Stop the Elevators

What a strange title for a post. Why would we stop an elevator? Otis works hard to keep them going up and down.

So, Friday, my family and I decide to venture across the river to NYC - take the kids to some adventure. We picked the Empire State Building (ESB). Good choice. I've never been there. Is that strange? Since I don't come from Idaho or Indiana or some other place far and away (I was born in one of the five boroughs that make up NYC and lived in NJ forever, a scant 20 miles from the city), I kind of take many of NY's tourist attractions for granted.

We get to 5th Ave, and the line is wrapping around the block. OK - let's do the combo NY SkyRide and ESB ticket. Few more bucks, no waiting on a sidewalk - I'm in. Take the NY SkyRide exhibit (kind of a virtual copter ride) and we get on the LINE to get to the bank of elevators to go to 80th floor. From their, it's another elevator to 86 and the observation deck. More lines. OK. Get on the lift (that's what they call them in merry ol' England) and up we go. And when we get there, we cannot move. Human gridlock. And it looks like the North view is closed off. And there are a lot of weirded out people waiting...for....for...THE DIVA HERSELF, Ms. Mariah Carey! (Sound the trumpets for the indifference I feel.)

And from the scuttlebutt and rumors and general talk talk going on, she's here to light the ESB in the hues of Pink and Purple (very manly) and she's also late in arriving, and there are a lot of weirded out people up here waiting to catch a glimpse. I'm not a fan, so we just go about our business, look in the directions that us mortals are allowed to view and let's go.

So we leave 86, the guy (who is this guy?) says, you can walk down to 80, it will be quicker. OK. We walk. No problem. Then we get to 80, where we, along with about 250 others are told 'the elevators are stopped for Ms. Carey, who is on her way!' WHAT? You have closed down an elevator system because some skeezer in a too tight mini needs to get to the deck? Did I hear you right? Funny thing is, they must have stopped people from coming up, because that line was about 35 strong. But the line behind us keeps growing, and growing, while we wait and wait. And wait. About an hour. And where is Ms. Carey. Cakin' on make-up in my opinion. Finally, they let the mortals off Planet Chaos - and back to Earth NYC. I hope your album full of watered down, MOR, dull pop music tanks, you B**ch!

Anyway, went to Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. for chow in Times Square. Just like the rubes. Good eats! Life is like a box of chocolates after all!

Blog, Forrest, blog!

Lost and Found

Well, LOST was back on last night at 10PM on the EC - and this episode was very interesting. I'm sure the message boards are lit up with theories, questions and general chaos.

What we know: Ben and Widmore are very acquainted with each other. And Ben has vowed to kill Penny for the death of his daughter. Sayid hooked up with Ben as his assassin as a result of the death of his wife. The game of World Domination, RISK, was very interesting, since "Australia is the key" as Hugo Reyes points out (or maybe the series writers are big Seinfeld fans). Hurley (aka Hugo) is a very important piece of the puzzle to Ben and Locke. Locke would seem to be the island's 'son'. Jack is getting very ill, was he poisoned? And the Monster has been unleashed. Ben is very handy with a blackjack. And Widmore considers the island to be his, and he doesn't strike me as a guy who let's things go.

Maybe I'll think up some other things after I watch it a second time.

Hankenstein

Yes! I waited and waited all of three weeks (I counted on my fingers and toes and I was pretty close) but the day has come! Hank Steinbrenner aka Hankenstein has come to life! It's alive, alive!

When some band said 'meet the new Boss, same as the old Boss', I'm sure they didn't know how prophetic they were. Especially since they're from England where they play games like football (soccer) and snooker.

So the new Boss gets all jiggy with the press when the team is sittin' at .500 - which is an ultimate don't in the land of the interlocking NY. It's like 1978 all over again.

All hail Hankenstein!
Here's to the man who will give me many moments of absolute glee over this season and many more to come, while Yankee fans, the media and poor Joba are pulled here and there.

Blog Like the Frog, yeah the Frog

The Mercy Rule

That's the rule in place in youth baseball and softball where one team is done if the other team scores X number of runs over the score of the other team in a set number of innings. Today my 9U team got mercied for the first time. As Billy Crystal said "it's not fun, it's not funny".

