Has anyone seen my prozac? I usually keep it next to the vodka?

I'm back. I don't how long for, and how regularly I'll be able to post here, but as Katie said, I have a request -- could you please start blogging again? We have won a world series and lost a superbowl. and you have nothing to say?? seriously?!"

It's true. The 2007 Red Sox series was fantastic. It was a dream come true. It showed 2004 wasn't a fluke. It gave us more swagger. It started off with me coming very, very, very close to dying in Texas, not to mention warding off hypothermia and I came very, very, very close to commiting homicide in Michigan. I went to more than 20 Red Sox games and I will still probably be paying off my credit card for those games and the nights out after in 2012. It was full of the savvy veterans and lovable rookies. It was the walk-off from Manny while at the Baseball Tavern surrounded by a bunch of crazy drunkards and my 3 favorite drunks. It was sitting on the couch hungover in sweatpants and watching the Pat's dominance continue and the Red Sox beat the Angels again. It was somehow forgetting '04 and counting them out again having Papi remind me that he is a "bad" man. It was finding out after Pedroia hit like a rock star with the same broken bone that I made excuses for Wily Mo with. It was having them go to Game On after the game. It was Papelbon's dancing and Lester getting the win in Game 4. It was different too. I was 600 miles away. There was no parade and I had a to wait a week for the Championship Globe to be delievered. Still, it was fantastic and most certainly never gets old.

The reason I am starting with my final thoughts on 2007 as we look to 2008 is well, because I need to remember a time of happiness in my life. I am currently in the stage 2 of the Kubler-Ross model of grief.

1. Denial: The initial stage: "It can't be happening."
2. Anger: "Why me? It's not fair."
3. Bargaining: "Just let me live to see my children graduate."
4. Depression: "I'm so sad, why bother with anything?"
5. Acceptance: "It's going to be OK."

I am going to attempt to seperate my thoughts with colors, since I didn't do so with the English language.

I am angry. I'm angry at the playcalling, I'm angry at Tom, I'm angry at Eli, I'm angry that for the 3rd straight season, there is no Lombardi trophy coming back to Foxboro, I'm angry that David GD Tyree somehow kept that GD ball against his head and that Rodney who lives for that play and apparently HGH couldn't rip it away, I'm angry that Bill wore a GD red hoodie on the biggest game of the season even though we are Boston fans and we believe in things like fate, and karma, and grey hoodies. I'm angry we cheated, because we did, because Bill didn't misinterpret the rule. I'm angry at Josh McDaniels. Most days this season you could find me offering up my uterus to Mr. McDaniels. I'm angry that I had the fleeting thought of, "Screw it, I'm wearing jeans, sneakers, my Seymour jersey, and my Super Bowl hat to school tomorrow and I could care less about dress code,". I'm angry that I saw Peyton lose and never thought Eli would have it in him. I'm mad that I maybe am starting to like Peyton a little because he is kind of funny in a dorky nice guy way and and his mom was super cute on Good Morning America! or some bullshit. And I loved hating Peyton. And I'm angry that I don't get to love hating Peyton. I'm angry people are talking about pitchers and catchers. Like baseball is going to get me out of this. I'm angry that North Carolina doesn't have a professional baseball team. I'm angry that Bill was jovial last week. I'm angry that I think that Bill had a spot cleared off for his fourth Super Bowl trophy. I'm angry that he went to the locker room with a second left on the clock. I'm angry that I no longer feel invincible with Bill and Tom. I'm angry / afraid that someday I'll watch Tom in Canton accepting his jacket or whatever stupid crap they do there and under his name it will say, 3 time Super Bowl Champion, 2 Super Bowl MVP, one NFL MVP. And I'll be thinking back to the fact that it absolutely should have been four, and could have been five. I'm angry that 18-1 looks like shit. I'm angry that Tom is smart enough to not get his soon to be ex-girlfriend knocked up...dumbass. I'm angry that assholes bought shirts that said, "Perfection" after the regular season. Like that is perfect. I'm angry that Dice-K wears 18 because, seriously? That number has some scarring on my heart, k? I'm angry that my little punk 7th graders keep asking me if I'm still Patriot's fan. I'm angry that one of my kids, a Patriot's fan, asked me if I cried when they lost, and I said, "No", and he said, "Me either. Thought about it though". I'm angry that Kraft, LLC or whatever bullshit put in a licenese for 19-0: Champions, and whatever else other crap. Because heaven forbid they wouldn't have made enough money on the win. I'm angry that Eli went to Disney World. I'm angry that Michael Strahan never bothered to get braces. I'm angry I haven't been able to stop by KissMeSuzy because there is not a good natured bone in my body right now. I'm angry that I have seen that stupid freaking commercial with Eli 2892q30932 times. I'm angry that SG has kind of gone corporate-ish and was going to hang out with Tom after the game. He should know it's way more fun to sit across the martini bar and gaze akwardly. I'm angry that Junior Seau didn't get his ring, I'm angry that Tedi and Mike didn't get another. I'm angry Richard didn't show up. I'm angry I put ever single thing I own that says Patriots anywhere on it in a rubbermaid container in my shed. I'm angry that Randy Moss decided to stay home for this one. I'm angry that this was the event that finally forced me to retire my, "I hate Peyton Manning & Eli Sucks Too" shirt because it has brought me absolutely no good karma in any way shape or form. I should have known. Grey is so no my color. I'm angry that I forgot how much I loved "Free Fallin'" and that it was me, Katie and Erin's song on the way out at school, and that because I forgot how much I loved it I downloaded it and then realized what a freaking idiot I am and that I probably jinxed the whole thing. I'm angry that the Giant's wanted it more. I'm angry that we looked bored the last two games. I'm angry that it wasn't Brett Farve (although I'm sure poor Aaron Rodgers is not) and the good people of Green Bay, I am angry that last night, I just started thinking about the times we should have put it away and couldn't fall asleep till 1 and woke up at 5:30 still pissed and was at my desk at work at 6:15. I'm angry all that "In Bill We Trust" crap is done with because right now, I don't trust Bill to order me Chinese. I'm afraid he'll order me something bland and boring like brown rice and broccili instead of spicing things up with a little General Gau's. I'm angry I'm so sleep deprived that seems like a clever metaphor. And like touchingallthebases.blogspot.com said today, 18-1 is the new 1918. Now there is something I could do without. I'm angry.

