it ain't no sin to be glad you're alive

Stapleton: Victor Cruz on top of the world after big win
Tuesday February 7, 2012, 12:17 AM
By ART STAPLETON

INDIANAPOLIS – When the questions stopped, Victor Cruz stood up from behind the microphone, descended the steps to the floor and again got lost in the celebration.

He embraced his mother, Blanca, resting his forehead on hers as the two whispered back and forth, a son and his biggest fan attempting to steal a private moment as the Giants celebrated their Super Bowl XLVI victory over the Patriots.

A smiling Elaina Watley watched with tears in her eyes from a few feet away late Sunday night inside Lucas Oil Stadium, admiring the way her biggest client – also the father of their 4-week-old daughter, Kennedy – delivered on a promise made by two North Jersey childhood sweethearts shortly after their chance meeting at a party a decade ago.

“We are living the American dream right now,” Watley said. “This is a complete joy and it’s everything we talked about wanting to do when we first got together 10 years ago.

“The day Victor and I first met, I told him, ‘Look I want to be in sports publicity. I want to be an agent. I want to do deals,’ and he said, ‘I want to be an NFL player.’

“People used to laugh at us. But you know, I think we’re a testament to dreams really coming true. We sit down every day and we highlight what our goals are. One of our goals was to have a family and we have Kennedy now. One of his goals was to win a Super Bowl and he has that now.”

She paused before adding with another smile: “And we’ve done it together.”

( a fucking love story. )

New Jersey people
They will suprise you
Cause they're not expected
To do too much

They will try harder
They may go further
Cause they never think
That they are good enough

I'm from New Jersey
I don't expect too much
If the world ended today
I would adjust
I would adjust
I would adjust
-- John Gorko - I'm From New Jersey

So, I don't really know what to say, but we are on Day 3, so I need to say something otherwise when I'm looking for shit in another year I'll be pissed at myself and my lack of OCD. I love Russia, I hate Russia. It's a thing most of you know but I'm prefacing it for the newer people. I didn't realize other people could be like this until I was in college and one of my professors, who was teaching Russian Civ, was a Hungarian whose family was forced out of their country after countless members were murdered during the "civil" disputes between Hungry and Russia that happened. And he said it is perfectly fine to still teach people about Russia even with all that on his plate because as long as you catch your biases, you can still discuss and talk about things in a civil manner. Which always amused me not only because of the "we all hate Russians" aspect but also because I'm still pretty sure he was teasing some of the other students in the class about their obvious American politics as well.

Anyway, I'm getting distracted from the subject matter at hand. Expect a lot of links:

Jet carrying hockey team crashes; at least 43 dead
PUBLISHED Wednesday, Sep 7, 2011 at 9:12 am EDT
LAST UPDATED 22 hours and 53 minutes ago

A jet carrying a top ice hockey team crashed into a river bank while taking off from Yaroslavl, Russia, Wednesday, killing at least 43 people and leaving two others critically injured in one of the worst plane crashes ever involving a sports team, officials said.

Among the dead were numerous former NHL players, including Stanley Cup winner Brad McCrimmon, three-time All-Star Pavol Demitra and other members of the Kontinental Hockey League's Yaroslavl Lokomotiv team.

The Russian government released a list of the passengers aboard the plane. The translated list can be found here.

Both Russia and the world of hockey were left stunned by the deaths of so many international stars in one catastrophic event. Two other people on board were critically injured.

The Russian Emergency Situations Ministry said the Yak-42 plane crashed into the shores of the Volga River immediately after leaving the airport near the western city of Yaroslavl, 150 miles (240 kilometers) northeast of Moscow. It was sunny at the time.

(  At first we didn't want to believe it. But right now there is no hope. The team is gone, a Lokomotiv official told Russian news outlet Sovietsky Sport. )

Alexander Vasyunov, a prospect for the New Jersey Devils, also died in the crash, Devils GM Lou Lamoriello told The (Bergen, N.J.) Record.

"Words cannot express what has transpired," Lamoriello said. "I knew a lot of players that were on that team."

( In recent years, Russia and the other former Soviet republics have had some of the world's worst air traffic safety records. Experts blame the poor safety record on the age of the aircraft, weak government controls, poor pilot training and a cost-cutting mentality )

In other plane crashes involving sports teams:

-- 75 Marshall University football players, coaches, fans and crew died in Kentucky on Nov. 14, 1970 on the way home from a game.

