It all started last Wednesday. I was working at the Bucks game with a guy who, in addition to working for the Bucks, works for the Milwaukee Admirals. Long story short, I soon found myself agreeing to help out by acting in a skit at the Admirals game on Friday night. I believe my exact words were, “Sure. I’ll do it if you can’t find anybody else.”
And by the end of the work day Friday (it had been a heck of a week), I was really hoping they found someone else. But, no such luck; and a deal’s a deal. So I made my way to the Bradley Center Friday night.
My fellow thespian, Kyle, and I walked through a couple awkward rehearsals, and then we sat in awkward anticipation. I actually had faith the skit would go over pretty well, but found myself more nervous than I have been since my initial Bucks audition over three years ago. Luckily, our spot came during the second timeout of the first period.
So, as the action on the ice ceased, we took our positions. To be fair, I had the easier role…by far. Kyle took the lead and his spot next to the emcee, Meg. Oh, and maybe I should mention that Kyle was in his Chicago Bears jersey. I, on the other hand, was comfortably clothed in my Packers jersey. And all I had to do was stand to the side and act supportive.
Meanwhile, Kyle’s image was projected onto the new high-resolution scoreboard. And, as expected, it was received by a collective chorus of boos from the Milwaukee fans. Meg did her best to quiet and console the crowd, and explained that, although Kyle was a Bears’ fan, he was joined by his girlfriend and Packers’ fan, Amy. This is when I stepped into the shot, proudly sporting my Clay Matthews jersey and, for a short time, relieved Kyle from the contentious crowd.
But then it was time for him to do his thing. He had to play the Master Lock game, which (not surprisingly) he won by choosing the key that opened the treasure chest. He opened the chest to find a ring box. Cue groans from a crowd which has apparently seen enough in-game proposals for one season. Seemingly unfazed, Kyle took the ring and turned to me.
Like I said…I had the easy role. It wasn’t difficult for me to act awkward and surprised as Kyle professed his “love” to me in front of a house full of Admirals fans. But as soon as he said, “Will you marry me?” I was on.
I took the mic, shook my head, and hesitated before saying, “Dude,” (and I’m pretty sure in the heat of the moment, I did say “dude”), “No way.”
With that, I took my drink, threw it in his face, proclaimed, “Clay Matthews is my man!” and then walked off to the sound of an arena full of cheers accompanied by “The Bears Still Suck Polka.”
And, well…I’ll let Sunday speak for itself.
