24?

No, not Jack Bauer. Mike Mussina. Iron Mike won his 8th of the season, leading the Yankees and tying the league lead [with Dicey K, among others]. At the rate he's going, Moose will win 24 games. He's won 19 before, and 18, and he's come down to the wire on no-hitters, and he's almost been on the winning team in the World Series [which means, he was on the losing team in the World Series].

Realistically, I'll take two out of three. Mike no longer has the stuff to throw a no-no. 85 mph fastballs just don't overpower anyone except perhaps Little Leaguers. I don't think he will win 24, but I hope he DOES find a way to finally win 20. AND, be on the winning side in the World Series.

Go, Moose, go!

Happy Birthday, Arrr!

I'd like to take a moment and wish the happiest of birthdays to my Pirate Crewmember, Lovely Laura, who is eleven years old today. Aye!

I spoke with her for awhile yesterday, and she was really excited about the gift package which arrived [arrrrrr!ived] yesterday. [Having to wait until Christmas on the ship in a globe as it is kinda a tree ornament, but that's cool].

What a great gal :-) She's up in the Dakotas now, and I miss her terribly. Happy Birthday, Laura. Arrrrr!

Andy to Joba to Mo

Not exactly Tinker to Evers to Chance [the only Cub DP combo to ever win a championship, for those historically challenged amongst us ;-) ], but good enough for a 4-2 victory, which we needed.

Kudos to Andy for 6.1 and only two runs. Kudos to Joba for striking out three batters of the four he faced =:-0 Kudos to The Great Mariano for being himself.

Now, Joba only got in 30 or so pitches. Wonder if he stretched it out over in the bullpen afterward [the target was 55 pitches]. Still, we needed a win, and danged if 4-2 after nine isn't exactly that! I'll take it..... Okay, checking in with PeteAbe reveals that Joba indeed threw 27 in the 'pen for his 55 total. This points him to a start after the weekend - maybe 75 pitches or so, depending on how he's feeling after the 55 pitches last night.

Moustaches. Giambino, Damon, Shelley Duncan. It's said that Joba is attempting one, too, and that he looks like a grade-schooler. Jason says that his is staying as long as he continues to hit [up to eleven dingers and .250 as he's impressing enough for a 2009 contract, somewhere]. Damon and Duncan, idiot/caveman types both, were certain to follow suit. Wonder if Derek J will grow one? Sounds kinda like Sampson and the hair, really [which would be cool, but I'd settle for The Bronx Zoo, part II, minus the bickering]. Well, I have one [and that swashbuckling soul patch, too! ;-) ]

Hmmmmm

Ian Kennedy is headed to the DL with a strained latissimus dorsi. A lat. How on God's green earth does a pitcher strain a lat? Then again, we do seem to have met our quota of weird injuries [as in, Pavano's butt].

Reckon this means that Joba Chamberlain will get stretched out and take the next start? He could go four and program Ohly to get four [Ross seems to pitch better when he knows he's going in]. Is the alternative Kei Igawful? God, I hope not. He's straight from the Fahrenheit 451 playbook [remember, where the firemen SET fires?]

I have heard that Jon Lester's father has been diagnosed with cancer. Man, that is tough. I hope he is able to beat this; maybe Jon's experience will help him. My best wishes go out to the Lester family for a full recovery.

Lil' Moosie

Ian went six, giving up only one run in the process, and keeping the Yanks in the game.

They went on to win in the ninth, thanks to timely hitting {Matsui singled, Abreu - pinch hitting for Shelley Duncan, walked - Robby Cano singled Godzilla home}.

Interestingly enough, Kennedy is still not getting pitches called his way. Nearly 100 pitches, only 57 found the strike zone; doesn't mean he's wild - means he's nibbling and not getting all the calls. Last night, that was good enough. Thank God for rookie pitchers!!

Next up, Seattle. Hope we can start worrying other teams: Joe Girardi got ejected last night for arguing Giambi's straikeout, and maybe that worked to fire-up the guys....

Weasels Ripped My Flesh?

