Spring training trip recap

Sorry that the blog has stagnated here. Life has kind of gotten away from me. There are so many things I'd like to spend my time doing & in worrying about doing them all ... not sure I've done many of them very well. Hey, there's always tomorrow ...

Anyway, earlier this month we had a great trip down to FL for Spring Training w/ Los Cuetos. We left on Tuesday evening drove to somewhere in South Carolina. Wednesday, we met up w/ Gma and Gpa at the Orlando airport. That night we ate the world's best pizza, then headed over to Pirate's Cove where Gma and APD dominated at putt-putt.

Thursday, tbKMD & I went running around parts of the Disney neighborhood in Orlando covering around 4-5 mi in all for probably my longest run in a year or so. T'was fun. That afternoon we watched the Nationals-Braves game at Wide World of Sports. Nice enough stadium ... very clean. While watching the game, we listened to U0fL beat Providence on the satellite radio.Swam in the pool w/ APD in the morning on Friday, then we drove over to Clearwater to watch the Phillies play the Pirates. After the game we headed down to Sarasota for the evening. Watched UofL beat Villanova in the hotel room.


Saturday morning was another run w/ tbKMD, then a trip to Siesta Key. Found lots of good conch shells. Soft sand and warm sunshine. Too nice. Saw our last game ever at Ed Smith Stadium that afternoon. (Reds lost ... which was fitting.) That night we ate some awesome seafood then watched the CARDS win the Big East tournament title at the Baker-Fitzgeralds. What a great team. Need three more wins for the whole enchilada.


Sunday was another early morning swim, a big breakfast, and then to the Field of Cheesesteaks (Clearwater). Oh, they were so good. Words cannot describe. We watched the St. Louis Cardinals take BP and Albert Pujols put on a show ... at one point hitting one entirely out of the facility. Breaking news ... he's really good. Then the sad goodbyes and the long drive home where we listened to the NCAA tournament draw.

Simply a perfect vacation. Thanks to all who were a part of it.

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$25 gift card of winner's choosing to the champ. (Note: prizewinners may have to wait up to 12 months for prize shipping due to laziness of Dolberry!)

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #4

September 4, 1988: Reds vs. Cubs

T1: Quinones K, Winningham BB(CS), Sabo K
B1: Dascenzo 5-3, Sandberg 2B, Roomes L5, Dawson P4
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

So, this was in our first month in Chicago. Dolberry probably didn't hate Chicago at this point, but he very well might have. I lost my wallet at the very first baseball game I ever attended in the Windy City. By "lost" ... I mean I went to the game w/ my wallet and returned w/o it. I do not recall putting it down anywhere, but Dolberry could not accept the fact that it may have been stolen. Needless to say, that game did not make the Top 10.

T2: E. Davis 4-3, O'Neill 6-3, Esasky K
B2: Law L5, Berryhill 6-3, Trillo 6-3
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Dolberry has probably covered in sufficient detail all my issues w/ Chicago in past posts, so will let that deceased equine rest in peace for today. I think whereever I lived at that point in my life would have been a letdown from St. Louis where I had a group of great friends and real life was just the flimsiest of rumors. The great things about Chicago (pizza, softball, the running path by Lake Michigan, summer, & Wrigley Field) are truly magnificient, though.

T3: Reed 1B, Oester 1B, Jackson 1B, Quinones 1B, Winningham K, Sabo 5-3, Davis 1B, O'Neill 4-3.
B3: Salazar 6-3, Schiraldi K, Dascenzo 1B, Sandberg FC
(Reds 4, Cubs 0)

Hey, I got my 7 cent book from Amazon in the mail the other day, Tom Browning's Tales from the Reds Dugout by (surprise) Tom Browning. As a special bonus, the book was signed by Browning. Very cool. It's an excellent book ... very simple ... PG-13 though ... reads like you were sitting on a flight w/ Browning and he was just telling you stories ... in chronological order. Browning comes across as amazingly humble for someone who: pitched a perfect game, made the All-Star team, was a 20-game winner and played a pivotal role on a World Series championship team. Seemed like more then the accomplishments, he valued his friendships in and around baseball. That was cool, too.

T4: Esasky P5, Reed K, Oester P4
B4: Roomes 6-3, Dawson K, Law F8
(Reds 4, Cubs 0)

Of the teams that have been around for the last 42 years (aka The Era of Dolberry), the two with the fewest 20-game winners over that stretch are the Pirates and the Reds. Jim Merritt went 20-12 in 1970, Tom Browning went 20-9 in 1985, and Danny Jackson came into this early-September game looking to become #3 sitting at 19 wins and only 6 losses.

T5: Jackson 2B, Quinones Sac, Winningham 1B(SB), Sabo BB, Davis E6, O'Neill 3B, Esasky 1B, Reed 1B, Oester K, Jackson 1B, Quinones HR, Winningham 1B, Sabo K.
B5: Berryhill P3, Grace 3U, Salazar F9
(Reds 13, Cubs 0)

OK, I'll ruin the suspense. Danny Jackson does manage to hold onto this 13 run lead and become the Reds 3rd 20-game pitcher in the Era of Dolberry. I think Volquez or Cueto could get 20 sometime over the next 2-3 years if the offense can be improved to at least league average. Edinson came the closest since 1995 w/ his 17 victories last year. Three weeks from right now, Dolberry will be sitting in Ed Smith Stadium w/ some of his bestest buds ... soaking up the sun ... eating some hot dogs ... & trying to talk himself into the concept the Reds could maybe contend this year.

T6: Snider K, O'Neill BB, Esasky L5(DP)
B6: Webster F7, Dascenzo 1B, Sandberg 6-4-3
(Reds 13, Cubs 0)

For once, the Reds come into the season w/ a rotation that's relatively sound. I think Volquez and Cueto should both be able to make 30 some starts w/ ERA's around 3.75 (which is pretty good in the bandbox that is GABP). Harang will hopefully bounce back from his injury-plagued 2008 ... I think he will ... and again become a Top 10 pitcher. Arroyo can eat up innings w/o being a disaster most of the time. It'd be nice if Homer Bailey could come into spring w/ his teenage fastball and stuff, but if not the Reds have some depth to discover a #5 pitcher.

T7: Reed 6-3, Oester F9, Jackson E7, Quinones 1B, Winningham 4-3
B7: Roomes 1B, Dar. Jackson F8, Law 6-4-3
(Reds 13, Cubs 0)

This year's Reds lineup will probably struggle to put up enough runs, though ... even in GABP. (All the Adam Dunn haters will miss his 40 HRs and .390 OBP but won't admit it.) Jay Bruce should emerge as top MLB outfielder (something like .275 w/ 30 HR) and hopefully Votto can repeat what he did last year. The two wildcards for me and the ones most crucial to the Reds success are: Double E (who needs to have his breakout year) and Willy Tavares (who needs to get on base at .370 -.380 clip). The 2B, SS, C, and 3OF spots will likely feature subpar performance offensively. I don't expect much from the bullpen, but they shouldn't be as bad as two years ago. The manager is a nice guy ... and we'll charitably leave his job assessment at that.

T8: M Brown F7, Snider K, O'Neill BB, Esasky 1B, Reed F8
B8: Wrona 5-3, Grace 4-3, Salazar K
(Reds 13, Cubs 0)

They never did get Danny Jackson out in this game. He came into the game hitting .122 but went 4 for 5. He got his 20th win w/ a 6-hit, no walk shutout. It was the single best individual performance I've ever seen. The fact that the Reds routed the Cubs 17 to zip was quite enjoyable as well.

T9: Oester 1B, Jackson 1B, Quinones BB, Winningham BB, Brown FC, Snider FC, O'Neill 2B, Esasky F8
B9: Dascenzo 1B, Sandberg 6-4-3, Roomes 6-3

Final: Reds 17, Cubs 0

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #5

June 23, 1993: Astros vs. Dodgers

T1: Biggio K, Finley P6, Bagwell F9
B1: Butler 4-3, Offerman F8, E. Davis E5, Wallach 6-3
(Astros 0, Dodgers 0)

In the summer of our first married year, tbKMD and Dolberry travelled out to the Golden State for our California baseball trip. We flew into Anaheim on a Friday afternoon and caught two White Sox games against the Angels. They lost them both by one run.

T2: Caminiti 1-3, Anthony K, L. Gonzalez HR, Servais 6-3
B2: Snyder F9, Karros F7, C. Hernandez 6-3
(Astros 1, Dodgers 0)

On Sunday morning, we drove up I-5 to Oakland where we took in a 4-1 A's victory over the Royals then we headed back to our hotel which was w/in walking distance of the Oakland Coliseum to watch Game 6 of the NBA Finals which pitted the Suns (tbKMD's favorites) vs. the Bulls. That was the one where John Paxson hit a 3 point shot w/ 3 seconds left to give the Bulls the title. Thankfully, tbKMD is the sort of person who won't let something insignificant ruin a good vacation.