-- 14 members of the University of Evansville basketball team and coach Bob Watson were among 29 killed on Dec. 13, 1977, when DC-3 charter bound for Nashville, Tenn., crashed just after takeoff from Evansville's airport.

-- 10 members of the Oklahoma State basketball team died in a 2001 crash in Colorado.

-- 30 members of the Uruguayan rugby club Old Christians were killed in the Andes in 1972.

-- The 18-member U.S. figure skating team died on their way to the 1961 world championships in Brussels.

-- In 1949, the Torino soccer team lost 18 players near Turin, Italy.

-- Eight Manchester United soccer players died in a 1958 Munich.

-- 14 members of the U.S. amateur boxing team were killed in a 1980 crash in Warsaw, Poland

*

I would've added the Polish President (and others) dying last year on the way to the Forest (Katyn Massacre). But, if something beats the Marshall crash (which I had family members on) then you know that shit is terrible.

Czechs mourn players killed in Russian crash
By KAREL JANICEK, Associated Press Sep 8, 12:37 pm EDT

PRAGUE (AP)—Hundreds of mourners gathered in the center of Prague on Thursday to honor the three Czech hockey players who died in the plane crash that killed 43 people and wiped out a top Russian club.

People lit candles around a impromptu monument in the Old Town Square formed by two ice hockey sticks, with some wearing the Czech national team jerseys and chanting the names of the three players—Karel Rachunek, Jan Marek and Josef Vasicek.

( in Prague on Thursday, after someone in the crowd shouted,  )

From my favorite blog; Russian Machine Never Breaks:

There are two known survivors of the crash — a male flight attendant and forward Alexander Galimov, who is listed in “extremely critical” condition according to Sport-Express.

The KHL’s season opener between Salavat Yulaev and Atlant was in progress when news about the tragedy broke, and was stopped after nearly 15 minutes had been played. KHL president Alexander Medvedev said the KHL season will go on as scheduled starting tomorrow.

According to RMNB’s Fedor Fedin, the mood across Russia is somber. Almost every channel on television is devoted to news of the crash, and grizzly pictures have been broadcast.

Meanwhile, reactions to the tragedy have come pouring in from the hockey community, and NHL.com has put together an extensive, though heartbreaking, collection of tweets from League players.

As for the Capitals, the catastrophe hits close to come for some players.

“I knew [Alexander Kalyanin] well, and I also know his father Igor Viktorovich well, who was a coach for Traktor,” Evengy Kuznetsov told KP Chelyabinsk. “It’s tough to talk right now. My condolences to his family.”

Former Capitals goalie Semyon Varlamov told Malamud he was ”in shock” and couldn’t say anything else. Varlamov played in Lokomotiv’s organization for four years, including two with the main club.

“It’s kind of a scary moment,” said a shaken Alex Ovechkin, via The Washington Times’ Stephen Whyno. “It’s a whole national tragedy.”

Fellow Russian Stanislav Galiev who, like Ovechkin, knew some of the players on the team, was also moved.

Candles are lit in tribute of Lokomotiv Yaroslavl in Prague’s Old Town Square.

“I am shocked,” Galiev said, again via Whyno. “It’s very sad.”

Whyno also reports that new Capitals goalie Tomas Vokoun declined to comment on the crash, saying his best friend was on board.

“Gloomy day in DC and even worse news in Russia,” defenseman John Carlson tweeted. “Prayers to all the family/friends associated today.”

“I heard about the accident, and I can’t say anything other than what happened today is just awful,” Nicklas Backstrom told Hockeysverige.se, as translated by @Rabiesmalin, about countryman Stefan Liv. ”First, Stefan was a very good friend of mine, and then that the whole team was killed in the accident. You can say nothing bad about Stefan as a friend. He was a very happy and positive person and he always had a smile on his face. The news was awful to receive and hard to comprehend.”

The league echoed their players’ sentiments.

In what should be "OH MY GOD THIS IS SO AWESOME, YANN DANIS HAS A JOB AGAIN WITH HIS BEAUTIFUL EYELASHES" news, instead is omg that's right, Danis played in Russia for a while in this article entitled "Oilers free agent flew on some scary planes while playing in Russia."