Weasels Ripped My Flesh? No, but Pixies sewed-up my kilt so that it is now two inches two small in the waist! I am not sure why the pix are ired at me, but they obviously had their wee seamstresses at work into the wee, wee hours.....

It all happened like this: This past weekend, I wanted to go to the Virginia Renaissance Festival, up in Spotsylvania. First weekend, Pirate special weekend, arr! and if there's one thing I enjoy, it's a good pirate fest. Might even have to go back to Saint Looey in September just to attend theirs, but that's another entire story.

Now, part of the fun is to hop into some semblance of piratical looking garb, and, being a Scotsman, mine includes a kilt. Specifically, a black AmeriKilt, [being a proper Scot, I will nae wear me family tartan as a pirate, I wouldna wish to bring discredit or suspicion upon the family in any way] formerly size 36 around the middle portion. [Ye may be aghast at hearin' o' it, but they tend to run on the small side - when I was running every day and avoiding: carbonated anything, alcohol, and eating dinner at restaurants, I just barely fit comfortably - going about 182 pounds. Now, around 188, mainly because of carbonation, rich foods, alcohol, and running only when I am uninjured, I can only get the snaps to properly align by really sucking in my gut to a degree wherein I could maintain posture for aboot five minutes only before passing out].

Along with the kilt go black leather Corcoran jump boots, black soccer sox, a long sleeve black shirt with chest and sleeve ruffles!, a red sash to go around me mid-section, and a tricorn pirate hat, complete with multi-coloured ostrich feathers. Alas, the Pix.... so, I went in a pirate T-Shirt and shorts, and was comfortable. Some mad woman kept calling me "Barry" and telling me that my horse kicked her in the head, but she loved me anyway. I told her I am not "Barely" heeheehee pun intended and asked her if she knew where Maurice or Robin or Andy was [eventually she tired of it and wandered off with her bone-on-a-leash "her draggin' " get it? haha]

This time around, I am going to order another black Amerikilt, and I am going to make it a 38" waist. That way, when the Pixy seamstresses "outsmart" me, they will actually be making the kilt the correct size. Good thing the pix have an attention span of around five seconds, or they might read this and try to outsmart me. No dice, pix ;-)

Had a good time despite being alone. Next pirate fest: Hampton, VA [alas, Smiley will be in Las Vegas]. Maybe I can get Matt and/or Kev to come along. Maybe I can talk Riki and her bairns into coming along.... One of the upcoming weekends will see me back at Spotsylvania, more than likely Celtic weekend, aye! So, anyone in Virginia or that neck o' the woods, shout me up - maybe we'll bump into each other at the Faire!

38 and fin

Scottish Premier League: After 37, Celtic and Rangers tied at 86 points, but we have the goal differential. Final match of the season, both away. Rangers have to beat Aberdeen and have Bhoys lose to Dundee United. If both clubs draw, Celtic wins the title. If both clubs win, or if both lose, Gers have to score at an impossible pace to overhaul the lads from Parkhead [if we win by one, they have to win by six to tie]. If they lose by one, they have to wish for us to lose by six...

We win! 1-0 away at Dundee U. Meanwhile, two flew into the Rangers' net, and alas for them, none into Abs' net. Bhoys win the league, and once again, "You'll never walk alone"! ;-)

Wee Margie, poor lass. Loves her Teddy Bears and tells me Celts = Crrrap. That's fine, we still won. Shoulda made her a wager... Gabba gabba hey!

El Deepo

Alexander Rodriguez. Homer in his first game back. Two balls over the outfield fence in his second [and the umpires even called one a home run!], plus one other double. It's a team effort, but we needed that.

Meantime, Darrell Rasner, our new stopper, twirled seven shutout innings. Joba "Our Next New Stopper" Chamberlain, threw a scoreless eighth and ninth to wrap up the Orioles, 8-0. That's right: Joba's being stretched out to build up his pitch count with an eye toward allowing him to start, this season.