T3: Cedeno F9, Drabek 5-3, Biggio 2B, Finley 1B(2-4)
B3: Harris P4, Candiotti 4-3, Butler 1B(SB), Offerman BB, Davis FC
(Astros 2, Dodgers 0)

We spent Monday walking through the Muir Woods where tbKMD lagged behind alot, but Dolberry patiently waited for her to catch up ... gasping for air ... on the uphills. Dolberry was so cheery on that day I was singing "The Hills are ALIVEEEE w/ the sound of MUUUUUSSSSIIIC", until the park rangers came and asked me to stop. Maybe that was why tbKMD was lagging behind. That night we spent the coldest June night ever in Candlestick Park. You know you're in trouble when they rent blankets at a baseball game. The Giants won that one bringing home teams to 4-0 on our vacation.

T4: Bagwell F7, Caminiti 3U, Anthony F8
B4: Wallach 6-3, Snyder 2B(8-5), Karros F8
(Astros 2, Dodgers 0)

By Wednesday June 23rd, we were back in SoCal and headed over to Chavez Ravine to consume some Dodger Dogs from the upper deck of Dodger Stadium. Dolberry had gotten all the tickets in advance by phone or by mail and we generally went for the cheaper seats. We parked our rental car and we're walking up to the stadium when we were approached by someone leaving the stadium. He didn't look homeless, or scary, or like someone from the cast of Doogie Howser, M.D.; so we stopped. Turns out it was "Beach Towel Night" and he had only come to get his towel and he wasn't planning on actually using his 2nd row seats right down the first base line. So he gave them to us. Sweet.

T5: Gonzalez F8, Servais L5, Cedeno F7.
B5: Hernandez 4-3, Harris 2B, Candiotti E6, Butler SF7, Offerman 6-3
(Astros 2, Dodgers 1)

After a day at Santa Monica Beach, we headed down to San Diego for a 4 game set matching the Padres against the Reds. The Thursday afternoon game was the Padres' first after their infamous fire sale started w/ the trade of Gary Sheffield to the Marlins (for Trevor Hoffman, who worked out pretty well for them). The San Diego fans were not in good spirits on that day. Reds won 3 of 4 and Dolberry got one of his worst sunburns ever. Despite that I think San Diego is my favorite city in the world.

T6: Drabek P5, Biggio 1B, Finley K, Bagwell F8
B6: Davis 4-3, Wallach K, Snyder 2-3
(Astros 2, Dodgers 1)

This trip was the proverbial time of one's life. Too much fun. The Dolberry clan has decided to reprise this trip in the summer of 2010, w/ APD in tow this time. Can't hardly wait. Ideally, we'd be able to spend two weeks doing it and maybe work in Phoenix and Seattle but that might be a little ambitious. See this space for more details as they become available.

T7: Caminiti K, Anthony 4-3, Gonzalez F8
B7: Karros HR, Hernandez 5-3, Harris F8, Candiotti K
(Astros 2, Dodgers 2)

With all the recent new parks, I have only been to 8 still-active MLB stadiums. Here's the countdown w/in the countdown of my Top 5 favorites: 5: Coors Field (Rockies), 4: Safeco Field (Mariners), 3: Camden Yards (Baltimore), 2: Wrigley Field (Cubs), 1: Dodger Stadium (Dodgers). It is just a beautiful place. The sort of place that would be pretty even if there wasn't a baseball field there.

T8: Servais 6-3, Cedeno BB, Drabek Sac, Biggio 5-3
B8: Butler 3U, Offerman 1B (SB), Davis 1B (CS), Wallach HBP, Snyder K
(Dodgers 3, Astros 2)

The five parks I'd like to see most that I haven't been to: 5: Great American Ball Park (Reds), 4: Kaufman Stadium (Royals), 3: Fenway Park (Red Sox), 2: Petco Field (Padres), 1: PNC Park (Pirates). I doubt if any of those would pass Dodger Stadium, though. Watching the sun go down on a warm summer's day from field level w/ your favorite person in the whole world w/ that backdrop is about as good as it gets. And it got even better when the Dodgers blew the game in the 9th.

T9: Finley BB, Bagwell K, Caminiti 1B, Anthony HR, Gonzalez 1B(SB), Servais K, Cedeno F8
B9: Karros BB, Piazza 3-6-3 DP, Harris 4-3

Final: Astros 5, Dodgers 3

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #6

July 19, 1991: Brewers vs. White Sox

T1: Molitor 5-3, Hamilton 3-1, Surhoff 4-3
B1: Raines 1-3, Ventura HR, Thomas 1B, Pasqua 1B, Newson 1-3, Johnson 1B, Karkovice K
(Sox 3, Brewers 0)

This was the first of a 4-game series between the Brewers (then in the AL East) and the Sox. tbKMD and I decided we were going to watch all 4 games of the series from the same seats and pretend like we were season ticket holders. Fun to act like big shots.

T2: Vaughn K, Sheffield 2B, Stubbs P1, Bichette K
B2: Cora 1B, Guillen 4-3, Raines BB(SB), Ventura HR, Thomas K
(Sox 5, Brewers 0)

tbKMD's favorite player at the time ... maybe for all time ... was Robin Ventura. Not sure why, 'cause he was kinda homely, especially when compared to Dolberry. I think maybe she liked that early in his career (the year before) he went through an 0 for 41 slump but overcame it. Even though he was likely the best third baseman in baseball in the 1990s, he's best remembered for being on the receiving end of a noogie from Nolan Ryan when he charged the mound after a HBP.

T3: Gantner 3-1, Spiers 1B, Molitor 2-3, Hamilton F7
B3: Pasqua 2B, Newson BB, Johnson BB, Karkovice FC, Cora FC, Guillen F7.
(Sox 5, Brewers 0)

Jack McDowell was pitching for the Sox in this one. For a four-year stretch (1990-1993), he was one of the best pitchers in baseball. He was a big deal in Chicago, in part because he was in the wave of young talent (Big Hurt, Ventura, Alex Fernandez) that took the Chisox from mediocrity to an AL West pennant in 1993. Another component of his popularity was he was in an alternative rock band in the offseason and one of the early adopters of the goatee. After 4 years of throwing the split finger fastball for 250 innings a season, his career ended too quickly w/ arm trouble.

T4: Surhoff F7, Vaughn 1B(E9), Sheffield BB, Stubbs F8, Bichette 1B, Gantner F8
B4: Raines BB, Ventura 2B, Thomas P6, Pasqua K, Newson K
(Sox 6, Brewers 1)

This was the first year of the new Comiskey Park. It had been going up all 1990 season and it dwarfed the old stadium. As a fan, it was nice to have wide concourses to walk down and clean bathrooms and seats that actually faced home plate w/ no poles to look around. However, most people agreed w/ Mike Veeck that the new park "had everything but a soul". The upper deck where tbKMD and Dolberry were sitting was extremely steep. Not a good place to go if you were scared of heights. I guess it's been significantly renovated since the 90s. Dolberry will have to go back sometime.

T5: Spiers 3B, Molitor 1B, Hamilton F8, Surhoff F7, Vaughn K
B5: Johnson 1B(CS), Karkovice F9, Cora K
(Sox 6, Brewers 2)

There can't be many quieter Hall of Fame players than Paul Molitor. In 1991, at the age of 35 he led the league in hits, runs, and triples. He's 9th on the all time hits list with 3,319. It may be awhile before we see another player get 3,000 hits. It's not gonna happen in 2010 unless Griffey Jr. gets 320 hits. I doubt Junior gets to 3000 even though he's only 39. Unless he can get a cushy DH job for the Mariners or some other subpar AL team and stay reasonably healthy for 2.5 solid years. Gary Sheffield, who got one of his 2,615 hits in this game, has an outside chance to get there. The next to get to 3,000 will likely be Jeter or Pudge Rodriguez sometime in 2012.

T6: Sheffield 5-3, Stubbs P6, Bichette F9
B6: Guillen 1B, Raines BB, Ventura 2B, Thomas BB, Pasqua HR, Sosa 4-3, Johnson 4-3, Karkovice BB, Cora HBP, Guillen 1B, Raines HBP, Ventura F8
(Sox 12, Brewers 2)

So, tbKMD & I were playing the "pick to click" game, a Sox tradition started by their TV announcer Hawk Harrelson. Basically, you pick a player and whoever player has the best game wins. tbKMD's pick of Ventura won going away as by this point in the game he was 4 for 5 w/ two HRs and two doubles. Both Milwaukee's pitcher (Crim) and catcher (Surhoff) got ejected in the bottom of the 6th for the HBPs. They both got frowny faces from tbKMD in the scorebook.

