The year was 2006 and I was living in southwest Virginia. I had lost 30 or so pounds over the previous few months — chemotherapy will do that to you. My cancer treatments left me Youth Bud Dupree Jersey , weirdly, both listless and tired, and often unable to sleep. Though I was confident I would be okay (my oncologist told me that, in their more macabre and honest moments, doctors call Hodgkins’ lymphoma the “good cancer” because it has a very high cure rate. Nevertheless, I began putting together a mental bucket-list. On that list back then, and still on that list now, was “fly on a private jet.” On that list then, but now checked off was, “See a Steelers game from a luxury box.”Charlotte was the closest NFL city to me, but we played there only once every eight years. Nashville was next closest and I was blessed over the years to attend Steelers games there. A close friend had season tickets and was always gracious to invite me over for Steeler Sunday. Atlanta was third closest Cheap Antonio Brown Jersey , but again, those matchups were only once every eight years. But 2006 happened to be one of those years. One of my dearest and closest friends lived in Atlanta and, like me, loved the Steelers.That friend, Tim O’Brien, was like me in almost every way. He grew up in a Pittsburgh suburb, while I was just outside the band of bedroom communities, out in the sticks. He was Irish, as am I. He shared a nicotine addiction with me, as well as a deep love of all things Pittsburgh. We met twenty years earlier in college at Grove City, where every Sunday Authentic Artie Burns Jersey , we’d watch the game on my 10-inch black-and-white TV.He and I were together years later, downing chili dogs from Sheetz as we watched on his TV when Sid slid and the Pirates’ season came to an end. So I sent him an email to ask if he, now a corporate muckety-muck but still the same good man, had any connections by which I could score a couple of tickets.He told me he’d look into it. Eventually word came back that he had tickets and plans were made. He refused to take my money and he led the way into the Georgia Dome, up an escalator, past attentive ushers and through a door into our own private luxury suite. There was a spread laid out for us, large screen TV’s, cold refreshments in the fridge, and seats looking out on the field. Getting there had worn down my battered body, but being there lifted my spirits. I not only got to check “luxury box” off of my bucket-list, I got to do it with my oldest friend.The game itself was a seesaw battle. Michael Vick was still young Mike Vick. Hines scored a 70-yard TD on a pass from Charlie Batch and ran right out of his shoe on the way to pay dirt. Warrick Dunn scored http://www.pittsburghsteelersteamstore.com/joe-haden-jersey , Santonio and Fast Willie each coughed it up. But the root of our demise was one Alge Crumpler, the Falcons’ tight end. This man was so huge that he made Eric Green look like Don Beebe. And he had a huge day as I watched from that luxury box, hauling in three touchdown passes. The Steelers dropped to 2-4 on their way to an 8-8 season. I, like that forlorn soul who had been turned into a newt by the witch, got better. And so did the Steelers. We might be on our way to another mediocre season this year, but you can find a way to redeem it anyway. Enjoy your friends and family — and give thanks that you're not a Browns fan. For those that saw the nauseating images of the New England Patriots fan rally ahead of their departure for Atlanta earlier in the week, coverage of that broadcast was made slightly more palatable for those in the Pittsburgh area watching the 4 p.m news on KDKA-TV thanks to the efforts of Michael Telek.Tasked with creating the graphics that would appear during the broadcast, Telek would produce an inspired graphic that would put a smile on the faces of the viewers, but ultimately cost him his job as well. While the image would go viral, the laughs would not last long for Telek after it was announced by KDKA that he had been fired on Wednesday. As confirmed by the station to Dan Gartland of Sports Illustrated.Acknowledging the mistake Telek made from a professional perspective, it is hard not to find the caption funny Authentic Chris Boswell Jersey , with the response of KDKA to fire him appearing rather extreme. This is a Pittsburgh area station after all. Thankfully, the news producer might not be out of work for too long, with offers of help to find him a new job already coming in. Grateful of his efforts, a well-wisher has already set up a gofundme account, with $1,466 raised at the time of writing. But in the spirit of reconciliation, Telek has pledged to donate this money to a charity in Brady’s name once he has found a new job.Given that Brady was suspended for four games for his involvement in Deflategate based on “substantial and credible evidence” that he knew that footballs were being deflated and because he failed to cooperate with the investigation, it is hard to find fault with the description of “Known Cheater”. Although it is unlikely the Patriots or their fans found much humor in the joke, it would appear the rest of the football world did given how quickly the image went viral. We wish Mr. Telek good luck in his job hunt. Custom San Francisco 49ers Jerseys