Dear Mr. Brunner

Dear Mr. Brunner,
 It's Neuie again. Do you mind if I call you Damien? I trust you found the terms of our arrangement agreeable and I see you've upheld your side of the bargain. I would provide proof that I have too, but the röschti I made this morning has already been consumed. I still have one more piece of Toblerone, however, if you're interested. Since you've upheld your side of the deal so well, I may soon have to start downloading recipes, I'm running out of food I know how to make and don't want to resort to baking breads just yet.
 Although it seems I am clearly jumping on the Swiss pride bandwagon, you should know I've been there for years. In fact, I have an old pennant with flags of the various Swiss cantons hanging in my room as I type this out. That, I should add, is not your doing- it's been there since I "borrowed" it from my dad at a young age. In my dresser, there is a 90s-tastic Swatch that I would strongly consider wearing if I had a battery for it.  At the time my Tante Erika gave it to me, Swatch batteries did not exist in the US and there was no internet on which to order a replacement. I have an old Swiss music box in the shape of a chalet, complete with tiny rocks on the roof to hold the snow in place, sitting on my closet shelf. What I'm trying to say is, as proud as I am to be an American, I'm proud to be half Swiss too.
 I realize it's still very early in your Red Wing career, but stick around and keep playing the way you are, and you may jump the line, joining #7 and #28 as the next jersey to hang in my closet. Sorry Abby.

Bribery

So it seems the whole positive behavior reinforcement thing is working with Brunner. Or he just likes being bribed with the food he ate growing up. Either way, he's playing well and we definitely have some people that need to step up like he did. So here's the deal, I made my deal with the devil for Brunner, my part is done/in progress. If you can manage to keep it clean (please, my mom and possibly my grandma read this blog), comment below and tell me which player you're going to motivate and what you'll do to achieve that. If I like your idea, and especially if it works, your player will get a tribute post. Or some pathetic attempt at photoshopping like my Where in the World is Drew Miller post from years ago. I might even see if someone I know with the proper software can make it look decent. What are you willing to (cleanly) do for your Red Wings?

As promised...

I told the tv last night that I would get some Swiss chocolate if Brunner won the game for us, consider the promise fulfilled. Holding out of the more exotic chocolates for a hat trick.

Keep up the good work, kid.

An Open Letter to Damien Brunner

Dear Mr. Brunner,
 You don't know me yet, so allow me to introduce myself. I'm Sara, or Neuie if you prefer, and I take pictures of hockey. I like to call out people who aren't performing with awkward pictures and reward those I like with tribute posts. If you ruin my pictures, ::cough, Ville Leino, cough:: I'll call you out on that too and let the world know what a picture hog you are. It doesn't take much to make me happy as a hockey fan, just show up and play hard. Prove to me you're working hard and I'll support you 100%. There is something else you should know, I'm half Swiss and have been hoping (since how many Irish hockey players make it to the NHL?) for a Swiss player to join the Wings and enter the upper echelons of Red Wing hockey for a long time.
 So here's the deal- you prove that you belong on the top line and I'll make Swiss food in your honor. Röschti, fondue, raclette, zöpf, spaetzli, brötli, linzertorte... you have your pick. Will the food ever make it to you? No, I'm thinking not. But I will happily consume it in your place. I'll also try to get some awesome pictures (of you, not the food) and post those here. And if you ever get a hat trick, I'll hunt down some Frey schokolade and dedicate the eating of it to you as well. Sound like a plan? Please try to comply, I'd hate to give up röschti und eier for Sunday breakfast.

Sincerely,
 SaraNeuie

A return to normalcy

Although the lockout has probably left a sour taste in your mouth, I for one am glad to have the NHL back. At least the Red Wing portion of it. To celebrate that, I finally have some pictures to share again. This first one is a throwback for Natalie.

Now on to some pictures from more recent times...

I discovered I am sorely lacking in Zetterpics from last year and plan on changing that this year. Any other requests of what you'd like to see?