Apologies to my readers who don't dig the Sox as much as I do. But when you go to 20 games in a season, it's hard to write about anything else. Sorry, I'll do my best to cut back.
My weekend at mach-speed:
Went to visit Beth and baby Taylor on Friday before working at the bar.
Saturday, I moved my new couch into my place...or should I say, I watched my stepdad Charles and my friend from the bar, Jose, move my new couch into my place. Watched in agony really as they pushed and pulled my 8 1/2-foot sofa up four flights of stairs in a poorly ventilated hallway and into my apartment. They are god-sents really. For some reason I thought me and Charles would be able to handle it ourselves. I must have been still asleep, because there would have been no freakin way we would have been able to have done it with just us. So, I called in some reinforcements and boy do I owe Jose!! I picked him up last minute and he truly saved the day!! After lounging on my new piece o furniture all day, I mustered up the energy to shower and go to work...again.
Sunday, I went to brunch with Jacks and did some afternoon drinking while watching the Sox blow a four-run lead and surrender a walk-off homer and their second loss to a ballclub that's been in the cellar almost since it joined the Majors!!
Now, I'm impatiently waiting to watch Entourage. Thought I would have a post waiting for you all on Monday morning. Enjoy!!
Sunday, August 06, 2006
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Random fun on a Tuesday night.
So, I’m 11-5 now in Red Sox games attended and not happy about it. Although, I was kind of expecting a loss with crappy Jason Johnson pitching. Long story short: He’s a rookie and he sucks.
Despite the loss and the sweltering heat, the game was actually a great time. I took my friend from the bar, Danielle, because we’d never been to a game before. In short, we had a blast. Rolled into the Cask n Flagon (best darn Sox watering hole in the Fenway area) around 5:30 p.m. and started drinking. In between chatting with fellow Sox fans and scarfing a plate of nachos, I was stealing glances at my crush, Dennis, behind the bar. He’s so darn cute!!
Went over to the game, got beers from Phil aka “My Miller Lite Guy” and since I had seats in the Bleachers (located in centerfield with the sun blazing down on us), I decided to scope out the situation in the handicapped area. Debbie, an usher Jacks and I had met one game, was thrilled to see me and promptly directed me to two open chairs. (Debbie commandeers the handicapped seating area, which is essentially a platform just above field level, 15 rows back that accommodates people in wheelchairs. When there are no handicapped people in the section, which is almost always the case, Debbie seats people there). Besides the better view, there are other perks to these seats: A) Nothing but wide-open space in front of you. B) Bathrooms are located directly at the bottom of the ramp. C) Phil’s beer station is located directly beside the ramp. Other perks: Debbie’s willingness to spritz us with her water bottle to cool us off and her pleasant conversation. In short, it’s my favorite place to sit.
At this point, Danielle was pretty much in shock about how well I was treated at Fenway. Just to remind you, I get free beer, free food, free water (essential on a game like last night when bottles are $4.25 apiece), and seating upgrades. Now I ask you, why wouldn’t I buy tickets for 20 games this season when I get treated so well? The way I see it, I have only two more hook-ups to master: Parking and Tickets. That’s parking ANYWHERE in the city and tickets to ANYTHING in the city.
After the game, we went back to the Cask and I was thrilled to see Dennis had been cut and was chilling at the end of the bar with my friend (and former roommate) Beth, mother of this cutie.
I chatted him up and basically made it really obvious I was interested. We laughed, we had arms around each other, we shared a prolonged kiss on the cheek before I left. In short (gosh I’ve used that a lot in the post), he seems interested too, but still hasn’t asked for my number. Lady J confused!! Anyway, I told him I’d drop by to visit him at the other bar he works at (close to mine) before my shift on Saturday and he seemed happy to hear that. I’ll try to get something going then. God, I hate being the aggressor!! I’ve literally got no game!!
Sorry, this post is all over the place!!
From the Cask, we went over to the Bell (where I work) to visit another bartender, Meri, and make my karaoke debut. At this point, we had Meri’s friends Natalie and Danielle (yup, another one) in tow. I sang two songs (One Way or Another; Spiderwebs) in front of several co-workers and regulars who had never heard me sing and they were stunned. I carry a pretty decent tune and I think I took them all by surprise. Got one of them swinging a towel in the air. God, I’m such a karaoke whore!! It’s going to be funny when I go in there to work on Thursday. Hopefully, they won’t rag on me too bad!!