“The commercial planes were fine but when you fly charter, the planes are older. You would see some duct tape here and there but you don’t think about it too much. What can you do?” said former New York Islander/New Jersey Devils goalie who was signed to a free-agent Edmonton Oilers’ contract this summer.

Danis said they had to pile team equipment in the cabin once because there was no room underneath but it was the refuelling which made him nervous.

“We were so far away from anything; if we flew from Khabarovsk to Moscow we had to stop in Siberia to get gas because the plane wasn’t big enough for the gas for an eight to 10-hour flight. You’d look out the window and it would be pitch black in the middle of the night, the wind and snow and crazy cold. The plane would be shaking,” said Danis, who played on a team based 30 minutes from the Chinese border.

Getting paid full salary and the safety of their families has always been a concern for North American players in Russia, although Danis said he liked his time in Khabarovsk. And there were always the worries of air travel within Russia, where the safety record is far worse than Europe and North America.

“To hear about the crash is obviously surprising,” he said, “but the planes; some are from the ’80s. Unfortunately it takes something like this to happen but now I’m sure they will remove some of the planes. There’s a lot of billionaire owners over there. I’m sure they’ll be ordering new ones.”

Danis had one close call at an airport, not in Yaroslavl. “We were sitting on our plane one day about an hour before a bomb exploded that killed 13 and about 20 feet away from where it happened,” said Danis.

Just another day in paradise.

( more Oilers talking about Pavol Demitra, Josef Vasicek, Ruslan Salei, and coach Brad McCrimmon )

Smyth has been on lots of NHL charters with the winds in Denver buffeting planes regularly. “Sometimes as players we’re in a rush to get out of a city. We’re thinking ‘OK, get this plane off the ground and in the air, if we have to wait awhile’ but we should always be thinking ‘let’s take a few extra minutes and make sure they’re doing the right things,’’’ he said.

*

I am agreeing with Ryan Smyth over something? What is this fresh hell I have walked into?

Also, Demitra and Gaborik were 'close friends' which makes sense given their, as Puck Daddy said, "rock star" like treatment in Slovakia.

*

“The Dallas Stars family is shocked and saddened by the passing of Karlis Skrastins and so many other young lives in a plane crash today in Russia,” said Stars GM Joe Nieuwendyk. “It’s been a hard summer for the NHL, but this obviously is devastating news. It hits home very hard here, because ‘Scratch’ was a great teammate for a lot of guys and always gave his hardest on the ice and was very much-loved by his teammates. It’s just tragic news.”

[......]

“It’s difficult. I think a lot of these guys are devastated,” Nieuwendyk said. “I think Kari Lehtonen came in this morning, heard the news and turned around and went right out of here, home. I think he was close with Karlis and everybody respected the way Karlis played for us and gave his all every night and never complained. He had a big effect on all his teammates.”

More with the Dallas Stars

*
Players jittery about playing in KHL

Another agent who counts several elite Czech and Slovak players in his stable – large numbers of athletes from the former Soviet Bloc countries play in the KHL – painted a stark picture of life in the 24-team league.

“I have never been a big proponent of guys going over to play in the KHL,” Allan Walsh said in an e-mail. “It’s not just the air travel. [New Jersey Devils winger] Patrik Elias almost died in Magnitogorsk during the lockout when he was stricken with hepatitis and his liver shut down. He was in a crumbling hospital packed with seriously ill patients and subpar medical treatment.”

Yes. I never, ever, ever, ever, ever have to worry about Patrik Elias going back to Russia to play for the KHL for more money. Ever.

Remembering the NHL stars of Lokomotiv Yaroslavl
By Greg Wyshynski [Puck Daddy]

Karel Rachunek

The defenseman played in the NHL from 2000-2008 with the Ottawa Senators, New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils. Patrik Elias(notes) of the Devils was close to Rachunek, and remembered him thusly:

"This is such a sad day. I knew six or seven of the guys on that team (Lokomotiv Yaroslavl)," Elias said. "I was closest to Karel. We played together on the Czech team during the lockout. And, of course, with the Devils.

