Are we having fun yet?
Pedro Martinez
Joe Torre may not think this is fun2, but someone looks like he's enjoying himself. In his first appearance at Yankee Stadium since a dreadful ALCS game seven last fall, Pedro had nothing but smiles for the pinstriped fans who greeted him on Sunday with an infamous Bronx cheer. He wasn't the only player getting one, though, as Jeter was booed after a forgettable 0 for 4 performance at the plate. Most of his teammates didn't fare much better as the Sox swept the Yanks in their own house. It's still early in the season, but the Sox are now up six games to one over a healthy Yankees squad without the offensive and defensive contributions of Nomar and Trot. And that's certainly something for the Nation to be happy about!
Monday, April 26, 2004 @ 07:22 » 
Comments
Queen Mary 2
With less than two months until we depart, I'm starting to get really excited about my family's upcoming trip on the Queen Mary 23. She arrived in NYC for the first time4 this morning amid rave reviews from her first passengers. The sheer scale of the ship is amazing; at three times the size of the Titanic, it's the world's largest ocean liner. She stands (floats?) over four football fields long and 21 stories high, which meant that she passed under the Verrazano Narrows Bridge with only 20 feet to spare!
Thursday, April 22, 2004 @ 13:00 » Comments
WTF?!
When did Sports Illustrated5 hire the jackass who wrote this nonsense6?! I mean really, where should I start? You can dissect this guy's article like a frog in junior high biology.
[W]e have the advertised rivalry between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox that doesn't really exist.
Deford bases this assertion on simple win-loss ratios and World Series victories. But rivalries aren't about victories, they're about the passion that results from them. Every meeting of these two teams seems to carry the weight of the World Series and the winning team's supporters are jubilant about the opportunity to remind their opponents that they won.
[N]ow the Yankees whip the Red Sox in the offseason, too, stealing Alex Rodriguez, the fabled A-Rod, right out from under their noses.
In all fairness, this article was written on March 31st. That was several weeks before the "fabled" A-Rod went an absolutely miserable 1 for 17 at the more appropriately "fabled" Fenway park. Let Deford eat crow on that one. Oh yeah, at the end of the series A-Rod was batting .160 (that's several hundred mil well spent, Steinbrenner!).
There was a certain nobility in their loyal frustration. [Red Sox fans] accepted their lot in life as losers. But now they're poseurs.
Huh? Can you name anyone (sports fan or not) who would accept "their lot in life as losers?" I can't. As the Red Sox Nation has asserted before, the curse is largely a product of the media, which provides easy phone-it-in fodder for lazy writers (Deford) and their ridiculous articles.
I'd write more, but this article isn't even worthy of further commentary. At least some of the articles I've critiqued before didn't leave me wondering if the author let a high school student submit a half-assed, barely-researched essay. Deford's Journalism 101 professor should stick him in the dunce corner for blatant stupidity. And could someone in SI's PR department please tell him to shave that Chester the Molester mustache? I can't even glance at his masthead without getting a case of the willies.
Wednesday, April 21, 2004 @ 02:14 » Comments
Red Sox vs. Yankees: Series 1
After their first series against the Yankees, the Red Sox7 are lucky to have taken three of four games. There were some interesting statistics (A-Rod going 1 for 17 at the plate?!) and some unusual mistakes throughout the weekend, but Monday's game provided the most memorable moments8. Gabe Kapler forgot how many outs there were (twice!) in the second inning, Hideki Matsui missed a routine fly ball after a sudden wind shift blew it ten yards to his left, a brush fire outside the park sent smoke billowing up over right field, Manny Ramirez made a spectacular catch—and slammed into the Green Monster's scoreboard—to rob Bernie Williams of a likely double when the Red Sox had a tenuous one-run lead, and both Derek Jeter and Jason Giambi struck out looking in the ninth inning. Fortunately, the Red Sox were able to keep a sense of humor about their absent-mindedness.
"[Terry] said it was going to take eight hits to score me. After that I was able to smile a little bit," said Kapler. "If Pokey hadn't run by me, I'd probably still think there was only one out."
