Surprise Sunday

In DC,  most people (including me) bitch about how freakin' hot it is during the summer. August is usually the worst of all and after listening to it for the past 2 months you have the urge, to rip that person's head off and relieve yourself in their neck/throat region.

However this past Sunday, we got a reprieve from the excessive heat and humidity that plagues this city in the summer (good idea to build over a swamp!) and the skies were overcast, the temperature only peaking in the mid 80's and the humidity was nowhere to be found. The family took this opportunity to take in a ballgame which just happen to feature our favorite team (the AAA Buffalo Bisons) masquerading as the New York Mets.

The plan looked like this. Let the little man run around all morning and then throw him in the car at 11:15 and grab an early lunch up by our house. Then he'd get all milked up and fall asleep until we got to the game, parked, and maybe with a little luck, until we got to our seats. A good hour at least maybe two if luck prevailed.

Yeah...we didn't make it down our street before he was slumped over and out like a light. Making a bit of lemonade from our situation, we figured on driving straight to the ballpark by taking some local streets and lengthening out our drive a bit. More time on the road equals more time napping in our book. Unfortunately the little guy woke up a few minutes before we got near the park and then the skies opened up and unleashed one heck of a storm. It's now 1230p and the game is set to start in an hour. No word from either team's Twitter-verses on the status of an on-time start so we figured, what the heck. Let's drive back downtown and get some lunch.

Almost an hour later (thanks traffic), we pulled up at District Pi. For those in the DC area and those in the know, this is the brick and mortar (literally) location of the food truck by the same name. Deep dish pizza with a great cornmeal crust and all for the low low price of about $3/ slice. Yep crazy expensive and crazy small portions, but the beer was plentiful and not too expensive so that made up for it.

While we sat there, the rains continued and we finally got notice of the rain delay. Since we were just across the street from the National Portrait Gallery we thought it would be a good way to kill a little time. Plus, they had a cool exhibit on "The Art of Video Games". The little man loved the exhibit. Well actually, he loved staring up at the screens while the older kids played the games but he still loved it. I loved looking at the old Atrari, Colegovision, and Sega Genesis systems, and I think Mrs. Bloggerman just liked the fact that I wasn't complaining for about 20 minutes.

When we got out of the museum, it was 3:30pm. The game was now starting at 4pm, but since we knew damn well that the little guy wasn't going to make it more then an inning or two before breaking down we decided to cut our losses and head to a friend's house for some grilled fish.

Wait...Mrs. Bloggerman doesn't eat fish... does she?

We Are In First Place

To put it another way, we haven't taken a chance in blowing yet.

Today is Opening Day! In a few hours my lovable loosing Mets take the fieldwork what could be a really ugly (Pittsburgh Pirates type) season. But I'm going to be optimistic and say that it will only be a one bag on the head year. I joke!

Actually, I do have high hopes for this year. I'm not so crazy as to predict the playoffs but I don't think they will stink as bad as others think, no matter how bad they were this spring. Look, the team is healthy and they are starting Santana today, that has to count for something. Ike and David are back and healthy on the corners, and Murphy is healthy and getting more comfortable at second. Plus Jason Bay can't suck any worse and may even her a little better. Maybe.

This division still goes through Philadelphia and Atlanta but anything can happen.

Let's go Mets!

R.I.P Kid

It's not often I write non humorous items in this space but I do need to be somber for a day to remember Gary Carter as he passed yesterday afternoon at 57 years after a 1 year battle with brain cancer.

Gary was THE catcher in baseball during my coming of age in the 1980s and of course joined my favorite team, the Mets, via a 1984 trade. I remember cheering for him when we went to see the games at Shea and I always remember that smile.

Gary was my idol growing up. I wanted to catch because he caught, I wore #8 because that was his number. I even wanted to hit home runs like he did, but, we'll some people have talent and some of us blog.
But above all was that smile. I remember how much he loved to play the game. It's funny as I hear countless former Major Leaguers recount their memories of Carter that they repeat his love of game over and over, yet it was something I picked up as a small kid just starting out in the game.

The posts on Facebook started yesterday afternoon and continue today. But one story in particular resonates with me because it reminds me of one of my own and shows what a great person Gary was and how he always had time for his fans. A friend of mine tells how, as a kid, he took a picture of various Carter baseball cards and sent it to Gary (remember when you could just mail things to your favorite players and not have to follow them on the Twitter?) Anyway he gets a letter back a little later and in it is the picture with an autograph and some new cards, also autographed.

My story is similar. I remember sending a birthday letter to Gary one year (maybe '85 or '86). I don't think I said anything other then I was a fan and Happy Birthday, but in the mail a few weeks later came a 5x7 color picture with an autograph! Do you know what that means to a 10 year old kid? And it wasn't just a signed name. He wrote "Thanks for the birthday wishes, Gary Carter" I sent a similar letter the next year with the same results (different picture).