So, when that happens, Phil Hughes will more than likely still be out, so I envision a rotation of Wang, Pettitte, Mussina, Rasner, and Chamberlain. This gives Ian Kennedy a chance to hone his craft at the proper venue, Scranton. For the relievers, Mo remains unchanged as our closer. Perhaps Krazy Kyle Farnsworth will step up and become the setup man, maybe he will share it with Ross Ohlendorf. I think Humberto Sanchez is just about ready to activate, and he has a real live arm, so perhaps that is just what the doctor ordered. Then again, Carl Pavano, coming off the DL, will begin to build arm strength in that role..... Nah, bad idea on that one. I say Sanchez. Thoughts?

Just Peachy :-(

Moose just got clubbed for seven in the first. It's at the Stadium, so the Yanks have all nine innings to go. So much for being the stopper. Ohly's in already.

{Post-game Update} Ended up 12-2, so we now turn to our new[est] stopper, Darrell Rasner. Ras is 2-0 this season, with an ERA of 3.00, albeit a 12 inning limited sample size.

A-Rod homered in his first game back :-)

Jeets was hit on the hand by a pitch and is listed as day-to-day. [Sorry, Melanie!] With the Attorney General in there, we'll have great leather, but a bit less pop.

Go, Yankees!

More odds n ends

Sleep. It must surely be over-rated. So, I'm up, rambling some more [generally hit the sack at 8 PM, up at four]....

Congratulations to Jon Lester for twirling a no-hitter, 7-0 over KC. As dearest Melanie will tell you, the first lefty to do so at the Fens since 1956 [a year in which our righty trumped that, with a perfecto, in the WS, which we won, no less, 2-0 over Newk]. Way to come back, JL.

Matt has an offer on his house! Maybe that is why I could not sleep: checked traffic, saw Cathy had sent an e-mail wondering if I could contact him, so I woke up the blighter and had 'im call 'is wifey.

May 19th. It's Pixie's birthday!! I sent her a nice Kokopelli birthday e-card [back in 2001, when she had known me for one and one-half days, she sent me a similar Kokopelli card on MY birthday]. So, she loved the card, and I am glad. Pix may have broken up with me, but she's still a good person, and we're still friends. We could still pal around, except she's in Tyler, Tejas. Happy birthday, Pix.

Cyo, uh, hello?

Don't look now, but Carl Pavano should be pitching in competition in about 8 weeks....

Cyonara

So, Cy Wang got drubbed, 11-2. Ironic: once again we turn to our stopper, Michael Mussina. Stem the tide, Moose.

Kilted Tragedy

I was going through my gear last night, getting ready to attend the Virginia Renaissance Festival up in Spotsylvania [it's Pirate Weekend! Arrr!] and, sadly, I noticed that my black kilt had shrunk to the point where I could not wear it!! It's an Amerikilt, and I like it a lot [more info on the Amerikilt is available by clicking on the linked title, or by going to www.amerikilt.com, and yes, girls, there ARE pictures of dudes in kilts, plus a cute little mockumercial of a guy in a kilt taking out the trash, bending over, and the lady living next door trying to get a free look and falling over a pile of trash at the curb. Good stuff!

Now, back to the tragedy. Two inches. That's how far off we are [far off we Arrr!], and I have a sneaking suspicion that pixies have altered my fine non-bifurcated garment. Sadly, I have never met the pixies who live here, or we would hang out and have jolly good fun [in Gaelic, craic, but I don't want you to think we'd be passing a pipe or anything.] Pixies, as you well know, love practical jokes, merriment, tomfoolery, all of that stuff, and I am sure they are rolling over this one.

So, I have resolved to take the pixies' challenge. I am going to work out more and go out to eat less [that's difficult, as that is the chief component of my social life!] and get down to the point where the black Amerikilt fits me again, and I'll be leaner, meaner, all of that happy stuff. And, just to mess with the pixies' sweet lil' heads, I will also buy another kilt, two inches larger. Then, when they alter it, it should fit just about right, and the joke's on them. Heeheehee

But, don't I already own another kilt? Yes, I do. I own a SportKilt in Wallace tartan, and while I am sure that I could get it to go, maybe not comfortably [it's all velcro, no snaps; the AmeriKilt has snaps, plus velcro]. Remember, this is a pirate fest, too. I would not sully my family name by associating it with pirates. So, shorts and T-shirt for the day ["Pirate Life" Shirt, plus Tampa Bay Buccaneers black ballcap with hurricane flag and skull, arrr!]

