It's Sunday, which means it's time for the aptly named Sunday 160. See here for the ruleses.
Mine is called "Regret".
I was not ready. I said, “Tell me.”
She said, “Don't be mad.” I said OK.
She told me, then ran to the bathroom.
She's not the only one who felt like vomiting.
Sunday, June 06, 2010
Games 56, 57, and 58: Sometimes you're the windshield, sometimes you're the fly
On Friday night, the Red Sox tore up the joint in Charm City, blanking the Orioles, 11-0. Cowboy Clay The Guitar Man turned in a 101 pitch gem to get the win.
On Saturday, the Red Sox bats stayed quiet until erupting for 1 in the 7th, 1 in the 8th and 6 in the ninth to power an 8-2 win. Our Man Youk had his second homer in two days.
Today, the Red Sox scored a run in the ninth to tie the O's 3-3, but the Okey Doke gave it up in the 11th, sending Boston to a 4-3 loss.
The Red Sox are 33-25, still tied with Toronto for 3rd place, 4 1/2 games behind.
Next up, they travel to the Mistake by The Lake to play the Clevelands.
On Saturday, the Red Sox bats stayed quiet until erupting for 1 in the 7th, 1 in the 8th and 6 in the ninth to power an 8-2 win. Our Man Youk had his second homer in two days.
Today, the Red Sox scored a run in the ninth to tie the O's 3-3, but the Okey Doke gave it up in the 11th, sending Boston to a 4-3 loss.
The Red Sox are 33-25, still tied with Toronto for 3rd place, 4 1/2 games behind.
Next up, they travel to the Mistake by The Lake to play the Clevelands.
Friday, June 04, 2010
Games 54 and 55: One Team's Ceiling Is Another Team's Floor: And, A Defense Of Jim Joyce
In Boston Wednesday night, the Red Sox overcame a Typical Dice K First Inning (TM) to pull out a 6-4 win, and then turned around and threw away a 9-8 loss last night, with two runners thrown out at home and 18 hits going for naught. Boston is now 31-24, 5 1/2 games out, and tied with Toronto for third place.
***
First, watch the play, in real time:
Second, read Rob Neyer here.
Now, right off the bat-dude was out. OK? Looking at the replay and at stills, no question, he was out.
But watch it live, at full speed. Remember, Joyce has to determine:
a)does the runner get to the bag before the pitcher gets the ball?
b)does the pitcher have control of the ball all the way through the play?
c)does the pitcher touch the base?
d)does the batter touch the base?
-with 30,000 people yelling at him, in real time, at the end of a 8 hour workday, the last 3 of which on his feet with no breaks and, probably, very little food or water (think that's easy? Try it. Force yourself to work for the next three hours-intense, detail oriented work, without losing focus and without having anything to eat or drink) and no chance to do it over or look at a replay.
Now ask yourself, is he safe? Or out?
The argument has been made-"Oh, you have to give him that call, there was a perfect game on the line."
No.
Safe is safe, and out is out, whether the seventh game of the World Series or the first game of spring training.
Now, Joyce blew the call. He's acknowledged it. He got it wrong. Being on his feet for 3 hours or longer and concentrating is his job-he's a major league umpire.
But think about it from his point of view-it was a close play, and he made the wrong call. It wasn't because he wasn't trying. It wasn't because he was out of position. He had a lot of factors to consider, and he got it wrong.
I wish I was as right, as often, as Jim Joyce.
***
First, watch the play, in real time:
Second, read Rob Neyer here.
Now, right off the bat-dude was out. OK? Looking at the replay and at stills, no question, he was out.
But watch it live, at full speed. Remember, Joyce has to determine:
a)does the runner get to the bag before the pitcher gets the ball?
b)does the pitcher have control of the ball all the way through the play?
c)does the pitcher touch the base?
d)does the batter touch the base?
-with 30,000 people yelling at him, in real time, at the end of a 8 hour workday, the last 3 of which on his feet with no breaks and, probably, very little food or water (think that's easy? Try it. Force yourself to work for the next three hours-intense, detail oriented work, without losing focus and without having anything to eat or drink) and no chance to do it over or look at a replay.
Now ask yourself, is he safe? Or out?
