The New York Times-20080127-In Sickness and in Health- and in Overtime

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In Sickness and in Health, and in Overtime

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My wife and I had accepted an invitation to a wedding in Philadelphia last Sunday. Who would plan to marry on the day of the N.F.L.'s conference championship games? In fairness, who could have expected the Giants to be playing for the National Football Conference title?

I liked my wife's cousin Kevin Reed and his fiancee, Lori Jackson, too much to miss their wedding. Surely they would make some sort of arrangements for us to watch the game, right?

As we made our way down the New Jersey Turnpike last Sunday afternoon, with the Chargers-Patriots game on the radio, I nervously asked my wife questions. Have you heard what their plans are? No. Think they will have a big screen right in the hall? No.

When we arrived at the Down Town Club, overlooking Independence Hall, it quickly became obvious this place was more high-society ballroom than Hooters. There was no TV over the antique bar.

Then I met the best man -- not the groom's brother John, but a formally dressed employee of the club. He informed several fans who were lamenting that the Patriots had failed to cover that there were two small televisions in the men's room.

Another cousin, sitting at the table next to ours, showed off his hand-held TV. The picture was snowy, and it had to be positioned at just the right angle. (We found it best to put the TV on a saucer atop a coffee cup, then prop it up with a fork and a napkin.) But it meant fewer trips to the men's room.

About 30 minutes before kickoff, the D. J. announced that he would provide game updates. For anyone who was recording the game and did not want to know the score (unrealistic, I had decided days before), the D. J. would play the theme to Monday Night Football so they had time to leave the room.

I was ready for some football.

I did not see Lawrence Tynes's first two field goals. But the Giants were winning, and the party was hopping. Everyone listened to the toasts and watched Kevin and Lori dance with their parents.

But when the Monday Night theme sounded, the cousins with the hand-held knew it was bad news. Donald Driver's 90-yard touchdown reception took the air out of the room. I started to worry that a bad Giants defeat would put a damper on the wedding. The bridesmaids' dancing to Brass Monkey restored order.

There was a crowd in the men's room all night -- in front of the TVs, that is. Lester, the attendant, never had so much company, I thought. The televisions (six-inch screens, at best) were on a table in an anteroom with only sinks and mirrors. That made it easier for several die-hard female fans to catch a few minutes of the game.

When the groom dropped in briefly, one of his buddies, drink in hand, raised his other hand high to slap five and pronounced, Kevin, this is the best playoff party I've ever been to! The language was more locker room than wedding hall, especially when the Giants' Plaxico Burress could not hold on to a key pass just before halftime.

At the table, the hand-held TV did little to disrupt the reception, although you could see updates move across the room like a wave even before the D. J. had a chance to announce them.

Regulation ended as the last dance concluded. As overtime began, the men's room was packed, shoulder to shoulder. The hallway was full of women holding their coats and waiting.

When the Packers' Brett Favre threw a pass that was intercepted, the cheers rattled the mirrors. When Tynes came out for a shot at redemption, the crowd was strangely confident. Maybe it was the liquor. Maybe it was the wedding karma. But when Tynes's 47-yard field goal split the uprights to give the Giants a 23-20 victory, the men hugged, high-fived and shouted. I had never seen so many men so happy in a men's room.

That was the most fun I have had watching a game in a long time. Maybe it was the result. Perhaps it was the feeling that we were getting away with something, like listening to a night game on the radio under the covers when you were a youngster. Although it was enjoyable and memorable, I plan to have a better view for the Super Bowl.

[Illustration]ILLUSTRATION (ILLUSTRATION BY BOBB ECKSTEIN)