I only wish I had enough foresight to save those as I got older. I would have really liked to go back and looked at them last night. Instead, we put in the DVD of game 6 of the '86 World Series and showed our kid about The Kid. I hope when he gets older and starts playing ball (or doing whatever he does) that my son will display the same love and excitement and enthusiasm that Carter showed all of us over the years.

We'll Trade Him For a Bag of Balls...

And maybe some Ace Bandages. The him is Oliver Perez. There, I’ve now solved the problems of both of Gothom’s professional baseball teams in one fell swoop.

Look the Yankees (boo…hiss…boo) need a fifth starter for their rotation as Sergio Mitre is not getting the job done. The Mets, well they stink. Oliver Perez is certainly not helping things. So I propose a trade.

Oliver Perez to the Yankees along with his salary that is roughly equal to a decade worth of GDP for North Korea and in exchange the Yanks send the Mets a bag of new baseballs, two dozen rolls of ace bandages and throw in some ice packs for good measure.

The way I see it is that the Yanks get the pitcher they think they need to make a run into the post season and the Mets get some much needed medical supplies to help patch up their team. Oh and if you didn’t hear yet, here are the injuries in the past 24 hours:

1) Second Baseman, Luis Castillo sprained his ankle walking down the steps of the dugout yesterday while trying to “avoid a glove” that somebody had left there.

2) Today’s starting pitcher, Jonathan Neise, strained/ripped/tweaked his hamstring trying to cover first base. He took one warm up pitch after and then collapsed in pain

3) Outfielder Gary Shefield reinjured his leg. Backstory here: he had just come of the DL for a leg injury. Sounds to me like somebody came back a little early.

The more I talk about this trade the more I like it. Yes, somebody get me Steinbrener on the phone…we’ve got some wheeling and dealing to do!

Metro-politan Chivalry and a Slice of Pi

I won’t go into full details since I also added a rare podcast to today’s post. But I will point out that no matter how tired you are after a day at work, no matter how hot and crowded the last car on the train is, when you see an obviously pregnant woman standing, you get your ass out of the seat and let her sit. Short of either a) you being pregnant, or b) your leg lying in a bloody pool next to you and staining the carpet in the train car, there are NO excuses. Above all I shouldn’t have to ask you twice before making a scene.

Also I want to thank Pi’s folks for letting him come out with us to the ballgame last night. Sure the Mets lost but how cute does he look in his new hat? Actually I took the hat back but I did make sure to pass along the baseball that Adam Dunn hit to him during batting practice. Good thing the little guy brought his glove to the game!

Listen to the podcast for full details on today’s posting.

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Droppin' the F-Bomb

Ok kids its Jeopardy Time:

Today’s topic is double entendres.

The Answer is: Dropping the F-Bomb

(ding)

Yes, contestant your question,

Yeah, Alex, “What is Fernando Martinez hitting his first Major League Home Run?”

Correct! We would have also accepted “What is the explicative that you yelled at your TV last night after the Mets lost yet another game?”

Congrats to F-Mart for dropping (what we hope to be the first of many) F-Bombs!

I Need Two on the Aisle!

How is it that the worse the team whose game you are trying to get tickets for the harder it is to find good seats? Good seat without going through a scalper that is.

By far this is not the first time I’ve railed against scalpers. They are the lowest of the low who put their personal profit over the happiness of a young child getting to see his first ballgame or her first Wiggles concert because you’ve purchased a block of 12 tickets with the express intent of marking them up 150% and pricing out many parents.

I understand that I’m not a parent (unless you count the dog) and I can easily just visit the team’s website and purchase tickets but I know there are those of you out there who are going to get stuck with tickets on your hands and once that first pitch is thrown they are going to be worthless. It’s a kind of cosmic/karmic Montezuma’s Revenge that gets cast on these scum.

But never fear, much like the right reverend Billy Sol Hargus, I am here to heal your pain and grant you forgiveness. Sell me your 2 tickets to Thursday night’s Mets/Orioles game (field box seats) below face value. Sure you may take a $5 loss per seat but you’ll be gaining a warm sense of peace and understanding with the universe.

