Remember back in Game 4 of the ALCS?

ESPN.com's Page 2 featured this illustration the next day. Loved it so much I saved it.

No Words

Found via the SoSH website. If you're a Sox fan and don't frequent SoSH, well... you're missing something. Also, if you're a Sox fan and don't know who's in the picture, or what's going on... you're also missing something.



It's getting a little dusty in here.

I Never Thought I Would Write These Words

World Series Champions
Boston Red Sox

Think about how many old people who have always said they just want to live long enough to see the Sox win the Series. Do you realize how many people are going to drop dead today?

Amazing. So I think this leaves some big questions. Clearly we have to retire "Yankees Suck." So do we chant "Year Two-Thou-sand"? "Who's your Papi"? "A-Rod Is A Ball-Slapping Bitch" (that one's hard to find a good rhythm for). Man oh man. Unreal.

Passing the Time in Property Class

Assignment: Compare and contrast the United States and England.

me: color - colour
hillary: elevator - lift, highway - tarmac, they're just so silly over there
me: bathroom - loo
hillary: Britney Spears - the Queen
me: fart jokes - crossdressing
hillary: life savings on braces - bad teeth and/or prince william jaw
me: miller time - tea time
hillary: religious crazies - atheists (the Brits win on this one!)
me: burger and fries - fish and chips (push)
hillary: danger: third rail - mind the gap
me: walden pond - stratford-upon-avon
hillary: look left before crossing - look right (how many Americans have almost lost their lives in London?)
me: superfans - hooligans
hillary: common law - civil law (screw the details!)
me: southie - cockney
hillary: new kids - beatles
me: Aerosmith - Queen
hillary: snow - rain
me: Billy Joel - Elton John
hillary: Charles - thames
me: EST - GMT
hillary: SNL - ??????
me: SNL - Monty Python
hillary: that's what i was thinking!

Wow.

Yet Another Red Sox rant

This was in response to a ridiculous article I read on SI.com. The link is here.

Where do I begin? First of all, get the facts straight. It seems clear that you've done no research whatsoever, and have simply relied on perpetuating stereotypes to write this article. After all, Babe Ruth was traded in 1920--two years after the Sox won their last World Series. But it's a lot more convenient to say it was 1918, isn't it?

Let me provide you with a little taste of reality. This "woe-is-me" New Englander idea is a complete myth. You so much as acknowledge this in your discussion of the Pats' run. We're predominantly the same group of fans, after all. But no, the media has decided that Red Sox Nation is woebegone, with Ben Affleck as our annointed spokesman, and there isn't a thing those of us living in the real world can do about it.

Not every New Englander believes in that silly curse, as you seem to believe. I think you'll find that as a whole, New York fans have been much more fixated on it, if only as a means of harassing their Boston counterparts. To that extent, "Reverse the Curse" is more a rally cry--like Rally Monkeys, Homer Hankies, and Terrible Towels--than a substantive desire to overturn an actual curse. Clearly you must be capable of understanding that.

Furthermore, to say that Red Sox fans have an inferiority complex is similarly inaccurate. It implies that we would actually get pleasure from losing to the Yankees. Far from it. For generations, Yankees fans have waved their pennants in our faces and laughed at our failures. I think Curt Schilling put it best when he voiced his desire to go out onto the mound and make 55,000 New Yorkers shut up. All we ever wanted is equal footing, to render that obnoxious "1918" chant powerless. And whether we win a world championship this year or no, the way in which the Red Sox defeated New York this year--the greatest comeback in the history of baseball--has done that. The spectre of Yankee arrogance has been rendered toothless and meek, and Red Sox Nation is looking forward to sitting back, flipping on the tube, and watching a great World Series.

Who knows? Maybe a win for the Sox will silence lazy columnists with no original ideas of their own. But gosh, maybe then you'd have to write about the actual game and not the media-created fantasy surrounding it.


God that article pissed me off.

Random Thought on the Eve of the World Series...

... $200 Million will get you a lot of caddies.

Greatest Comeback in Baseball History

World Series here we come. Unbelievable.

To George Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman (rest in peace); to Alex Rodriguez and his purple lipstick; to Derek "The Winner" Jeter and Mariano "Invincible" Rivera; to everybody to laughed at the tears in my eyes after Aaron Boone crushed not only my hopes, but the hopes of an entire region; to everybody who ever shouted "1918" or "26 World Championships" as if those numbers have any relevance at all; to Jeffrey Maier and Bucky Dent; to anybody who ever argued that there was a "the Yankee way" that somehow guaranteed victory; to the entire city and region of New York, I say... [expletive deleted]. Ahem, make that... Who's your daddy now, Yankees?

