Like many other Bolts supporters, he flaunted that enthusiasm within his community. That is, until his Home Owner's Association crushed his freedom of expression like an over-reactive parent.
But Steven Paul is a hockey fan, which means he's both incredibly cynical and incredibly stubborn about his passions. So he got a little creative in his battle with the draconian rules of his neighborhood HOA — and appears to have won.
Back in April, before the Lightning defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals in the Eastern Conference playoffs, Paul decided he wanted to make his neighbors aware of his fervor for the team.
When the Lightning clinched a playoff spot, they gave fans a playoff preparation package that included a T-shirt, stickers and a sign made for display on one's front yard, like a political placard.
Paul placed his white "GO BOLTS" sign on his lawn on a Saturday.
On Wednesday of the following week, he received a notice from his Home Owners Association.
"Whoever it is that has too much time on their hands took a picture on Monday, turned it in and then I got the letter that said, 'No signs allowed except for security signs,'" said Paul, who shared the story and the letter with the Reddit hockey community, where he's an active member.
His HOA limits lawn signs to ones that provide free advertising for alert others that the house is protected by some kind of alarm system or security service.
"I was pissed. I was infuriated," recalled Paul, "and then I was like, 'OK, fine. If we can only have security signs, then I'll make it a security sign."
Which he did:
A few days later, his wife was at home when something caught her eye outside the house. It was a woman with a camera, taking a photo of the new sign, ostensibly for more HOA tattling.
Meanwhile, Paul was getting proactive with the HOA after their cease and desist letter, writing a letter of his own.
"I asked them if they had any community support. Tampa made the playoffs for the first time in years. Obviously, it's not a permanent sign in my yard, it's just a way to support the team," he said. "Don't they have anything better to do with my HOA fees?"
After transforming his sign into "GO BOLTS SECURITY," he hasn't gotten a second notice — yet. The HOA told Paul they'll discuss the matter further at an upcoming meeting.
So up it went on his garage. (Click on photo to enlarge)
"Honestly, I think the flag looks worse than the lawn sign," he said, "but I'm gonna hang it up there until we're done."
This kind of childish behavior is why America is rapidly going down the drain. Everybody thinks that the rules don’t apply to their great and noble cause. This sort of mentality is why government keeps getting more and more intrusive in our lives (trash districts). Everybody, particularly those with power, thinks that if it sounds good too them the rest of us better love it too. It’s time we got back to the old idea that the rules apply to all of us or they apply to no one. The alternative is anarchy.
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