To quote Eric the Midget in his disgruntled tone: “By for now.”
Despite the loss and the sweltering heat, the game was actually a great time. I took my friend from the bar, Danielle, because we’d never been to a game before. In short, we had a blast. Rolled into the Cask n Flagon (best darn Sox watering hole in the Fenway area) around 5:30 p.m. and started drinking. In between chatting with fellow Sox fans and scarfing a plate of nachos, I was stealing glances at my crush, Dennis, behind the bar. He’s so darn cute!!
Went over to the game, got beers from Phil aka “My Miller Lite Guy” and since I had seats in the Bleachers (located in centerfield with the sun blazing down on us), I decided to scope out the situation in the handicapped area. Debbie, an usher Jacks and I had met one game, was thrilled to see me and promptly directed me to two open chairs. (Debbie commandeers the handicapped seating area, which is essentially a platform just above field level, 15 rows back that accommodates people in wheelchairs. When there are no handicapped people in the section, which is almost always the case, Debbie seats people there). Besides the better view, there are other perks to these seats: A) Nothing but wide-open space in front of you. B) Bathrooms are located directly at the bottom of the ramp. C) Phil’s beer station is located directly beside the ramp. Other perks: Debbie’s willingness to spritz us with her water bottle to cool us off and her pleasant conversation. In short, it’s my favorite place to sit.
At this point, Danielle was pretty much in shock about how well I was treated at Fenway. Just to remind you, I get free beer, free food, free water (essential on a game like last night when bottles are $4.25 apiece), and seating upgrades. Now I ask you, why wouldn’t I buy tickets for 20 games this season when I get treated so well? The way I see it, I have only two more hook-ups to master: Parking and Tickets. That’s parking ANYWHERE in the city and tickets to ANYTHING in the city.
After the game, we went back to the Cask and I was thrilled to see Dennis had been cut and was chilling at the end of the bar with my friend (and former roommate) Beth, mother of this cutie.
I chatted him up and basically made it really obvious I was interested. We laughed, we had arms around each other, we shared a prolonged kiss on the cheek before I left. In short (gosh I’ve used that a lot in the post), he seems interested too, but still hasn’t asked for my number. Lady J confused!! Anyway, I told him I’d drop by to visit him at the other bar he works at (close to mine) before my shift on Saturday and he seemed happy to hear that. I’ll try to get something going then. God, I hate being the aggressor!! I’ve literally got no game!!
Sorry, this post is all over the place!!
From the Cask, we went over to the Bell (where I work) to visit another bartender, Meri, and make my karaoke debut. At this point, we had Meri’s friends Natalie and Danielle (yup, another one) in tow. I sang two songs (One Way or Another; Spiderwebs) in front of several co-workers and regulars who had never heard me sing and they were stunned. I carry a pretty decent tune and I think I took them all by surprise. Got one of them swinging a towel in the air. God, I’m such a karaoke whore!! It’s going to be funny when I go in there to work on Thursday. Hopefully, they won’t rag on me too bad!!
To quote Eric the Midget in his disgruntled tone: “By for now.”
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
My boy is in danger.
So, my boy Trot Nixon, the rightfielder of the Boston Red Sox, left Sunday night’s game with a strained bicep. He had an MRI yesterday and was quickly placed on the 15-day disabled list, but is expected to be out for at least three weeks. Great. Last night, catcher Jason Varitek pulled up lame after running from first to second on a Coco Crisp single. After limping home on a Wily Mo Pena (I’m not kidding, by the way. Coco. Wily Mo. These are real names.) triple, he was pulled from the game. No word on how serious his injury is or how long he’s going to sit out.
The injuries concern me for a few reasons: A) They couldn’t be occurring at a worse time with Sox only holding a one-game lead over the Yankees in the AL East race. B) The Yankees, who have been battling injuries all year, are starting to get some of their injured back AND have just signed outfielder Bobby Abreu. C) With Trot not playing for three weeks, his return is sure to be lackluster, putting his future with the Sox at risk as he will be a free agent at the end of the 2006 season.