T7: Gantner 1B, Spiers 1B, Molitor BB, Hamilton SF8, Dempsey 1-3, Vaughn K
B7: Thomas BB(PB), Pasqua HBP, Sosa F8, Johnson 1B, Karkovice SF8, Cora P6
(Sox 13, Brewers 3)

Sammy Sosa was in his 3rd and last year w/ the White Sox at this point. He had 33 HRs total in his first three years. In 1998 he would hit twice that many in a single season. He really got a lot better in 1998. His slugging percentage bulged over 150 points. Hmmm ... why did he get so much better. Perhaps a before and after picture would help ...

Before ...

After ...
I can only assume he picked his lawyer on the theory that, comparatively, no one would look like a slimeball when sitting right next to him. There's a segment of the baseball community (mostly younger fans) that say we shouldn't judge Bonds, Clemens, McGwire, Sosa, A-Rod, Palmeiro, ad nauseum ... for a myriad of relativist reasons. Dolberry disagrees. It may not have explicitly been against baseball's rules, but clearly taking illegal supplements is against basic rules of society and really common sense. Maybe there's a whole generation of baseball players that did it and maybe there's a whole lot of Americans now who supplement themselves w/ all sorts of pharmaceutical nonsense that they don't need ... but it's still not right. Play the game right.

T8: Sheffield 4-3, Stubbs F8, Bichette K
B8: Grebeck HR, Huff 1B, Ventura F7, Merullo BB, Pasqua P2, Sosa F9
(Sox 14, Brewers 3)

Fun game. I've only seen one better performance than that and it'll come up later in the countdown. Ventura broke his ankle in a gruesome home plate slide in Sarasota against the Reds in Spring Training. He underwent an ankle transplant a few years back & can now walk w/o a limp.

T9: Ganter 4-3, Spiers 3-1, Molitor 3B, Hamilton 6-3

Final: Sox 14, Brewers 3

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #7

May 22, 1990: Reds vs. Cubs

T1: Sabo F8, Hatcher HBP, O'Neill F7, Davis K
B1: Walton 1B, Sandberg FC, Grace 1B(7-5), Dawson IBB, McClendon F8
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

The Reds are off to a hot start ... 26-9 coming into this game. This great record is apparently in spite of manager Lou Pinella's propensity for intentionally walking guys in the first inning. Guess Lou is expecting a low-scoring game here.

T2: Morris K, Quinones BB, Oliver K, Oester 3U
B2: Salazar P6, Dunston 2B, Wrona K, Bielecki K
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

How about that? Mike Bielecki started two of the best 10 games I ever saw (see #8). Ironically, one was for the Cubs and one was against. I was more excited to see the Reds starter, Tom Browning who was always one of my favorites. He had broken in with the Reds in 1985, finishing 2nd in the Rookie of the Year race and helped turn around the Reds from doormats to contenders.

T3: Browning K, Sabo BB(CS), Hatcher F8
B3: Walton 5-3, Sandberg F9, Grace F8
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

It was a tumultuous time following the Reds back then. The year before, the whole Pete Rose debacle blew up. He was banned from baseball in August 1989. Far worse than that, Marge Schott was "running" the team which of course consisted of: firing all scouts ("Because all they do is sit around all day and watch baseball.") and pinching pennies whereever possible, such as not paying the $200 a game to run the out of town scoreboard ("Why would anyone care about some other game when they're watching this one?")

T4: O'Neill 1B, Davis BB, Morris 4-6-3, Quinones P6
B4: Dawson 6-3, McClendon F7, Salazar F9
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

But 1990 was sort of a sweet spot in between the Rose years and the Schott-induced Geländemarsch to pitifulness ... where they have resided pretty much for the last decade. The 26-9 start had been led by great pitching. Browning and Jose Rijo were the expected studs of the staff, but this was the year of Jack Armstrong. Armstrong had the half-season of his life at the beginning of 1990, being named to start the All-Star game after a 9-3 start. He only won three games after the break, but his first half played a large role in getting the Reds into the playoffs for the first time since 1979.

T5: Oliver 4-3, Oester F7, Browning 1B, Sabo 5-3
B5: Dunston F8, Wrona 6-3, Bielecki 1-3
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Browning had retired 11 straight at this point. He is, of course, most famous for the time he retired 27 straight as part of the only perfect game thrown by a Reds pitcher. There have only been 17 perfect games in MLB history. Browning got the only one against a team that went on to win the World Series w/ a 1-0 victory over the Dodgers on 9/16/88.

T6: Hatcher 2B, O'Neill 4-3, Davis 5-3, Morris 5-3
B6: Walton 1B, Sandberg FC, Grace F7, Dawson F7
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

tbKMD had joined Dolberry for this game. She won our traditional attendance guess ... only missing the announced crowd of 29,860 by 129 people. We were both grad students at the time, though heading in opposite directions. tbKMD was excelling in the Pharmacology program at prestigious Northwestern University ... Dolberry was flailing though Geophysical Science at U. of Wewillcallyoueverymonthuntilyoudieorgiveusmoney.

T7: Quinones 4-3, Oliver 2B, Oester 3U, Browning K
B7: McClendon P6, Salazar 5-3, Dunston 2B, Wrona IBB, Bielecki K
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Baseball strategy has changed a lot in the last 18 years. Nowadays, I would think many managers would have pulled Browning for a pinch hitter w/ the go-ahead run in scoring position in the 7th. Thankfully, Sweet Lou let Browning bat. Unfortunately, the gratuitous intentional walk has remained a staple of the game. Pinella bypassed the catcher who hit .172 on the season, and would be sent down to the minors for the rest of the year only one week later, to get to the pitcher who hit .163 on the season. Why Lou? Why?

T8: Sabo 6-3, Hatcher 5-3, O'Neill K
B8: Walton P6, Sandberg 2B, Grace 3-1, Dawson IBB, McClendon 5-3
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Even though the score was 0-0, the whole park had to sense that the Reds had the Cubs right where they wanted them. 1990 was the year of the Nasty Boys. The triumverate of Randy Myers, Rob Dibble, and Norm Charlton gave the Reds one of the most potent bullpens of all-time. Between the three of them they pitched 339 innings that year, gave up only 261 hits and struck out 351.

T9: Davis K, Morris 4-3, Quinones F7
B9: Salazar F8, Dunston P3, Wrona K
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Browning came out of the game after 9 innings. (Bielecki stayed in and finished the 10th.) In doing the research for this article, I found out Tom Browning had written a book entitled: Tom Browning's Tales from the Reds Dugout. It was selling for 7 cents (!) on Amazon so I bought it. (Shipping was $3.99 but still ...). Look for a book review on the DCV some time in the future. Hooray!

T10: J. Reed 1B, Oester Sac, Larkin K, Sabo 4-3.
B10: Dascenzo K, Walton F9, Sandberg F9
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Am guessing that Larkin didn't start this game because the next day was an off day and Barry had played every game so far in 1990. This year and 1999 were the only two years of his career that were injury-free for the Reds great hometown hero. If I had to make a list of my all time favorite Reds it would look like this: 5 - Eric Davis, 4- Ken Griffey Jr., 3 - Johnny Bench, 2 - Barry Larkin, 1 - Joe Morgan.

T11: Hatcher F7, O'Neill K, Davis 1B, Benzinger P4
B11: Grace E5, Dawson 1B, McClendon K, Salazar IBB, Dunston K, D. Smith K
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Dibble bailed out Charlton w/ the two K's there in the 11th. Sweet Lou put a little extra pressure on him w/ his fourth order of a free pass (to Luis Salazar?!?!?). I listen to Dibble on my XM satellite radio sometimes on the bus ride home. For a guy who broke into the league like a wild stallion ... one time hitting a woman in the upper deck w/ a ball thrown in anger ... he's fairly reasonable to listen to on the radio. Guess he's going to be the color commentator for the Nationals this year ... which is sure to be an exercise in patience.

T12: Quinones 1B, Reed Sac, Oester L5, Roomes K
B12: Wynne K, Walton BB, Sandberg K, Grace BB, Dawson IBB, McClendon 4-6.
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Intentional walk #5. Third of the day to Dawson who will tie Roger Maris' mark for most IBB's in a game if he gets another one. Lloyd McClendon had a rough day ... 0 for 6 and he left nine runners stranded. This earned him a frowny face from tbKMD in the scorebook, but it presumably prepared him a bit for the frustration he would face in later life managing the Pirates for five years.

