DuPont’s 10 Things

Travel blog from the road. 

Today’s 10-things is going to look a little different. First, it’s coming from the other side of the world as we are safely in Bali and having a great time.

(This column will be thoughts and opinions written across several days during my stay.)

1. Day one –It’s early Sunday morning as I start writing this, which is Saturday afternoon back home. It’s 6am, the sun is rising, and I’ve just made myself an espresso in our beautiful garden room at our resort here in Bali.

I flip open my Score app to see the madness that was Saturday’s NCAA scores. 👀 I also got caught up on CFL games I missed during travel (2-0 in my pics so far) and the Devils have swept the two Global games in Prague. It’s a good morning.

2. College Football –They really took the goalpost and put it in the Cumberland River in Nashville after Vanderbilt’s upset win over #1 Alabama on Saturday. Why not? 

I remember watching Tennessee upset Alabama and the fans did the same thing. I think it’s awesome for sports. It’s emotion. Act-like-you’ve-been-there has a time and place but so does this. Go crazy, this doesn’t come around very often.

It’s a good reminder to live in the moment and celebrate the small things. Slow down. Enjoy life. I feel like the happiest and most successful people take the time to be present. Don’t rush through everything just trying to get to the next place or the next moment. Be present. Pick out your daily outfit with intention. Enjoy every bite of your food. Listen and be present over a current idea in a meeting like it’s the only thing you need to worry about. Enjoy the game for what the game is. Don’t worry if your team isn’t in the playoffs, or has a tough schedule ahead. Today they have a chance to win or lose. 

Embrace the present. I’m trying to. It’s a work in progress and always will be.

Can you tell I’m on a wellness retreat?

3. In with the good –And out with the bad. That’s the mantra during our daily morning yoga and meditation classes on this trip and it’s going to carry over to this column. Breathe in and embrace all that is good. Breathe out, and release all that is negative. 

Only positive thoughts from here on out. So let’s start by releasing some negative sports energy. 

Breathe out overreacting in sports. 

I woke up Sunday morning (Saturday afternoon back home), made an espresso, and started getting caught up on Saturday’s college football scores. Texas A&M crushed #9 Missouri and I could just see all the tweets without even opening twitter. No doubt it was filled with people confirming that Missouri isn’t good and shouldn’t have been ranked so high. As the morning rolled on the madness continued. Vanderbilt shocked Alabama. Surely Alabama doesn’t suck… Tennessee, Michigan, and USC were also upset. They could very well all still be in the playoff at the end of the year.

But, in the end, people are going to overreact. It’s in our nature. Missouri is a good football team and they’ll be fine. The fact that anything can happen is what makes sports great. There are no guarantees.

Truth is, everyone loses eventually. There was only one single unbeaten in college football last year.

4. Positive vibes in Riderville –Breathe in the positivity of a first playoff appearance in three seasons. Breathe out any negativity from anyone who wants to talk about what ifs and games that haven’t happened yet. Yes, the road to the Grey Cup will run though Winnipeg but, for now, all is good.

Everyone appears to be fully back on the wagon that is the Roughriders as the team clinched a playoff birth and simultaneously knocked Alberta from the CFL playoff for the first time in 75 years (if I have the math right). I’m getting game updates from Dad and he’s fully back on so that’s all the confirmation I need that it’s go time in the rectangle. I fully see a Winnipeg/Sask, Montreal/Toronto final four when I close my eyes. But… don’t hold me to that. Or do, whatever. I’ll close my eyes next week and see something different. That’s what this CFL season has been.

The path for Hamilton just seems too daunting after the loss this past week. They’ll need to win out which is extremely doable but they’ll need Toronto to lose their final three. This week vs Winnipeg won’t be a stretch but then the Argos have Ottawa and Edmonton. I just don’t see them falling that flat at this time of year. Stranger things have happened already this season so you’ll need to tune in and find out.

5. Canada West –We’ve reached the annual Thanksgiving break in the conference and what do you know? Things are tighter again this week than they were last week. 

The Saskatchewan Huskies earned the biggest win of the season knocking off previously unbeaten and #7 in the country Manitoba. 

Reigning conference MVP Matthew Petersen (Alberta) leads the nation in rushing while UBC’s Isaiah Knight and Saskatchewan’s Ryker Frank are 2 and 3 respectively. Isn’t that the definition of Canada West football? The conference does boast some great passers that are among the country’s best but, come November, the “bully ball” that the west can play could be a problem for the rest of the nation. 

While the Canada West is on the break (see my timing for being away?) there is one headliner this week. Montreal will host rival Laval on Saturday. The Rouge et Or won the first meeting back in early September 23-22 so this should be good.