"He was very easy-going. He had a tough time in New Jersey. I always felt hockey-wise he had a chance to be our best 'D' but it was tough for him. He didn't talk much so some people got the wrong opinion of him, but everyone would tell you he was a great guy. He has two little kids. It's so sad."

Rachunek had played with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl on and off since 2002.



Alexander Vasyunov; draft pick of the Devils. According to twitter (where most of my news came from), he was the first body identified. Just looking at him, you could tell that I had high, high (Holikian) hopes for him.

*

And say what you will about Deadspin and it's sports coverage, but they've been on top of this too. the original updated plane crash and then the "heartbreaking" hockey funeral as well.

And in other things that I should be talking about instead:

Sidney Crosby spoke about his brains. He's not retiring, but, he's also not completely healthy either because concussions are terrible things, even when they happen to people you are generally apathatic to, like, Sidney Crosby. There is also a disturbingly hilarious converstation about how Sidney Crosby is a car (?). Which should just pick up the whole "CROSBY IS ACTUALLY A ROBOT, MARIO PICKED HIM UP AT A GARAGE SALE" theory which I always support.

Speaking of hockey heroes I don't give a fuck about because I ALWAYS pick the evil Eastern European bad boy over the boring Canadian; Yann Danis has a pretty nifty new mask for the Oilers which has the "history" of the Oilers painted onto it (in an attempt to make sure he stays with the team, I assume?)

And speaking of evil Eastern European bad boy, "Teenage girls can't resist allure of Ovechkin?" is not as dirty as I thought it would be (sad face) but pretty adorable anyway because I could see myself being that person running up NYC blocks to find him!

Also, the only parts of Eastern PA that I actually LIKE are now getting the flooding that we had last (last?) week. Terrible =/

Finally, while I am still in this fresh glow of "public posting?!" Tie Domi, THE Tie Domi, has a message to all of you.

"People think depression is a weakness. It's not a weakness. It's a negative state of mind that produces chemical changes in the brain. It's important that people realize that if they want to help. We have to send the message that depression can be beaten." -- said as he was going to Wade Belak's funeral in Nashville.

Czech Republic's Patrik Elias celebrates after scoring against Slovakia in their qualification round game at the Ice Hockey World Championships in Bratislava, Slovakia May 6, 2011.

And we all know how well that has gone for the past 40 years.

David Wright Is Also the Mets’ Best Bowler
2/21/11 at 3:00 PM Comment

As if playing baseball in sunny Florida wasn't already enough fun, baseball clubs sometimes organize teamwide outings during spring training so that players can bond. Sometimes they shoot pool. Last year, the Yankees went to an arcade, where A.J. Burnett schooled his teammates at an Indy Car racing game. (Incidentally, this would prove to be the highlight of Burnett's 2010 season.) And yesterday, more than 40 Mets players and coaches went bowling. The star of the night? David Wright, whose impressive high game of 259 was tops on the team by some margin. The next best game? Mike Pelfrey, who rolled a 188. Said Wright to a reporter who suggested he must have been practicing all winter: "Pure athleticism."

an AJ Burnett burrrrrrrrrn in the middle of a "there is nothing to do in Port St. Lucie but bowl?" post? Everything about that is awesome, including Mr. 34 bowling 188.



Look! Jose has new tattoos, that ass <3.

( moar Mets and misc. other spring training pictures  )

So, the Mets got rid of Luis Castillo and Ollie Perez. Both of them were examples for (shitty) Mets fans of how horrible the former GM was in regards to paying people money in regards to their actual talents. Castillo would've been fine, except the Mets couldn't give him a paycut and too many Mets fans are racist assholes and would've still bitched that he was on the team. Ignoring of course that for a very long time the longest tenured Met prior to Omar as GM was; David Wright (fine), Jose Reyes (fine), and Steve god-fucking-damn Trachsel (but that was fine, all of his crappy years as a Met -- because he's white and thusly... awesome? maybe?)

Well, from the "Goodbye Ollie" article that I loved;

“You might know before,” Perez said. “But when they tell you, you don’t feel great. I think when you get fired anywhere, you feel sad. It’s not a good moment.
“But you have to be stronger. My life is not done.”
His voice cracked. The words trailed off. The end. After months of speculation — fans howling, the front office observing, Perez trying in vain to recapture his 92-mph fastball — it was over.
[......]