T13: Sabo HR, Hatcher 4-3, O'Neill 1B(8-6), Davis 6-3
B13: Salazar HR, Dunston F8, Girardi K, Wilkerson K
(Reds 1, Cubs 1)

You have got to be kidding me! Randy Myers gives up a HR to Luis Salazar? (Lou, you should have walked him!) DCV Teaser: There's another game coming up in the countdown where Myers gave up a HR at Wrigley and something interesting happens. Stay tuned.

T14: Benzinger F7, Quinones 1B(SB), Reed 4-3, Oester IBB, Griffey Sr. 4-3
B14: Walton 6-3, Sandberg BB(PB), Grace F8, Dawson IBB, D. Clark K
(Reds 1, Cubs 1)

1990 was the year the Reds swept the vaunted Oakland A's in the World Series. Jose Rijo pitched like a madman (15 IP, 1 ER, 2 wins) and Billy Hatcher got 9 hits in 12 at bats; but for me the hero of that series will always be Eric Davis who hit a 2-run HR in Game 1 that propelled the sweep. In Game 4 of that series he lacerated his kidney trying to make a diving catch. While the rest of the Reds were celebrating their title, Davis was in an Oakland hospital. The story goes that the Reds made him pay for his trip home from the hospital, since the season was over.

T15: Sabo 1-3, Hatcher F9, O'Neill 4-3
B15: Salazar BB(SB), Dunston P2, Girardi K, Ramos F8
(Reds 1, Cubs 1)

The game ended up being the third longest game of the entire 1990 season. One of oldest baseball bromides is that "if you go to a game you are sure to see something that you've never seen before". In this game we saw something that had never HAPPENED before and has never happened since ... a player be intentionally walked 5 times in a game. After leaving 20 men on base over 15 innings, the Cubs finally capitalized in the 16th.

T16: Davis F9, Benzinger K, Quinones 1B, Reed 4-6
B16: Walton K, Sandberg 1B, Grace E6, Dawson IBB, Clark 1B

Final: Cubs 2, Reds 1

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #8

August 30, 1996: Braves vs. Cubs

T1: A. Jones 1-3, Mordecai 2B, Chipper 3-1, McGriff K
B1: McRae 1B, Bullett 1B, Grace 4-3, L. Gonzalez P4, Magadan 4-3
(Cubs 1, Braves 0)

If Dolberry was going to draw up his perfect day, there's a good chance it would involve sitting in the warm August Wrigley shade beside the beautiful KMD taking in a doubleheader of baseball.

T2: Klesko 3B, Dye 4-3, J. Lopez 2B, Lemke 4-3, Bielecki K
B2: Houston 6-3, Hernandez 1-3, Haney F7
(Braves 1, Cubs 1)

The Cubs had beaten Tom Glavine 3-2 on a game-winning single by Ryne Sandberg in the first game of the now-rare baseball BOGO. The first game took only 2:13. Dolberry has a lousy memory, but I can distinctly remember holding hands w/ tbKMD while sitting down the 1st base line on this late-summer Friday afternoon.

T3: A. Jones P4, Mordecai 6-3, Chipper K
B3: Bullinger K, McRae HR, Bullett K, Grace 1B, Gonzalez F7
(Cubs 2, Braves 1)

Talking about leadoff guys in yesterday's game, can anyone believe Andruw Jones used to be a leadoff man? In August 1996, he was a slender 19 year old and in his first month in the big leagues and was maybe the biggest prospect of all time. In January 2008, the Dodgers signed him to a two-year, 36 million deal and he responded by hitting .158 in over 200 ABs. In January 2009, the Dodgers released him (gently, presumably, given the tectonic situation in SoCal). One scout said of him, "He looked like he was at a church picnic and could not care less about what was going on." Too much success at the cake wheel it appears.

T4: McGriff E6, Klesko F9, Dye K, Lopez 1B, Lemke E6, Bielecki 1B, A. Jones 4-3
B4: Magadan F9, Houston 1B, Hernandez K, Haney 6-3
(Cubs 2, Braves 2)

The nice thing about old scorecards is all the little notations in the book, some about the game, some not. In this one, tbKMD wrote "tbKMD [heart] Dolberry". (She didn't really use our blog code names, but it was still sweet.)

T5: Mordecai 1B, Chipper 1B, McGriff 4-3, Klesko 6-3, Dye K
B5: Hubbard K, McRae F8, Bullett 1-3
(Braves 3, Cubs 2)

It's worth noting that APD was at this game as well, though his seats were the ultimate "obstructed view". At that time of his life, we called him "Lil' Chipper" after Chipper Jones who was one of my favorite players at the time. (I still like ol' Larry Wayne Jones ... he's a great player.) He was one of my favorites at the time because he was one of my first Rotisserie baseball "finds". A "find" is a guy you identify when he's young and you lock him in at a cheap price before the whole world knows about him. My new "find" for those who care is Pablo Sandoval of the Giants. Let's be thankful we're past childbearing years ... Lil' Pablo doesn't sound quite the same.

T6: Lopez 1B, Lemke 6-3, Bielecki K, A. Jones K
B6: Grace 4-3, Gonzalez 1B, Magadan 1B, Servais F9, Hernandez K
(Braves 3, Cubs 2)

Even if you don't like baseball ... (Be gone heathen!) one can still enjoy the food you can get at the ballpark. I usually keep it simple. In Wrigley, Dolberry usually got a brat (or two) and a soda. On a warm day, that'd usually be followed by ice cream in one of those collectible helmets. Mmmmmmmm .... ice cream helmets .

T7: Mordecai HR, Chipper 5-3, McGriff 1B, Klesko 6-4-3
B7: Haney BB, Kieschnieck 1B, McRae BB, Bullett K, Grace K, Gonzalez 3B, Magadan K.
(Cubs 5, Braves 4)

One of the best traditions about Wrigley Field was Harry Carey singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during the 7th inning stretch. Whenever the Cubs were behind he'd close the song w/ a lusty entreaty ... "Let's Get Some Runs!!!". Luis Gonzalez obliged him here w/ the go-ahead, bases-juiced triple.

T8: Dye F9, Lopez K, Lemke 6-3
B8: Servais 1B, Hernandez Sac, Haney 6-3, Gomez 4-3
(Cubs 5, Braves 4)

In Dolberry's opinion (hey it's my blog), there may not be a more overrated position in all of sports than that of the closer in baseball. The Reds are paying Francisco Cordero 48 million just because he's pitched in the 9th inning of games before. Jared Burton would perform just as well for 1/10th the money. That said, the closers decided this game. Check out Bob Patterson (Cubs) vs. Mark Wohlers (Braves) in his prime.

T9: Pendleton 1B, A. Jones E6, Mordecai P2, Chipper 1B, McGriff BB, Grissom SF9, Dye K
B9: McRae K, Bullett K, Grace K!

Final: Braves 6, Cubs 5

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #9

October 12th, 1993: Blue Jays vs. White Sox

T1: Henderson K, D. White 1B, Alomar FC, Carter F9
B1: Raines F7, Cora K, Thomas F8
(Blue Jays 0, White Sox 0)

This game is Game 6 of the ALCS. I remember spending the better part of one Saturday morning calling and calling Ticketmaster trying to get Sox playoff tickets ... in the pre-Internet days ... getting nothing but a busy signal for over an hour before finally getting through. We paid $40 each for two upper box tickets at new Comiskey. I believe this is still the most Dolberry has ever paid for a ticket to any sort of sporting event, though pretty soon Spring Training games will cost that much.

T2: Olerud BB, Molitor HBP, T. Fernandez 1-3, Sprague BB, Borders 1B, Henderson FC, White 4-3.
B2: Ventura BB, Burks P4, Newson 4-3, L Johnson 3U.
(Jays 2, Sox 0)

The starting pitchers for this matchup were superb. Toronto sent Dave Stewart to the hill while Chicago countered with Alex Fernandez. Stewart was a few years removed from his dominating stint w/ the A's in the late 80's, but he had bested Fernandez just 6 days earlier in Game 2 of this ALCS. Alex Fernandez had an awesome 1993, 18-9 w/ a 3.13 ERA, but it was overshadowed somewhat by "Blackjack" McDowell's 22 win Cy Young performance. At the time, as a Sox fan, I remember thinking Fernandez had a really bright career ahead of him. As it turned out, his best season was 1993 as a 24-year old.

T3: Alomar 4-3, Carter P3, Olerud P2
B3: Lavailliere P5, Guillen 2B, Raines 1B, Cora HBP, Thomas BB, Ventura FC, Burks 5-3
(Jays 2, Sox 2)

1993 was probably the year tbKMD and I watched the most baseball games. We lived right downtown in these apartments (where GMa Karen once had popcorn AFTER eating 4 desserts) and it was really simple to get to either Comiskey or Wrigley. tbKMD was just a few months from getting her PhD and Dolberry was working out at LADCO. Those were carefree days ... very few responsibilities ... no kid, no mortgage, didn't even own a car. We got pretty emotionally invested in the Sox that year.