Again, I’m at a weird point in my fandom of the Red Sox. Because we won it all in 2004, there’s no longer that desperation to win a title. The Nation took a big sigh of relief in 04, but it doesn’t mean we don’t want to win. By this, I mean, we want to beat the Yankees. I can only speak for myself, but I think the next logical step in exercising the demons is to win our Division, not the wild card, and prevent the Yankees from even making the playoffs. That’s my goal for the team this season. And this feat will be tough to accomplish without the likes of the usual suspects who’ve been there before: Trot, Tek, Tim Wakefield, a knuckleballer who’s currently on the DL.
Injuries aside, my biggest cause for concern is the future of my favorite Sox player, Trot Nixon. There are many reasons why I like Trot, none of which are because I think he’s cute. He’s a decent looking fellow, but let’s be honest, the guy rarely cracks a smile and could probably pick up some obscure radio station in Japan with those ears of his. I like Trot because he’s a blue-collar player. One of those guys who’s not really the star of the team, he just performs day in and day out and always does something to help. He’s been with the Sox since he was drafted in the first round in 2003 and he’s said in my own presence that he doesn’t want to play anywhere else. These have always been my favorite types of players and it would break my heart to see him go. With the injury, it’s looking like that could almost be a certainty, especially when Wily Mo fills in and goes 3-for-4 with a run scored and three RBI.
So, it is with a heavy heart that I go to my 16th Red Sox game of the season tonight. Typically, I wear my No. 7 (Trot’s) jersey and make people in the stands “Pat the back” whenever he does something good. (Trust me, they love it. I’m the life of the party at Sox games!). With no Trot on the field, I probably won’t don the jersey. It would just be too hard. Well, that and it’s supposed to be about 96 degrees at game time and this weather is really not conducive to polyester.
The injuries concern me for a few reasons: A) They couldn’t be occurring at a worse time with Sox only holding a one-game lead over the Yankees in the AL East race. B) The Yankees, who have been battling injuries all year, are starting to get some of their injured back AND have just signed outfielder Bobby Abreu. C) With Trot not playing for three weeks, his return is sure to be lackluster, putting his future with the Sox at risk as he will be a free agent at the end of the 2006 season.
Again, I’m at a weird point in my fandom of the Red Sox. Because we won it all in 2004, there’s no longer that desperation to win a title. The Nation took a big sigh of relief in 04, but it doesn’t mean we don’t want to win. By this, I mean, we want to beat the Yankees. I can only speak for myself, but I think the next logical step in exercising the demons is to win our Division, not the wild card, and prevent the Yankees from even making the playoffs. That’s my goal for the team this season. And this feat will be tough to accomplish without the likes of the usual suspects who’ve been there before: Trot, Tek, Tim Wakefield, a knuckleballer who’s currently on the DL.
Injuries aside, my biggest cause for concern is the future of my favorite Sox player, Trot Nixon. There are many reasons why I like Trot, none of which are because I think he’s cute. He’s a decent looking fellow, but let’s be honest, the guy rarely cracks a smile and could probably pick up some obscure radio station in Japan with those ears of his. I like Trot because he’s a blue-collar player. One of those guys who’s not really the star of the team, he just performs day in and day out and always does something to help. He’s been with the Sox since he was drafted in the first round in 2003 and he’s said in my own presence that he doesn’t want to play anywhere else. These have always been my favorite types of players and it would break my heart to see him go. With the injury, it’s looking like that could almost be a certainty, especially when Wily Mo fills in and goes 3-for-4 with a run scored and three RBI.
So, it is with a heavy heart that I go to my 16th Red Sox game of the season tonight. Typically, I wear my No. 7 (Trot’s) jersey and make people in the stands “Pat the back” whenever he does something good. (Trust me, they love it. I’m the life of the party at Sox games!). With no Trot on the field, I probably won’t don the jersey. It would just be too hard. Well, that and it’s supposed to be about 96 degrees at game time and this weather is really not conducive to polyester.
Thursday, July 27, 2006
And the verdict is...
Okay, do you want the good news or the bad news? I’ll give you the good news first.
Good news: Gatehouse Media has elected to build on CNC, my company, as opposed to MPG, formerly our direct competition now our brother. What this essentially means is that they will be using many of our papers as a base for combined growth. The MPG offices will be closed in October and Gatehouse will do their best to distribute their employees throughout our company. Those papers that overlap will be looked at closely and it will be determined on a case-by-case basis whether they will be referred to as “Mariners” (a CNC logo) or “Reporters” (an MPG logo).