The fan base detested him. They jeered him on Opening Day last season. They mocked him when he walked in the final run of the 2010 season. They roared with delight on Saturday, when he surrendered a pair of homers in a relief appearance and sealed his fate with his own ineffectiveness.
“I think I can be better than that,” Perez said. “That’s why I don’t want to quit. I want to get better, for my family, and for me.”
It was 8:25 a.m. Perez thanked a group of reporters and headed for the clubhouse exit. The gray Camry idled in the players’ parking lot. Oliver Perez entered the passenger side and the car pulled away underneath a rising sun.
Inside the clubhouse, Reyes laughed. Niese thumbed his iPhone. David Wright sipped from a Styrofoam cup of coffee, grinning with R.A. Dickey about a clubhouse prank.
The game would carry on for those still capable of playing it.

And then let's talk about Jose Reyes some more because Lord knows I do not do enough of that once the actual season actually starts.

Reyes "surprised" by Castillo's release -- Here is Luis Castillo’s close friend Jose Reyes, speaking about the Mets decision to release Castillo today. The always ebullient Reyes was as sullen as I’ve seen him, speaking softly and looking at the ground:

"He’s a very good friend of mine. He’s close to me. When you see somebody go, it’s going to hurt. He was playing good. It’s not like he was playing terrible. I didn’t even have the chance to say goodbye.

I’m surprised a little bit, because he was playing good baseball. But I don’t make that decision. Everybody loves Castillo in the clubhouse. I’m very close to him, so it’s hard to see him go.

It’s going to be good for him probably. Last year was kind of difficult for him.

He just went home. He felt bad. I talked to him every single day. I go to his house and we talk about stuff. The energy level was kind of down, because of all the speculation about what was going to happen to him. It got in his head. I wanted to help him out, because it’s tough on the field when all that stuff is in your head."

Goddamned heartbreaking. But, luckily, Castillo got a minor league deal with Philly and already got to see a future The Dugout moment with Manny hitting (Little) Roy Oswalt in the neck with a hit.

The prospect of former teammate Luis Castillo playing for division rival Philadelphia made Jose Reyes chuckle Monday. "Crazy, right?" he said. "Same division, bro.

"Hopefully, they give Castillo an opportunity there. He can still play. If they give him the chance, he's going to do his job. I'm sure of that."

Even the light-hitting Castillo could get a power surge from Citizens Bank Park, a notorious hitters' park. "He might hit 30 home runs at that place," said Mike Pelfrey, clearly joking.

The Mets could face Castillo in the second series of the regular season in Philadelphia after opening up at Florida. Castillo could earn playing time as a replacement for the injured Chase Utley at second.

Reyes said he spoke to Castillo daily while Castillo was a Met. "I went to his house, he came to mine," Reyes said. "He had a lot of pressure on his head because he didn't know what's going to happen to him, if he's going to play too much or not. He (brought) that to the field, so it's tough to perform like that. In one way, I felt happy for him so he could find a job with another team and get some pressure off his back."

Love. <3.

And finally, concussions! Justin Morneau urges players to opt for safer helmet. Some of what he's saying is incorrect but I don't fucking care as long as he gets more information out to the players so that there is not another "My name is Ryan Church, I am going to get on an airplane after having two concussions in a week period -- and we are going to Colorado and WHY AM I PUKING SO MUCH -- OH GOD I AM DYING -- AND NOW I WILL BE OUT OF COMMISION FOR MONTHS INSTEAD OF WEEKS, ;.;" episode with the players. Because while that shit drives me closer and closer to Chris Nowinski -- it also drives me closer and closer to fucking madness.

Creepy pictures of Mariano Rivera? Check.

( clickclickclick for more )



Oh. God. Worst picture ever, I DO NOT WANT MARK PRIOR ANYWHERE NEAR MY AJ BURNETT, DO YOU UNDERSTAND WORLD? DO YOU? BURNETT SAYS HE'S FEELING GOOD, HE WON'T BE CRAPPY AGAIN AND THIS IS JUST TOO MUCH OF A TEMPATION WITH MARK PRIOR AROUND.