Things I Observed At The Ballpark

This weekend my Mets cam to town (limping, of course) and I had the great
fortune to marry a Mets fan who insisted that we sojourn down to Nationals
Park to take in all three games (twist my arm why don't you). Of course a
great time was had by all, except for the dog who had to stay home, but
since we haven't been to the park since last year, I had the opportunity
to "notice" a few things:

Screech Lost Weight and his Tail
How does a mascot shed ten pant sizes, loose his tail, and get a whole new
attitude all in one off-season? Well when you play for a team who is just
awful (and that's being kind) and clearly nobody is going to the games you
have to entertain the fans somehow. Enter the new and improved Screech
who, according to a team press release, has "matured" into a hip teenager.
Oh boy, the bird now bumps and grinds with attractive co-eds in the
centerfield bar, runs with the Presidents and is generally more energetic.
I really don't have a problem with this but it might have been nice to see
a subtle transition over the teams first five years in DC.
OLD SCREECH
NEW SCREECH
Sit Down. You're Not Getting That Ball.
What the hell is wrong with you?! You're like 30 or 35 and you're screaming for a ball/t-shirt/other cheep promo item meant for the kids, really??? Sit the hell down and cough up
$7.50 for a Coors Light. On second thought, cut back on the beer and just buy a ball or t-shirt. The players flip the ball into the stands so that the kids can have them. Sure you are both highly likely to sell it on EBay as soon as you get home, but that's another story. This edict of sit the
hell down also goes for those of you in the upper decks who have no chance in getting the item. They're not going to reach you so just get over it!

No replays-umpire union
Ever go to the ballgame, see a great "bang-bang" play in the field and wait
on the play to be reshown on the jumbotran? Keep waiting there Kimosabe,
because the umpires say you'll never see them, at least for the time
being. See the Umpires Union insisted that their members calls in the
field not be questioned. If he says your out, well you are out. That
means no replay on the centerfield big screen, no possible way for those of
us not watching on TV have no way of knowing what really happened out
there. Thanks a lot for giving us yet another reason to hate the boys in
blue.

Week of Nationals

Let us not forget that we are a great nation. A great nation indeed. And as a great nation we make it our most patriotic obligation to make sure that we observe so many “national” days that you can’t keep track anymore (i.e. National Big Wind Day). Here was my daily list.

Wednesday, June 3 – National Running Day
Not only was it real, it was real hot! I made it about six miles from my office to the airport before I said #@$@$ it and jumped on the Metro for the ride home. I’m not sure of the origins of this fine observance but I do know that perhaps we can pick a better time then June to observe. What about the end of April or very early May? It’s warm enough in most of the country to get out on the roads, trails, treadmills, and even hamster wheels and really work up a good sweat all in fairly mild weather. Not like June in DC when either the temperature or the humidity (and sometimes both) race to see who can hit 90 first! I do have to thank Jeff for organizing the run, next year we have to get more of you out with us!

Friday, June 5 – National Doughnut Day
Free food is the foundation on which this country was built. That’s the reason that our national bird is the bald eagle and not the turkey like Ben Franklin wanted. If we made the turkey our national bird, nobody could eat it and then what would we have for thanksgiving?? My guess is even more doughnuts. Unfortunately I missed out on the free doughnut promotions that Dunkin and Krispy were offering but I still got a half decent plain-cake this morning over at 7-11.

Friday, June 5 – Sunday, June 7 – Nationals Park Weekend
This actually isn’t anything official or to observe but the Mets are in town this weekend. Anybody have 4 seats for Saturday’s game? I won’t pay over face value so get over it.

You Lost What? Where?

Things to do at a ballgame:

• Get there early to see batting practice.
• Enjoy a hot dog and a beer
• See your favorite player launch a home run
• Catch a foul ball

Things NOT to do at a ballgame :

• Loose your gold tooth down a toilet in the public restroom
• Reach your hand into said toilet to try and retrieve it and in the process getting your arm stuck prompting you to scream for help at the top of your lungs thus necessitating the gathering of security personnel and onlookers to figure out how to get you out of this predicament.

Wait...that didn’t happen. Nobody is that stupid. Are they?

Uh...yeah there are. According to the NY Post a “hapless Mets fan...” found herself in just such a situation last week at the new Citi Field. The full story is here. Go read it and then come on back. I’ll wait.

Are you done? Great. Let’s get going.

What level of stupidity are we talking about here? I would argue that this is right up there with the dope that tried escalator surfing at Shea Stadium last year just before he fell to his death. I do feel bad for this lady though. Gold ain’t cheep (over $900/oz on the commodities exchange) and to drop it in the crapper is never fun. But sometimes dead is dead and gone is gone. I would like to know the following facts that were not included in the article (thankfully):

1) Why was this tooth loose enough to slip out? Aren’t gold teeth/fillings/other dental work usually fairly secure in your choppers and aren’t usually prone to slipping out in the John (Jane)?

2) Did she reach in after the initial “payload” cleared the bowl or was the water still “tainted”? If it’s the later....ewwwwww

3) What do you say if you are the first security officer to respond to this scene? What mind control technique do you use to stop yourself from busting out in utter laughter?