"I guess we're not the smartest team. I've forgotten the number of outs twice this season myself," said Damon. "We obviously aren't looking at the scoreboard a whole lot. We must be looking at the chicks in the stands.
Since the Sox face the Yankees again later this week in the Bronx, the RSN can only hope they continue their winning ways.
Wednesday, April 21, 2004 @ 01:34 » Comments
Crying Uncle
Last year, I designed an elaborate beer pong table for our "Summah Pool Party." Sadly, Jason sent me a link to CollegeHumor.com9 that shows how woeful my attempts at beer pong greatness were. The guys behind this board are truly masters of the game.
Update: Looks like there's another contender10. Their table is smaller, but much more organized.
Thursday, April 15, 2004 @ 21:01 » Comments
New York International Auto Show
2005 Nissan Xterra
Last week's New York Auto Show11 included some gorgeous new vehicles. I was especially enamored of the 2005 Nissan Xterra12 (more info13)! I love my X, but this new design is a thing of beauty. Nissan has increased the horsepower, updated the design, and tweaked nearly every aspect of this truck. Although I would never buy a first model year vehicle, I may keep my eye on the 2006 Xterra. Another standout was the Audi RSQ concept14, which was used in the upcoming Will Smith15 movie I, Robot16 (trailer17).
Wednesday, April 14, 2004 @ 20:14 » Comments
Feeling the Pinch
If anyone asks, a pinched nerve18 hurts like hell and I found out the hard way. I strained my shoulder moving some kegs at the pub last week and the ensuing tension pinched a nerve when I made a sudden movement the other day. Dad (the surgeon) said that all I could do was pop some Aleve19 and take it easy for a few days. I just hope I'm feeling better by this weekend, since Ben20's in town with Mandy and we've got a slew of activities planned. We're going to BloggerCon21 on Saturday while the girls hit some of Boston's sights. The Red Sox22 are also playing four games against the Yankees, so we'll be trying to catch games whenever possible, and I'll be cheering on friends at the Boston Marathon23 on Monday, which isn't easy to do when your neck and shoulders are essentially immobile.
Tuesday, April 13, 2004 @ 17:33 » Comments
One Hot Jeep
Although I heard about this weeks ago, John just sent me a bunch of photos of some flames he painted on his Jeep. They're a hot (har har) addition to what was already a gorgeous vehicle and the crazy thing is that he did all the work himself:
Believe it or not I painted the flames with rattle cans. I laid them out with chalk first to get the design, then I used some special 1/8" masking tape. I masked off the space in between the flames by running strips of 1" tape, then using a razor blade to cut out the overlap. I painted the whole front of the Jeep after removing all the lights, flares, etc. with 3 light coats of "safety yellow." Then I painted the tips of the flames orange and blended the two with an air brush. If I wanted a truly professional look I would then sand the eges with some really fine paper to break the edges and clear coat the whole thing. I'm pretty happy with the results. They definitely get a lot of attention and most people are floored when I tell them I painted them with rattle cans. The whole thing only took about four hours and cost about $18 to do.
Monday, April 12, 2004 @ 11:25 » Comments
Apartment Hunting?
My friend Paige has to give up a gorgeous apartment24 in the Fens. It's a spacious two-bedroom with hardwood floors on the lobby level of a well-maintained apartment complex tucked behind Fenway Park. It's available May 1st and is generating a lot of interest, so don't delay!
Wednesday, April 07, 2004 @ 00:20 » Comments
Sync Magazine, Part 2
Aireo
I've already expressed my interest in Sync Magazine25, but now my excitement has been ratcheted up a notch. Jenny Everett, an associate editor at Sync, has asked me to contribute (thanks, Jenny!). My first piece will be a brief review of the Aireo26 wireless MP3 player, which has some promising new features27. Built by Element Electronics28 and powered by SoniqCast29, this is the first MP3 player to integrate several means of communication into what they call Tri-Fi: Wi-Fi (802.11b), Txi-Fi (FM), and Hi-Fi.
Friday, April 02, 2004 @ 16:05 » Comments
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