In conclusion, that ate up a lot of time. And now after having a migraine to kill all migraines this weekend, I get (get~! thanks, Kinga) to go to work at 7:30 tomorrow. Sweet (?) Hopefully someone fucking plowed, because yes, it snowed again. Winter, be over. Or at least let me be in Florida for spring training and nothing else.

Tomorrow, or the next time I have time to kill -- the Mets!

It would explain why I still love Jeff Weaver more then his brother.

Tue Oct 05 09:45am PDT
Barry Zito could be left off San Francisco's NLDS roster entirely
By 'Duk

It turns out that A.J. Burnett(notes) might not be the only high-priced pitcher passed over in the first round of the playoffs.

Out west, the San Francisco Giants are in a position to tell Barry Zito(notes) that his "Magic Unicorn Hour" services won't be needed against the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS.

When discussing his upcoming rotation, Giants manager Bruce Bochy said he was considering either Tim Lincecum(notes) on short rest or rookie Madison Bumgarner(notes) when (and if) Monday's Game 4 rolls around.

Here's what Bochy said on Tuesday morning when asked if Zito and his $126 million contract would even be on the 25-man playoff roster (via @dandibley):

"Hard for me to say that right now. Gotta get with Sabes [GM Brian Sabean] and the staff first"

Zito being left off the roster wouldn't come as a huge surprise. He was 1-8 with a 6.80 ERA over his final 10 starts and only lasted three innings in a clinching opportunity against the San Diego Padres on Saturday. And as Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News notes, he wouldn't have much value to the Giants coming out of the bullpen. Bumgarner could do either, which is why he'll end up with a spot.

Unlike the Yankees with Burnett's struggles, the Giants have the starting depth to not worry about Zito's possible absence. Their stockpile of arms is part of what's making this possible.

But you have to figure that it comes as major disappointment to Zito. After going an encouraging 7-3 with a 2.94 in April and May, this probably wasn't the type of finish he was envisioning.

Well, there's those two and then there is: Halladay finally gets to make postseason debut. So, who knows. Also, I need to check, but I hope to the baseball Gods and Zito's Unicorns, that the Reds/Phillies matchup is Bronson Arrrrroyo vs. Doc Halladay.

I might watch that matchup with my pants off~!

The Out Of Context quote of this week is brought to you by the letter T as in Trin:

Trin: i suggest also writing from the heart first
Trin: just vomit all over the cover letter

And this isn't the context, but it is similar to what I'm currently plotting; Did I tell any of you here on LJ that I emailed the Sports Legacy Institute with a general, hey I'm very interested in concussion research and stuff and are there any volunteer openings up and such? And I got an ACTUAL~! email~! from Chris Nowinski himself (saying no! but still~!)? If I didn't say that, I did now. And if I did say it, I think it bares repeating.

Anyway, I was kind of a bitch last night -- I sent a columnist from the Boston Herald a very cranky 5 AM email saying that even as a person who doesn't live in Boston, I know that the Herald is a pretty okay newspaper and that you should do some GODDAMNED FUCKING RESEARCH if you are going to be writing a baseball column. Jeff is NOT Jered Weaver. I mean it's one thing if a blog gets the two confused but this isn't a fucking blog. And then someone commented to the guy and said, hey that wasn't Jeff, that was Jared, so now the columinist still has it misspelt. I mean, come on. Even if I didn't stalk the Weaver brothers like I do, much like how I know there are two i's in Torii Hunter's name, it's just a thing, you know? Ugh.

Also, in regards to baseball, even though I think Amy is the only (other) one who would remember Phil Coke on my f-list -- but, caruso made a Phil Coke playlist that is AMAZING and just ugggh. Makes me shake my fist at Detroit for having him because he's so far away.

( Dontrelle Willis, Josh Beckett, and AJ Burnett walk into a bar -- and the bar burns down )


Anyway, that's where I stopped a couple days ago. Which is cool because yesterday AJ Burnett and Josh Beckett both pitched and were awesome. Beckett came back from his "injury" (both mental and shoulder/arm related I'm sure) and AJ just finally had a good game (because I didn't watch any baseball just to give him the extra cosmic boost yesterday -- the things I do for you AJ).


Instructor: Those people outside are crazy, wearing big ol' leather boots in this kind of heat!
Student: Maybe they're from Texas?
Instructor: Nah, they looked pretty American to me.