4) Finally, why was the plumbing company called before the fire department/rescue squad? That’s like seeing somebody getting mugged and calling Rolex to find out how to get the other guys watch back before you call the cops.

Bliss, Earthquake Requests, and Speed

Breathe deeply my dear readers. Yesterday was a yearly phenomenon that has been occurring since the dawn of time (or at least for most of the last 100 or so years). Baseball’s opening day occurred all over this great land (except where it was raining, snowing, or windy). Included in those festivities were my New York Mets enjoying the lovely spring weather in Cincinnati. Yes, the fans were out in the cold rain as the temperatures dropped from a perky 49 at first pitch to a slightly annoying 40 degrees by the seventh inning. Oh how those out in the bleachers looked pleased to be there. It was truly their smiles that brought out the glow on the field. Or was that the lights in the stadium because the sun never came out. I can’t really complain (or can I?) because the Mets showed strong defense, pitching, and timely hitting to start the season off on a high note with a win, but when will Major League Baseball get that just because it’s April, it doesn’t mean it’s warm and sunny all over the US! For the future, let’s try to keep all opening day games south of Kansas City, unless the home team has a dome/retractable roof. This way we can actually get all the games in on the first day.

I never want to encourage hurting people (unless I really don’t like them), but I have a request for the folks over at the US Geological Survey (the Federal agency in charge of creating earthquakes) could pinpoint a Magnitude 7 earthquake right under the anchor desk of the new Sports Center studio in Los Angeles. I don’t want to have any of the camera crew or other technical people hurt, I just want a small hole to open in the Earth’s crust and swallow Stuart Scott whole! Whose bright idea was it to put Sports Center in LA? The show takes place entirely in a windowless studio...why the hell would I care that they are now in Los Angeles? Additionally the “suits” over in Bristol, CT didn’t plan this launch around some major area sporting event (the above mentioned Opening Day” isn’t really large enough to count). If they were launching “Sports Center Detroit” (Final 4) or “Sports Center New Hampshire” launching on April 12 (Big Wind Day) it would make a little more sense. Also the aforementioned lazy eyed host (Scott) needs to have somebody show him the back of his head in a mirror. Either shave your whole head or grow your hair out, not only is the Mohawk look OUT, but you’re like 40 years old...nobody thinks your cool...stop trying!

Finally today, last week I spoke of a new sprinting work out that I’m experimenting with to increase my running speed. You can go back and read the whole thing here. But the bottom line is here are the distances run, the times I should be hitting, and finally my average times from yesterday.

10 x 100 yards / 15-18 seconds / 17-19 seconds
8 x 80 yards / 11-15 seconds / 13-15 seconds
6 x 60 yards / 8-11 seconds / 10-12 seconds
4 x 40 yards / 5-8 seconds / 7-9 seconds

So I am hitting the goal comfortably in some distances but struggling in the shorter ones. Now I went all out on the 40 yard dashes yet my time (in running shoes on a grass/mud soccer field) would barely register at the NFL Combines (on dry turf with cleats) among the 300+ pound linemen run and blown away by the world record sprinters. Oh well, I guess I have to keep plugging away (or put on 200 pounds).

Odds, Ends, and Milkshakes

Just a few brief odds and ends today:

1) Following up on yesterday’s Peachtree rant; about 30 minutes after posting that, I finally got through the application process and received a confirmation. But I wasn’t done there, as I went ahead and signed up Mrs. Bloggerman for the race as well. Even better then that, we found that by sister-in-law and mother-in-law also signed up so we’ll have a small army out on the race course. The race isn’t until July so I still have some time to figure out costume choices. I will say though that a fully body stocking (ala Costanza) is still in play.

2) Since tomorrow is the honoring of all things Irish (especially their wonder-livers) we are going to celebrate here at NBLJ by sharing a cool little St. Patty’s Day treat with you courtesy of Spirit Magazine (Southwest Airlines) and the good folks at the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas. I present to you the Guinness Milkshake

Guinness Milkshake
4 ounces Guinness
14 ounces super-premium vanilla ice cream
Whipped cream, for garnish
Green chocolate-covered sunflower seeds, for garnish

Combine ice cream and Guinness in a blender. Pour into a glass, then add a swirl of whipped cream and sunflower seeds to taste.

3) I had the pleasure of attending a meeting today in the Old Executive Office Building (next to the White House) and I happy to report that security was relatively easy to go through and not at all obtrusive (however it was thorough which is good to know). Why is it then when I walk into other Federal (and some private) buildings, I have to practice my striptease routine just so I can be scanned and gain access? Just a thought here: if it’s good enough for the President, it’s good enough for everybody!

4)Last week I promised you Spring Training pictures. Here they are. Enjoy.