Quick: what are the two letters of the pirate alphabet?

"Arrrrrrr!"

"Aye!"

hahahahaha

Going Long in a Thong?

Here I've been joking about "Giambi Gel", and apparently he wears a gold lame` thong to instill confidence when in a batting slump [like, right now, actually]. Apparently, Johnny Damon and Bernie Williams have borrowed the tiger stripe and gotten hits [we're still talkin' baseball, folks], and dear Melanie will be envious to know that our Cap'n, Derek Jeter, has done so as well. Sorry, no photos.

So, is it still a "G-String", or do we call it a "Giambi-String"?
Also, since G-Man is hitting .180, has its magic gone away?

Stopper?

Mets and Yankees, Game 1 postponed due to rain

Long as I remember
The rain been coming down.
Clouds of myst'ry pouring
Confusion on the ground.
Good men through the ages,
Trying to find the sun;
And I wonder,
Still I wonder,
Who'll stop the rain?

[CCR, of course, and they weren't really talking about rain, but I am. Two rainouts already, and I was going to watch the other one against the Tigers.]
So, we still need that stopper - who'll stop the rain?

New Stopper?

We're in last place. What a time for the Subway Series, three games against the Metsies.

First up, rookie sensation Darrell "Our New Stopper" Rasner, who is 2-0, taking on Johan "Waiting For My Arm Injury" Santana.

Santana Superman, 4-2, has only two more wins than the newly called-up Ras, yet some see it as a sign of growing malaise within the Yankee Organization, that they failed to pull the trigger and land the dimunitive lefty from Minnesota.

If the stumbling block was indeed Ian Patrick Kennedy, perhaps we should have dealt [then again, IPK is the second coming of Mike Mussina, and the ageless one is our new other stopper, so maybe Ian's just got to grow into it. Or use some Giambi Gel ;-) ]

Odds n Ends

IPK, blown away. Ian just does not give us a chance to win when he pitches, and that is so unfortunate. Any minute now, Melanie is sure to pop in and remind us that we are now in the cellar. Not for long, mon cherie, not for long....

Guess what? The estimable CMWang and Mike Mussina are now tied for the lead in wins on the Yankees [six apiece]. Who'da thought?

Let's see: what else?

Kev's coming to VB to live. Lots of nice restaurants to cook in. Got some classes to go before getting his AS in Culinary Arts, but I'll keep after him on that front.

Sad to see dear Anastasiya depart Daruma of Japan. What a nice girl, and I'll miss her.

Smiley's off to San Fran for vacation! Hope to see some nice photos when she returns.

Matt's back from sea after three weeks. Lotsa good $$$, so he's happy about that.

Bobby quit in a huff, and Dale quit to go repair helicopters for Blackwater in Jalalabad. We're in a hiring freeze, and with Lori gone to the other site, we're skating at least triple short-handed! I still love my job, though. Too bad MJo turned us down; at least I'd get to see her occasionally. When she caught on elsewhere, I was free to not-date her [twice!] and we had a good time. Then, something came up, and we'll talk l8r. Knowing how her boyfirend of the winter months kept getting underfoot [and wanting to talk!!], I am giving her space [except I texted her "Happy Mother's Day" and have gotten no reply]. No worries - tomorrow's Friday! :-)

I gotta take Big Casper to the truck doctor Saturday :-( Remember when cars had ignition points? He's running sometimes like he has bad points [I know, electronic ignition, but that's the symptomology]. Sure hope it is not the timing chain! =:-0. This is screwing up my weekend... Pam is in DC, and there's a Pirate Festival in Spotsylvania. Maybe if they get him running right early enough, I may go up and spend some time with sis, and then crash for a bit, go to the Pirate Fest on Sunday, then back here. Then again, tomorrow is Friday, and just maybe, Riki and I will hit it off famously.... Time will tell. Wish me luck!

Two to One in Eleven

Sometimes, despite one's best efforts, it all goes for naught. CMWang pitched well yesterday, Gojiru blasted one out to tie the game in the ninth.... Alas, The Great Mariano allowed a run in the eleventh and we lost, 2-1.