Here's my vex. We are a town team of 8 and 9 year olds playing against a division of (mostly) club teams, comprised of the better boys from multiple towns. In most cases, the parents pay a "tuition" of a large sum of money. Now, I have no truck with the whole club vs. town thing. We play, we make the plays and get the hits we are competitive. I hate being mercied though. Maybe it's a character fault.

Anyhow, we are building a program and it takes time. I know that. It's just so odd how so few kids come out to play ball anymore. You see it in rec - boys and girls there for their parents I think. No passion. If it's not a celphone, iPod or video game system, it is a second class thought for these kids. And in 20 years, we'll see the fruit of this generation. Big fat fruit, ripe with sarcasm and know-it-all attitude, and juicy with instant gratification and expectations, not for a job well done, but because it should just be.

Until then I'll do my part to get the kids outside and playing ball. Maybe we should have a "No Video Game Worldwide" day. Just a thought.

Bloggin' La Vida Loca.

Local Time

So, today is Opening Day for our local PAL Baseball/Softball Season. Parade, ceremonies, first pitch, dunk tank! Lots of fun for the kids and family. Play ball!

Mets win second at Citizens Bank Ballpark against the Phillies. First - YES! Second, CB Park is a fantastic place to see a ballgame. Went last year, stayed at the hotel next door - I'm not a Philly kind of guy, but what a great ballpark.

Yankees and Mets are the locals who are both building new stadiums to open next year. I will take my sons (ages 7 and 9) to the House that Ruth Built this year (got my tickets vs. the Indians) so they can always says they were there. It will be my first time since Gooden pitched a No-hitter against the Seattle Mariners in '96.
Check out the new Yankee Stadium here.

The NY Mets (the team of my youth and my adult life) are also building a phenomenal new park. While you go to The Bronx to a park that stands the test of time, Shea Stadium is more like a really big rock in a path. The stadium itself holds fond memories, but the place has all the charm of a Rent-a-Center. A big blue and orange warehouse near an airport. CitiField is the place going up in the parking lot (which means it's the old No. 7 when we trek to Queens this year). Check it out - CITIFIELD

So new parks, teams at 3Million+ attendance, which makes it hard to get tix. Baseball is in full swing!

Check out the Ultimate Mets Database if you have the time!

Number 42

Hey, everybody on the field is wearing #42!

Big Dig in The Bronx

Well, since I started blogging about it, I have to see it through. Apparently, there will be no curses put on the Yankees - read about the unearthing (well it was actually in concrete) here:
Dirty Red Sox Shirt

I applaud their efforts. Now if they could only find out a way to break the Curse of A-Rod!

A good read for those who like baseball, ghost stories, curses, etc. is Haunted Baseball. Well written and meticulously researched book by Mickey Bradley and Dan Gordon. I especially liked the stories of the Renaissance Vinoy Hotel in St. Petersburg, Florida. It's now a Marriot property, but funny enough, there's no mention of it being HAUNTED on their website. That's corporate hotel mentality for you.

Speaking of ghosts and the like; I am an avid fan of Ghosthunters on SciFi Channel. Just thought I'd give it a mention. But I don't like Paranormal State on A&E (you'll have to Google that yourself- no links to things I don't appreciate.) Maybe because P.S. is trying way to hard. Lighten up, Francis.

Sunday night - ESPN - Red Sox 5 Yankees 1. Phil Hughes "the young phenom" is looking a little like, well, a rookie pitcher who's being thrown to the wolves. Truth is, Phil hasn't been a Yankee long enough for me to dislike him. So I hope he finds his season.

BOO. BLOG. BOO.

Cursed

That bastion of journalistic integrity, the NY Post had a front page story on some construction hijinx in the work being done on the new Yankee Stadium. A curse begins!

Meanwhile, back on Earth - it's bottom of the 9th - Yankees beating the Red Sox at Fenway in the first meeting for 2008. Blood rivalry, boyo.

Oops - Yankees just won.

Well, drown your sorrows Sox fans - how about a little Dropkick Murphys and Red Sox glory with song (and video)!

