel we happened to be meeting friends at. He was my hero then but he turned me down for an autograph. To say I was disappointed was an understatement. I understood because I am sure he gets hounded all the time and he was still my hero after that, but the way Tannehill was so nice and approachable was awesome. Also got pics with Juice, Wake, Grimes and even Philbin. No one was asking Philbin for a pic when I was looking at him and I was wondering if he would turn me down due to the fact that he is the head coach and wanted to probably keep tunnel vision focus towards the game. He actually was very willing to take a pic. My friend says to him wow you look taller in person than on tv. He is easily 6-4 or taller. He laughed and says with a chuckle "how come no one ever tells me I am more handsome in person than on tv." It was nice to see his sense of humor.
There really is a buzz with these guys. You had to be there to feel it. I have been a fan since I was 5 years old, going to games since I was 9 (I am 30 now). I have lived through optimism, heartbreak, disappointment, you name it as most of us all can relate to. But seeing these guys in person, as a team, you can feel something special and different about these guys. I don't know how to explain it after today. I am usually not a guy who drinks the kool aide, especially after all these years of pain but today was nothing short of amazing.
I am posting 3 pics. I hope you all can see. I don't post here often and have never posted a pic so I am not sure if I am doing it correctly. Just wanted to share an experience I will remember for the rest of my life. It is too bad my son is too young to realize how cool today was. I can't wait to see how this season turns out.
I flew up with my family to DC this weekend for the game. We have never been to DC before so we thought it would be cool to fly up and tour the city this weekend before going to the game Sunday. We did the whole tourist thing Friday and today, walking around to all the different museums and attractions the city has to offer. We ended up at the Lincoln memorial and had to wait around for my cousin who lives near by to come meet us before we planned to head to the Arlington National Cemetery which was one of the last places we were hoping to see. We met a few random fin fans and starting chatting while we were waiting for my cousin to arrive who was running late. Then all of the sudden a few buses, with police escort pull up within feet of us and someone yells out, "it's the Dolphins!" A few seconds later, to my total shock and surprise, the freaking Miami Dolphins are getting off the buses and walking within inches of me towards the reflecting pool in front of the memorial!
Are you kidding me?! I was in total disbelief! Was this really happening?! It was like a dream. It happened so quickly. Suh, Pouncey, Juice, Reshard Jones, you name it are suddenly bumping shoulders with me and just seconds earlier I was getting frustrated that my cousin was taking so long to get to where we were because we wanted to get to Arlington. I had no idea the fins would be coming to this very spot.
Philbin gathered the team around about 5 feet in front of us and gave the team a speech about the history of where we were standing and a few other things that I could not really hear because of all the commotion. (No I did not see him reading off of any cue cards lol). The speech lasted a min or two. Then afterwards the players started interacting with each other and the people that were around, taking pics, etc..
I usually try to act cool and nonchalant whenever I am around or meet pro players. I have had a few friends that have played in the NFL over the years and realize at the end of the day most of these guys are just like you and I, so I try to treat them as such. I usually will not ask for a pic or autograph, rather just choosing to treat them like I would anyone else. Not that it's wrong for anyone to do that but that's just me, even though inside I am just as giddy as a school girl who gets to meet Justin Beiber for the first time lol. But today, I said screw it and went into full fan mode and started taking pics with a few guys. I will admit I was a little nervous about getting shot down but I grabbed my 1 year old son and figured they would have a hard time turning down any picture requests with me holding him in my arms lol. The amazing thing is these guys were just as cool as the other side of the pillow and could not have been more approachable and willing to take a few pics and I saw some guys signing autographs as well.
Ryan Tannehill really made our day. I was one of the first people to approach him for a pic and the guy without hesitation and with a huge smile on his face agreed to take a pic. I still remember when I was 9 and met Dan Marino in Tampa at the team hotel we happened to be meeting friends at. He was my hero then but he turned me down for an autograph. To say I was disappointed was an understatement. I understood because I am sure he gets hounded all the time and he was still my hero after that, but the way Tannehill was so nice and approachable was awesome. Also got pics with Juice, Wake, Grimes and even Philbin. No one was asking Philbin for a pic when I was looking at him and I was wondering if he would turn me down due to the fact that he is the head coach and wanted to probably keep tunnel vision focus towards the game. He actually was very willing to take a pic. My friend says to him wow you look taller in person than on tv. He is easily 6-4 or taller. He laughed and says with a chuckle "how come no one ever tells me I am more handsome in person than on tv." It was nice to see his sense of humor.
There really is a buzz with these guys. You had to be there to feel it. I have been a fan since I was 5 years old, going to games since I was 9 (I am 30 now). I have lived through optimism, heartbreak, disappointment, you name it as most of us all can relate to. But seeing these guys in person, as a team, you can feel something special and different about these guys. I don't know how to explain it after today. I am usually not a guy who drinks the kool aide, especially after all these years of pain but today was nothing short of amazing.
I am posting 3 pics. I hope you all can see. I don't post here often and have never posted a pic so I am not sure if I am doing it correctly. Just wanted to share an experience I will remember for the rest of my life. It is too bad my son is too young to realize how cool today was. I can't wait to see how this season turns out.
