I Survived The Winter Classic

I wore two pairs of socks.  I think it's the first time I have ever done that.  It was that cold tonight, and because I was going to be out at Target Field in the cold, I think it was in order.

I did other things in order to keep myself warm.  I brought out from the dirty clothes hamper the pants Father gave me that has this reinforced, uh, stuffing inside it.  I wore my biggest sweatshirt that might be a size too small for me because it would hug my body tighter and thus keep in the heat ... maybe.  And I bought warmers for both my hands and feet to use, the first time I've ever bought them (though not the first time I've ever used them).  The stadium and/or Minnesota Wild said warmers were being handed out, but I wasn't given any as I passed through.

So I did all of those things to protect myself against the, let's face it, dangerous cold weather we would be enduring.  The Minnesota Wild public address announcer, Adam Abrams, announced in the First Period of the Game that at puck drop, the temperature was -5.  In the Second Intermission, where I and a bunch of other people ducked into to get warm, I checked my phone; it dipped down to -10, and it felt like -28.

I also went into the men's room for the First Intermission.  Well, I had to endure a line first, and while I was rocking back-and-forth on my feet, I realized I couldn't feel my left toes.  The second sock had a hole right where the toes are, so my first (and more sheer) sock was poking through.  Add to it the steel toe, which I guess conducts cold (???), and I don't think I had any protection for them, and the toe warmer I attached to the bottom of my feet while at pre-Game festivities at adjacent Target Center didn't feel like they were helping much.  So I threw in hand warmers, which I had working in my hands, down in them too.  Frankly, they didn't kick in until after the Game, and then when I had spent five minutes in the merchandise shop.

When I couldn't feel my toes, I seriously, seriously thought about leaving.  I gave myself the Second Period, however, and when the Second Intermission rolled around I ... well, I still couldn't feel my toes, but they weren't getting any worse, if that makes any sense, so I decided to tough it out.  The Third Period felt like it went quickly, but that may have been because the St. Louis Blues scored five in the Second Period and began the Third with a 6-2 lead.  The Mild scored twice, but a 6-4 Loss still felt like a humiliation in front of a national crowd in one of the NHL's regular season jewel events.  And losing, and especially losing like this, did take the shine off being at the Winter Classic.

Nevertheless, I can say that I went to, inarguably, The Coldest NHL Game In History.  I wish someone had the wherewithal and speed to print up "I Survived The Winter Classic" t-shirts, because I would have bought one.