Philly Revelry

Broad St. was philled w/ revelers into the wee hours of the night. Julie and I went til about midnight to check it out. O could not be roused from sleep to take part but got my fingers crossed that there will be another celebration in his lifetime, maybe in Baltimore next time?

Tomorrow is O's Halloween parade and then the Phillies parade -- 20th and Market, east to Broad and then 4 miles down Broad to the Linc/Citizens' Bank culminating in a dual rally at the two stadiums. Did I really have the foresight to ask for the day off 6 weeks ago? Way to go, Dad. (And way to go Julie for scoring two tix to the Linc Rally)

2008 World Champs

Tampa's domed monstrosity gets revenge

There's no way Tampa should've had the chance to score the tying run in the top of the 6th last night. And I'm not just saying that because they DID score the tying run in the top of the 6th. The field was a mess and there was no end in sight....it's still raining for chrissakes. And this whole BS about they can only suspend a tied game is ... BS. They couldn't let an All-Star game end in a tie either but Selig found a way around that.

We did have outdoor large-screen viewing again last night with the individual likelihood of staying outside til the game was officially suspended described by this equation:

baseline Phillies' fandom x (blood alcohol level) x (stubborness^2) / gender (male = o.5, women=2)

Magical night of baseball

Harsha's bold vision of outdoor, very-large-screen baseball-watching came to life last night. The technology and the Phils didn't disappoint.

Skeptics asked questions like 'why do you want to watch baseball in the street when you have a flat screen HDTV 20 feet away in a warm house?' I didn't really have an answer for that one but something visceral was calling us into the street. Baseball is a game that is played outdoors, sometimes in the street (including Webster) so maybe it was a subconscious reaction to that domed monstrosity in Tampa. We had dogs and children running in front of the projector, we had strangers joining the party, we had hot toddies and chili, we had music and dancing breaks between innings, we had an open-flame fire pit and ladies and gentlemen we had COLE HAMELS! GO PHILLIES!!!

(hard to catch on film but you get the idea)

Time in a bottle

Another hilarious Office bit got me thinking about the song (Let's Get) 'Physical' by Olivia Newton John. This song was number 1 for TEN WEEKS almost topping Elvis' Love Me Tender as the longest running number one in history. It was considered racy and was banned on a lot of soft rock stations. Check out the lyrics below and you'll remember just how scandalous it was. AND THE VIDEO?!? the legwarmers, head bands, medieval work-out equipment... We make fun of the '50's quaint yet somehow creepy sexuality but I think early 80s win by a mile.

"I'm saying all the things that I know you'll like

Making good conversation

I gotta handle you just right

You know what I mean

I took you to an intimate restaurant

Then to a suggestive movie

There's nothing left to talk about

Unless it's horizontally"

Bunch of comedians

It was great to see Obama and McCain show their lighter sides (see Steve's blog for links). Assuming some of the mutual respect is genuine, is it impossible to imagine a role for McCain in an Obama cabinet (or vice versa, though for various reasons, I see that as closer to impossible)?

Palin looked comfortable in her limited  SNL appearance last night.  The real story here was Amy Poehler who just won herself an Emmy for musical/comedy performance.  Pregnant or not, that was an all-time great SNL moment.  

Poehler and McCain also teamed up in an older classic.  The goatee is best part of the whole thing.  

Phils grab the pennant

Phils kept the foot on the gas and steamrolled over the Dodgers 5-1 last night to get into the World Series for the first time since 1993. Cole Hamels was sharp, getting his second win in the series and making him the easy pick for series MVP.

Random notes:
-Contrary to my prediction, Manny stayed on fire. We'll never know whether the best team in baseball would've been Red Sox w/ Manny. Sox fans have to be a little peeved that BS theatrics interfered w/ dynasty potential.

-Shane Victorino just wants to be loved. We heard him consoling Furcal during the game and then expressing his wide-eyed amazement over Manny's hitting prowess in the dugout.

-George Sherrill's all-star game heroics may play a huge role in the WS: AL gets the home field advantage. There's never been a season where HFA has been more pronounced.

Who's in for a Game Three ticket?

Area cat loves corn, sounds like typewriter

Stairs' way to heaven

Matt Stairs hit a moon shot for the Phils in the 8th last night for the go-ahead runs in a 7-5 win. I've never seen a 5'8" dude hit a ball harder. I was watching on a non-HD 28 inch TV and the ball literally disappeared into the night. But then landed in the bleachers.