--Beauty School, 35th & 8th

Final baseball thing;

MLB.com has an article about how the Mets are failures. .. .... ...... in regards to never having a no-hitter, perfect game or anything else that would be awesome for a pitcher.

The topic in the Mets' clubhouse that day was no-hitters, a topic Mets pitchers discuss from time to time without firsthand knowledge of the phenomenon. It was in the summer of 2005 when Steve Trachsel recalled the six-man no-hitter the Astros had dropped on the Yankees two years earlier. "Is that allowed?" Trachsel asked. Then he answered his own rhetorical question. "Probably not; at least not for us. I don't think we are allowed."

[............]

The Mets, born seven years earlier, were guilty of a greater transgression, turning their backs on the patron saint of the no-no; they traded Nolan Ryan. "It's the Curse of Nolie," David Cone said in 1991 after he had flirted with a Mets no-hitter. "You can't trade that man and not expect some ramifications."

( 45 days in a row meme! )

day 09| something you’re looking forward to

I want to get this one in before tomorrow (tomorrow is my real D-Day). I really don't have that much to look forward to this summer, which would be "awesome" and "relaxing" except, I always have the bug inside of me that wants to be doing things and have things figured out and a set list of shit to do rather then general crap. I think normal people call it "anal" though. And not the fun kind either. Anyway, things that I am looking forward to; Ami's wedding in June - the Rufus Wainwright concert in July with Joe - and trying to weasel out of doing another summer trip with my aunt (she wants to go to Baltimore. This, the same woman who said: "Woah, there sure are a lot of black people around here. Are the doors locked?" when we drove through Camden on the way to Philly. Ugh. Seriously? Yes.)


Oh by the way since I am no longer paying attention to the NHL -- the Czech team won the 2010 IIHF ice hockey world championship -- beating Russia. I am pleased.

Tomas Vokoun is, at 33, and as an established NHL goalie, one of the leaders on the Czech team. After the semi-final, the team stood on the blueline, arms around each others’ shoulders, singing the national anthem, then resuming the jumping and hugging they had done for five minutes right after the buzzer. Jaromir Jagr said that he was especially happy for the young players on the team.

“Our team spirit is unbelievable. I’m in the same boat with (Jagr) and I don’t know if I’m going to get another chance like this, probably not, but we have a dozen rookies in the tournament, and some of them wouldn’t even be here had more NHLers joined the team. They deserve this. They prove it on the ice night after night,” Vokoun says.

The Karlovy Vary native is also making sure he appreciates all the good things while they happen. And he’s having a time of his life.

“The older you get, the more you enjoy these tournaments, and the team life. I won the world championship once, but it was a stressful time and I didn’t enjoy it. This time I do,” he says.

He is an established NHL goalie, no matter what the Florida fucking Panthers might say or do. And from this article:

“We knew this is the last game of the year. Coming into the tournament, if I had one wish, it would be to win my last game in a Czech uniform. This is probably my last game. This is a great moment for me and an unbelievable moment for all the guys in the locker room. We were doubted from the beginning to the end. Now, nobody can doubt us.”

The Czechs, who had just four NHL players compared to 14 for the record 25-time world champs Russia, faced plenty of do-or-die situations coming into Sunday’s final in Cologne

<3 <3 <3 <3

Oh, PS: One of my very good friends thinks she might have a tumor (and no, it's not just you, Ami), so if you do so, please pray for her and all that stuff that it's something easy, breezy, beautiful and treatable if it is a tumor. =/

So, the Devils are down 3-0 to the Flyers going into the 3rd (and final) period. If they don't score 4 goals (or 3 goals and then a shootout goal/s) they are gone for the year, no more Stanley Cup run. And what commerical does MSG play? The NHL one about the Avs winning the Cup in 2001 with Joe Sakic. Now, my personal feelings of hate for that series and for that team aside -- do you know how they beat to win that Cup? The New Jersey Devils.

Whhhhhhhhhhy the fuck would you put that particular NHL Stanley Cup commerical?!?! Ugh. Sometimes I hate how little about hockey people seem to know, even on the local "hockey" channel (what else is MSG known for besides music? It's hockey and music).

Love,
a new but cranky customer.