I’ll get back home and immediately get on a plane to Saskatoon the next day, ready to call the thrilling final two weeks of conference play. I can’t wait.

6. Quick NFL thoughts –I didn’t get to watch this past week because we don’t have a TV in our room at this resort and there are none in the restaurants and bars. Seriously. This has been a complete time out and I don’t think I’ve had a better vacation.

That said, I’m following as close as I can which is still a lot of fun. Here’s three bold thoughts coming out of this week:

1) Jayden Daniels will win OROY (not a bold prediction) and will lead Washington to the #1 seed in the NFC. 

2) The 49’ers are not going to make the playoffs. 

3) The Bengals will find a way to get in.

7. NHL OPENING WEEK –It’s finally here. Yes, it actually started overseas with New Jersey sweeping a pair of Global Games over Buffalo but in North America the season is finally fully getting underway. 

Let’s get back to concentrating on our breath. Breathe in the positivity that is Jeremy Swayman’s new contract in Boston. Let’s breathe out any thoughts that their might be a fractured relationship. Truth is we don’t know. I’m choosing to give everyone involved the benefit of the doubt and believe that if they agreed to work together and get a deal done then they truly are willing to move forward and leave any negativity from a contentious negotiation in the past. They have to or it’s not going to work.

8. Don’t worry, be happy –There are several situations around the league that could use a little positive thinking heading into the season and I’m here for you. Let’s touch on just a few so everyone can be feeling good heading into the year.

A) Breathe out any negativity around the Edmonton Oilers depth on the blue line. Don’t let it in. Do the Oilers have the league’s best back end? Absolutely not. Does it mean they cant win the cup? Absolutely not. Edmonton is still the betting favourite to win the Stanley Cup and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

B) Breathe IN excitement in Utah. Ok, they are still the same Arizona team that has been to the playoffs just once since 2011-12. But this is different. Everyone in Utah is excited and we’ve already seen it this preseason. Can Utah be a playoff team? Yes! Even if you don’t believe that the roster is good enough to crack the post season (I don’t believe that, by the way), there is reason for optimism. This is a special year, a new city and a new fanbase. Even the worst mannered family member can put on a clean shirt and be on their best behaviour for a special occasion. These players can, and likely will, do the same for one exciting new season.

C) Breathe IN positivity in Toronto and Montreal. For the Habs, be excited about this young and maturing core. Don’t let the negative talk that you’re going to miss the playoffs deter you from what should be a fun season watching the future of the team grow and become one step closer to being a playoff team and perhaps a contender. In Toronto, this is the best time of year. The Leafs are always a great team in the regular season. Why worry about that playoffs when the playoffs are still six months away? Enjoy today.

9. Predictions –As we lift the lid on another NHL season, the oddsmakers have Edmonton and Florida meeting in the Stanley Cup again in the spring. In the West my mind is bouncing around from Colorado, to Dallas, to Nashville, and to Vancouver and Winnipeg. But, in the end I think Edmonton will reach the cup once again.

In the East, all the usual suspects will be in the mix. My mind is trained to see the positive and there’s so many teams I want to like heading into a new year. I really feel NYR/NJD/NYI will be so much fun if you’re in that area. Philly, Pittsburgh, and Carolina will be interesting wildcards. The Atlantic will also be very intriguing. I think Ottawa is a playoff team. Boston should be improved. What does Tampa look like post Stamkos? Detroit should continue to be better and right in the mix. And what about Buffalo? It’s now or never for them.

In the end, I’m going with an Edmonton Oilers vs New York Rangers Stanley Cup Final. I’ll take Edmonton to win it.

10. Randoms –Never had a massage before until this week… Good food that is nourishing feels good to eat, even if it doesn’t taste good. Weird mind bender that I discovered this week… I’m watching more baseball right now than I thought I would. I’d like to see the Royals and Mets in the World Series… Airplane pet peeves: I’ve come around on this. For reference my top three are 1) standing up when the plane lands and trying to cut to the front and blocking other people from getting their bags 2) lining up at the gate way before zones are called so nobody has any idea who’s turn it is to board. Here’s where I’ve come around: don’t get caught up in the chaos of other people’s issues. Let them do their thing, you aren’t changing them. Just relax and wait your turn. What are your travel pet peeves?… At home I can’t fall asleep early at night and I can’t wake up early in the morning. On the other side of the world I’m fast asleep by 9pm and wake up at 5:45am legitimately EXCITED to wake up and make a coffee. Only thing I don’t like is it’s horrible for watching the sports I love.

 Now, putting my phone down and getting back to relaxing. Talk soon! 🤙