Meet a CDC Member Week 1 - hockeyville88
Entry posted by thepurpleplatypus
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<em>As a person who checks this forum way too often and relies on it for hockey news and sometimes even laughs, I've got to know quite a few members fairly well. Others, I barely know anything beyond their username and sig.<br /><br />
Some say this is a good thing on a forum, and I partly agree, but I also think it's natural to be curious about the interesting people we communicate with so often.<br /><br />
So, while we're still hidden behind our usernames and avatars, I'm going to delve into the unknown here and do some short, online 'interviews' with a few of our beloved members to give insight into the folks behind the avatars.<br /><br />
The members that are interviewed will span the spectrum of popularity, likeability and post count.<br /><br />
This week's victim is hockeyville88, a member since Oct 2006, and a regular contributor to Canucks Talk; she is notorious for her positivity and her love for Trevor Linden, Alex Burrows and Team Canada – both male and female.<br /><br /></em>
<b>TPP: Hi hockeyville88! Welcome to the blog. So, how long have you been a Canucks fan and what made you decide to become a member of the forums back in the day?</b><br /><br />
Hockeyville88: Thanks for having me on TPP, I feel like I'm on the Canucks Video Podcast or something!<br /><br />
<img src="http://www.chartattack.com/files/imagecache/180x150_SC/chart_global/news/GinoOdjick.jpg" border=0 style="float: right; margin-left: 8px;">
I've been a Canucks fan since I was about 3 years old. Every Saturday my dad would be watching Hockey Night in Canada and I'd sit with him and watch the Canucks. It took me a while to understand all the rules of the game and all the names of the players, but my dad would take the time to explain everything to me. I remember falling in love with Gino Odjick's toothless smile, Pavel Bure's rocket speed, and of course, Trevor Linden's heart and soul leadership. The Canucks have been my #1 team from day one and they always will be.<br /><br />
I grew up a hockey lover but was put into figure skating from a young age. As a result, I didn't really have anyone I could talk to about hockey. My friends don't really like hockey and even the ones who do don't like to analyze things to the extent that I do. I joined CDC because it's a place where I can talk about hockey with other fans who love the game as much as I do. Through CDC I've really learned how to be objective and not be a bandwagonner (which I admit to being early on), and I appreciate the fact that the other posters allow me to post my opinions without being too judgemental. There are some posters on here who really know their stuff so it's nice to talk to them at a level that I enjoy. Even though I play hockey now and have friends who love the sport, CDC still provides the best outlet for my opinions.
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<b>TPP: What's it like being a female hockey fan, particularly on a male-(and perhaps teenager)-dominated internet forum? Do people tend to focus on it at all, both in life and on the interwebz, or is it a non-issue?</b><br /><br />
Hockeyville88: That's a great question. I think it becomes less and less of an issue everyday for a few reasons: First of all, there are many other females on the forum and most of them are really well respected for what they say. I think they made the guys realize that girls really do know their hockey and so we should be taken seriously and not just dismissed due to our gender. Second of all, women's hockey is growing at an alarming rate. I know that internationally the competition is not very even yet, but I have no doubt that it'll get there over time. Locally, girls' hockey is becoming prominent in every community so I think guys are becoming more open to the fact that us ladies might just know a thing or two about this sport!<br /><br />
On the forum in particular there were a few times back in the day where someone would respond to my comments or topics by using the "you're a girl so you don't know anything" angle, but that hasn't happened in a long time. The posters on here are fair that way.<br /><br />
The teenagers bring an element of immaturity and radical opinions to the forum that makes this place unpredictable and fun! Their comments sometimes have to be taken with a grain of salt but we wouldn't have some of our epic threads without them!
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<b>TPP: You are one of the forum's most popular and respected members. Why do you think that is?</b><br /><br />
Hockeyville88: LOL maybe it's just because of the amount of time I spend on here!<br /><br />
<img src="http://i46.tinypic.com/2qszazl.jpg" border=0 style="float: left; margin-right: 8px;">Actually, I really appreciate everyone's nice comments. It has given me confidence in my own views and, in a way, it justifies my love for the sport because at least people like what I have to say. <br /><br />
I love this team as much as anyone else and after a bad game it's tempting to over-react and lose objectivity. Over time, I've learned to keep things in perspective. We can't expect the team to go 82-0 (although that would be cool!), we can't expect every player to be perfect every day, and we need to understand that one loss doesn't mean we're going to miss the playoffs. I totally understand where everyone's frustration comes from. We love our team so much and all of us are aching for a Stanley Cup. Sometimes when we lose it seems like we'll never get there. I think the important thing is to recognize that we have an organization that is committed to hard work and high-level play. I think we'll be rewarded for our efforts very soon.