I guess my next stage is bargining. I think I'll move quickly through that stage. Mainly because, we fucked it up so bad, what is there to bargin for? We didn't deserve it at all. It wasn't our game to win, it was our game to lose, and we did so, efficiently. Then I'll swing through depression. I got that going for me. Then finally acceptence. Seeing as how I still have 2003 ALCS nightmares and wake up with cold sweats from the AFC Championship in 2006, I have a sinking feeling this could take a while.

10 Reasons Why I have watched Richard Zednek get slashed in the carotid freaking artery at least 20 times:

1. I love crazy injuries. 2. I love blood. 3. He's okay. 4. I kept trying to think what me and Tim the trainer would have done if that would have happened to one of our hockey players or somehow a football player. I probably would have just passed out. 5. The amount of pints of blood that he lost! FIVE PINTS! holy shit. 6. I am not much of a hockey gal, but I love how it said the assistant GM and the assistant trainer stayed at the hospital with him 7. Buffalo has saved two professional athletes from possible death in the past 6 months. If I'm ever going to try skydiving, I'm doing it in Buffalo. 8. You know you are in some deep shit when the opposing team's doctor comes running up the ramp after you. 9. He skated off the ice? Seriously? Hockey players are so badass. 10. Not really related, but I was talking to my kids and I told them about being a fake athletic trainer and one of my 7th grade boys cut his hand (like, paper cut cut) and came into my room to have me put on the band aid because I "knew how do that type of thing". So don't most homosapians and a good amount of monkeys. You don't have to have a thumb to put on a bandaid.

PPS. How about Pierce beating the Spurs. Bet it was awesome. Of course I didn't see it because I get a Celtics game down here about once every 3 months...that makes me...

ANGRY.

Hope those 1700 words were everything you were hoping for KP.

My grandparents on my Dad's side originate from Prince Edward Island in Canada, and, I have somehow become "Canadian" as far as my friends are concerned. But, I can't help that I love Canada. The people are nice, the cities are safe, Montreal might be my favorite North American city, and you get 30 cents on the dollar. Not to mention that the drinking age is 18, which, doesn't matter now, but mattered when I was 19.

Anyway, Sportsguy loves Canada too, so I'm passing along what he has to say.