The argument has been made-"Oh, you have to give him that call, there was a perfect game on the line."
No.
Safe is safe, and out is out, whether the seventh game of the World Series or the first game of spring training.
Now, Joyce blew the call. He's acknowledged it. He got it wrong. Being on his feet for 3 hours or longer and concentrating is his job-he's a major league umpire.
But think about it from his point of view-it was a close play, and he made the wrong call. It wasn't because he wasn't trying. It wasn't because he was out of position. He had a lot of factors to consider, and he got it wrong.
I wish I was as right, as often, as Jim Joyce.
Wednesday, June 02, 2010
Because I'm A Poised, Veteran Husband...
...when my wife says she wants cake, I hop to it.
So we're driving home from the store, with the cake, when we see someone ahead of us, at a stoplight, get out of his car...
(You slow down at this point, because something bad or weird is about to happen.)
...walk to the back, take a decorative magnet off of the back, get back in, and drive away.
Sadly, we did not get to see what the offending magnet actually said.
We were able to come up with a couple of candidates.
"Alright...listen, if Kyle Kendrick walks one more guy....DAMMIT, that's it! I'm a Mets fan now!"
"Lord, I swear, if I see one more red light....THAT'S IT! Forget it! I'm a Buddhist!"
Any others?
So we're driving home from the store, with the cake, when we see someone ahead of us, at a stoplight, get out of his car...
(You slow down at this point, because something bad or weird is about to happen.)
...walk to the back, take a decorative magnet off of the back, get back in, and drive away.
Sadly, we did not get to see what the offending magnet actually said.
We were able to come up with a couple of candidates.
"Alright...listen, if Kyle Kendrick walks one more guy....DAMMIT, that's it! I'm a Mets fan now!"
"Lord, I swear, if I see one more red light....THAT'S IT! Forget it! I'm a Buddhist!"
Any others?
100 Wise Words
Dipping my toe into the 100 Word Challenge pool again with this week's entry, "Should I Stay Or Should I Go?", for the word "wisdom".
“Don't do it,” she said.
I looked at my sister. Older, wiser, married, with one perfect child and another on the way. Great job, great in laws, great teeth and long, perfect, straight hair.
“Don't do it,” she said again. “You know better.”
I looked down at my shoes. The leather on the tip reflected the sun back up at me. It hurt to look at it.
“You know he's going to cheat again. Don't go back to him,” she said, her voice starting to fray.
I looked up.
“I have to,” I said softly.
“Don't do it,” she said.
I looked at my sister. Older, wiser, married, with one perfect child and another on the way. Great job, great in laws, great teeth and long, perfect, straight hair.
“Don't do it,” she said again. “You know better.”
I looked down at my shoes. The leather on the tip reflected the sun back up at me. It hurt to look at it.
“You know he's going to cheat again. Don't go back to him,” she said, her voice starting to fray.
I looked up.
“I have to,” I said softly.
Tightrope
I just heard this song on the usually haughty but enjoyable Slate Cultural Gabfest, by a new artist named Janelle Monae. It's a very interesting melange of different musical styles that I find very listenable.
Jammin' With Janera
Janera Jepson, who blogs here, has another Wednesday Wickedness post up-ten thoughtful questions derived from statements of famous people. And with another Lakers-Celtics NBA Finals tilt around the corner, who better to provide the questions than the Zen Master himself, Lakers coach Phil Jackson.
1. "Always keep an open mind and a compassionate heart.” Do you ALWAYS keep an open mind?
I think so. I like to think so. Like all humans, I am hidebound by prejudices of all kinds. For example, if you were to tell me, "Rush Limbaugh says that...", I would immediately be prejudiced against the truth of the statement. I don't think that would let me deny facts-but as my father used to say, "If Richard Nixon told me it was raining, I'd go look out the window first."
2. “Wisdom is always an overmatch for strength.” Who is the wisest person you know? Who is the strongest?
Without question or doubt, long gone and hard to find, sitting in the clubhouse with a ten shot lead, my wife. Period, end of story, you can put it on the board, yes.
3. "Yes, victory is sweet, but it doesn't necessarily make life any easier the next season or even the next day." Do you think a successful day at your job makes the next day better or not?