T4: Molitor E5, Fernandez F8, Sprague 1B, Borders FC/E4, Henderson 3-1
B4: Newson 4-3, Johnson L3, Lavalliere 5-3
(Jays 3, Sox 2)

This was the Sox first playoff appearance since 1983 and only their second since 1959, so there were a lot of rabid Sox fans that year. It was a full house despite temperatures in the mid-40s. The Jays had won the first two games of the series in Chicago, but then the "good guys" bounced back to take the next two to even the series. The Jays had beaten McDowell in Game 5, so this was an elimination game for the Sox.

T5: White 1B, Alomar 1B, Carter K, Olerud P5, Molitor BB, Fernandez P4
B5: Guillen P5, Raines BB, Cora F9, Thomas K
(Jays 3, Sox 2)

The top 3 vote getters in the 1993 AL MVP batted that past inning. #3 Olerud, #2 Molitor, #1 The Big Hurt. Frank Thomas was an awesome player in the mid 1990's. In 1994, he had a Barry Bonds like season w/o the bloated perjuring head (.492 on base % and 38 HRs in a park that favored pitchers). The Big Hurt is still trying to catch on w/ someone for 2009 ... he may be forced to retire ... sentimental ol' Dolberry would like to see him get another year.

T6: Sprague K, Borders 2B, Henderson F7, White K
B6: Ventura F9, Burks 1B, Newson K, Johnson 4-3
(Jays 3, Sox 2)

This game featured two of the best leadoff hitters of all time: Rickey Henderson and Tim "Rock" Raines. Both were on the Hall of Fame ballot this year and Henderson got in w/ 95% of the vote, but surprisingly Raines only got 22% support (you need 75% to get in). He'll get in eventually as new guard voters (who appreciate what a lifetime .385 on base percentage means to an offense) replace the ones who only care about HRs.

T7: Alomar F9, Carter F8, Olerud 1B, Molitor K
B7: Lavailliere BB, Guillen Sac, Raines L4 (DP)
(Jays 3, Sox 2)

The Southside fans were getting restless by this point. tbKMD was surprised by the fact that the White Sox supporters were booing their boys after a 94 win season appeared to be coming to end. I guess when you haven't won a single playoff series since 1917, patience & goodwill aren't your strong suits. This was the last year before the current wild-card playoff format came into effect. Unlike interleague play, I correctly tagged that as a bad idea when it happened. Does anybody really get fired up for a divisional series playoff game?

T8: Fernandez F8, Sprague P4, Borders 1-3
B8: Cora F7, Thomas 1B, Ventura K, Burks K
(Jays 3, Sox 2)

By the time the 9th inning ended, tbKMD & Dolberry were one of the few fans left in the stadium. As you will see it didn't end well. The Blue Jays went on to win the World Series over the Phillies on a walkoff Joe Carter HR. The White Sox would get their World Series in 2005 when their 1993 SS (Ozzie Guillen) was their manager. Dolberry and tbKMD went on to live happily ever after, although we haven't been to a playoff game since.

T9: Henderson 1-3, White HR, Alomar F8, Carter 1B, Olerud E4, Molitor 3B, Fernandez F8
B9: Newson HR, Johnson BB, Karkovice K, Guillen F9, Raines F9.

Final: Jays 6, Sox 3

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #10

July 1st, 1997: Royals vs. Cubs

T1: Goodwin 4-3, J. Bell F9, J. Damon K
B1: Glanville 1B, McRae 2B, Grace 1B, Sosa 2B, Dunston 1B, Sandberg SF-7, Hernandez 6-4-3.
(Cubs 4, Royals 0)

In Dolberry's opinion the three best things about Chicago are how pretty Lake Michigan looks on a crisp summer day, Giordano's pizza, and Wrigley Field. So, in our last month in Chicagoland it was time to drag APD out to the Friendly Confines.

T2: J King 6-3, J. Dye 4-3, C. Paquette K
B2: Hubbard F9, F. Castillo 3-1, Glanville PO-2
(Cubs 4, Royals 0)

Remember thinking at the time that it was weird that APD's first game would be an interleague matchup. It seems like there's been interleague play for forever, but 1997 was the first year for it. I remember thinking it was a bad idea at the time, but in retrospect I have to grudgingly admit error on that one. I kind of enjoy interleague games now. From a fantasy baseball perspective, it's nice to have 15 games to track instead of 8.

T3: Fasano K, Howard 1B, Rusch E5, Goodwin 2B, Bell BB, Damon P6, King P5.
B3: McRae F8, Grace 1B, Sosa K, Dunston 1B, Sandberg 2B, Hernandez 6-3
(Cubs 5, Royals 1)

We were excited that Glendon Rusch was pitching for the Royals, because we had "seen" him pitch a no-hitter a few seasons earlier at a Single A game against the Kane County Cougars. It still is the only no-hitter I've ever "seen". Seen is in quotation marks because we were in the standing room section of a huge Sunday crowd for that little ballpark and I actually couldn't see Rusch from where we were, but it was cool to be there. Glendon did not fare as well in this one, lasting only 6 innings.

T4: Dye L5, Paquette 5-3, Fasano 5-3
B4: Hubbard F7, Castillo F9, Glanville HR, McRae F8
(Cubs 6, Royals 1)

Doug Glanville had to be one of the smartest players in MLB. He's one of only 5 Penn graduates to play in the bigs. Seemed like a nice guy.

T5: Howard 1B, Rusch K, Goodwin F9, Bell 6-3
B5: Grace F8, Sosa 6-3, Dunston 1B, Sandberg F8
(Cubs 6, Royals 1)

I remember it being a beautiful Tuesday afternoon. Our scorecard says 80 degrees yet there were only 18,745 in attendance. Nowadays, that's a sure sellout for the Cubs. Attendance in 1997 was 2.1 million. The next year was the steroid-fueled run on Maris' record and no year since 1997 has drawn less than 2.6 mil at Wrigley. The last 5 seasons have all been over 3 million.

T6: Damon 1B, King F9, Dye 3U (DP)
B6: Hernandez BB, Hubbard 4-6-3, Castillo 4-3
(Cubs 6, Royals 1)

You may or may not know this but President Obama is a big White Sox fan. I think this can only help the SouthSiders, although I'm not sure how. Maybe there's money for another starter in the stimulus package.

T7: Paquette 5-3, Fasano K, Howard 2B, S. Cooper P5
B7: Glanville BB, McRae P3, Grace 3-6-1
(Cubs 6, Royals 1)

While this was APD's first baseball game, it was not his first sporting event. He had watched Marquette win the Conference USA basketball tournament that March in St. Louis. As parents of a newborn, I remember we were scared that the loud noise of the bands might hurt his little eardrums.

T8: Goodwin K, Bell K, Damon P6
B8: Sosa 1B, Dunston F9, Sandberg P6, Hernandez 6-3
(Cubs 6, Royals 1)

I can't really remember if APD enjoyed the game or not. As far as games go, there'll be others to come in the countdown that were more interesting from a baseball perspective. Both of these teams went on to lose 94 games this year. But this one will always be special as the first one as the Dolberry family. I'm sure the drive back home to Naperville was traffic-crazy, but it was worth it.

T9: King BB, Dye K, Paquette F8, Nunnally BB, Howard 4-3

Final: Cubs 6, Royals 1

Ay Caruba!

Work's been crazy lately. Lots of projects. Lots of projects w/ lots of problems. And as it happens, I'm in the midst of another self-improvement program (Dolberry v.155) so I'm trying to have a good attitude about it all. But it seems the more stuff I shrug/laugh off the more the fates throw at me. So today, the "m" key on my keyboard stops working. Dolberry v.155 says "well, it could have been worse ... it could have been the 'e'". Dolberry v.154 says if it's still not working tomorrow, he's going to throw the keyboard against the wall until either the "m" comes back online, or until all the letters go offline. We'll see which Dolberry shows up tomorrow.

May snow here tonight. 1-3". But then maybe 70 by the weekend. Yay for that.

Our dog (Cherish) is crazy. For one thing, you can't watch a basketball game w/ her. You mildly rebuke a referee for a missed call and she gets in your face all concerned ... "What happened? What's the matter?! Are you all right?!?!? Here, let me lick your face and it'll all be better."
She's way more playful then any dog I've had before. At night, I'll be typing on the keyboard and she'll want to play. Our play sessions involved growling and howling at one another. Not sure why she finds that enjoyable.

Tomorrow, I'm starting my baseball game countdown. Don't even try to talk me out of it. Resistance is futile.

Frosted Obama Flakes

It has come to my attention that Richard Nixon is not in the news much and that if I wanted to increase traffic to the DCV via Google redirects, I should update presidents. Thus the title ...

