Thursday, July 10, 2008

Wah, Wah, Wah (This Has Nothing to Do With Hockey)

You guys, I can't remember the last time I was so happy to see the weekend. Summer school started this week and I started in a new classroom, first and second grade. They are criminally cute - absolutely adorable, everyone of them. But they're all really explosive and they're all runners. At breakfast I chased one of them around the outside of the building, before lunch I was herding most of the kids out of the classroom while dodging the chairs the other kid was throwing and I had already physically removed every one of them from the room, after lunch I chased another kid around all three floors of the inside of the building, and the last time I escorted a kid from the room I got bit. Eight hours later I can still see little red teeth marks. And that was just today.

I really like the kids and things are going fairly well (yeah, you'll just have to trust me on that one) but I am exhausted. The last two nights I've basically come home and crashed in the bedroom, resting until bedtime. The only difference between "resting" and "sleeping" by the way is that I rest in my regular clothes and not my nightshirt. I fully intended to watch the Pirates-Yankees game tonight but I rested through most of it although I did see all the important stuff like say, the Pirates winning. Let's go Bucs! Let's go Bucs! (Lee, there's your baseball talk for this week. What's the deal with the Pirates? Their offense has looked pretty good in the games I've seen. Is their pitching that bad?)

I meant to have a couple more posts up this week. The only reason I had the skating one up was because I had it mostly written last week. I have two or three half-written that will hopefully go up this weekend after I crash for a long nap tomorrow.

So yeah. Carry on. I just wanted to complain for a few minutes before bed. Since you were kind enough to listen to me, please enjoy a few of my favorite baseball photos.

This photo would be funny anyway but the little bubble he's blowing pushes it over the top for me.

Todd Helton celebrates a trip to the World Series. That skyward look of jubilation gives me chills.

Baggy and Bidge forever!

How can you not love a guy who poses for a baseball card in a sumo wrestler costume?

Obligatory anti-Yankees photo. Jeter and Rodriguez "stretch."

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

The Pirates have a very underrated offense. Fourth most runs in NL, ahead of St. Louis and Milwaukee (1st and 2nd in the Wild Card race) and only three runs behind my New York Mets.

The pitching? Is it that bad? Well, yeah, if the highest ERA in all of baseball is considered "that bad". The Pirates have some strange tradition where they'll bring up a pitcher, he'll be awesome for a year, then he'll suck forever. It happened with Oliver Perez, it happened with Zack Duke, now it is happening to Gorzelanny and Snell. Just two years ago their pitching staff was 8th in the NL but at the time the offense was last instead.

Also I don't know if you know this but the Pirates got a new GM last year and everyone is hopeful he's going to do some good. There are rumors that Bay is going to be traded because he's probably just going to be too costly but the new GM definitely has an attitude like the Oakland A's unlike the last GM who had the attitude of, well, somebody that doesn't even care about winning.

Heather B. said...

Yeah, I remember Oliver Perez. He was the ace of my fantasy team that one year and then killed it the next. I suppose the highest ERA in the league would balance out your good offense just a bit.

The new GM has gotten some press from our baseball writer because he used to be the farm director for the Indians which means of course he was involved in Buffalo's AAA team. He certainly sounds like a step in the right direction although as you said, that wouldn't take a whole lot.

Anonymous said...

I had that exact picture of Baggy and Bige up in my college dorm room! It's like a blast from the past to see it here!

Patty (in Dallas) said...

Isn't that the Rocket (erm...) "stretching" with Jeter? :P

Mike said...

I believe that is the Roger Clemens giving "The Rocket" to Derek Jeter.

I'll be here all week, try the veal. Be sure to tip your waitress.

Heather B. said...

Hunh. I think you guys are right. It does look like Clemens giving Jeter the ol' Rocket (nice, VH). Well, somewhere I have a similar photo of Jeter and Rodriguez so I'll pull that out another day.

Pookie, I have a number of Baggy/Bidge photos stored away but that one's definitely my favorite. We have such good taste!

Jennifer said...

I love the bubble-blower picture. That's great! :)

But the Clemens/Jeter picture is just so wrong.

Anonymous said...

Fat Elvis indeed.

Heather B. said...

Lee, "Fat Elvis" is "The Big Puma" these days or haven't you heard? I enjoy that Berkman more or less gave himself a new nickname that seems to have caught on. The YES guys (that's the Yankee network) referred to him as "Big Puma" on their broadcast the other day. Funny stuff.

Anonymous said...

Yeah I heard about the Big Puma but I like Fat Elvis better.

Unknown said...

That picture of Rocket and Jeter is hysterical. I grew up a Braves fan, and my dad's a Mets fan, so I wholeheartedly approve of any anti-Yankees sentiment.

Anonymous said...

Ewww, a Mets fan and a Braves fan in the same family. That's worse than Yankees and Mets.

Heather B. said...

Yeah, Braves fandom is concerning. Fortunately it has been many years since I had a full-on Braves hate although they are responsible for the single most heart-breaking moment of my sports life... Still, I think we can still be friends, Amy :P