With a 3-1 series lead and Hamels going Wednesday night, the Phils need to go for the carotid (yes, the carotid. The expression has been officially changed from jugular to carotid as of late Sat night walking home from Ten Stone with Erin, Manish and Steve.)

Happy Columbus Day, streaming live

From Owen: "I want to go on the computer."

Daddy: "Let's go to the cheeseburger [local park]!"

Owen: "No."

Daddy: "Awww."

Owen: "We can go later."

Daddy: "OK."

What a game

The atmosphere WAS electric, if not nuclear. It was fun to get in our seats an hour early and see a half-filled stadium. Then there was the full-team introductions that got the crowd in a complete frenzy. Cheers for Larry Bowa, former Phils' shortstop and manager and current Dodgers' third-base coach and boos for Manny.

The game was a dog fight. Manny missed a two-run home run by a few inches in the first; Hamels was able to keep it together. Could Utley's first career post-season HR loosen him up some? Lidge's 1-2-3 9th was a big relief too.

LCS(s)

With some lame-ish World Series in the past few years, the league championship series' have been better bets for entertainment so don't miss 'em.

Dodgers vs. Phils -- will the Phils' bats show up? We're gonna have some chilly nights in Philly and they can't expect to mash in Dodgers Stadium so this could be a little dicey. On the flip side, with Hamels, Myers, Moyer and Blanton pitching well, I don't see the Dodgers exploding either. Tight games but Phils in 7 with Manny finally cooling off.

Sox vs. Rays. The Red Sox had a losing record to 2 AL teams in the regular season: the Angels and the Rays. That didn't seem to matter much vs. LAA but with the home field advantage, a mean streak and not much pressure, the Rays will hold their own. Sox in 7 but not because I'm rooting for them.

Chicks dig autumn

It is my unscientific observation that, when asked (but more frequently when not asked), 100% of women will say Fall is their favorite season.

Why is this? I will start the discussion -- which I predict will be a lively one -- with a hypothesis.

All women equate fall with 'sweater weather' so that's where we need to look for the answer. Another of my unscientific observations is that 100% of children, 90% of men and 10% of women love to nuzzle into a sweatered-bosom (here re-enacted by cats). And in their genetically-programmed-nurturing way, all women want to be the accepters of nuzzling. Nuzzling is better with sweaters, sweaters are worn in fall: all women love fall. I rest my case.

Grand Slam and a save

Shane Victorino hit his first career grand slam against arguably the majors' best pitcher to propel the Phils to a 2-0 lead heading back to Milwaukee. Bret Myers' 10-pitch walk to keep the inning going should keep almost as prominent a place in Phils' lore as the GS itself.

Palin also brought her A-game to the debate last night which meant for a few brief stretches, it actually seemed like a debate rather than 2 parallel-running campaign ads. She gets the award for 'most improved' after the Couric debacle but judging on the debate itself I give Biden the slight edge on style and a big edge on substance. On a side note, with all the distance Palin put between her ticket and the Bush administration ('huge blunders' of the past administration ... but all administrations make huge blunders?!?), she has clearly studied the Bush Manual on
Folksy Pseudo-Charm. But if we've learned anything from the past 8 years, it's that this plays well in Peoria. The race is back on.

Sports and Money

This is the time of year where we really need to consider national non-religious holidays just to catch up on the world of sports.

First, the O's played me the fool and went 5-20 in September to finish with 68 wins. The up side? No one can pretend the rebuilding phase is anywhere near complete. But I believe it has started at least.

Moose finally got his 20-win season, thereby punching his ticket to the Hall of Fame as I see it. What a great combo: yankers miss playoffs, but Mussina has a stellar season EXCEPT when pitching vs. the O's.

And THE PHILLIES! wow. Gotta like their odds vs the Brewers. The Fightins are hungry after last season's quick exit.

Bears went retro with an old-fashioned Goal Line Stand to stave off the potent Eagles offense. Correll Buckhalter might've done better with the 2000 Husker O line in front of him.

Speaking of the Huskers, big loss to VA Tech showed that the pass defense still looks suspect. Hmmm...probably not a great sign considering the calibre of QBs in the Big 12.


On another subject, who's pulling their money out of savings and putting it under the mattress? Call me a naive Nellie but I just don't see the FDIC going bankrupt as some have speculated. Of course, for those savings not FDIC insured, it's a different story, a story I'd rather not think about.