I got my bike out today. It's generally a bad sign when you literally have to dust off your exercise equipment before using it. Here's my bike route ... it's 15 miles and it's really beautiful after the first 2 miles because you're really out in the country. There's lots of ponds and it's pretty much exclusively through the pines, so even when you're lungs are bursting (from the aforementioned out-of-shapitude), it's somehow comforting to know that if you are going to fall off your bike and die from exhaustion ... at least you'd be dying in a scenic setting.

My Super Bowl prediction, right before it happens is PIT 24 ARZ 16. Of course, the best thing about the Super Bowl is that it means that pro football is over and that it's almost baseball season and March Madness. This week I'll be counting down the best 10 baseball games I've ever attended ... to get us through those last days before pitchers and catchers report. I further predict that Springsteen ends the day w/ the 3rd best halftime show ever, behind U2 and Prince.

stop reading here if you want to avoid a mini-diatribe and a downer ... it is not intended to be holier-than-thou ... know am preaching to the alter people here (tired of the choirpeople getting all the good press) ...

So, the Super Bowl pretty much represents the apex of American gargantuanism. Oversized men chasing each other around with exaggerated senses of self-importance ... in front of millions of people waiting to be sold on what beer would make them funnier or what truck would make them more of a man than they currently are. Meanwhile, there are thousands of people dying (mostly children and the elderly) every day because of simple hunger. It's really absurd if you think about it for even a second. Check out this page if you want to help out in a small way ...

Frosted Nixon Flakes

It can be a little dangerous to organize your life around what you think would make for interesting blogging fodder. For instance, last night, the beautiful KMD & I were planning on what movie to take in this off Friday. We jointly decided upon Frost/Nixon because: 1) Dolberry thought it would be fun to have "Frosted Nixon Flakes" as a blog title, and 2) tbKMD didn't have any say in the matter because she's still serving her 7 movie suspension for picking out M**** M**.

So, while twinkling w/ excitement over the idea of being the #1 google search for "frosted nixon flakes" AND "apathetic coffee drinking Nirvana slackers", I checked out Fandango.com and got the time and location for our movie.

Unfortunately, in my giddiness ... I didn't realize that I was looking at the Thursday listings and not the Friday ones. So when we get to the theatre today we see that we're an hour early for Frost/Nixon and we won't be able to watch it and pick up APD on time. Normally, Dolberry would have advocated just being late, but we were also driving home some of his schoolmates, so that was less of an option.

The only two movies showing at the time we were there were: New in Town and Last Chance Harvey. We saw the preview for NiT and that looked predictable and lousy, so we went w/ LCH. It wasn't very good. Emma Thompson was good, but in at least half of the Dustin Hoffman scenes I think they just had a Hoffman mannequin. I think he was playing the role as the protagonist of this much better film, 42 years later. Unfortunately, I think the rest of the people associated w/ the picture were doing something else altogether.

Anyway, it was a mess of a film, and given our attendance was credited to my ineptitude, I was given a 5 movie suspension from the board ... leaving me a frosted Nixon flake.

Battle: The Story of the Bulge

BIG thanks to the Alexanders for their Christmas gift of John Toland's Battle: The Story of the Bulge. The book covers the Battle of the Bulge from its origins in Hitler's conference room, through the initial German sucesses, through the eventual Allied repelling counter, and ends w/ a quick recap of what some of the principals had done in the 15 years between the battle and the book's publication (1959).

I'm glad that I read the book in the winter, but even still I cannot imagine how awful it would have been to have people shooting at you while being stuck out in snowy fields and forests.

The book made me want to go back and read through the WWII history from Grandpa Fitz which can be found at the Fitzgerald family web page. The book makes the point that Hitler's decision to go on the offensive in Belguim probably saved the lives of thousands of Allied troops who would have eventually had to break through even more fortified German defenses sans the Battle on the Bulge.

Anyway, fascinating history. Thanks Nancy and Dave.

The outlier

Dolberry is the puppy who doesn't like to wander from the pack. Probably not the only one.

So last night I went to band night at the Cary Senior Center (?) to see a friend of ours band play. I'd say I was probably the only person who wasn't a teen or a parent of a band member. Dolberry felt a little conspicuous ... wondering if he appeared more an undercover cop or a stalker.

This morning I played in a Heroclix event w/ APD and several other middle schoolers. Ahem, the only adult ... not counting the organizer ... playing. My team of: Circe, Yellowjacket, and Dr. Strange was pretty much unbeatable. No mercy boys!

Then tonight, Carey (a great human being BTW), invited some EPA'ers to join him at a Chinese restaurant for Chinese New Year's (which is Monday if I understood correctly). The Chinese to non-Chinese ratio was something like 75-2. Again, there was that conspicuous feeling. (Which was quickly surpassed by a feeling that I ate about 3 times more than I should have. Too good. Bǎo!)

I wonder what it's like to always be in the minority. I think it'd be really tiring. Dolberry probably retreats to his comfortable regimes (softball, family, blogging, the Weather Channel, Guitar Hero) more often than he should. I guess it's nice to have the option to stretch or not.

21 weeks

Did all of you see this study? Well, you're welcome.

U of L sure has been fun to watch of late. At the Pomeroy Ratings site, they're ranked 10th in the country, but what is interesting is that they are rated #1 in adjusted defensive efficiency. Basically, it's a measure of how many points you give up per opponent's possession. They have the best rating of any team over the past 5 years in that category. Last year Kansas was #1 in that category and the season ended pretty well for them. Of course, Kansas was #2 last year in offensive efficiency and this year's Louisville squad is 92nd. I'm just afraid at some point in the tournament they'll have one of those 18-67 shooting nights and no amount of defense is going to overcome that. We'll see.

SLU hasn't been as fun to watch. Interesting SLU fact. They are 3rd worst in the country in FT% allowed (76%). For whatever reason, it's easy to make free throws against the Billikens. Probably because you're well rested.

Did you see that the ratings for the inauguration were the highest since Reagan? Did you also see which market had the highest percentage of viewers tuned in at 51%? Raleigh! Seattle was lowest at 19%. Apathetic coffee-drinking Nirvana slackers. It was dubbed the "Snobama Effect" here.

APD turned 12 today. What a great kid! I hope the next 12 go slower than the first 12 did.

Snow Day!

Wow. The snow patrol was out in Apex. Our rough estimate was 6 inches at our house. Though, the NWS says that Apex got the most of anyone at 7". EPA was off today (due to snow), so we played the usual snow football and went sledding w/ the Jensens at the Home Depot hill. Fun times. A video montage follows.

New U2 song is out

The first single from No Line on the Horizon is available from iTunes. It rocks pretty hard for about 13 seconds, then Bono downshifts it into something Zooropa-like odd. Ah, maybe it'll grow on me.

If I blogged about every time the NY Times irritated Dolberry! to no end, I'd have no time for anything else. But they really raised my dander w/ their article last night about the inauguration gala. U2 opened their set w/ "Pride (In the Name of Love)" an awesome MLK tribute that was meaningful in time (MLK day), space (steps of Lincoln Memorial), and context (inauguration of first black President). Bono, as he does from time to time, was doing some freestyle pontificating when he let drop that freedom is also an Israeli dream and "also a Palestinian dream". The NYT tut-tutted, calling it the "only sour note" of the gala. (I'd link to it, but can't find now. I swear I read it last night.)

I can't figure out why that is a sour note. Are we not supposed to mention anything political at an expressly political event? Do Palestinians not dream of freedom? It is not PC to even mention Palestinians?

Dolberry doesn't have an opinion re: Gaza, other than that they should quit killing each other. Here's a much better take from The Nation. I just gotta ignore the NYT. Basically, that web site is just like the comic strip "Cathy". I can't avoid reading it, but it generally ends w/ Dolberry! feeling like his intelligence has been insulted ... again.

Risen from the Lashes

(written Thurs night, posted Friday, hooray for airport wireless)

So … I’m out swimming under the stars and thinking about life, the universe, and whether Dolberry should have really had that 5th piece of pizza tonight. Seems even harder to stay afloat than usual.

It sure is nice swimming outside in January. Especially when you know in 24 hours it’ll probably be too cold to swim INSIDE where Dolberry is headed.

But that isn’t what I was thinking about. OK, well I was, but I thought about other stuff as well. The hotel I’m staying at is the host hotel of the NFL media for the NFC Championship game here this weekend. There are lots of middle aged, fat guys wandering around the lobby. (I was the one in the swim trunks.)

