Road Trip: Toronto

Sunday morning, we got up at 7:30, d-r-a-g-g-i-n-g and finally hit the road about 9. We got to the hotel in Toronto, the Holiday Inn on King Street about 1:30 after a wrong turn or two. If you ever go to Toronto, I highly recommend the HI on KSt. It’s nice, is right near both the Air Canada Center and Rogers Center, and has a sweet pool on the 16th floor. We went to Toronto for two reason, one, so Kerry and Colleen could cross the Rogers Center off their list of parks to go to, and two, TROT.

We arrived at SkyDome / Rogers Center / Rogers Centre (those silly Canadians) a little before two. We bought 9 dollar tickets and promptly sat about 7 rows back from Mr. Nixon in RF. I had decided prior to the game that having no real vested interest in the game, that I would cheer for the Jays out of respect for the home team, and for Trot Nixon, out of undying love. It was the 5th when we arrived. I looked up at the scoreboard and told my cousin, “Hey look, Josh Towers has a no-no”. The next pitch was a line drive for a double, so, sorry Josh. We said hi to Trot. Told him we missed him. Told him to come back to us. Told him he was beautiful. Told him that JD is nothing compared to him. Told him we loved him. You know, the usual hello’s.

The surrounding Blue Jay fans, and I use the term loosely, seemed mildly annoyed. But listen you dumb asses. I stood and clapped after the double. That is what you do when a no-hitter gets broken up. Of course, none of you idiots know that do you? I may have been a little touchy after my interactions with Detroit fans, or maybe Blue Jays fans hate us too. I told one Blue Jays fan to get a life and lose the inferiority complex, and asked another how it felt to be in 2nd place, since I had no idea. And the rest I murdered and buried in the woods near the border.

Anyway, Trot seemed happy to see me (this my imagination talking - but he could def. hear us seeing you could have confused the Dome for a lib). We were glad the Jays won in the bottom of the 9th because we were going to have to hang ourselves from the empty upper deck if we had another extra inning game. After the game, we went and got some dinner and then went back to the hotel, loaded up on Tylenol PM’s and went to bed at 5:30 at night, and got up at 4:30 for the big ride home. We made it from Toronto to Woburn in about 9 and a ½ hours, getting back about 3. All in all, a fantastic time, although the only real downfall of the trip was the actual games.

Next Road Trip: Philly and Baltimore – August 2007

I know I slacked on Thursday and Friday, but who wants to talk about losses? or 32 year old guard? Not me. Anyway, the Sox came home yesterday and all was well in Red Sox Nation. Wake pitched great. Delcarmen got the job done. (How cute was it when Mikey went out to talk to him?). Then, Mr. Jonathan Papelbon came out to close things in the 9th in grand fashion. A K, a very long fly ball, then an extremely close play at first where it looked like got him on the replay, but, as we all know, ties go to the runner, Kenny Lofton in this case. Cinco-Ocho took exception, and had a few, er, many choice words for the umpire, until the little second baseman that could came over and pushed him away. (Thank God he didn't get tossed). He came back, hit Jerry Hairston on the hand. Regained his composure, and came back to get the K to end the game. I've watched the game twice, once in real time, once on the midnight replay, and now it's on again in the backround. One thing I do know is this. I'm starting to feel for Jonathan the way I feel for Tom. Like, that I am just so lucky to have him in my life playing for my team.

7:05 tonight, Beckett goes for 12.

Now I'm off to pack for my 2 country, four state, one providence, 1312 mile, 27 hour Sox road trip that begins on Tuesday at 6 AM.

Just because I'll know you'll miss me (although I may bring the laptop along for the ride) here's a new feature:

Where in the World is SoxGal?

Tuesday - Newfound Lake, NH
Wednesday - Newfound Lake, NH
Thurdsay - Cooperstown & Niagra Falls
Friday - Sox @ Tigers, Detroit, MI
Saturday - Sox @ Tigers, Detroit, MI
Sunday - Indians @ Blue Jays, Toronto, ON
Monday - Parts of Ontario, NY, and MA on a very long ride home.

36-15!?!?

*Someone is going to be in the dog house.

*Trot Nixon deserves the tip of a dirty hat. The only other time I've heard applause that loud was when the Sox came back against the Yankees and Okajima got the save earlier in the year. It was awesome.

*The Sox right now, it appears, can do no wrong. Josh Beckett came back from his 15 days on the DL and got his MLB leading 8th victory.

*Roger Clemens will not make his first start against the Sox, and the Red Sox are skipping Tavarez's start to align their rotation against the Yanks. It will be Wang and Wake Friday, Moose and Schill Saturday, and Andy and Joshua on Sunday. Tavarez's next start will be against the A's on Monday, with Matsuzaka taking the ball the following day. (Also in there it says Ortiz took BP yesterday, but his hammy is still bothering him.)

This is just not okay...

This honestly made me a little nauseous this morning. There are just some things that are not okay. Christopher Trottman Nixon in an Indians uniform is just not okay. At least the Red Sox won't give 7 to anyone for a while. Oh, wait...

I can't wait to go hoarse cheering for him May 28th and 29th.

Here are some random things from today:

1. I wasn't overly impressed with Grey's Anatomy, and I'm not buying Meredith could just wake up and be fine after being without a heart beat for over an hour.

2. This morning at work was probably the slowest of my career.

3. I am dying for it to be 4:30.

4. I just had a buffalo chicken wrap from my company cafe and it was just like Charlies. I miss college.

Onto the links...

*Eric Wilbur has a great piece about a solider / Red Sox fan.

*David Oritz just gets more and more ridiculous.

*The U of Tennessee football coach is apparently a huge tool. No spring practice should ever start before April, and the fact that the NCAA does nothing to protect its student-athletes from ridiculous amounts of practices is horrible. How can you justify starting spring practice for FOOTBALL less than 2 months after the National Championship and 7 months before the first game. Somewhere in Tennessee there are some pissed off Student Athletic Trainers. I'll tell you that much. Also, from the useless information department, Danny Ainge's nephew, Eric, is the team's QB.

*Dominic Rhodes wet himself when he got pulled over. I'm not sure what is more fun, A-Rod missing sleepovers or the RB of the Colts peeing his pants.

*Old friend Trot Nixon is going to take it easy this spring trying to rehab, and we also learn in this article that Trot has "Dirt Dog" tattooed under his bicep.

*Good luck Corey. I hope you have a great retirement. Of course, if you sign with another team, you will be dead to me. But seriously. Good luck.

*SG has a quality article on the late Dennis Johnson.