He Knew He Was Right

Where to Hit the Slopes in 2011-12 | Farmers' Almanac This past Friday I was at good ole Adams Fairacre Farms and picked up and flipped through a copy of this quaint almanac, something I remember showing up in our home every year when we were young. I was doing some serious shopping though--I was there for a roof rake and a stink bug trap, neither of which I even knew existed until these past couple of years, let alone ever read about in the Farmers' Almanac or any other resource. It hit me while shopping that I hadn't put down fertilizer since the spring, and I do know the importance of that fall fertilizing, so I set myself up with that. Then I walked by the bulb rack. I didn't bother doing my usual checking labels for that little portrait of the deer with a circle and slash, and went straight for daffodils, which I know they don't like. I used my neighbor's roof rake last winter, and knew it was something I should have. Apparently, the Farmer's Alman...

Ok, as promised last week, here are the baseball ballparks at which I've seen a game. Unless I win some kind of radio contest, I'm done for the season, concluding visits with three straight walkoff wins by the home teams: The Angels and Dodgers obliged in consecutive games in July, and then this past Saturday, the Cardinals came to life in the bottom of the 9th, first tying the game, then loading the bases and scoring on a wild pitch. Great stuff in any ballpark. 74or75 Mets/Yankees Shea* Many for both (but Yankees first) 1985 Yankees Yankee* 1991 5/28 Orioles Memorial Stadium NYY2-BAL1 6/22 Red Sox Fenway BOS9-OAK5 9/9 Cardinals Busch STL4-PHI2 9/10 Royals Kansas City MIN4-KC0 9/13 Brewers Milwaukee County DET3-MIL2 9...

So here I am at the Edward Jones Dome. For the past few years, I've kind of thrown a dart at the NFL map, and thought "I want to see a game...there". St. Louis was that city this year. When I realized that their baseball team was home this weekend too, well, this game became the target. To my surprise, there are many similarly minded fans out there: my flight from New York yesterday had many sports fans who had also noted that they could get to a baseball and football game in a different city (and New York teams are not playing St. Louis ones this weekend). Other fans noted that the two Arizona teams were home too; I believe there were other cities with dual baseball/football games this weekend. That this team is on the rise, though, is a nice perk. That they're playing the Ravens means I have the villain to root against, so it's all good. If the Rams can't clobber the Ravens, I will certainly settle for a game that had the exciting finish the Cards game ha...

So here I am at Busch Stadium. It's been too long since I've been to this city, let alone seen a game here. Actually, it was 20 years ago this month when I made my last trip to St. Louis: After making a few weekend trips to see various baseball and football games, I made a meandering trip through the Midwest and Plain states, taking in six games in the two sports over eight days. The old Busch Stadium was the first ballgame I saw on that trip. I spent a nice afternoon and evening there then, and look forward to the same this weekend. That game was on a weekday evening in the old, somewhat forgettable cookie-cutter stadium, the nice views of the Gateway Arch notwithstanding. It's beautiful today, and this ballpark is a vast improvement, with a big weekend crowd (lots of Cubs fans too), and the same great view and presence of the beautiful Arch. The game itself is a rather important one, with playoff implications (my team has won their division already, so I had to trav...

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For as much as my father has given me, I must give my mom credit for my great taste in sports. From the time I was very young, I remember her stories about going to baseball games as a little girl, about her favorite Yankee players and all that. She was also a Giants fan, Rangers fan, and Knicks fan, and definitely had her favorite players from these teams in every era: LT--her initials too, a fact she was well aware of--was a definite favorite, as was Frank Gifford. So was Willis Reed. And Mike Richter. But, it was baseball I talked to her about the most. Mickey was a favorite. Joe D too. On the 70s teams, I remember her talking about two players more than any other: Ron Guidry and Rich Gossage--Louisiana Lightning and the Goose. One the skinny pitcher that struck out everybody, and the other the intimidating closer. In 1996, while her cancer was in remission, the Yankees had that first championship year in 18 seasons. I remember her taking note of the 7th- and 8th-inning pitcher....