Joy and Pain
 
Joy

Just last week, Liza and I closed on our first house. We are ecstatic to be away from the sounds of our neighbors running up and down stairs, screaming, slamming doors, and playing guitars. Paying rent, too. Instead, we traded up to the world of mortgages, leaky faucets, and cutting grass. I can’t wait. We will have something of our own. We can paint the walls whatever color we want. I can drill holes in the wall to add shelves to my Blue Jacket bungalow. We don’t need a key to check our mail. Ah yes, the wonders of freedom, chores, and ownership.

Pain

As everyone knows, there will be no hockey for quite some time in Central Ohio. Our beloved Blue Jackets are scattered throughout the world, some in Europe playing, some playing in pickup leagues in Canada, and some sitting around Columbus, working out and attending OSU hockey games. There is no end in sight to the lockout, which will cancel not only this season but also seasons to come. So, as I sit here feeling blue, at least I have the Ohio State Buckeyes to get me thru the winter. Wait… no I don’t. As of this writing, the Nuts have dropped 3 in a row and their offense is about as good as Johnny Damon’s in Games 1-6 of the ALCS. There is no fun even watching these guys right now. Of course, I still do. What is a fall Saturday without watching OSU football? And speaking of Mr. Damon, his long flowing locks ripped my heart right out. How could the Yankees win the first 3 games of the Series against the Sox, only to lose the next 4? Never in the history of baseball has a team come back down 3-0 to win a series, hell, no one had even come back to force a Game 7. This is the Yankees! Is it the biggest upset in all of sports? No. The Sox were the favorites going into the Series. It was a huge collapse, but not the biggest ever. Some advice for the Bombers if this comes about next year: WALK DAVID ORTIZ EVERY TIME! This guy had huge hit after hit, and they continued to pitch to him. Why?

FIND SOME PITCHING! Having a monster offensive lineup doesn’t help when your starters are pathetic. Even Mariano Rivera had troubles in this series. Honestly, Esteban Loiza had the best stuff coming out of the bullpen. He could have started a game, instead of Kevin Brown and 1 1/3 innings. IF THE OPPOSING PITCHER’S ANKLE IS BAD AND BLEEDING, BUNT! Curt Schilling could barely cover first base, but the Yankees not once dropped a bunt on him to force him to run on the ankle. I would bunt all the time! The object is to win the game. If you can’t hit Schilling, you have to find a way to force him out of the game. The Yanks said afterwards that it wasn’t their style to bunt. Well, tell me what style it is then? Knocking balls out the pitchers glove when they are trying to cover first base? Oh yeah, that worked! So, Predictions? Hmm, not much going on?

How about some College Football? Now that the season is under way, why not make my TOP 26 picks:

As much as I don’t want to see Oklahoma and USC play for the title, I really think that it is going to happen. These two teams will be the only undefeated teams left (outside of Utah) and will play in the BCS title bowl. If these teams falter, look for one-loss powers Georgia, Purdue, Cal, and Miami to sneak into the title picture. And yeah, the Buckeyes will right the ship enough to go to a bowl game and finish in the Top 26, just ahead of Michigan.