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<b>TPP: Because of that respect that you show other members, you have accumulated one of the highest, if not the highest, "rep" on CDC. What do you think about the new rep system and the newer version of the forum in general?</b><br /><br />
Hockeyville88: I like the rep system because it allows us to reward posters who have something positive or constructive to say. I'm not too concerned about my own rep. If you have an opinion you have to convey it and not worry about how many + or – votes you will get. That being said, I appreciate anyone who takes the time to read my comments and give +1's. I try to do the same with everyone else's comments as well. I wish we could give out more +1's though. With the amount of hockey insight as well as tongue-in-cheek comments on CDC I feel like some days I need about 10 +1's to give out.<br /><br />
I think some of us are having a bit of fun with the -1's too. Certain less-popular posters are really getting hit hard 
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It took me awhile to get used to the new forum but now I really like it. I like that so many posters such as you are taking the time to write blogs. It's awesome how much thought is put into them. In general, CDC is well organized and easy to navigate. I like the fact that we have so many Canucks fans that can gather in one place.
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<b>TPP: So if you were a forum administrator for a week, would you change anything?</b><br /><br />
Hockeyville88: I don't think I could ever be an admin! It's a tough job to keep a lid on things but they do a fantastic job of making sure that the irrational threads are kept to a minimum and that the players' privacy is respected. I remember during the losing streak we had last season, I really felt for the admins because there were so many "Trade Luongo", "Fire AV", "Burrows – do we really need him" threads. <br /><br />
If I were a mod for a week there isn't a whole lot I'd change. Maybe I'd introduce a stricter guideline for thread titles. Some of the titles are a little vague and so you have no idea what to expect. Other than that, I wouldn't change a thing. The admins here are really committed people and I think it takes a lot of patience to be able to do their jobs!
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<img src="http://i.usatoday.net/sports/_photos/2009/04/28/burrowsx.jpg" border=0 style="float: right; margin-left: 8px;"><b>TPP: Do you have a favourite Canucks moment that you remember being particularly meaningful to you?</b><br /><br />
Hockeyville88: I don't remember much about the 94 playoffs because I was only 5 at the time. I do remember the moment when Greg Adams scored against the Leafs in the semi finals. I can still hear Jim Robson's legendary call of "Greg Adams! Greg Adams! Greg Adams has scored and the Vancouver Canucks are going to the Stanley Cup final!"<br /><br />
I also love re-watching Matt Cooke's game tying goal with less than 5 seconds left in game 7 vs. Calgary a few years ago. Alex Burrows' shorthanded breakaway goal vs. Carolina last season to snap the losing streak is up there too. Every time he did the bow-and-arrow celebration in honour of Luc Bourdon it gave me goose bumps.
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<b>TPP: And to wrap this up with the most difficult question of all, what is your favourite CDC thread of all time?</b><br /><br />
Hockeyville88: There are so many good threads made each day. Like I said before, the posters on here really know their stuff!<br /><br />
That being said, my favourite thread is actually one in which the poster didn't know his stuff at all. Yes, I'm sure many people can guess which thread I'm talking about! It's titled "Burrows? Do we really want him?" by a poster named clutch. First of all, there's a huge irony in the fact that Burrows is the definition of clutch and yet this poster was under the impression that he was not an important member of our team. Second of all, I expected the admins would lock it after awhile but it's a good thing they didn't. The thread has reached legendary status and every time Burrows scores we all go flooding into it to rub it in clutch's face! I believe the thread is now pinned at the top for easy access! Everyone has done a great job of keeping that thread alive. It's almost a tribute to Burrows because every CDCer has dropped by at least once to praise him.<br /><br />
I also really like the thread where posters write up summaries of each game for the benefit of one of our members who is currently serving in Afghanistan. That to me is the definition of "We are all Canucks" and I think it's great that we can help out a guy who is doing something so great.
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<b>TPP: Thank you so much for taking the time for this hockeyville! You are a fantastic member of the forum and such a positive contributer to our community.</b><br /><br />
Check back in next week for another interview with a CDC member. Even I don't know who it is yet.
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