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.

Random (quick) thoughts

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

I've been neglectful regarding my blog recently because, as you probably know if you're reading this, I'm in the process of relocating to New York to take a job with a transcription firm.

But here are a few musings/subjects of interest from the past week or so:

-Emerson in the news! This sounds like the type of incident/person that would have annoyed me while I was a student at Emerson. But frankly, I don't see what the big deal is and why the story has become FOX News fodder.

-Beckett was robbed.

-But thank God our World Series MVP is staying. What a class act. The thought of Alex Rodriguez in a Red Sox uniform still sends a chill down my spine.

-I saw Tegan and Sara at Webster Hall in New York on Monday. They put on a great show. Check out my pictures here, and look for my article in next month's issue of Blast.

For interested parties, this was the set list, from what I can remember (not in order):
-Dark Come Soon
-Like O, Like H
-Floorplan
-Nineteen
-Soil Soil
-Monday, Monday, Monday
-So Jealous
-Where Does the Good Go
-Hop a Plane
-When I Get Up
-Speak Slow
-Relief Next to Me
-Walking With a Ghost
-Knife Going In (?)
-Back in Your Head
-The Con
-Call It Off

Encore:
-Umbrella
-You Wouldn't Like Me
-Are You Ten Years Ago
-Take Me Anywhere
-Living Room

38 (still) Pitches

Good news all around for Red Sox Nation today.



First, I think everyone can be happy about the announcement that blogger/postseason powerhouse/aspiring politician? Curt Schilling will be returning to the team (and, incidentally, probably finishing out his career in Boston). Everyone knows pitching wins in the playoffs, and as far as I'm concerned, the Red Sox just secured a central cog in their 2008 Fall Classic machine.

Schilling has become such an integral part of the Sox' lineup that it's hard to imagine he's only been playing in Boston for four years. I, for one, suspected the right-hander had pitched his last game in a Red Sox uniform when he walked off the mound in Game Two of the World Series. I think he did, too.

So I felt a huge sense of relief to learn that his 11-2, 2.38 ERA playoff stats will be back in Boston next season. Say what you will about his age and injury-prone regular seasons. In my opinion, for what he brings to the team in terms of morale and clutch performances, a one-year, $8 million contract is a bargain.

Let's hope the front office displays the same sensibility in regards to Mike Lowell.


Second, congratulations to Gold Glove winner Kevin Youkilis. Let's hope this is the first of many off-season accolades for the Red Sox. Rookie of the Year and Cy Young, anyone?

Twice in a Lifetime

I've been on hiatus for the past week or so because I was up in Boston watching the Red Sox win their second World Series in four years — a victory I can't imagine celebrating anywhere else.


It's things like singing "Sweet Caroline" in a bar at 1:00 on a Tuesday afternoon with 150 people that make me realize (to quote The Standells) that Boston truly is my home. Thankfully, this year's celebration was much more subdued than 2004 and none of my classmates was killed this time.

I'll resume blogging this week and probably post more about the Sox' victory, but right now I'm trying to catch up on about six days' worth of sleep.

I leave you with this blissful image...

Whew!

God bless Josh Beckett.

Onward to Boston!