Better luck next time.

World Series here we come. Unbelievable.


Update: After a night of letting this sink in, I apologize to those who may be offended by the above statement. I assure you that this was not meant for all Yankees fans. It was for the ones who laugh when the Red Sox lose, who throw garbage onto the field because the umpires don't let A-Job cheat, and who got right in my face after game 7 of the 2003 ALCS as I walked from the Campus Center commons up two flights of stairs, all the while chanting "1918" and laughing. To those people, I do not apologize. I'm sorry, but you deserve to know that your team just pulled the greatest choke job in baseball history. And to be reminded. Again. And again.

...and that is why A-Rod isn't allowed to play in the sandbox with the other little girls

Section 6.1 (Offensive Interference):

While contact may occur between a fielder and runner during a tag attempt, a runner is not allowed to use his hands or arms to commit an obviously malicious or unsportsmanlike act such as grabbing, tackling, intentionally slapping at the baseball, punching, kicking, flagrantly using his arms or forearms, etc. to commit an intentional act of interference unrelated to running the bases. Also, if you pretend you didn't do anything wrong, you deserve to be bitch-slapped.

Ok, that last part wasn't in the rule. But it seems appropriate.

Highlights from Game 4

I love my roommate. And even though we watched the game last night in separate apartments in separate towns, we talked on Instant Messenger throughout the course of the game. Some highlights:

sarah (9:00:56 PM): so ideally right now, bellhorn will walk
ChestRockwell45 (9:03:18 PM): ooh, strikeout
ChestRockwell45 (9:03:23 PM): didn't see that coming at all

sarah (10:23:52 PM): they're pulling lowe, why are they pulling lowe?
sarah (10:33:39 PM): is that grady little in a terry francona uniform?

ChestRockwell45 (11:01:45 PM): do you think they could fire francona in the middle of a game?

sarah (11:02:08 PM): ok, so now we are bringing in foulke
ChestRockwell45 (11:02:11 PM): foulke in the 7th?
sarah (11:02:12 PM): in the 7th
ChestRockwell45 (11:02:13 PM): is he fucking crazy
sarah (11:02:30 PM): it's a conspiracy i think
sarah (11:02:42 PM): the yankees pay people to manage the red sox

ChestRockwell45 (11:11:53 PM): and what happens if we do win tonight?
ChestRockwell45 (11:12:05 PM): and we have a small lead tomorrow night
ChestRockwell45 (11:12:22 PM): who is going to close the game after foulke pitches three goddamn innings tonight?
ChestRockwell45 (11:15:39 PM): he'll use wakefield
ChestRockwell45 (11:15:50 PM): which is ridiculous, but
sarah (11:15:58 PM): pretty much the only option
ChestRockwell45 (11:16:00 PM): right
ChestRockwell45 (11:16:05 PM): he's closed before
sarah (11:16:11 PM): in which case, we have no one to pitch game 6
ChestRockwell45 (11:16:16 PM): schilling
sarah (11:16:25 PM): it's all coming together
ChestRockwell45 (11:16:28 PM): you gotta figure, he'll get through two innings
ChestRockwell45 (11:16:33 PM): and then we can bring in mendoza and leskanic
sarah (11:16:38 PM): and then you start with the worst relievers
ChestRockwell45 (11:17:11 PM): i love how we're anticipating each others' punchlines
sarah (11:17:20 PM): it's kind of scary

sarah (11:19:51 PM): i think i need to start drinking
ChestRockwell45 (11:19:56 PM): you haven't yet?

ChestRockwell45 (11:27:02 PM): why do i feel like we're down by 5?
sarah (11:27:11 PM): cause rivera's warming up
ChestRockwell45 (11:27:15 PM): oh right

sarah (11:32:59 PM): i think what this series needs is a good brawl
sarah (11:33:08 PM): what do we have to lose, honestly?
ChestRockwell45 (11:33:33 PM): see what i would have done is bring in leskanic
ChestRockwell45 (11:33:37 PM): peg sheffield in the head
ChestRockwell45 (11:33:41 PM): and then bring in timlin
sarah (11:34:16 PM): maybe mendoza to take a out matsui in between
ChestRockwell45 (11:34:21 PM): that would be nice

ChestRockwell45 (12:03:18 AM): he pinch-ran roberts for millar
ChestRockwell45 (12:03:33 AM): why do i feel like varitek grabbed roberts and pushed him toward the field
ChestRockwell45 (12:03:45 AM): and francona was like "no, i don't know if i want to do that"
ChestRockwell45 (12:03:49 AM): and varitek pushed him out
sarah (12:04:09 AM): maybe varitek will gag francona and tie him up
sarah (12:04:12 AM): and take over the team

(Bill Mueller drives in the tying run)
ChestRockwell45 (12:05:44 AM): yes yes yesChestRockwell45 (12:05:53 AM): yesyesyesyseyesyeyseyesys
sarah (12:05:59 AM): aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
sarah (12:06:16 AM): bill mueller is fucking clutch!