Sometimes, it is not how you win that defines: sometimes, it is how you handle adversity. Joba actually lost the other day, and he's over it. Mo's been beat before, and he'll be fine. Chien-Ming is young, but stoic. He'll keep pitching well.

The Yanks? Still only May, and besides - we have our stopper going tonight. Mighty Moose takes the hill ;-) Go Yankees!

I've Suffolk-ated

Suffolk, Virginia, got hammered. Last Friday, the weather radio in my office went off [I wear many hats, Quality Assurance and Safety being the most involved]. Seems there were tornadoes sighted down in North Carolina and near the border, heading for Suffolk.
Ironically, I was working on the "Tornado and Thunderstorm Readiness Plan" at the time.

We have one guy who lives in Suffolk, and a few more down in NC, so I ran around to tell everyone I could find. Right near quitting time in Norfolk - the Suffolk guy was at Dam Neck, and had already left [they run 30 minutes ahead of the Norfolk site]. One of the NC boys was out at sea, but I got to the other one, who quickly called his daughter to make sure she was okay.

Monday morning, Gonzo told me that everything turned out fine at his place, although he had to drive across downed power lines, and at one choke-point, had to drive down a ditch beside the highway in order to get through, as someone's roof had blown off and was straddling the road.

This past Saturday [yesterday, a week after the tornado], I met some friends at the United Way event out in Suffolk. I saw a group of people, all with white T-shirts, and almost pulled in and joined them, but that was not the United Way; it was the Virginia National Guard, and while I might have helped in Suffolk, I also might have helped in Afghanistan!! [Yuk, yuk - I'm too old for them, but I would certainly do a tour if they asked]

Had to hurry at the high school as the bus was almost to leave, but I ran and caught it. My pal Kelly was there, and his wife, and both of his parents [and a lot of other nice folks]. We started in a neighborhood and cleaned up debris from the road; raked and shovelled up many bright orange bagfuls. Took about an hour, and out site was good. So, back on the bus to another neighborhood. This time, we pulled up at a home foundation. All that was left was rubble and debris. Some orange bags, some stuff was too big for bags and went directly to the curb. Bricks. Bedframes. Shoes. The indiscriminate litter of somebody's life. Finally, the slab was bare.

We went across the road to a creek. Being a low point, it had filled with all variety of blown objects. The murky water was too deep in some areas [very brackish, not sure what bugs were in it, so we reached from the edges. Kelly clambered out a fallen tree trunk and pulled things out - heroic deed by the young feller!] Much lumber, furniture, tree limbs, various stuff. The guys a little over from us found a small mushroom-shaped boat anchor and were flinging it in to hook on stuff and drag it out. They tried and tried, and finally succeeded in pulling out a lawn mower! Hurrah!! Exciting stuff. Several dumpsters of stuff removed, and the neighborhood is a little better off than before. Best wishes to the people afflicted by the tornado, I hope the recovery is rapid and as trouble-free as possible.

Thoughts on the organization:
Good turnout of volunteers. I did not know about the event, but Kelly found out and told me. He had been interested in my stories of the aftermath of hurricane Katrina down in New Orleans, and knew that I would be glad to participate. Nice to meet his family - good people, and I can see why he turned out to be such a good person.
United Way. We all got T-shirts for identification purposes. Shovels, rakes, dustpans, plastic bags all provided. We had been advised to wear long trousers and closed-toe shoes. Bringing one's own gloves was a good idea. I did not have a dustmask, but an IT from the Navy base gave me one [thank you, amiga]. Many corporate sponsors ensured that we had good materials to work with, plenty of water and snacks [one lady came around with Chick-Fil-A chicken biscuits, which was a really nice touch]. Bus services to get us to the site, another good idea. Once we got done, back to the high school and barbecue/fish dinner.