PS: I miss listening to hockey on the radio, even when it doesn't come in very good, even though I'm less then 20 miles away from where the radio waves are.

Hahahhahah the best thing of all of this was the coach.

"I can not talk to players when angry. I need to sleep. *stands up, leans into the microphone* I need a nap. *leaves*"

The Daily Northwestern > Sports
In loved ones, Joe Girardi finds team for life
NU alumni fill Girardi's support staff of family and friends
By Hunter Atkins
Published: Wednesday, January 6, 2010

After spending more than 15 years in the major leagues and managing the World Series Champion New York Yankees, it would be easy for Joe Girardi to let baseball consume his life. But relationships have always been more important to him.

Especially the one with his father.

Months after winning his first of four World Series titles in 1996, Girardi asked his father, Gerald, to join him at the podium of his Northwestern Athletic Hall of Fame induction. Joe then presented his father with his championship ring, a modest token of appreciation for the man who devoted his life to the success and well-being of his family. A child of the Great Depression and working class father of five, Gerald was never one to dwell on things or gripe, his emotions sewn tight like the stitches of a baseball. But on stage at the induction, the typically composed and unemotional father stared into the eyes of his son and tears began to swell. Then they ran.

This unbridled moment of father-son pride was one of the last of its kind.
The once-tearful father rarely opens his eyes when Joe visits him these days. When he does glance at his son, it’s as if he’s staring into thin air. Gerald began showing signs of Alzheimer’s decades ago, calling his children by the wrong name. In 2006 he was checked into an assisted living facility. With his father's conditions worsening, Joe had to take back the ring for safe keeping.

“I miss him,” said Girardi in an interview Monday. “That’s the biggest feeling that I have, just not being able to talk to my father. We shared so many wonderful memories together since I was a little boy because I went everywhere he went.”

Girardi said he enjoyed being a boy glued to his father into his 40s. “It wasn’t until the last three or four years that we haven’t been able to share a lot, and now it’s nothing.”

Joe’s memories of his father trace back to acts that may have been small at the time, but comprised a lifetime of support. Despite working three jobs, Gerald found time to be the cook for the football team at Spalding Institute in Peoria, Ill., where Joe played quarterback in high school. During Joe’s minor league days, he would grab a brown bag lunch his father packed. Gerald introduced Joe to the roaring crowds at Wrigley Field and the quaint Canadian lakes where the old man gave his son fishing tutorials.

Gerald would be upset if he let work get in the way of time with his children, so after long weeks as a salesman by day and part-time bartender by night, he would sometimes bring his children to his third job as a weekend bricklayer. Mortar was spread and red slabs were stacked, cementing the bond between father and son.

Considering these moments of closeness, it is no wonder Joe said he resembles his father. Staring into the Yankees dugout, the manager sports a crew-cut, his arms crossed, stoic and antisocial. The only sight of activity occurres along his jaw line, which bulges with each chomp of gum, and at his chest, which he swivels around from right to left as transference of nervous energy. Girardi approaches managing like a workman, baseball’s bricklayer.

Beyond the attitude Joe adopted from his father is another component playing out in his everyday life. Joe is widely known by fans for his pinstripe coding and championship rings. But those lucky enough to get closer to the Yankee know him most for caring about people in a way that extends beyond his role as a parent, manager and public figure. The intensity of the relationship between Joe and his father served as a blueprint for how Joe would approach others, a sort of guide for how to engage with people on a deeply personal level.

When he looks back on his career, Girardi does not remember what the pitch count was when he got a big hit or what runner he threw out to preserve his team’s lead. “The interesting things you remember when you’re done playing are the relationships,” he said, referencing former coaches and teammates Don Zimmer, Mike Harkey, Paul O’Neill, David Cone and Dante Bichette, who he named his son after. “I don’t remember games, I remember people.”

( cut for more, including Girardi being my favorite kind of Christian, the kind that will tell you about his 'special' relationship with the Lord, but only if you ask enough questions )

Finally, I hate a lot of the Yankees bloggers in general, but I tend to hate the "Confessions of a She-Fan" the most, but this article detailing why she's extremely sadden that David Cone isn't coming back to the Yankees announcer booth puts my feels into the dumb stock photos and videos she uses.