Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Evil Empire in my backyard


Ever since I decided to move to New York, I knew this day would come, and I've been preparing for it with a mixture of excitement and apprehension, joy and fear. And it's finally arrived (almost).

This weekend marks my first Red Sox-Yankees series as a New York resident. Luckily a friend and fellow Sox fan has offered to take me to a Sox bar to watch the games, where I can don my "2007 World Champions" T-shirt and hat and (hopefully) not get a beer thrown in my direction. I'm picturing a Red Sox bar in New York to be a little like the underground warehouse in "Fight Club." Like, maybe the first rule is you don't talk about Eric Gagne, and I'll have to name the starting rotation in order just to gain admittance.

Life has been pretty easy for me as a Sox fan in the Big Apple so far. While I don't wear my Sox pride on my sleeve, I've "outed" myself as a fan on a few occasions - with mixed results. A guy who works at my gym, happy to find an ally in the city, offered me a free sports drink after I paid my membership fee with a Red Sox check. On the other hand, there was also the MTA worker who responded "Not with that card" when, during my second week here, I inquired about purchasing a subway pass and slipped my Sox MasterCard through the window.

But let's face it. I moved here in the December-January time frame. New York sports fans had other things on their minds. Now it's baseball season, and Sox and Yankees fans know that the race for the AL East practically begins in the offseason.

So we'll see what happens this weekend. I'm feeling pretty good about the series, and I hope the good guys give me at least two reasons to wear my World Series shirt with pride next Monday - even if it is stained with beer.

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