Bad news: They have no idea what’s going on with the staffing of these papers. They said there would obviously be staff reductions in some of the papers that overlap and in those areas where things are redundant. I think the newspaper editors are more at risk here, not so much the sports department. Regardless, they have people looking at our product and evaluating the talent and decisions will be made accordingly. They couldn’t have decided to do this while our high schools were in season and I was writing 10-12 stories a week?? Oh no, they have to wait until the dog days of summer, where virtually nothing is going on and I’m writing about 3-4 stories a week. Bugger!!
The bottom line: I still have a job…at least for now.
Good news: Gatehouse Media has elected to build on CNC, my company, as opposed to MPG, formerly our direct competition now our brother. What this essentially means is that they will be using many of our papers as a base for combined growth. The MPG offices will be closed in October and Gatehouse will do their best to distribute their employees throughout our company. Those papers that overlap will be looked at closely and it will be determined on a case-by-case basis whether they will be referred to as “Mariners” (a CNC logo) or “Reporters” (an MPG logo).
Bad news: They have no idea what’s going on with the staffing of these papers. They said there would obviously be staff reductions in some of the papers that overlap and in those areas where things are redundant. I think the newspaper editors are more at risk here, not so much the sports department. Regardless, they have people looking at our product and evaluating the talent and decisions will be made accordingly. They couldn’t have decided to do this while our high schools were in season and I was writing 10-12 stories a week?? Oh no, they have to wait until the dog days of summer, where virtually nothing is going on and I’m writing about 3-4 stories a week. Bugger!!
The bottom line: I still have a job…at least for now.
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
To have a job or not to have a job.
So my office is pretty much in a panic right now, wondering what the fate of the company—or more importantly OUR fate in the company—is going to be. You see, our newspaper group was recently sold by the Boston Herald to Gatehouse Media. That’s fine and dandy, but Gatehouse also owns our direct competition, MPG. Like us, they are a group of weekly newspapers and several of our towns overlap. So the question is, are they really going to keep two newspapers in each overlapping town? Common sense would suggest the answer is no. So the other question is, who stays and who goes? Is it CNC, my company, or MPG? We’ll find that answer out tomorrow as Gatehouse has scheduled a meeting with our CNC office in the afternoon. We’ve been told it’s going to last about two hours.
I’ve been saying since I first learned we were getting sold that we will be fine. CNC has a great circulation, better readership, has won more awards, and just produces better all-around newspapers. Over the past few months, Gatehouse has undoubtedly been drawing comparisons between the newspaper groups and it’s my opinion that they couldn’t possibly think MPG produces a better product. They’re a small, tabloid-style paper with no color options for photos, barely any staff photographers, and front pages covered in ads. In short, there’s no content. Our papers range in size from 28-48 pages and are packed with local content, beautiful photos, and glorious sports coverage…of course.
While I don’t think it’s CNC that’s going to get the ax, I do think there will be some changes made. This both frightens me and excites me. With Gatehouse owning daily papers like the Ledger and Enterprise, it seems the opportunity to advance would be much better than it is now. Furthermore, getting rid of one of the newspaper groups could free up some money and allow for more positions in our office…like, perhaps, a senior sports editor, which of course I would be all over.
I’m trying not to get freaked out, but I’m also trying to prepare myself for the worst. Our bigwigs seem as cool as can be and I’d like to think they wouldn’t be able to conceal a pending house-cleaning so easily if it were actually going to happen.
Keep your fingers crossed for me between the hours of 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. Probably won’t be able to blog immediately after, but I’ll try to give you an update Thursday night. Thanks in advance for your support.
I’ve been saying since I first learned we were getting sold that we will be fine. CNC has a great circulation, better readership, has won more awards, and just produces better all-around newspapers. Over the past few months, Gatehouse has undoubtedly been drawing comparisons between the newspaper groups and it’s my opinion that they couldn’t possibly think MPG produces a better product. They’re a small, tabloid-style paper with no color options for photos, barely any staff photographers, and front pages covered in ads. In short, there’s no content. Our papers range in size from 28-48 pages and are packed with local content, beautiful photos, and glorious sports coverage…of course.