(Pokey comes in to play second in the 10th)
ChestRockwell45 (12:19:47 AM): POKEY!!!
ChestRockwell45 (12:19:50 AM): thank god
sarah (12:19:52 AM): yessssss
sarah (12:20:27 AM): wait, was the good managing?
ChestRockwell45 (12:20:36 AM): haha he had to, he pinch-hit for bellhorn
ChestRockwell45 (12:20:54 AM): although he very well might have put in mirabelli at 2B
ChestRockwell45 (12:20:55 AM): or schilling
sarah (12:22:09 AM): mendoza?
ChestRockwell45 (12:22:33 AM): haha wakefield
ChestRockwell45 (12:22:43 AM): swing and a one-hopper to second
ChestRockwell45 (12:22:46 AM): wakefield, back in the hole
ChestRockwell45 (12:23:04 AM): knuckleball to mientkalphabet who scoops it out of the dirt for out number one

ChestRockwell45 (12:40:20 AM): they showed the bullpen
ChestRockwell45 (12:40:26 AM): i just threw up in my mouth
sarah (12:40:28 AM): myers and leskanic
sarah (12:41:54 AM): might as well be mirabelli and kapler
ChestRockwell45 (12:42:02 AM): i'd prefer mirabelli and kapler

sarah (12:44:00 AM): we are going to walk sheffield to get to matsui... who is batting like a thousand
ChestRockwell45 (12:44:13 AM): that's what mccarver is suggesting
ChestRockwell45 (12:44:20 AM): then again, mccarver wants the yankees to win
sarah (12:44:47 AM): in all fairness, so does francona

sarah (1:10:35 AM): i have to work in less than 7 hours
sarah (1:10:54 AM): they should cancel boston tomorrow

(Quantrill comes in to pitch the 12th)
ChestRockwell45 (1:20:55 AM): wait, who is this pitching?
sarah (1:21:05 AM): jeter
ChestRockwell45 (1:21:22 AM): haha i kind of thought he'd be more of a catcher

(Manny leads off with a walk)
sarah (1:19:28 AM): didnt we already see this inning?

(And finally...)
ChestRockwell45 (1:21:36 AM): YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
sarah (1:21:40 AM): oritz
sarah (1:21:48 AM): !!!!!!!!!!!
ChestRockwell45 (1:22:07 AM): ladies and gentlemen, we are still alive


So that was exhausting. And, at quarter to two in the morning, i went to bed and promptly slept through the alarm in the morning. Good times. C'mon Pedie, we need this one.

Oh, and apparently I'm in law school too. Maybe they'll cancel school until the playoffs are over...

I Don't Even Know What to Say...

YOU ARE RULE 20(a)!

You are Rule 20, an important part of the Federal
Rules' policy of permissive joinder. You are
designed specifically to allow as many parties
in an action as can be tried efficiently, and
you'll include someone as long as there is some
factual overlap between a claim involving them
and the rest of the case at hand. You are
popular, out-going, and are never far from
friends. However, your overly gregarious
nature and magnanimous approach do make things
a bit crowded--you're the reason that lawsuits
are often cluttered with innumerable parties
and even more numberous claims for relief.
Still, despite the crowds that you attract, you
can't argue with the efficiency of getting
everything done at once!

Which Federal Rule of Civil Procedure Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla


You know law school is beginning to take over your life when...

Seriously, I don't know what's worse: the fact that I took the quiz at all, or that the answer makes sense to me.
This is all thanks to Ms. Jennings, by the way. Good show, Ms. Jennings, even if you are a big bad scary 12(b). Oh god I'm becoming one of them...

Do You See an Answer here? Because I don't...

QUESTIONER: President Bush, during the last four years, you have made thousands of decisions that have affected millions of lives. Please give three instances in which you came to realize you had made a wrong decision, and what you did to correct it. Thank you.

BUSH: I have made a lot of decisions, and some of them little, like appointments to boards you never heard of, and some of them big.

And in a war, there's a lot of -- there's a lot of tactical decisions that historians will look back and say: He shouldn't have done that. He shouldn't have made that decision. And I'll take responsibility for them. I'm human.