No. My work life has very little continuity. I can have a fantastic day followed by an unspeakably vile one, and vice versa.
4. "...True joy comes from being fully present in each and every moment, not just when things are going your way." How would we tell by your behavior if you are having a bad day?
I get very, very quiet, with clipped and monosyllabic responses to questions.
5. "I gave it my body and mind, but I have kept my soul." Do you have days when you feel you gave it your all, but may have compromised your values?
Yes, I'm ashamed to admit. I've made decisions that were easy for me that I knew were going to wind up causing a headache for someone else, instead of wading in and fixing them myself. Thankfully, I haven't done it very often.
6. "Your problems never cease. They just change." What do you feel is your biggest problem at the moment?
My job. I am having an enormous amount of trouble completing all that is expected of me without spending a lot more time there than I am being paid for.
7. "My dad always had this little sign on his desk: "The bigger your head is, the easier your shoes are to fill." He really drilled that in." Does your ego sometimes get in your way?
Once in a great while.
8. "There is a saying that I love...It says: "There are no Zen masters, there's only Zen." "Zen master" is a contradiction in terms. You don't master Zen." Do you believe in Zen? If yes, can it be mastered? Yes. No. (How's that for Zen?)
9. "You can not teach competitiveness." Do you believe you could teach someone, like your child, to be competitive? No. You either are, or you're not.
10. "Home is where the heart is, right?” Obviously Phil didn't originate this quote. He said it when asked if he'd retire after this season. Do you believe home is not a place but rather a state of mind?
Home is the place where, if you go there, they have to take you in.
1. "Always keep an open mind and a compassionate heart.” Do you ALWAYS keep an open mind?
I think so. I like to think so. Like all humans, I am hidebound by prejudices of all kinds. For example, if you were to tell me, "Rush Limbaugh says that...", I would immediately be prejudiced against the truth of the statement. I don't think that would let me deny facts-but as my father used to say, "If Richard Nixon told me it was raining, I'd go look out the window first."
2. “Wisdom is always an overmatch for strength.” Who is the wisest person you know? Who is the strongest?
Without question or doubt, long gone and hard to find, sitting in the clubhouse with a ten shot lead, my wife. Period, end of story, you can put it on the board, yes.
3. "Yes, victory is sweet, but it doesn't necessarily make life any easier the next season or even the next day." Do you think a successful day at your job makes the next day better or not?
No. My work life has very little continuity. I can have a fantastic day followed by an unspeakably vile one, and vice versa.
4. "...True joy comes from being fully present in each and every moment, not just when things are going your way." How would we tell by your behavior if you are having a bad day?
I get very, very quiet, with clipped and monosyllabic responses to questions.
5. "I gave it my body and mind, but I have kept my soul." Do you have days when you feel you gave it your all, but may have compromised your values?
Yes, I'm ashamed to admit. I've made decisions that were easy for me that I knew were going to wind up causing a headache for someone else, instead of wading in and fixing them myself. Thankfully, I haven't done it very often.
6. "Your problems never cease. They just change." What do you feel is your biggest problem at the moment?
My job. I am having an enormous amount of trouble completing all that is expected of me without spending a lot more time there than I am being paid for.
7. "My dad always had this little sign on his desk: "The bigger your head is, the easier your shoes are to fill." He really drilled that in." Does your ego sometimes get in your way?
Once in a great while.
8. "There is a saying that I love...It says: "There are no Zen masters, there's only Zen." "Zen master" is a contradiction in terms. You don't master Zen." Do you believe in Zen? If yes, can it be mastered? Yes. No. (How's that for Zen?)
9. "You can not teach competitiveness." Do you believe you could teach someone, like your child, to be competitive? No. You either are, or you're not.
10. "Home is where the heart is, right?” Obviously Phil didn't originate this quote. He said it when asked if he'd retire after this season. Do you believe home is not a place but rather a state of mind?
Home is the place where, if you go there, they have to take you in.
Game Fifty Three: Victor Victorious
With five hits from Victor Martinez, and a prominently meh performance from John Lackey, the Red Sox powered their way to a 9-4 win over Oakland at Fenway Park last night. Boston is now 30-23, still in 4th place, but now only five games off the pace.
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