Good turnout, and very fitting with my philosophy: when a tree falls on your neighbor's house, go help your neighbor. This is a big area, and of course not everyone participated, but enough people did to truly make a difference. I drove in 30 miles from Virginia Beach; on the way back to the school, I sat next to a guy from Hampton. In the world of intelligence, the Chinese employ a technique known as "grains of sand", where tourists and students and various visitors abroad all bring back information from some foreign spot [like, America]. Not technically spying, these "grains of sand" all bring back observations and impressions which the Chinese government puts together, using the small inputs collectively to provide a greater view for their own usage. I like the phraseology, "grains of sand" and the concept of many small entities coming together to produce a greater sum. I was responsible for a few bags of debris, but together with many, we cleared a neighborhood. Grains of sand....

Sunday. Of course I am stiff and sore. But, no worse than I was yesterday ;-) Happy Mother's Day to all you moms reading [Hi, Charmaine!], and thank you to all of my grains of sand. Happy Sunday :-)

Miss Melanie Speaks

Mellie wrote us a novel, for our reading pleasure, so I decided to post it here, as a separate, new topic. Thank you, my friend :-)

"I love the captain more than a good Sox girl should, we all know that, but I agree he's not getting any younger. Muscle strains and pulls are all part of the process, and more frequently.

Giambi- we all know why Jason's breaking down so fast, regardless of age. He's said as much himself.

Posada- now here's an interesting question. How things go for him from now on will largely depend, I think, on how he bounces back from being on the DL for the first time. Will there be some mental stuff going on, will he just jump back on the wagon? I'd be interested to see. And a tad concerned if my only other option is Benjie Molina.

With the guys who are defying age currently, the biggest question is for how long? We know Damon is well-acquainted with the DL, Matsui is losing some his range in the field, and Moose, though glad to see him on a decent streak, is still a *huge* question mark in an already unstable rotation.

It's not like we're feeling the same thing in Boston-most of our big names have already done a stint on the DL so far this season. We know for sure that we can count on the young guns to come up big for us- Pap, Ellsbury, Lowrie (man, I like that kid...), Moss. They've been fortunate enough have had the time they needed to really, really develop in the minors(I think it was something like 3 or 4 of our 05 draft class is with the big club now). With a reasonably freshly stocked system, can Cashman say the same without a little trepidation? The only way to know is to see how things play out in NY.

On last night's game against the Tigers: Tim Wakefield's been one of my faves for a while, and it's nice to see his knuckler was dancing. 8 innings, 2 hits, shutout ball. :) Back to back homers by Papi(who's looking more comfortable) and Manny(497!), and a decent game by everyone all around. Nothing spectacular, just going out and getting the job done. All I need from my boys. :D"

Ras is Big

So, Darrell Rasner comes up big, again. That young feller impressed me last year. Curious: seems like he always has a rocky road to hoe in the first, then settles down to brass tacks. Good stuff, and filling in well for IPK, who is looking good down in Scranton. Igawful has got to go, though, so maybe Ras will remain at #4, with Ian coming back for #5 until Phil is off the DL. Meanwhile, Andy goes tomorrow, day game. On TBS, and I'll be watching. Mother's Day, busy day at the local, so maybe one draft Amber and a wee steak. Not enough time to flirt with dear [newly graduated - congratulations!] Smiley, but I'm not big on crowds. Besides, I'd rather watch the Yanks at home ;-)

No Henn in the Pen

No Henn in the 'pen. No Henn, no more. Sean Henn went on waivers to open up a spot for Chad Moeller. San Diego grabbed him [Henn, that is].

Ya know, I have some ties to the Padres from long ago, and one of my dearest cousins has ties to the Padres as well, so I hope I do not hurt any feelings by saying this: Evidently San Diego's pitching suck=ittude is awfully high :-( Sean Henn is a lefty, and he is so bad that we kept Kei Igawa over him. Terrible. See next paragraph.

A run in the first, two in the third, and three in the fourth. It's official: Iggy's a stooge. "Pop!" At least Giambino homered :-(

Fireman Joba

Who knew Fireman Joba would be channelling Ray Bradbury? Getting beat is part of baseball, and for the late-inning guys, there's no safety net. At least there were no insects this time around. Too bad Andy's outing was wasted, though. We'll win more, and Joba will be part of many of those. It happens. Better in May......