But on the big questions, about whether or not we should have gone into Afghanistan, the big question about whether we should have removed somebody in Iraq, I'll stand by those decisions, because I think they're right.

That's really what you're -- when they ask about the mistakes, that's what they're talking about. They're trying to say, "Did you make a mistake going into Iraq?" And the answer is, "Absolutely not." It was the right decision.

The Duelfer report confirmed that decision today, because what Saddam Hussein was doing was trying to get rid of sanctions so he could reconstitute a weapons program. And the biggest threat facing America is terrorists with weapons of mass destruction.

We knew he hated us. We knew he'd been -- invaded other countries. We knew he tortured his own people.

On the tax cut, it's a big decision. I did the right decision. Our recession was one of the shallowest in modern history.

Now, you asked what mistakes. I made some mistakes in appointing people, but I'm not going to name them. I don't want to hurt their feelings on national TV.

(LAUGHTER)

But history will look back, and I'm fully prepared to accept any mistakes that history judges to my administration, because the president makes the decisions, the president has to take the responsibility. (emphasis added by me, the blogger)


Unbelievable. And you wonder why the international community considers the United States to be arrogant. "I've probably made mistakes but if I did they were small ones, and even then, I don't want to tell you what they are."

Also worth noting is Prof. Yen's assessment of Bush's "mixed messages" argument. "So what I'm hearing you say is, even if we're screwing up now, the best course of action would be to keep screwing up because fixing it would send mixed messages to our troops."

Another point: props to Kerry for his reference to the "Orwellian" names the Bush administration puts on its initiatives, particularly the "Clean Skies Act," and "Clean Water Act," which make the skies and water less clean.

Everyone who is reading this should visit factcheck.org. It's an independent website with the sole purpose of pointing out factual inaccuracies by the two presidential candidates. The great thing about Kerry is that I know he would admit to his mistakes. Bush probably thinks that "facts" are part of a liberal conspiracy, just like math and the word "nuclear." (thank god his top priority is to reduce nucular proliferation. apparently you don't need to appear competent to win the presidential election. i may have a chance, afterall...)

I Enjoy the Red Sox, Whiskey Sours, and DOMINATING THE ANAHEIM ANGELS

"Privity of contract is based upon the common law that two parties enter a relationship and it's the two parties and they are the parties."

Oh, that makes sense.

Jesus God.

Quick Thoughts

A. The Patriots are so clutch. SO clutch.
2. The Red Sox. The Angels. Lock and load. This is going to be fun.
2a. I hope there isn't any actual homework I have to do for the next 3-4 weeks.
III. Rest assured, President Bush knows how the world works. I know this because he told me in the debate. Multiple times. He also knows that Osama bin Laden attacked us. Just checking.
FOUR. I'm running out of numbering systems.
cinque. la vita è piu bella in italiano
f) G-G-GOR H-H-HAM R-R-RAM Go Gorham Rams!

Ok, I'm done. Couldn't let a weekend go by without posting.

Advantage: Frankenstein

Believe whatever you want to believe, but you have to put a LOT of spin on that debate to come out saying anything except that Kerry won handily. Bush looked befuddled, he looked annoyed, he didn't answer the questions asked of him, and he didn't really respond to any accusations made of him. He simply repeated hollow catch phrases like, "it's very hard to be President." Of course it's hard! What does that even mean?

My favorite recurring exchange was when Bush would say "Kerry is sending mixed messages, he doesn't know where he stands on Iraq," and then Kerry says, "Saddam was a threat but you went about this whole thing the wrong way and now we're stuck in this war with absolutely no exit strategy and an international community that is entirely against our action. The way to get out of this is to restore the world's faith in America, build a true multi-national coalition (no disrespect to Britain and Italy -- and Poland-- but there are quite a few other countries out there who have a stake in world peace and freedom from terror... and how strong is this current "coalition" if we're bearing 90% of the casualties and 90% of the costs?), increase the international presence in Iraq, train the Iraqis to be self-sufficient, ensure Iraq and the world that America has no long-term designs on their country, and withdraw peacefully."

To which Bush responds, "Kerry is sending mixed messages, he doesn't know where he stands on Iraq."

And the conservative analysists follow the lead and say that Kerry's position still isn't clear. Aaah spin.

Anyways, this was Bush's turf. All he had to do was hammer home his record, defend why the war in Iraq was a necessary extension of the war on terror, and so forth. And he didn't do any of it. All he did was call Kerry a flip-flopper. If this was Bush's strong policy area, I can't wait to see him debate domestic policy. Until then...

Advantage: Frankenstein.