Also worth mentioning - the immortal Mike Ness of Social Distortion is touring. Well worth seeing. Journey fans can stay home.

Bloggin' OC Style

Like Superman

They (who are they?) say that human beings only use approximately 10% of our brain power. Well, here's hoping that if we unlock the other 90% we can master flight. Check it out:

FLIGHT CANCELLED!

Stay home. Watch Leslie Nielsen yuck it up. Take a walk.

Blog the runway.

ATM Lethargy

Friday morning, 8:05AM EST. Rain. Not the warm, lush, sub-tropical shower that falls in spring in a place like Florida, but the 'dreary, wet, damp, nasty, if it dropped a couple of degrees we'd get 10 inches of snow' rain in Northern Jersey.

So, needing a couple of bucks, I pull up to my bank and the ATM. As I pull around the back, I see I'm four cars deep. "No problem", I tell myself, "it's an ATM. Everybody gets out quick".

Wrong, Boyo.

The first (ahem) vehicle is a hoopty truck. You know the type; a shade of green you would never choose if you bought the car new, two wheel drive, the person driving most likely has a driver's record of dubious worth. This guy takes a couple of minutes, most likely trying to figure out how much the jag he's going to go on after work at the saloon he frequents will cost, versus paying his child support this week. Takes his cash and away he goes.

Next is a 'person' who pulls up and decides that this is the best time to make sure all of their accounts are in order. For five minutes the hand coming out of the car punches keys furiously. Really. I venture to guess that Houston had less keystrokes when trying to land Apollo 13. Now, I could see you taking your time, make sure you type in the right PIN (four numbers are hard to remember). So, while this major life event is happening, I am trapped on-line, no way out, waiting, mumbling, brow furrowing.

FIVE MINUTES! What could you possibly do at an ATM for five minutes?

Finally, all appears over with car and person #2. So what happens next - the inevitable counting of the semolians. Another lifetime. Maybe just 15 seconds. But you've wasted enough fossil fuels idling at the ATM straightening out your banking. And off they go.

Now, while this is all happening, wouldn't you expect vehicle#3 (a Range Rover - look for my post A**hole in a Range Rover soon) to be at least ready with the card? Pulls up in a vehicle more suited for an African Safari (which is good in case the Savannah they live in gets overrun with jungle-like mammals). I'm looking, looking, looking. NO CARD AT THE READY! You have got to be kidding me. I'm apoplectic by now. I'm like Mickey Rourke in White Sands (just kidding). I'm...next.

So, now I'm all riled up, mad at ATM meanderers, late for where I'm going because I just spent 9 minutes waiting for a drive-up ATM. Which is funny, because if you waited nine minutes at a fast-food drive-up, you'd most likely be screaming at the poor slob behind the window (or bullet-proof glass if you go to White Castle). But at an ATM, there is nobody to make my frustration known. So I start counting the seconds, but have to stop because I have to enter my PIN (six digits, sucka!) - and I'm out in 20 seconds. To the car behind me, your very welcome.

Bloggin' in the Rain!

Cold Comfort

I know it's April 3, but could we get a little warmth round these parts?

The weather in spring in the NE over the last couple of years, make that 5 years, has been miserable. Too cold, damp, dreary. Makes baseball practice a little difficult. Can't be outside for too long, darkness falls too soon (but thanks to the US Congress, we have daylight savings earlier!).

So I'm at my practice with my 9U team tonight and one of the boys comes straight from soccer practice. Now, I have nothing against soccer mind you, but it's not the game for me. Or my kids.

Anyway he shows up in SILVER CLEATS! I say, "dude, nice cleats", he says yeah, all the kids have SILVER CLEATS. WOW, I think to myself. I thought I was cool on the Middle School Baseball Team when I was a kid wearing white Puma Baseball Cleats (metal spikes!), looking like a miniature Joe Rudi (except for the mustache). And I thought Billy 'White Shoes" Johnson was way cool. But never, and I mean never, did I think about SILVER CLEATS.

Flashy. Bling. Beckham. Now that's what that sport is all about.

Keep kickin'.