While I don’t think it’s CNC that’s going to get the ax, I do think there will be some changes made. This both frightens me and excites me. With Gatehouse owning daily papers like the Ledger and Enterprise, it seems the opportunity to advance would be much better than it is now. Furthermore, getting rid of one of the newspaper groups could free up some money and allow for more positions in our office…like, perhaps, a senior sports editor, which of course I would be all over.
I’m trying not to get freaked out, but I’m also trying to prepare myself for the worst. Our bigwigs seem as cool as can be and I’d like to think they wouldn’t be able to conceal a pending house-cleaning so easily if it were actually going to happen.
Keep your fingers crossed for me between the hours of 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. Probably won’t be able to blog immediately after, but I’ll try to give you an update Thursday night. Thanks in advance for your support.
Monday, July 24, 2006
Hey Ford, time to cut the cord!
Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE American Idol and I couldn’t have been happier when Taylor Hicks beat out Katherine “Fly me with balloons” McPhee (obscure Howard Stern show reference) for the title. But if I see or hear Hicks’ Ford commercial one more freaking time, I’m going to scratch my eyeballs out!! It’s on the radio, it’s on TV. If Sirius had commercials, it’d probably be on there too!! (Thank god for satellite radio!!).
You have to know the one I’m talking about. “I go where I want. I do what I please.” Good for you, Taylor!! So do I and I drive a Toyota!! A message to Ford: Your commercial doesn’t make me want to run out and buy a Ford, it makes me want to run out of the room or change the channel. I can’t imagine I’m the only person who feels this way. So, for the sake of them…and my eyesight…please scale back on this commercial. I really don’t want to be blind, so help a sista out a little bit, Ford.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Elsewhere in BarTop Dancer-land, things are relatively ho-hum. Worked all weekend at the bar and went to an after-hours at the creepy “Greek’s”** place when we all got out on Saturday night (well, morning really). Strolled into bed about 6 a.m., got up at 11ish, went to brunch with Jill and Danielle and did laundry, and counted the hours until Entourage and Dane Cook’s Tourgasm. Exciting, eh?
**Just some background on “The Greek.” This is like a 40-something guy who lives in the North End and works at the TD Banknorth Garden (where the Celtics and Bruins play) as a cameraman. He frequents several bars in the area, moonlighting at the Bell, where I work. He’s not an attractive man (big bug eyes, crater face, curly mullet), but is a good tipper, so we tolerate him. He’s extremely touchy-feely with the ladies and basically thinks he’s a stud for hosting these after-hours parties in his cheesy basement apartment. We go because it gives us all a chance to hang out together, a rarity among people who work every weekend. Sure we say hello to him when we walk in, but for the rest of the outing, we essentially ignore him, drink his hidden stash of booze, stay until we’re no longer welcome, and leave. Minus The Greek himself, the parties would be great!!
How was your weekend?
You have to know the one I’m talking about. “I go where I want. I do what I please.” Good for you, Taylor!! So do I and I drive a Toyota!! A message to Ford: Your commercial doesn’t make me want to run out and buy a Ford, it makes me want to run out of the room or change the channel. I can’t imagine I’m the only person who feels this way. So, for the sake of them…and my eyesight…please scale back on this commercial. I really don’t want to be blind, so help a sista out a little bit, Ford.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Elsewhere in BarTop Dancer-land, things are relatively ho-hum. Worked all weekend at the bar and went to an after-hours at the creepy “Greek’s”** place when we all got out on Saturday night (well, morning really). Strolled into bed about 6 a.m., got up at 11ish, went to brunch with Jill and Danielle and did laundry, and counted the hours until Entourage and Dane Cook’s Tourgasm. Exciting, eh?
**Just some background on “The Greek.” This is like a 40-something guy who lives in the North End and works at the TD Banknorth Garden (where the Celtics and Bruins play) as a cameraman. He frequents several bars in the area, moonlighting at the Bell, where I work. He’s not an attractive man (big bug eyes, crater face, curly mullet), but is a good tipper, so we tolerate him. He’s extremely touchy-feely with the ladies and basically thinks he’s a stud for hosting these after-hours parties in his cheesy basement apartment. We go because it gives us all a chance to hang out together, a rarity among people who work every weekend. Sure we say hello to him when we walk in, but for the rest of the outing, we essentially ignore him, drink his hidden stash of booze, stay until we’re no longer welcome, and leave. Minus The Greek himself, the parties would be great!!
How was your weekend?
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