Heartbreak, Hair-Loss, and Housewives

Quite an interesting Sunday at Bloggerman Central, as a busy morning running errands led into an afternoon of (mostly) sports debauchery. I’m very happy to report that through it all both the TV and the computer received no substantial damages as the scene could have turned out much worse.

First the Heartbreak. Those loveable “Amazins” from Queens had a chance to make the playoffs after a pitiful first half of the season. They had to win and hope that the Brew Crew in Wisconsin dropped their game to the Cubbies. If they failed it would be the last game ever in Shea has they prepare to move to their new home next spring. After the Fish plated a two in the sixth doom and gloom set in until Carlos Beltran smacked an offering deep and gone to left to tie it up. You had the feeling that that for all the ups and downs and queasiness that this season has heaped upon my shoulders that they may actually pull this one off and we can walk away contented. That might have been the case if we didn’t have to bring in the bullpen who promptly gave up two home runs in the top of the seventh. But this was the final game at Shea and there had to be some magic right? Uh-uh. None here, as both Delgado and Church’s late inning drives dropped harmlessly into the Marlins’ gloves in left and right center respectively. It was a sad way to close a tough season and say goodbye to (what for me is) an institution. I grew up at Shea and it was the only home I knew for the Mets.

Here are my top 3 moments there (in order of occurrence):
1) Going down on the field for a Jr. Mets clinic and getting catching tips from (then) pitching coach, Mel Stottlemyre.

2) Sitting up in the upper deck during an April doubleheader with the Cubs, threatening to take my shirt off if Tim Teufel didn’t get a hit.

3) This was the most important one btw: Mrs. Bloggerman accepting my proposal of marriage on April 23 in a suite along the 3rd base line. (oh yeah, Mr. Met was there too).

Now the Hair-Loss. Somebody call Giuseppe Franco because I ain’t got no stinkin hair left. My fantasy baseball team (coincidentally, also called “Nobody Likes a Jerk”) was leading in the championship week by almost 70 points going into Saturday’s games. Well that lead quickly started to fall apart as my pitchers were scratched for their weekend starts for a variety of reasons and my opponents’ were firing on all cylinders. And although he did defeat me (Congrats Chris!) my leading hitter for the week, Joey Votto’s 41 points were more then his top two hitters combined. None the less I’m bummed but will take my winnings and maybe buy Mrs. Bloggerman something nice. We’ll see. Any ideas?

And Finally the Housewives. Last night is a prime example about why I need to catch up with my “shows” and can’t rely on the DVR. Desperate Housewives premiered its new season on ABC last night and I missed it. Why you ask? (go ahead ask!) Well because I had to watch the last 4 episodes from last season online last night because our DVR had to be replaced shortly after the end of last season thereby erasing all of the saved episodes. And because ABC only airs the 4 most recently aired ones (including repeats) I had to wait all summer until they caught up with me. So last night why Mrs. Bloggerman was upstairs watching something or other, I was at the kitchen table immersed in the going-ons of Wisteria Lane.

This Is Why I'm a Fan

I really wasn’t going to watch. I can’t watch anymore. If I do, I’m going to start pulling out what’s left of my hair.

The Mets play this season has been enough to give me a heart condition but yet I still watch and as of late they’ve really turned things around. That is until the bullpen comes in; then it gets interesting.

Such was the case Tuesday night in Philadelphia where the bullpen blew a 2 run lead and then lost the game in extra innings. I said I can’t possibly watch the game last night; it would drive me mad. Against my better judgment, I watched the opening inning to see the Mets open the game with a 1-0 lead, only to loose it after the bottom of the inning 2-1 (the Phillies added another run in the 2^nd inning for a 3-1 lead). I went downstairs to make dinner.

As I sat there with my tuna melt and a beer, the bug bit me again. I HAD to watch...I had no choice! When you’re a fan, you have to watch. You have to cheer, and you have to cry occasionally as your team ebbs and flows it’s way through a season.

The wonderful technology behind satellite television and the MLB baseball package allows me to see my team almost every night and when I do I can see the local NY broadcast (complete with Gary, Keith, and Ron) which is a special treat. I don’t have to wait until the highlights come up on Sports Center’s rundown, just tune in and begin to become a fan again.

I’m reminded of this as Major League Baseball becomes the final of the four “Major” sports (Football, Basketball, and Hockey) to embrace the technology of instant replay. Those of us who watch the games on TV have had instant replay for years (technically since the 1963 Army Navy Game) and can review a particular plays intricate parts with slow mo, close ups, and reverse angles. If you have one of those new fangled DVRs you can even control how many times you see these. But the one thing that made baseball the greatest of the four sports is the human factor of the umpires. They occasionally blow a called strike or a close play at first but your team will get its share of calls too.

