...It's all gonna be alright... shh... it's gonna be okay... NO IT'S NOT!
It's so weird that I've mentioned Brett Favre in a couple posts in the last week, about how his streak was going to end someday, and the next time Wisconsin makes it into the news will be when Brett retires. Yet I was totally unprepared for it. Or perhaps in denial. At the end of the season this year, I said to myself that in the last three years, this is the year that would make the least sense for Brett to retire. But that scared me, because he's always done the opposite of what people expected him to do. Sure enough, he goes and does it.
The media coverage just depressed me. It felt like Brett had died because there was no press conference, no interview, no nothing. I didn't want to post on it because I didn't know how to. Every blogger in Wisconsin will be attempting and failing to express their feelings on the issue adequately. It comes across as stereotypical Brett-Favre-determines-the-lives-and moods-of-Wisconsinites. People (including myself) have been reacting with hysterical away messages and Facebook statuses and everything. But to an extent, it is true. It's the end of an era, the only one I've ever known.
Let's look outside of the box here. Brett's been the starting quarterback since I was three. Who else in Wisconsin sports has been here since 1991, other than Bob Uecker (who is the man, too. Nick has often said that the only fitting way for Bob Uecker to die will be to get hit by a baseball in the announcing booth, and I wholeheartedly agree. Hopefully that doesn't happen for another 20 years or so). No Brewers. No Bucks. No other Packers. No one from the 1996 Super Bowl team was left. Brett's retirement is sad purely because of his greatness, but also because he's the last staple that has been around since I can remember. Sports are constantly changing, especially in a day of $30 million a year contracts. But Brett Favre was always there, goofing around and smiling. I've not only mourned for the Packers, but realized that my childhood is nearly over.
I don't think Brett's coming back. I don't think this is a publicity stunt. I think he's telling the truth when he says he's tired. I also think he feels the pressure of living up to this season, and a little responsibility for the NFC Championship loss. Who knows what will happen next year, or in the entire future of the Packers' organization for that matter. But it's obvious that no one could ever replace Brett Favre. That's not to say there won't be anyone better, but there's no other figure that I will ever associate with my childhood like I do Brett Favre.
In his honor, I'm making the song of the day "Last Goodbye" by Jeff Buckley. I've listened to Jeff Buckley for a year or two now, but I just recently got reacquainted with his music again since I've become what is known as "broke" and am unable to buy new music. Jeff Buckley was one of the most influencial musicians on today's music scene, including the likes of Radiohead, who have influenced a few bands here and there themselves. Before drowning in a tributary of the Mississippi River in 1997, Buckley made one of the greatest albums ever in Grace in 1994. The album features the famous cover of "Hallelujah" by Leonard Cohen. It's much different from the original, yet the version that multiple artists have covered, including Rufus Wainwright for Shrek and approximately 50 other artists. It is the epitome of beauty. But the album has many powerful songs too, like the title track and my personal favorite, "Eternal Life". Buckley's diverse influences developed his intensely falsetto dominated voice and unique guitar work. This is an understatement, as getting into the details of his influences would take pages.
"Last Goodbye" - Jeff Buckley at YouTube.
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