I shoulda just been a Rangers fan.

Yeah, except that you'd be crying in your secretly acquired beer. Jays v. Rangers, Rangers out. Then Jays v. Royals, Jays out. For reasons that I won't make public, I let my giving-a-damn die, like Zach Lowe, the author of this piece. He says, "Never let your passions die." -- well, it depends.

Vicarious glory and the glory-that-rubs-on-you by association have their attractions -- especially the parades and collective awe that grips fans of a winning team. Studies have shown that testosterone levels in men rise when their teams win. It's fun, it's distracting. Olympics, World Cup, World Series: all fun, something to chat about, and mostly irrelevant - unless you are a pro athlete yourself or a trivia expert.

But in some circles: never let your passions die. I was always amused when a friend of mine told this story. He said:

When I was about 12, my father took me out back - by the garage and said, "Son, there comes a time in your life when you have to choose a team. Now's that time. Choose your team and stand by them till the end of your life. Win or lose, they're your team.

hmmmm...there's something to be said for loyalty and commitment. It creates identity. It can define you, or we can define ourselves by other things. We can acquire our own skills and glory. Yeats ends the poem, "Leda and the Swan," like this:

Did she put on his knowledge with his power

Before the indifferent beak could let her drop?

I've tried to put on knowledge and power through association. Sometimes you can. Usually you have to build knowledge and power through your own efforts.