Many of you may not know this, but coming out of high school Dolberry was debating between four very different college and career paths:

a) Go to U of L and become an engineer. (It was free. El Cueto liked this one)

b) Go to Purdue for meteorology via ROTC. (El Cueto liked this one even more as it would have been free and our hero Dolberry would have had to cut his hair.)

c) Go to SLU and become a Billiken and live happily ever after.

d) Or, go to Western Kentucky and become a sports journalist.


I lost interest in the idea of sports journalism when I did a campus visit and they said you had to be good at interviewing people. At that point in my life, Dolberry didn’t even like talking to people he knew, let alone ones he didn’t know. WKU seemed like a nice school, though. I think one of Dolberry’s sisters friends went there … Rachel or Cherylyn … can’t remember. Somebody went there.

Anyway, I thought DCV readers would enjoy looking into an alternate reality had Dolberry chosen “d”. Enjoy.


Risen from the Lashes
By Dolberry!
USA Today

Phoenix – Seven weeks ago, stumbling off the field in a daze after an inexplicable tie against the bumbling Cincinnati Bengals, a Super Bowl appearance wasn’t even a mirage for Donovan McNabb. But on Sunday, he’ll need just 60 more minutes in the desert sun before reaching that ultimate football oasis.

McNabb was roasted by Dolberry’s sportswriting peers for not knowing that NFL games could end in a tie and he was left to dehydrate in the heat along w/ all other players who would not be making a playoff appearance in 2008-09.

Or, so we thought.

Instead, the ageless QB from Mount Carmel High School, south of Chicago, has risen like a phoenix from the ashes. If grit alone could get you to the Super Bowl, then McNabb’s Eagles would be in, because he leads a team of gutty grinders who would rather eat a cheesesteak than a cheesecake. And over the last 23 years, the Eagles are 1-0 against teams they’ve already beaten on Thanksgiving on that same year.

Stats and grittiness aside, it won’t be easy. The homestanding Cardinals are feisty themselves and won’t fly away in the Battle of the Birds without a flap. Arizona middle linebacker Karlos Dansby will be watching McNabb’s every move like a hawk. Every breath he takes. Every move he makes. Every pass he play fakes … he’ll be watching him.

But when he steps on the field on Sunday afternoon, don’t blame Donovan McNabb for looking around for that oasis. And don’t you doubt that he might not just find it.

In the Valley of the Frying Sun

(written Monday, posted Wednesday)
APD, the title is for you. I thought you’d like it. Went w/ a HoH theme throughout. I do think you could get a sunburn out here this week if you put your mind to it.

The warm weather is quite dissimilar from the last time I was out here in the winter. I might have to give that the “Life Episode” treatment sometime. (OK. Long story short … tbKMD’s family had Dolberry standing out on a major Phoenix thoroughfare holding a sign in my short sleeves in a 40 degree rain. Considering the downwash & spray created by the cars speeding by at 50 mph, the wind chill wet bulb temperature was probably ~25-30. I think it was some sort of hazing ceremony.) Today it was an easy 70 w/ a satisfying sun.

Conference is fine so far. Seen a number of old colleagues. They’d probably say the same about me.

I’m surprised how many memories I have of Phoenix. They all sort of radiated down riding back on the shuttle bus, gazing out the empty back of the bus at the South Mountains. Warm replays of leaving the Valley the first time, riding back to St. Louis w/ John, Beth, and Bridget … crying silently behind sunglasses halfway to New Mexico dreading a summer away from tbKMD.

(we were children then)

It was the first time I met most of tbKMD’s family. Who knows what they thought of Dolberry, but here’s what I remember thinking about them. They were kind of scary.

(footprints in the sand)

It’s one of the happiest blessings of my life that those scary people accepted me as part of their family. Eventually all of them became less scary. It took Mary the longest. Part of it was her tape player which repeated eight Garth Brooks songs over and over in a first day programmer’s loop. Part of it was her tenacious love for her daughters. It was as obvious then as it is now that tbKMD deserves way more than what she got. (No tradebacks!) Over time though, my relationship w/ Mary became something that I really appreciated. She laughed at all my lousy jokes & I did the same for hers. And it was genuine laughter. Nobody could make more smiles w/ less material than Mary. And during that one Chicago spring where Dolberry kinda lost it … Mary straightened me out w/ a simple reminder that nothing was going to happen that day that God & I couldn’t get through together. Before I knew it, we were good friends.

(and like that sand through our hands go our grandest plans)

The year she was sick went like a blur. There was sudden bad but uncertain news. Then it got worse. For a while the medicine worked, but then it didn’t. And we shared lots of happy times. And there were lots of nice talks and visits. And we took pictures in the fallen leaves and with new puppies. And right after that APD & I were out standing on the driveway under a halo-wrapped moon and she was gone.

(and through the cloud of death we find our way back home)

And sitting here in the Valley of the Sun, I selfishly wish I could go back in time and live it all over again. I’d do some things different (see summer jobs entry) but mostly just to experience it all over again. It's been too fun. Like always, I’m just so grateful for all the people in my life, the ones who are on the other side and the ones still here.

(the end … is not the end)

Phoenix

Did you know that Phoenix is the 6th largest city in the U.S., but if you watch the local news you will see commercials for alpacas? I knew that and now you do too.

Probably won't be blogging much this week as have not stumbled upon free wireless (that works) anywhere. Hope all is well for you guys!

Shaqtastic!

I think my favorite commercial right now is the ESPN one where Shaq is playing scrabble. Shaq does seem to be an excellent player and I hate to quibble, but in his first play he would have gotten 54 points had he played "quash" on his opening turn instead of "shaqfu" which was just 50 if my math is right.

Speaking of games, my 2009 Sudoku streak over tbKMD ended at eight today. We print out the same "expert" level puzzle from this web site and race to see who can finish it first. Usually takes about 20 minutes, but I got one done in 10:34 this morning. Unfortunately, tbKMD beat me by about 20 seconds in our 3rd match of the day. So, now I'm 8-1 on the year.

Speaking of streaks, I've gotten a lot of questions about my Guitar Hero prowess (well, one ... thx El Cueto). My longest consecutive note streak is in the 400s on easy. I can do pretty much every song at the easy level at least 90%. I've focused on two songs at medium level for now ("Everlong" by Foo Fighters & "The One I Love" by REM). I can do both of them at 90% on medium.

Watched a Josh Hamilton show on ESPN last night. The job he'd want to have if he wasn't a MLB player ... weatherman.

Went running around the lake today (2 miles) & APD whupped me. That kid is a competitive runner. He does not like to lose ... to his Dad anyway.

Probably no blog tomorrow unless there's free wireless somewhere.

I've had enough cold & I am outta here!

Day 3 of the water heater strike brought 55 deg F water which was a vast improvement over yesterday's 33 F. Looks like even warmer water can be expected tomorrow morning. The water heater strike came only 6 days after our car heater strike. Heat is an expensive commodity in the winter.

So, I'm headed out to the desert Southwest for the 89th annual American Meteorological Society meeting next week in sunny Phoenix. Forecast temps are in the 70s all week. Presumably, the Airport Marriott will have heated showers (they have a heated pool anyway, which is good enough for me). And I'll be hearing about global warming all week, so that should by toasty nice.

I'll try to blog along the way, but if not, stay warm out there.

Spinning

Hey ... hope your day got off to a better start than mine. Woke up around 7a ... still no working water heater ... 90 seconds dodging sleet from the nozzle. Then went from that to a 8a dentist appointment. Then work.

But really the dentist wasn't that bad & while work is busier than usual right now, it was ok.

After work, straight from the bus, we went to the gym where I did a Cycle 60 class. I guess it's called spinning as well. It's really fun for exercise. The lights are off ... they have big TVs showing Lance Armstrong riding up mountains ... they play some good music (& some bad music) ... and a nice lady yells at you to work harder. Big fun.

My goal this year is to do three triathlons and a half-marathon. 8 days in ... I haven't done any of those things ...

I really like this song called "Spinning" by Jack's Mannequin ... sort of sums up what life can be life sometimes. Check it out on the "Lala" musical widget thing to the right.

I'm keeping quiet 'til there's no more sirens.
Lately its hard to keep the hinges on with all the noise.
I found my words when there was no one talking.
The room is spinning i have got no choice.
Be patient, i am getting to the point

I can't remember when the earth turned slowly.
I just waited with the lights turned out again.
I lost my place but i can't stop this story.
I found my way but until then,
I'm only spinning.

I'm keeping quiet 'til the phone stops ringing.
Lately it's hard to disconnect. I just want something real.
I found the words if i can just stop thinking.
The room is spinning i have got no choice.
Be patient, i am getting to the point.

I can't remember when the earth turned slowly.
So i just waited with the lights turned out again.
I lost my place but i can't stop this story.
I found my way but until then,
I'm only spinning.

Spectacular double rainbow this evening in RTP

I'd credit the photographer, but given that he took the picture w/ his newly, ill-gotten, government-property Blackberry ... I'll save him the potential GAO audit.

