Don’t waste your time being a Panthers fan. Tomorrow is not guaranteed.

[Paa Langfart]

Sorry for your loss hepcat.  

You are correct.  In the grand scheme of things this team, any team really,  means nothing and probably will be the absolute last thing any of us thinks of as we lay on our death beds.  I stopped caring so much what the Panthers do and stopped letting their misfortunes effect my psyche during the 2015 season after I was diagnosed with cancer and had surgery scheduled for the day after the big game.  That puts a whole new perspective on what matters in this world.  And games for the vast majority of us just don't make that cut.

[BIGH2001]

Sorry for the loss man. Good post for perspective. None of these players care about any of us or even know who we are. It really seems odd that we get so wrapped up in the outcome of a game.  Ultimately none of it matters or affects our life in any tangible way nor should it. 

[Wolfpredator]

43 minutes ago, hepcat said:

I’m really emotional today after losing my brother in law yesterday. He officiated my wedding and was always such a great guy to be around. He was robbed of his life at only 37 because of a freak accident. It is just another reminder that none of us are guaranteed we will be here tomorrow. Life can be taken from you at any moment. 

I could have really used a big Panthers win today to lift my spirits, but instead I’m treated to the same old miserable bunch of pathetic losers that always show up when the games start to matter. So my New Years Resolution is to stop caring about football. I no longer get any joy out of watching the Panthers and my time is better spent elsewhere. I might still keep an eye on the final scores from time to time, but this isn’t a hobby that is worth my time anymore.

I implore all of you to consider spending your precious little time elsewhere as well. Family is something worth investing your time into. Maybe a creative hobby. Or exercise. If watching the Panthers lose brings you joy, more power to you. It’s your life, spend it how you want. This is merely a reminder that we have no control over when our time comes. And I don’t want to waste any more time on something that makes me miserable. 

I hope you all have a great 2023 and I’ll see y’all around.  

The only reason I remotely even cared to watch the game is because its been raining here in SoCal for the past few days and screw that.  We hardly get rain days here so I just stay in when it does.  Needless to say I really stopped caring about the Panthers a few seasons ago.  I no longer live in the Carolina's so it made me caring less about them even easier.  They are historically a pretty garbage franchise, some people would say Mediocre but I say garbage.  The only people who think we are "okay" is fellow panthers fans, most others do not even know anything about this team, nor do I blame them.

 

Sorry about your lose, I lost my brother due to an accidental overdose ( underlying heart defect that was unknown ) of my 22 year old brother.  I realized back then that stuff is way more important than stupid sports that you have absolutely no control over.  Its why I can easily stand back and laugh at this team without getting myself all worked up over losing.  Ridiculous people pour so much of themselves into something they have literal NO control over.  

[Jon Snow]

Sorry for your loss my friend. 

[Chaos]

My condolences on your loss Hepcat

[Proudiddy]

41 minutes ago, Move the Panthers to Raleigh said:

Sorry for your loss. Once I realized that I can never believe in this team, no matter what year, roster, HC, or owner, it makes the losses easier to take. This franchise does not deserve our emotional investment 

This.  And I'm not gonna lie, I have grown much more emotionally distant and detached to this team as the years have gone by, especially since the NFL stole our championship away in 2015.  That really opened my eyes to a lot of things and I almost gave up on the NFL ad a whole because it felt like, "what's the point of investing so much into this when we have no fuging control over it?  And when your team does all the right things and the NFL blatantly can just snatch it away from you and doesn't have to answer to anyone for it?"  I felt empty.  Depressed.  Completely cold.  But I eventually was lured back in, but again, at a much safer proximity emotionally...

I shouldn't care as much as I have, but it's because I see the Panthers as endemic to my identity.  They are a part of me.  They are me.  They are how I see myself.  But, much like toxic family members who helped define who you are and where you come from - at some point, you have to love them from a distance or cut them off altogether.  

Our team is historically mediocre.  As I always liked to say, we are remarkably consistently inconsistent.  And at some point, when you view the team as part of your identity, it begins to affect how you view yourself as well.  So fug all that...  many of us hang around and get kicked to poo by this team as some sort of badge of honor, like it's something to be proud of.  But truth is, we can disappear and come back and no one will ever really fuging care because this poo is so meaningless and ancillary in the big picture.  We don't get any fuging reward for letting this team emotionally abuse us.

So, my line is drawn.  Make me care, Carolina Panthers.  I dare you.

[CLTPanther]

My first wife died in Sept 2013 at 29 and I was left with a 3 year old. I haven't been emotionally attached to sports since before that. Life is to short to get wrapped up in something like sports. Even in 2015, while fun, it still was only a footnote in the larger scheme of things. Sorry to hear about your loss, it helps put all the other noise in the world in perspective.

[Fright]

Yada yada… I’ll be waiting for your 3 daily posts tomorrow. 

[hepcat]

6 minutes ago, CLTPanther said:

My first wife died in Sept 2013 at 29 and I was left with a 3 year old. I haven't been emotionally attached to sports since before that. Life is to short to get wrapped up in something like sports. Even in 2015, while fun, it still was only a footnote in the larger scheme of things. Sorry to hear about your loss, it helps put all the other noise in the world in perspective.

Man, that’s hard brother. Sorry to hear about that. I thought about if what happened to my brother in law happened to me or my wife, and it terrified me. You’re totally right about keeping the noise in perspective.

[Cullenator]

It was sometime back in the late 90s that my 7ish year old daughter told my wife she hated Sundays because "daddy was in a bad mood".

Put this all into a very stark perspective.

Havent been emotionally involved to the point that losses effect be for more that 10 mins after 0:00

Been on this forum every day

Was over the moon excited about the possibilities during our up years

See my car and there is no mistaking me as a Panthers fan

Just dont let the losses drag me down

[glenwo2]

21 minutes ago, Fright said:

Yada yada… I’ll be waiting for your 3 daily posts tomorrow. 

[Davidson Deac II]

To the op, sorry for your loss.

To everyone else, no one should ever let sports impact them to such an extent that it impacts their mental well-being.    Today sucked, but I am mostly over it now.  

[Vinício Grossi]

I am truly sorry for your loss, and I completely agree that the most valuable time we have will always be with our families.  

However, this "don't care so much" talk only comes up in bad times.  Being a fan only in good times is an option for some, but what’s the point in sport if we only show up in good times?

Imagine if everyone thought like that?  fans will show up only to support teams that win?  this makes no sense, it completely escapes the essence of the sports!  Every day, every week, every year, someone loses and someone wins.

We can be die hard fans and still have a wonderful time with family and friends.  I doubt that between 2003-2008 or between 2013-2018 this discourse would appear.

Again, my condolences for your loss, I understand your point and I respect your opinion, just wanted to bring another point of view that some people might have as well.

[rmoneyg35]

I mean technically most things are more important than football so why waste your time with it?