02 July 2007

My July

Happy July, everyone. This is my most favorite month of the year, as it brings a birthday, my favorite holiday, the best weather of the year and so many other good things. I also leave for Puerto Rico on Thursday and that promises to be a very relaxing trip indeed.



I couldn't believe my ears this morning when I turned on ESPN radio and promptly heard the starting lineups for the All-Star Game. For some ungodly reason, Julio Lugo did not get the nod at shortstop. How can this be? He's hitting a robust .190, he has a sub .200 OBP and he's a fantastic defensive shortstop. I guess the players just really respect Derek Jeter. Too bad for Julio. As I sit here and watch the Sox, I am already really partial to this Ellsbury kid. I've been anticipating his premiere in center for the Sox since he was drafted, and even more so this preseason when he was tagged as the club's #1 prospect. Tonight, he's 2-for-2 with two singles, and he hit his first non-infield base hit just now. He has tremendous speed...what timing, as he just stole the first base of his career. Way to go, Jacoby. Here's hoping he becomes what he's expected to be, which is the next Johnny Damon. Well, minus the defection to Manhattan. Hey, Lugo just walked. I think his OBP is over .200 now...

Remy and Orsillo just had Ray Allen in the broadcast booth with them. I have to say, he's a very well-spoken guy who carries himself in a very professional way off the court from what I see. They put him in a Red Sox jersey, which is fine, but I can't imagine he was all too thrilled about wearing it. He'll probably be a fan in due time, but let's not force it on him, huh? Another update: Ellsbury just scored from second on a wild pitch. Really good stuff there.

So I'm driving back into town this afternoon after leaving work, and there I am in the middle lane, minding my own business. I'm going about 75mph which is a little behind the flow of traffic, but it's a comfortable speed for me at this time. At some point, I happen to catch a silver mass in my periphery and as I look over to my left, I see a silver Caravan swerving in to my lane, completely unaware of my existence. I lean on the horn and swerve sharply to the right, avoiding contact with the van. It's close, and I'm a little shaken up. I slow down significantly so I can collect myself, but I'm cursing like a mother giving birth to sextuplets. Between a bird here and bird there in the direction of the van, I'm also throwing my hands up in the air in my typical "what the fuck" body language. Eventually, I collect myself enough and I get back into the travel lane and continue on. I notice that the van is not far ahead of me and it's going pretty slow. I'm certain that I'm going to pass it, and I am curious to see what is sitting in the front seat. So I gain speed, get up alongside the van and I peer over to see the culprit. What I see is an elderly man flipping me the bird, and he's looking right at me. He holds his stare as I pass him, and he even switches hands with the bird just in case I couldn't see it well enough with his first effort. This kinda made me laugh, because it was an old man flipping me off with much fervor. At the same time, I was even more pissed because what the hell did I do? Why the hell was this guy upset with me? I don't know.

So my idea is this: a verbally-commanded, scrolling message board that's projected onto the passenger's window of the car. This way, you'd be able to say all those things that you really, really want to say to those shithead drivers out there. For instance, to the old man I could have shown "At least I'm not going to die soon", or "Nice Caravan, you old bag". Again, this is verbally-commanded, so you don't have to worry about using your hands while you drive. It's a safe and effective way to tell other drivers to fuck off. The possibilities are endless.

Lastly, I found it amusing that Roger got his 350th win last night in the midst of a reeling organization that just can't get out of that 3rd place hole. It makes me wonder if Roger only wanted to come to NY so that he could get all the fanfare of Manhattan to accompany this milestone victory. I'm happy for the guy in a lot of ways, mainly because that's about the only thing Yankee fans have to celebrate these days. The playoffs are looking like a real longshot, especially with the way all the teams in front of them are playing and will probably continue to play post All-Star break. Oh well. You've had yours. And you still suck.

I think this is going to be my last post until I leave for PR, so I bid you all adieu and a very happy Fourth. If I can find a place to drop a blog down in San Juan, I certainly will, but don't count it. When I return I'll be a tan version of a newly minted 28 year-old man. Eeeeee...28 is scary.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

try this:
http://www.apogeekits.com/ad_display_r.htm

Jum said...

I am also very, very excited about the Jacoby era. Too bad we can't plug him in at shortstop. Have fun in Puerto Rico.

pacing the cage said...

i have found, thanks to oldest brother, that i prefer to give people an emphatic thumbs up when they make a poor decision while driving. i suggest you try it.

Anonymous said...

Have a good trip gee. I like the sign idea. Maybe you could draw up a schematic and submit your design to some car companies. In a few years people could be asking if you had the "chad" installed yet.

Anonymous said...

Happy Birthday, chuckles. Watch out for sharks in PR.

D-Lo said...

I need a sign when running that says, "Please don't throw a bottle at me."

Anonymous said...

I think the technology exists for installing such a device in your automobile. Think of the teleprompters used by public speakers everywhere. This could very easily be adapted to work in your automobile. We already have graphic displays which show on the windshield of some cars, so why not on the passenger-side door? I've always dreamed of something like this, and now we have to technology to make it a reality. In addition to the above-mentioned technology, we also have voice recognition software and voice translation software, so everything is there to make such a device a reality.

Who's ready to take on the project?

Jum said...

I don't know if you will be back from PR yet, but we'll be in Boston Friday night. We're boozing for sure after the game on saturday, and probably friday too. My number is 701-741-3336, give a ring if you want to try and meet up.

pacing the cage said...

you two have an obligation to the blogging community to spend some time together, then blog about it.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Ben. But, mon fils, don't forget that you are coming to chez nous on Sunday. Don't drink too much biere on Saturday!