Friday, Kei Igawa starts against Detroit, a team he has never faced. Ironic: he played in Japan for Hanshin Tigers and now faces Detroit's Tigers. Tora ga warui'in desu! With poor grammar, I said that tigers are bad.

Down on the farm, Ian Kennedy went 7.1 scoreless..... so, maybe it IS a comfort-level thing. I'm guessing that in AAA, he gets the corners ;-)

2 runs in the first. I was worried about Ras there for a little while, but the dormant Yankee bats revived enough to bail him out. IPK, sent away, suddenly Darrell Rasner is the Yanks #4 starter. [The King is dead, long live the King?]

Meantime, I am discovering that connective tissue will heal when it wants to. Now, I'm just stiff and achy. That's actually an improvement. Happy Monday :-)

What is With the Hullabaloo Over Chloe Marshall?

This is Chloe Marshall.

Currently Miss Surrey, she'll be a contestant for Miss England later this summer. [That's Team England colours on her bikini, by the way - white with Cross of Saint George.]

As you can see, she's a big gal. 5 foot ten, a hundred and 75 pounds or thereabouts. There's been lots of opinions flying about; people have polarized over the situation. You see, some people feel that it is horrid that any plus-sized person should be in a pageant [what is it, now? A beauty pageant? A talent pageant? What?] Others feel that pageants glorify anorexia.

Who is it, to decide that thin = beauty? I say if pageants are meant to be contests, they need to be open in their admitting policy. Otherwise, it's just an exercise in elitism.

Of course, some of the comments have become truly vitriolic in nature. One woman hopes that Chloe will not win because she fears that it would send the wrong message about weight and health to society. Some have called Chloe fat, lazy, a poster-child for any number of ailments, stroke, diabetes, heart disease..... the gamut goes on and on.

I don't know Chloe. I have read the story and seen her in photographs, and I have seen various video feeds. Seems like a nice-enough person, seems to have self-confidence, and a good thing for that. Seems healthy enough [one news video interviewed her while she was working out in the gym] and not at all lazy.

My opinion? People should put away their ignorant biases [or, better yet, deal with them]. I am not on either side of the discussion - I am for healthy living. Could Chloe Marshall be even healthier? Of course. Should she? That's really up to her. Does being bigger than the average pageant contestant send a bad message to society? That's just plain idiotic. People who waste their time worrying about her sending the wrong message to society should be harnessing their energy in some other forum which might actually be of benefit.

Does this mean that Chuck doesn't like thin women? Not at all! I like individuals, not categories. As for Chloe Marshall, I like her. I would happily date her. Except for the across-the-pond commute being a bit difficult. And her being only seventeen. In the pageant, I wish her good fortune :-)

Tom Petty and the... Mudcrutchers???

I was going to blog about a various and sundry assortment of other items, and I still may [although on any occasion when I post more than one on a calendar day, it drives down the number of comments, and I do not have many of those to begin with].

You see, I noticed the other day the Mudcrutch had gotten back together and were finally going to cut an album. Big deal, you might think, and maybe so…. But, there MUST be some sort of story behind this, and it goes like this:

Thomas Earl Petty, from Gainesville, Florida, was in a band. The Sundowners. This band changed its name to the Epics, and, finally, in 1970, to Mudcrutch. Now, nearly every person in North Central Florida has a favorite Tom Petty story, whether it involves his band or being related in some way to Tom [he has lots of kinfolk]. I’ve got one, and my sister, Pam, who also attended UF, has at least one, and maybe I’ll tell you those stories at some point, too. Meanwhile, Mudcrutch became the house band at a place called Dub’s, up 441 from Gainesville. Strippers, booze, really, really good music.

Tom Leadon and Mike Campbell were co-lead guitarists; back then, Tom Petty was on bass. Leadon? That name sounds vaguely familiar. Tom Leadon’s brother is Bernie Leadon, one of the founding members of The Eagles. Bernie convinced his brother to come on out to LA, music’s Land of Opportunity. In 1972, Tom Leadon left and headed west. He had some success, wrote a song for the Eagles, finally ending up in Nashville. Benmont Tench joined Mudcrutch on keyboards, and Randall Marsh was already there, on drums. The boys continued to hone their skills at Dubs, playing as many as six days a week, four hours a day, until 1974.