For now replay will only be in effect for homeruns that are either foul/fair and balls that go over the fence or hit the top. But for how long? When are we going to put cameras to review balls and strikes? Ever since baseball was invented, man has had to use his eyes to make the proper call. It’s the reason a fiery manager bolts from the dugout, turns his hat around, and kicks dirt on and umps shoes. It’s the reasons fans boo unmercifully and others count their blessings that they got a call to go their teams way. This is one of the cores of baseball....any team can go out any day and win a game (or loose a game as the case may be).

Clearly I am not in favor of replay even if my Mets got a few Home Runs stolen from them by umps who called their balls foul. Baseball is tradition, baseball is pure, and baseball is America. And dammmit I’m not ready to trounce on America....I ain’t no Commie!

Stop that F-in Cursing!

Maybe I’m getting old. I don’t know. Things now bother me that I used to never give a second thought to. For one thing, cursing in public. Now, before you go “well Bloggerman...you curse all the time.”, well you’re motherf-@#$@#$g right I do. But I have deeply curtailed my cursing in public places and especially when there are young children around.

I was reminded of this when attending some baseball games this week (my Mets swept the Nationals btw). Even though we had “prime” seats in the lower two seating areas, there were still a ton of profanities thrown around in complete ear shot. I have to think young kids these days are becoming more immune to the cursing because it’s everywhere from music to the internet but call me old fashioned because I still think they shouldn’t have to hear it until their parents curse them out as a 12 year old brat. I saw some guy doing it as I got of the subway this morning too. There probably aren’t any kids walking downtown at 730am during the middle of the week but it’s more the principal then anything.

However we need to be aware that there are plenty of times that cursing is perfectly appropriate such as the field of play. Cursing “within the lines of play” is just fine with me as sometimes you have to drop an F-bomb when you strike out (not that I’ve ever had to worry about that!) Case in point is one of my favorite tennis players of all time, John McEnroe getting thrown out of a match in Rhode Island last night. The article says he was tossed “...for a new kind of triple fault: cursing, arguing with the chair umpire and making an obscene gesture at fans.” How great is that.??

Kids, this is who you should be watching!

You Give Us 22 Minutes and We’ll Give You a Trip to NYC (DAY 2)

The Race

We headed into Manhattan in the early morning to meet up with Elliot and run a 5 mile race in Central Park. Parking was fairly easy to come by (see next section) and we walked a few blocks over to the race area. Not only was I surprised to see that this was not a small race (over 5,000 participants) but once the starting gun went off it was the quietest race I'd ever taken part in. It was so quiet that not only could you hear yourself think but you could also hear what the guy next to you was thinking! Lucky for everybody out there, Mr. Entertainment (me) was there to talk the whole way through. In the post race interview with some girl who stuck a camera in my face I even managed to get in some of POTUS' talking points. When asked why I ran the race, Bloggerman said, "If we don't run, the terrorists win!"

Ticket
What the #*+@! Why is there a parking ticket on the windshield when we got back to the car? We specifically moved it from one side of the street to the other and pulled up to make sure we were not in the "No Standing" zone. Oh we can’t park here because numb nuts over at city hall decided the only other sign needed along the whole block would be 500 ft down the other side.
Nice... Thanks for fleecing the drivers so that the empty suit wearing panty-waits at ABC can park in front of their building. We wouldn't want them to have to walk like the rest of us. They might forget all those great reality shows they were thinking of on the commute in!

The Game
Well we finally made it to Shea and had sunny skies and 2 baseball games to take in (they were playing a true double header to make up for the rain out). Thanks to Josh for hooking us up on the seats. We could see everything. Unfortunately that also meant that we could spend 3.5 hours in the sun and see the Mets drop the first of two.

We hit the car after the end of the game because we knew that if we stayed for the second game we wouldn't get home until after midnight.

Friendly’s
For dinner we pulled off just north of Baltimore and thanks to Mrs. Bloggerman's expert navigation (and Google Maps) we found yet another reason to get off at Joppastowne (in addition to the cheap gas). Unfortunately our diets had already been blown for the day so we opted away
from the ice cream and Fribbles for two salads... although after the next marathon, we're going back for sliders, motz sticks, and bacon-cheese waffle fries all on one plate. Yummo!

The Pup-a-Lup
A special thanks to the Boig collective who were gracious enough to watch Mooks while we wenst away. They rock and when we got home she was sprawled out on the bed enjoying her freedom! Well not for long as we had a (near) midnight stroll around the neighborhood and managed to come back with "more" in our bag then when we left.

