The Salad Days

At this point, it is clear to me even more that the Wild Card is ruining October baseball. The last good World Series was 2001, when the two best teams in the baseball played each other, and gave us the best world series since 1975. Over the past few years, October is littered with non-excellent teams who have gotten hot at the right time and prospered at the expense of better teams (the 1997 Marlins, 2002 Giants and Angels, 2003 Marlins, 2004 Red Sox, 2006 Cardinals. 2007 Rockies) and either win a championship or demean the World Series with their presence. The Rockies have fine talent and I actually thought that would win the World Series, but the performance they gave denotes to me that they had no business being there. Sure, it also simply denotes that the Sox have a much better team, and that the AL is a stronger league right now, but this trend supersedes that. One would be hard pressed to argue that the AL has been stronger for 10 years. Think about it...the 2006 Cardinals didn't even win 90 games, and they were the champs. The 2002 World Series, while exciting, was not much more than a bat fight, as John Lackey finally threw a decent game in game 7.

In this era when 8 teams make the playoffs, the game is being ruined. It is still entertaining, and my feeling won't change anything, because MLB is making oodles of money on the poor saps who pay for the tickets and the other poor saps (me included) who just love the game too much to not watch. Oh well...at least we don't have another Wild Card World Series winner, though ironically, my disdain for Boston led me to root for Colorado. Lesser of two evils :)

She's not going to say it herself on her blog, so I will. On this day, her birthday, my wife is in a lot of pain. She has not been herself for months due to various afflictions, and now she is trying to fight off an infection which is giving her fevers and pain. After stopping off for a birthday treat, she will visit the doctor again today, to try to get the meds she needs. I had planned a birthday bash today, so I have the day off, but we will be spending it a bit differently than I had anticipated.

I think I had always known having children would be tiring at times. But I never anticipated the toll it would take on her each time. On this, her birthday, I reaffirm my deep appreciation for her. She is a great mother, and I hope that the kiddos and I can bring some sunshine into her life on a partly cloudy birthday.

For those of you who don't know, SWT is my father-in-law. I'd be hard pressed to find a better one. He has his own vocabulary. When I first started dating Stephanie (and this continues to the present), there were entire sentences he would speak which mine as well have been in Japanese. However, since I was new to the family, I was the only one who was clueless. Without further ado, I give you the lexicon:

be-bi-botchin- (adj.; derivation of slang bitchin')-cool or exciting

blabfest (noun)-any social gathering involving his wife

cat's pajamas (noun)-metaphorical term denoting the absolute goodness of object described

confused flower beetle (noun)-metaphor used to denote a person in the state of confusion

derecho (noun, derived from Spanish derecha, meaning right)-used with the words "hang a" to denote a turn at an intersection. The direction of said turn must be known by the driver.

flippers-(noun)-thong sandals

fowl (noun)-chicken that is cooked for a meal

gallina (noun; Spanish derivative)-similar to fowl but not identical-it describes a bird which is being cooked for a meal, but not merely a chicken-may denote a chicken or a turkey

Gitgo (noun)- slang term for a Citgo gas station

hen session- (noun)- see blabfest

junk store- (noun)-any cheap or second hand store, i.e. Goodwill or Salvation army

may-po- (noun)-oatmeal

mocs- (noun)-a cold

nalgas- (noun, Spanish derivative)- rear end-especially useful when describing a photograph which depicts the posterior(s) of its subject(s) eg, "the nalgas shot"

outtie- (noun)- a restroom of any kind

The Panadera Bread-(noun, Spanish derivative)-Panera Bread restaurant

snotties-(noun)-plural form of snotty, denoting a tissue used to wipe one's nose

trots-(noun)-diarrhea

zaps-(noun, Spanish derivative)-shoes

It seems like we are finding a rhythm with the three kids. Wesley is usually only getting up once a night at this point, and the other two kids are getting more and more used to the impact he is having on the house.

I finished a six day work week, and it feels like a long time since my last weekend.

Fall fell like a rock this week. On Saturday, it was 87, yesterday it struggled to get above 50. It certainly feels like fall all of the sudden.

I am somewhat happy with how the baseball playoffs have gone. I was glad to see the Yankees and Angels head home, though not as happy to see the Cubs and Phillies do the same. I would like to see Cleveland beat Boston, and think it would be nice for Denver to have Colorado make it. Though I must say, I doubt very much that a Cleveland/Colorado World Series is the ratings bonanza that Major League Baseball would want.

It is not unusual to root against the Yanks, and I grew up indifferent to the Angels. But the last few years have seen numerous decisions by management in the Angels organization that have led to them being on my "bad list", though we'll always have the 2002 series, when they vanquished the hated Giants. The Dodgers were actually on my bad list for a couple of years, but have since made some decisions that I respect enough to give them my vote again. The pageantry of George Steinbrenner having to deal with yet another early post season exit is enough to keep anyone entertained. The man spends 200 million dollars on a team, but the way he spends his money is mystifying. In the middle of a bad season when pitching was the problem, he spent 20 million dollars on a 45 year old who couldn't last 3 innings in his playoff start (Roger Clemens). Steinbrenner needs to let his people make decisions...almost 50 million of that payroll went to two people who were no help in the playoffs. If he could get rid of that 25 mil he pays to A-Rod and spend it on pitching, the Yanks' post season woes would probably be over. After all, their best years saw them using mainly role players, not the marquis names he pays these days.

Anyway, I am sitting here with my little Wes while Steph has the kids at Bible Study. Here are two pictures:

Here we are again...the best month of the year. The advent season looms, and the trees are yellow and red. The kiddos are sporting their sweaters, and the playoffs begin tomorrow. I bit into a honeycrisp apple today and thanked the Lord for the fall (autumn, not the other fall).

Wesley is sleeping better and better. Jack is struggling in the potty training realm. He did great until the arrival of his younger brother rocked his world. Right now, we seem to be in a good rhythm. Steph and I are scrambling to find more ways to set apart one day a week as a sabbath, since my schedule varies so much.

Minnesota continues to get into my blood. True, people drive too slow here. While I am busy saying "GOOOOO", they are busy saying, "Ok there, let's not drive too fast there...ah jeez". Someday I hope to think that 50 miles per hour is pushing it.

We had dinner with our neighbors last night, and we are happy to feel more and more a part of this community.

Wes is 6 weeks old now. We await more change from him!

I have loved checking in with old friends on blogs. It gives a sense of connection with my past while still being able to focus on the present.

Happy October