That year, Tom and the boys finally headed west to make or break. They released a single [“Depot Street” on Shelter Records]. It flopped, and the band dissolved. Tom and Mike and Ben Tench herded up Stan Lynch to replace Randall Marsh on drums, and with TP now on six-string, they got Ron Blair to play bass. Voila! Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

That part is pretty easy to find out about, for anyone who does not already know about TP and the HB’s. But, back to Mudcrutch. Been 34 years, donchaknow? TP had a reminiscing feeling, wondering what things woulda been like had Mudcrutch hit it big. He still played with Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench in the course of employment as Heartbreakers, so that part was easy. TP called Tom Leadon, now teaching guitar up in Nashville, and he thought it was a prank call. Randall Marsh heard the news from Peter Bogdanovich, who was filming a documentary on TP and the Heartbreakers. So, they all got back together and hit the studio last August. Raw stuff, sittin’ in a circle, no headphones. I was hooked from the crisp opening notes of Shady Grove, the ol’ Doc Watson classic [it’s a traditional, Appalachian song – Bill Monroe and The Bluegrass Boys did it too, as did Jerry Garcia]. I’m also hearing Lover of the Bayou, the haunting ol’ Byrds number, echo in my head.

Bottom line is, ya gotta get this album! Much, much better than anyone could ever have dreamed of, and different than what you may have expected. Old friends, sitting around making music, having fun. Brings tears to my eyes.

Cyclone Young

No, not Denton True. We've got Cy Wang, and a good thing, too. Three games dropped to the Tigers. Evidently the Tigers HAD to win at some point. CM Wang, going tonight in The Stadium against Erik Bedard, late of Baltimore but now toiling for Seattle. Seems like every time we turn around, Wang is stopping another losing streak, so Providence [Diving, not the home of PawSox] has seen fit for the man to go 5-0. If he wins 33 or 34 games, would we still finish in the middle of the AL East? I know that's not likely, he's GOT to lose a game at some point, but Gator was 25-3 in 1978, and even Aaron Small went 10-0 at one point. Sorry, Ian: I'm falling off the bandwagon.

So, now that Phil Hughes is hurt and on the DL until July, is it time to put Joba into the rotation? Thoughts, please.

Less Than Zero

When it rains, it pours. Jorge Posada, Alex Rodriguez, and now Phil Hughes. I almost titled this rant "Le$$ Than Zero", but I am lamenting, not complaining. The Yanks have certainly been beset by the injury bug of late, but how one battles adversity is the true test of championship character.

Jose Molina. Now catching for New York, JoMo is good enough to be a starter for many clubs. Instead, he rides the pine, waiting for an opportunity. He calls a good game, and can throw out attempted base larceners, and can deliver a timely hit or two. Not a Wally Pipp situation by any stretch of the imagination, and we'll certainly miss Jorgie, but we can still win.

Morgan Ensberg. Morgan should be in his prime, but his career has gone into a shocking decline in the last several years. That's how we got him on the cheap, and while he won't make anyone forget Senor Rodriguez, we could do a lot worse. For example, Wilson Betemit.

Strained oblique. That situation bedeviled Bobby Abreu for a good chunk of last season, until he cleared up and got things going, about the time the Yanks did pretty much the same thing. Phil Hughes has a strained oblique, and has gone on the 15 Day DL. We're short on promise as a result [except Ian Kennedy has plenty of promise], but actual production? Phil hasn't won a game yet this season. Darrell Rasner, who started off with promise last year, but suffered a broken finger from a line drive and gallantly attempted to pitch through the pain, has been light's-out down on the farm. I could be completely mistaken, but when Phil is back to normal, I look for him to rejoin the team [after sundry rehab assignments in the minors], and Ras to remain on the big club, with Ian Kennedy being farmed out. Nothing personal, IPK: a control specialist being too fine is essentially unarmed. Take yer lumps with yer vitamins, and come back ready to roll in September. No time to panic, but TWO rookie pitchers who have combined to win zero games in a month? Something's gotta give. The door's open for Rasner. We really need him to take advantage of the opening.