You Give Us 22 Minutes and We’ll Give You a Trip to NYC (DAY 1)

So Mr. and Mrs. Bloggerman took a trip up to NYC to see our beloved Metropolitans play their final season in the open-air toilet bowl otherwise known as Shea Stadium. I’ll spare you most of the minutia to include the entire playlist on the radio on the drive up from DC (although I will say that we did get to hear the Schmoozer, Steve Somers, on WFAN when we crossed in to Jersey)

The Sign
The trip up was good and relatively traffic free (save the BQE) and we made it up to meet with some friends in Queens a little after 1230. After a really good Eggplant parm sandwich with all the orthodoxy walking back from shul we crossed the street to one of the best signs I’ve ever seen.

This is in response to a spate of pedestrian accidents in the crosswalk. Talk about signage that “tells it like it is”. Now all we need is the sign to sit next to the red light that says, “Hey Dumbass…you in the car…the red light means STOP and is not optional!”

The Rain Delay
We headed to Shea at 530p on Saturday for a 710p game in order to catch batting practice and tour around the stadium. It had just begun to rain but we were told that the storm would just be a summer thunderstorm and pass quickly. Not so fast. Come 645p the tarp was still on the infield and the rains hadn’t let up yet. About that time we took the time to appreciate the finer points of Shea that we might have overlooked in the past. This includes some of the area around the stadium including the old World’s Fair grounds. We also took interest in finding the “Most Obscure Player’s Jersey” that a fan was wearing. Plenty of folks have David Wright, Jose Reyes, Johan Santana jerseys but what about the Alan Zinter, Tony Clark, or Tim Tuffel’s of the world? Well we didn’t any of those but did actually find someone with a Danny Heep. What’s even better then that? She had it signed! BTW: This guy wearing the Dave Kingman was a close second place on our list! Around 715p the rains lightened up and we checked out our seats. Upper Deck but right over home plate….near perfect! The only problem was that the rain started to kick up again and we had lighting to boot. Instead of retreating back into the now crowding concourses we decided to hoof it up some 20 rows to the top of the upper deck that is protected by overhead awning. While up there we managed to pass the time by:

A: Taking in the car fire out in the parking lots in right field.

B: Hanging out with Cowbell Man

C: Watching the visiting Texas Rangers use the infield for the worlds largest slip and slide

Finally the team canceled the game around 830pm. We trudged down through the rain and out of the stadium stopping to pick up some additional free swag commemorating the final season of this dump.

Chinese and a Cookie
Since we were soaked we headed back to the hotel, changed, grabbed the car and headed to downtown Flushing where we heard there was a meca of Chinese food. We weren’t disappointed and were referred to a very modern looking place called Sunway Café. As somebody on a food board said (I read today) it looks like a Chinese Howard Johnsons.

They weren’t wrong but the food was really good and a huge variety of mostly good and greasy Cantonese fare (the kind of food I’d equate to a really good greasy spoon/diner when you’re up at midnight). We split a few dishes (Rice w/ omelets and raisins, baked chicken with black pepper, and then something I don’t remember the name of but is described by one critic as ”… an order of crispy noodles, said material wrapped in squishy rice noodle, served with a dollop of syrupy Hoisin sauce. Mellow greasy vibe.”

Finishing off the meal, a watermelon juice and bubble tea for the misses. Now to find a good cookie to finish off the night.

Not as simple as it sounds! You see evidently the rain has forced the shut down of some roads (with 5 ft of water!!) and the rerouting of others. After driving around and sitting in traffic we end up at a Pathmark over by our hotel. They have a wonderful looking bakery case but not a single fresh baked (today) cookie to be found as midnight rolls around. Bloggerman was starting to get huffy and the Misses was doing her best (G-d bless her) to calm me down. Alas, we found a diner nearby and dug into a very soft and pillow-y (thus good) chocolate chipper and dozed off for the night.

Tune in later today for Part II and updated pics here.

Humpty Dum(b)pty Part II and So Long L’Orange

Being a Met fan I’ve tasted my share of disappointment and heartache at the hands of the Atlanta Braves, but nothing irks me as much as that insipid “Tomahawk” chop they perform by mimicking an ax motion with their arms to the beat of a Seminole war drum. It makes me wish that a tribe of Seminole warriors would rise up from hiding in the upper decks of Turner Field and rain down a barrage of arrows and slings into the fans. If nothing else it would certainly stop them from doing things that Mets fans have tried and failed at.

Specifically I’m speaking of sliding down stair and escalator rails. Last month a fan leaving a Mets game at Shea with his young daughters, decided it would be “funny” to ignore the sign on the down escalator that said “closed” and instead, slide down the railing. Yeah it was freakin’ hilarious as he slipped off and fell several stories to the concrete pavilion below and his death (which his young girls had to witness and will probably be haunted by for the rest of their lives.) Well rejoice, Brave Fan, because you proved yesterday you are just as stupid.

