Great Expectations

Gun’s Quote-of-the-Week:

“Talking about a hot stove doesn't boil the water.”

-LLIC 2008

It’s tough to be a Kansas City sports fan right now. The Royals went less than .500 this season and haven’t been to the playoffs since 1985, the longest drought of any professional sports team in America. This all happened in a year in which we were all told that the Royals were going to have one of the best seasons in recent memory. The farm system in Kansas City has been highly respected for years, and supposedly we have some of the best talent in all of baseball. Could’ve fooled us.

The Kansas City Chiefs are 1-5 thus far into the season. Romeo Crennel led us to victory against the Super Bowl-winning Green Bay Packers last year. We have some amazing talent on our roster, including that of super-star running back Jamaal Charles and wide receiver Dwayne Bowe. For whatever reason, we simply cannot win games.

Even the decent Sporting Kansas City has had its image tainted recently. Just in the news this week, Lance Armstrong chose not to appeal the decision to reverse all of his winning titles in cycling due to doping. One of America’s most celebrated athletes has been knocked off his thrown for cheating. Despite the fact that Livestrong, the philanthropy founded by Armstrong against testicular cancer, is not held responsible or accountable for Armstrong’s actions, it’s hardly possible to remove it from the scandal. (After all, was it built on a cheater’s dime?) Our soccer team is a lightning rod for the news considering the name of its stadium is Livestrong Sporting Park.

The longest drought in post-season appearances.

Brilliant talent pool and 1-5.

Named after a foundation with the primary benefactor now declared a cheater.

Yep, not a good year for Kansas City sports.

Perhaps what stings most, however, is that the expectations were all there. The Royals are young and have budding talent. Kansas City landed the All-Star game this year. There were definitely break-out moments where even the sharpest of critics had to admit that it looked like we had some real talent. Even the team’s motto, “Our Time,” indicated that we were on the verge of a breakthrough.

When Romeo beat the Packers last year, we thought we had a coach. When Cassell went to the Pro-Bowl, we thought we had a quarterback. Jamaal Charles was back from a season-ending injury last year. So were a bunch of other guys. What happened?

The soccer team is actually good, that is if you can put its affiliation with a cheater out of your mind.

Sadly, my hometown is a prime example of talking the talk but not walking the walk. It pains me to have to use it to remind you that your goals, dreams and aspirations are all hogwash without your actions. Simply because you want something doesn’t mean you get it. Hard work, discipline and effort will all be required to accomplish your goals. You can’t want to give up when things get hard and you can’t expect to get to the top without experiencing some serious pain and sacrifice. Life’s not easy.

Your motto, your goals, your teammates and your name are all pointless unless you can make all of the parts and pieces that are your life to work together to accomplish what you have set out to accomplish. So, quit talking about your hot stove.

Turn it on first.

…and that’s why it’s a Gun’s Quote!