Canada might be 15 years behind the United States in every respect -- this would explain the ongoing affection for Bryan Adams -- although that time-warp factor is also one of the reasons Canada remains my second-favorite country behind Australia. (Some of the others: the superb national anthem, Bobby Orr, the NHL draft, Molson commercials, the Edmonton crowd, the city of Montreal, John Candy, Canadian money, Canada Cup '72, the sneaky sense of humor from every Canadian not associated with the NHL, Phil Hartman, the Rougeau Brothers, the sweeping love of beer, Don Cherry, the nickname "the Great One," the way they kicked the crap out of the Soviets during the famous Canada-USSR junior hockey bench-clearer in '87, Norm MacDonald, and gambling at any Canadian casino because you always feel like you have 40 percent more money than you actually do. This should be its own column.)

The Links...

*First off today, some very sad news out of Arizona. Former Red Sox pitcher Rod Beck was found dead in his Arizona home. He was just 38 years old. Foul play is not suspected. Some of the Red Sox remembered Beck yesterday.

*Sportsguy compares Durant and Oden. Will he ever write about baseball or football again? Probably not. He also has a diary of the NHL draft. I know, I'm as surprised as you are.

*The White Sox GM is unhappy with his teams play and is going to make some moves. Rumor has it that the Red Sox are first in line for Mark Buehrle right now. We trade Lester or Jacoby, Theo is going to have a very unhappy SoxGal on his doorstep. The big names that have come up so far are Clay Buchholz, Michael Bowden, Jacoby, and Jed Lowrie. I guess also in the trade the Sox will give Buehrle a 5 year contract extension.

"I'm not a big Buerhle guy at all,” Eckersley said this morning in an interview on Boston sports radio station WEEI. “Talk about pitching to contact. Everybody hits him. The only thing good about him is that it doesn't take very long to pitch a game, one way or another. He throws a lot of strikes. I mean not to get on him, lefthanders have always amazed me how they get by. He knows how to pitch obviously, he threw a no-hitter, he's one of the best lefthanders around. I just... I'm afraid of him. I'm afraid of him because he throws too many strikes. I just, Fenway Park, I really don't know. You're only renting him for a couple of months, but beyond that, I'm just not a big fan of his because I think he's very hittable ... to me [Kason] Gabbard's like Buerhle, but younger and throws harder."

Well, Dennis that is reassuring.

*Oregon State won back to back College World Series.

*Really nice article by Chris Jenkins on how Red Sox fans invade stadiums across the country.

*From Chad Finn, In this space a week ago, we expressed some combination of skepticism and awe at the revelation in Phillies pitcher Jose Mesa's bio that he fathered a child at age 12. Well, it turns out that amid all the small type, as usual we missed the bigger revelation, which is this: Mesa's son Ralph, 12 years his daddy's junior, was apparently his second child. Yup, according to Mesa's official bio, he became a father at age . . . (wait for it) . . . seven. Mesa claims to have been born on May 22, 1966, while his daughter, Yamely, was born January 15, 1974, meaning that the 41-year-old reliever has a 33-year-old offspring. Now, this saga has understandably become something of an internet legend, with theories ranging from Yamely's birthdate being incorrect by a decade to Mesa lying about his age, but no amount of Googling seems to come up with the true story. But don't fret. Our crack staff of researchers here at Nine Innings vows to get to the bottom of this, though frankly, we're not really sure we want to know the answer.

*Josh Beckett has become the man.

*Al Horford impressed the Celtics in workouts. Too bad the worst case scenario happened for the Celtics and we won't have a chance to get him.

*There must be some Twins fans freaking out out there. Justin Morneau is still in the hospital after a home plate collision left him with bruised lungs and coughing up blood, but will hopefully be released today.

*Derek Lowe celebrated 10 years in the majors.

*Ken Griffey Jr. was welcomed back in Seattle with open arms. (hey, he didn't sign with the Yankees.) You got to wonder if things would have gone differently if he had stayed in Seattle.

*Larry also has a sweet myspace page, and a kool-aid designed SUV, and some sweet pictures with Chad Johnson. I really am not quite sure how I should feel about it. (make sure you click on that one)

"This is historic … who ever heard of a rat jumping ON a sinking ship?"

For those of you still at work, SG has a new blog entry on the fight this weekend and R$o$g$e$r signing with the Yanks, including my favorite line of the day above from the mailbag.

A bone to pick with SG...

The NBA from LVP to MVP, Part I

By Bill Simmons Page 2

First, the good news: We'll forget the lackluster regular season once the NBA playoffs kick off with a barrage of spectacular matchups, assuming everything breaks correctly. I don't need to sell you on the Spurs-Nuggets, Lakers-Suns or Cavs-Heat battles, but a Jazz-Rockets series works for any true basketball fan, and you don't like sports if you can't get excited for Nellie's run-and-gun Warriors battling his old Mavs team, or Toronto laying its feel-good season on the line against New Jersey and Public Enemy No. 1 (Vince Carter).