Today’s NY Daily News reports about Justin Hayes, a 25 year old who yesterday died when he fell several stories at Atlanta’s Turner Field while trying to “slide down a stairway railing.”

Lets see, what would inspire somebody to slide down the railings? Would it be such a love of adventure and “X-Games” that they see the railing and the potential danger a fall from said rail posses and say, “Damn the torpedoes…let’s get extreme!” (Harold and Kumar shout out!) Or can it be, possibly, maybe, perhaps, slightly, an outside chance of, an inkling of….BEER?! Even those of you who debase yourselves to read this site on a regular basis can answer that question. (For those of you who are first timers here…the answer is the latter!)

Perhaps these teams and ballpark operators might think about cutting down the amount (quantity) of beer served. They could start by limiting beer by age. The younger you are (above 21) the less beer you get. For example, a 25 year old, could only buy 2 10-oz beers at a time, while a 60 year old could buy 2 20-oz cups at once. This works kind of like car insurance. The younger you are the more you pay because you are more of a risk on the road and to your car. Further drawing this out, maybe you can get your hand stamped so that each beer you buy you get a stamp. Each person at the game (of age) gets up to 4 stamps, at which time they are cut off. I like to drink a beer as much as the next guy but even I can limit myself to a few brews for 9 innings. Just an idea.

L’orange, we hardly knew the. For those of you who have been keeping track, and I don’t know how if you haven’t been to our home, in which case why are you there when we’re at work, and if you were there when we were home, how come you didn’t knock and say hello….what kind of anti social SOB are you?? But I digress. L’orange is the name we bestowed upon a duck (mallard we think) who took up residence for her nest between the base of our house and the azalea bush in the flowerbed. There she laid an egg and has been nesting on it for the last month or so (actual gestation period is in the range of 20-30 days for ducks.) Alas upon leaving the house this morning, she was gone and in her next were the shell fragments from a cracked/hatched egg. We wish her and her new duckling well and may her next child be a masculine child. Or at least a really good omelet with a side of bacon.

An Angel in the Outfield and Hammer...please don't hurt 'em

So last night was a good night in bed. That is to say, while Mrs. Blogger was sleeping on one side and the Mooks was next to me (also asleep) Angel Pagan, the long time Major League reserve outfield who was pressed into full time service early for the New York Mets due to injuries, singled up the middle in the bottom of the 12^th inning to score Jose Reyes and win the game!

Not only did it take a lot of my effort to not scream at the top of my lungs and wake the two aforementioned ladies up but I also had to be careful not to fall out of bed as I was pumping my fists widely.

As always I won’t go into full details of the game. You can read Peter Botte’s account of the game from the Daily News here. But I want to focus a little closer on the music that plays while the batter is coming up to the plate. A long time ago, before mp3s and iPods, an organ player would play (a real-live instrument) the batter into the box with something snazzy like Baby Elephant (think Dancing Homer). Those times are dead and gone and now the players actually have a say in what they (and all the fans) hear on the way to the plate and each guy seems to have his own tastes. It is one of those players, Damion Easley, in particular, whom I want to focus on.

Damion is a long time major leaguer who has bounced around the league and played very well with the Mets over the last few years. Last night during the game he came to bat and it was the first time I noticed his “play up” music. It was none other then the baggy pant, sliding across the floor, dancing his arsssse off MC HAMMER and his “classic” 2 Legit 2 Quit. You remember Deon Sanders made this famous while dancing and signing the letters (2 fingers, an L made with your thumb and index finger, 2 fingers, an L made with your thumb and index finger, and then your hand extended palm down shaking it as to say “no, I won’t quit”) Why this song? Are you serious that this is the best one he could come up with? Or is this a situation where the ballpark guys are playing a sick joke on him? I don’t know and I don’t much care but for crying out loud why are you subjecting the fans to this kind of crap? If you can’t find the Milli Vanilli tapes or the Hanson cd, just don’t play anything.

This public service message was brought to you by the number 2 and the letter L, because the only one who’s 2 Legit 2 Quit is this guy right here (thumbs pointing inward toward Bloggerman)

Have Apple, Will Travel

Finally I can come with good news. The Apple Is Coming! No, not the red coats but the Apple.

That would be the “Home Run” apple from Shea Stadium. It is coming with the Mets when they open their new stadium, Citi Field, next year. Here’s the article from ESPN.

However Jeff Wilpon, the Mets CEO, might want to rethink his biology lessons when he closed with “’I was at Shea Stadium groundbreaking in my mother's belly,’ he said. ‘To be here for Opening Day should be pretty exciting.’"

Um, Jeff, you are a big boy now, you can say you were at the original groundbreaking in your mothers “womb” or if you want to really get biological, “uterus.” This science lesson has been brought to you by the letter “E” and the number “43.567”.