Anyway, it was a real thin squall line of heavy rain & gusty winds, but immediately behind it was clear skies, thus the rainbow. Kind of a nice reminder that better weather is ahead. Softball signups start next weekend. Two months to spring training. I think I'll make it.

Movie "Review": Bedtime Stories

The whole D'Berry clan took in a post-Christmas movie this past weekend. We narrowed it down to Desperaux and Bedtime Stories and let a coin make the final decision. It was fine. A little Adam Sandler goes a long way. I had a really nice ICEE though, so all was good.

Our water heater appears to have failed. I grumbled to tbKMD ... didn't we just get that installed 3 years ago. Turns out it was 9 years ago. Time files.

Closer to caving on the cell phone thing ...

As many of you know, one of my life's goals is to be the last person in the U.S. over the age of 8 to own a cell phone. I must admit it's getting harder. The stupid bus has been really late a lot these days & I've been thinking that it'd be nice to be able to call tbKMD & tell her that I'll expect my dinner to be on the table at 6:37 sharp instead of 6:22 sharp.

One of my wonderful sisters (Carrie) sent me a link to a funny The Onion article about an obnoxious cell-phone holdout who caved and then instantly became a cell phone junkie. I would so be that guy. If I ever get a cell phone, I want the best one. Preferably one that takes pictures, plays MP3s, serves as a browser, and can grill a burger indoors (i.e., the George Foreman phone).

Based on a quick Google search, it appears that somewhere between 70 and 85% of all American adults have cell phones at the present time. According to one study, more people say it would be harder to give up their cell phone than their TV. Ouch.

The advertising for cell phones is relentless. According to the internet, here are the top 10 spenders on advertisements during the first three quarters of 2008:

1 Procter & Gamble Co $2.3 billion
2 General Motors Corp $1.4 billion
3 AT&T Inc $1.3 billion
4 Verizon Communications Inc $1.1 billion
5 Johnson & Johnson $1.1 billion
6 Time Warner Inc $878 million
7 Toyota Motor Corp $819 million
8 General Electric Co $807 million
9 Ford Motor Co $742 million
10 Pepsico Inc $731 million

Anyway, I guess I'll stick it out another year. But if anyone wants to get me an iPhone for Valentine's Day ... I probably won't throw it out the window.

We got Guitar Hero over the weekend

It's pretty awesome. I'm on easy level for now, but I've already made over $3K by playing virtual gigs. I guess Activision sends you the money by check. It's pretty sweet. Basically, the game has already paid for itself as it was only $79.

Good thing for those guys most folks don't have Dolberry's innate musical talent. They'd go broke.

Hey! Another gripe from growing up. Why did Kathy & Kris get guitar lessons & I didn't. We could have made a lot of money as a Partridge family thing if I'd have gotten the lessons.

Oh well ... bygones be bygones ....

Top Board Games of all Time

Ho boy! Another countdown. Who saw that coming?

Tonight's edition: Best board games ever. Dolberry loves himself a good board game. Don't think it gets much better than hanging out w/ friends and/or family around a table and playing a board game ... then winning & then taunting them until they run away from the table crying.

OK, here are the games that I remember playing that didn't make the cut: Backgammon, Balderdash, Battleship, Boggle, Candy Land, Catch Phrase, Checkers, Chess, Chinese Checkers, Connect Four, Hi Ho! Cherry-o*, Hungry Hungry Hippo, Jenga, Mancala, Memory**, Mouse Trap, Operation, Othello, Parchesi, & Twister.

( * - do not play Molly Alexander in this game ... you will lose.)
( ** - do not play Brigitte Alexander in this game ... you will most definitely lose.)

20 - Cranium: This should be more fun than it is.
19 - Pictionary: I'm lousy at this but enjoy watching tbKMD and Shelly play as a team.
18 - Clue: Colonel Mustard and the Bad Seeds would make a good name for a rock band.
17 - Yahtzee: I'm not sure how Dolberry went to the bathroom prior to the handheld Yahtzee.
16 - Chutes and Ladders: First game I ever remember playing ... was Snakes and Ladders then.
15 - Scotland Yard: Tracking Mr. X all over London is the closest Dolberry's been to overseas.
14 - Outburst: Fine game
13 - Sorry: Remember playing this game up in Akron at G'Grandma's.
12 - Taboo: Man, El Cuerta is awful at this game. He always gets buzzed.
11 - Scattergories: Simple, fun game.
10 - Life: If only all kids were as well behaved in the car as those little blue/pink plastic pegs.
9 - Blokus: Kristin got me this for Christmas. It's a blast. Thanks Kris!
8 - Stratego: El Cuerta always beat me at this. In retrospect, I suspect he marked my flag piece.
7 - All Star Baseball: Ooh, I spent many an hour when I was young spinning those dials.
6 - Ticket to Ride: Only played it once, but really enjoyed it. Will buy at some point.
5 - Trivial Pursuit: I enjoyed this more when I was smarter.
4 - Risk: Used to have epic games of this down at Topher's house before we switched to D&D.
3 - Apples to Apples: This is a blast of a game. Only Gus & I know how nasty rust is.
2 - Monopoly: Classic.
1 - Scrabble: Did you know ... that in the "proposal game" I beat tbKMD 410 to 167? A great memory.

Reconsidering the Catcher in the Rye

Dolberry likes to reread old books from time to time & in the last few weeks before Christmas, I was re-reading The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. (Not to be confused w/ the equally excellent Bob Uecker autobiography, The Catcher in the Wry.) At one time of my life (i.e., high school) this was probably my favorite novel of all time. I recall feeling totally linked into Holden Caulfield's experience: feeling lost in a larger world, not knowing how to fight back, and wanting to save the innocents from being lost to it. Now I read it, and while I think I still feel all those things from the previous sentence, now all I come away with is that Holden Caulfield is a jerk.

So what happened? Obviously, the book hasn't changed; so I guess I have. Did I just not read it critically enough the first time around or has 25 additional years of life left me unsympathetic to the protagonist's obvious psychological troubles? I'm interested in what others think.

Anyway, while you guys do that ... I'll leave you w/ Dolberry's favorite 15 "important" novels of all time. (Important is defined as one that you might be required to read in high school or college.) Some of these I haven't read in a while so there's a chance I may no longer like them. So, buyer beware.

15. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
14. The Bridge of San Luis Rey - Thornton Wilder
13. The Power and the Glory - Graham Greene
12. Slaughterhouse Five - Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
11. The Jungle - Upton Sinclair
10. Sister Carrie - Theodore Dreiser
9. Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
8. The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
7. Catch-22 - Joseph Heller
6. Lord of the Flies - William Golding
5. The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald
4. Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
3. A Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
2. The Lord of the Rings trilogy - J.R.R. Tolkien (nasty hobbitses!)
1. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain

The Spreading of Disorder

There was a cool article in Science magazine last month. Researchers in Netherlands conducted a half-dozen experiments to test the validity of the so-called "broken windows" theory (BWT). The premise of the BWT is that being surrounded by disorderly/criminal activity can actually lead to increased bad behavior. So, if one is surrounded by litter, graffiti, or minor vandalism ... one is more likely to exhibit that same bad behavior, or worse. Apparently, before this article there was no quantifiable evidence to support the BWT.

Their experiments were quite clever. For instance, they set up in an alley near a shopping center in Groningen where people would park their bicycles. They put useless flyers on the bicycles while their riders were away and tested whether the riders would take the flyer w/ them or litter them on the ground when returning. For the control case, the alley walls were clear of graffiti. In the experimental case, the alley walls were graffiti'd. 33% of the riders littered in the clean wall case; but 69% littered the flyer in the graffiti case. The (subliminal) thinking was that 'hey, this place is ugly anyway; what's a piece of litter.'

In another experiment, they put two signs on a temporary fence that people would have to walk around to get to their parked car. One sign said "don't lock your bicycles to this fence" and the other said "don't walk through the area blocked by the fence". When the researchers locked bicycles to the fence, 82% of the people ignored the other sign. When there were no bicycles chained to the fence, only 27% broke the other rule.

In other experiments they found that people were twice as likely to steal money when surrounded by disorder / other bad behavior.

Isn't that cool? It seems to indicates that humans have a tendency to hold a shifting ethical code that varies depending upon what others are doing. I would hope my ethics are independent of that others are doing, but I know I'm influenced (the whole music downloading thing from a few years ago is probably a good example).

Looking at it from another more encouraging angle, the more I "behave" the easier it becomes for others to do so as well. Maybe it's part of growing older, maybe it's just part of our current situation; but sometimes the world seems to be careening off-track. Maybe in 2009 if we all do enough of the little things right, we can nudge us back on course?