First of all, I am so sick of reading about SG's take on basketball I could poke myself in the eye. Secondly, I hate when columnists say stuff like, "you don't like sports if you can't get excited for Nellie's run-and-gun Warriors battling his old Mavs team, or Toronto laying its feel-good season on the line against New Jersey and Public Enemy No. 1 (Vince Carter)." Okay then, I thought up until now, that I liked sports, but, seeing I could not possibly care less about this and probably wouldn't watch the whole series if someone was paying me $100.00, then, well, so be it. You caught me SG, I don't like sports.

Q: I find myself actively HATING the new Red Sox. Since winning it all in 2004, it has been a complete nightmare for me -- from the out of control bandwagon of Pink Hat wearers, etc., to the Chavez Ravine-esque feel of games at Fenway now (arrive in the third, leave in the seventh!), to the well-moneyed cabal of front office carpetbaggers with a "hometown boy" dangling at the forefront like a Tammany Hall vote wrangler at the docks of old Manhattan, to the string of bad personnel moves -- we are mirroring EVERY SINGLE bad aspect of the post-2000 Yankees. Everything that every fiber of my being loathes. Their obsession with catching up to the Yankees has made them forget about what got us the title in the first place: a TEAM.--C. Fleming, Boston, Mass.

SG: You know, I felt twinges of this reader's anger this winter, because the truth is, I never wanted to root for a team that bought championships like the Yankees, even though our 2004 payroll was easily nine figures and we landed Schilling, Pedro and Manny mainly because we were one of the only teams that could afford them. Even so, it was always more fun believing that the Red Sox were the "underdogs" in the ongoing blood feud because we didn't spend as much money as the Yanks. But when they have similar payrolls? Not as much fun. So I was bummed out. For instance, the Dice-K signing seemed excessive to me at the time, and I would have much rather seen them go the "Moneyball" route with right field and try to get lucky there (like they did with the Mueller-Ortiz-Millar signings in 2003) over just saying, "Screw it!" and throwing $70 million at J.D. Drew. There was no art to the way they slapped together the 2007 team; they started writing big, fat checks and that was that.
And then spring training rolled around and I watched a couple of Dice-K starts. That's all I needed. The guy's great. If you're a Red Sox fan, you'll be checking the paper every day just to make sure you don't miss one of his starts this year -- he's not as overpowering as vintage Pedro, but he has a similar arsenal of pitches (including a ridiculous collection of off-speed pitches) and a real swagger on the mound. You always feel like you're in good hands with him. Same with Papi and Manny. And Papelbon. Lugo and Drew are enormous upgrades over Gonzalez and Nixon. Beckett looks ready for a comeback year. Schilling looks like he has one last good year in him. And so on. And so on. And now that the one question (closer) has been resolved with Papelbon's willingness to take the job back, it feels like we're headed for a monster season. It's the best team that money can buy. Literally. And you know what? It's not my money. So screw it. I'm on board. Even if there's absolutely no difference between the Red Sox and Yankees anymore.
(Well, except for the fans. We have jobs.)

You know what? I'm with SG. I don't want to be that team that overpays for mediocre talent. I hate people who bought their Red Sox shirt because it was trendy. I hate that only rich people can get good seats at Fenway. I hate the pink hats and everything they don't bring to the game. I hate girls that cut Red Sox shirts. I hate how the media tries to make themselves the story. I hate people who scream on EEI. I hate that we couldn't find 3 million dollars for Trot but that we found 103 million for Matsuzaka. I hate boys that wear Red Sox hats but don't know what WHIP and VORP and who the numbers on the wall in right are. I hate that the 2004 Red Sox were dismantled. But you know what?

I love David. I love Jason. I love that every 5th day we are going to get to watch Matsuzaka. I love Fenway. I love road trips. I love Joshua, and I think he's going 18-6 this year. I love that Papelbon is going to be going for the save all season. I love Mike Lowell. I love Youuuuuuuukk. I love the Red Sox, even if we do overpay for players. I love that 19 and 18 now mean Beckett and Dice-K and not 1918. I love them.

Also, who wants to go to Cambridge with me this afternoon and kick C.Fleming right out of Red Sox Nation? I'm confiscating his hat and his Pedro jersey.

Would you like to buy Manny's neighbor's grill? Click here.

*Manny talked yesterday to Karen Guregian and Amalie Benjamin. I usually don't like KG but I liked her piece on Lester yesterday and I liked this effort today.

*Tedy Bruschi was on WEEI yesterday and talked about a few things. Mike Reiss has a partial transcript here.

*Bill Simmons is going to save Holy Cross basketball.

Finally, Happy first day of Spring! Also, Eileen turns 47 today, so a Happy Birthday to her as well.

Finally Friday!

Thoughts while wondering how I went wrong picking Oral Roberts over Washington State...

*Tank Johnson was sentenced yesterday to 120 days in jail for violating his probation. He was also sentenced to 80 days house arrest, which, he has already served. What exactly do you have to do to get house arrest? Because, quite frankly, I'm down. I have been meaning to organize my closet, there are a ton of netflix on my list that I haven't had time to watch, some books I'd like to read. I'd also like to learn a language. I'd also probably take up video games and rent the a few seasons of 24.

*Sports Guy kept a running diary of yesterdays games. I know a lot of people get down on SG, but I still love him. Just want to let that be known.

*"Hey Kids, Do Drugs" How do people get to be so stupid? Honestly.

*Curt has a post, Why the Media Sucks. I have often said that I wish Curt would stop talking and just play, ect. That being said, his blog helps me get through the long day in the world of Customer Service.

*Some English guy bought a 4 dollar ticket for a horse race and won 1.4 million dollars. To the track we go!

*Sammy Sosa made the 40 man roster.

*I had VCU on my bracket. I feel pretty good about myself.

*BC won. Had them too. I think I should let everyone know that when I was the assistant coach of Paul's basketball team, we were none other than the BC Eagles. I was mainly in charge of calling players to remind them about practice, buying pizza, and cleaning skinned knees. Very important job.

*Holy Cross takes on Southern Illinois tonight. I obviously have to root for the kids that might love Worcester like I do. (actually, no one loves Worcester like I do).

*Phil Kessel won another shoot out for the B's last night. Kid's nasty.

*The Patriots are getting ready for the draft by working out some college kids.

*From Buster Olney's blog, "Brad Lidge was banged up. The Red Sox are closely tracking Lidge, among other relievers this spring, because of concerns about their own bullpen. Heard that the Astros have indicated they have no interest in trading Lidge. If they ever did change their minds, however, you know this: The Red Sox would have to seriously overpay to get him, because the cost of good relief pitching has skyrocketed.

What's a fair price for Lidge? You could assume that the Astros might start by demanding top outfield prospect Jacoby Ellsbury, insisting on someone like Craig Hansen, and wanting even more than that."

First of all, they are my two Red Sox facebook friends, so that is just okay. Second, Lidge? Are we thinking about the same guy here? Third, Theo trades Jacoby and he is dead to me.

Fourth, well, for my fourth reason I'll turn it over to John Tomase's blog post from yesterday, "Just got two of the latest media guides off the presses and both are amusing for obvious reasons. The Reds media guide features a giant photo of Bronson Arroyo – looks like there’s life after Boston after all — while the Pirates guide has a color photo of Freddy Sanchez, the former Red Sox farmhand who won the 2006 National League batting title.

Looking at the respective covers, it’s hard not to recall Theo Epstein’s line from last July — “I traded half of the National League All-Star team.”

Don't forget a young kid with nasty stuff who pitched a no hitter and the NL Rookie of the Year! Good work!

(maybe I'm still bitter because I was "removed" from standing next to Theo by a giant man wearing a Cecil Fielder shirt.)

Eh, let's hope today goes by quick!

Some proof I'm still not over the Colts...and neither is Tom

Bill Simmon's has some thoughts about the Super Bowl...including this little tidbit...

It's also the place where I finally met Tom Brady -- not because he knew my columns, but because one of his friends knows a good friend of mine from back home. Poor Brady was trapped inside a roped-off area hiding next to the bar, with his buddies shielding him from any unexpected approaches, almost like an offensive line. He's extremely friendly and jarringly tall (a legitimate 6-foot-5). We ended up commiserating about the Pats-Colts loss for a few minutes (needless to say, he was still kicking himself about the 21-3 lead) before one of the Farrelly Brothers appeared out of nowhere and I ducked away -- if we were introduced, either he would have taken a swing at me for my "Fever Pitch" review, or I would have taken a swing at him because it was his fault that I had to see Jimmy Fallon high-fiving Curtis Leskanic 45 seconds into the greatest sporting moment of my life. So that was my brush with Brady. Much more exciting than the time I met Neil O'Donnell.