Pretty Girls

Aren't these just the prettiest dogs? They smell as good as they look, thanks to PetsMart. I'm not sure what they did while they were there being washed & clipped, but PetsMart called twice to tell us to come pick them up.

Playoffs!

The Diamondbacks are going to the playoffs! And so am I! I can admit it now. I bought tickets a few days ago, before anybody even knew that the D'backs would be playing next week. Woo hoo! I have to give props to the entire team. They have really had some amazing plays and efforts all season. I do recall saying as early as Spring Training that the Diamondbacks and Rockies would be fun to watch, and they certainly have been. It's amazing to invest 162 games -- 6 months -- in a team, and then have it pay off, and the season continue. There is nothing like being at a game and cheering for your team. The first time I really felt that was way back when my Seattle Supersonics basketball team clinched their first playoff birth. Don't ask me the year, but it was a LONG time ago, and I was at the game with my brother, and the Sonics beat their rivals, the Portland Trailblazers, to make the playoffs for the first time. What a rush to be with 14,000+ people all cheering for their team. It's really a catharsis -- a release for all the emotions from daily life. The funnest baseball game I've ever attended was Game 1 of the 2001 playoffs in Phoenix. My sweetie & I sat in the Infiniti Level at "BOB" (as it was known then) and watched Curt Schilling of the D'backs outpitch Matt Morris of the Cardinals in a gem of a game. Who knew then that the Diamondbacks would go on to win the World Series over the New York Yankees, after the events of 9/11. Who says sports aren't important?

Nordie Day

Yesterday I drove to Phoenix for a visit to my favorite store, Nordstrom. I've almost given up on Tucson ever getting one. Although they say now that Pima County has hit the magic 1 million mark in population, it may be more likely. At one time, there was speculation that Nordstrom could move into the Tucson Mall, since there's now an empty department store there. I don't know. I went to the Tucson Mall today for the first time in a long time, and it seemed kind of empty. Most of the stores were occupied, but there weren't a whole lot of shoppers. Of course, it's Thursday, but still. Whenever I've got to Scottsdale Fashion Square, it's always hopping.

Be that as it may, it was nice to shop at Nordstrom. I had to return a skirt that I didn't use on the Alaska cruise, and I ended up getting some nice, comfy jeans. Had a nice chat with the salesgirl who was from Tucson, Sahuaro High. Then I went to check out Whole Foods in Tempe. I was somewhat disappointed. It didn't have as much neat stuff as Whole Foods I've been to in New Orleans, Seattle, and Boulder. It was more like a Wild Oats (boo). But there was still enough good prepared food that I got things for a couple of meals. I'm still glad that the Tucson Wild Oats stores will become Whole Foods, but I'm not as excited as I was before.

Now I have to get a baseball thought off my chest. A lot has been said about players who do and don't "play through pain". Roger Clemens has been made out to be Superman because at age 63 or however old he is, he gets cortisone shots and still pitches. Nothing is ever said about Randy Johnson. He's had 2 back surgeries in the last year, and I have to think that's pretty unpleasant. He has pitched with back pain for who knows how much of his career (including last year in NY when he still won 16 games, but the fans didn't appreciate him), and is one of the best left-handed pitchers of all time, if not one of the best pitchers, period. I really hope he comes back and pitches next year, whether he gets the appreciation he deserves or not. I feel fortunate that I've gotten to see him pitch quite a few times.

Baseball

Yesterday we went to the Diamondbacks' last home game of the season. It was fun, although the good guys lost. And once again, I didn't win a "shirt off their D-backs". I bought plenty of scratch tickets for the annual season-end promotion, and this year I didn't even win a consolation prize. Oh well. At least our donations are tax deductible. And my second favorite team, the Colorado Rockies, helped the Diamondbacks' cause as well as their own by beating the Padres again. It was a truly bizarre game with Milton Bradley (snicker) self-destructing, being wrestled to the ground by his own manager, and sustaining a season-ending knee injury. All you can really ask for after a long baseball season is to have your team still in the race in the last week of play. And to have the Diamondbacks and Rockies both still contending is fantastic.

Speaking of baseball, I have a great marketing idea. MLB doesn't seem to have realized that many women are baseball fans, and are willing to spend money on team merchandise. (Note to MLB: this just in: women like to shop.) So I would like MLB to partner with some good nail polish company, like OPI, to sell team color nail polish. Can't you see the market for Sedona Red, Dodger Blue, etc.? Unfortunately with all the licensing requirements, etc. this would take a herd of high-priced lawyers to pull off. I've considered contacting Alyssa Milano, who has an excellent baseball blog on mlb.com and has started a line of womens' MLB clothing, to give her the idea. When will corporate America wake up to the idea that there's an untapped market for women's items in traditionally male markets? For years I searched for feminine business items, like briefcases in colors other than black or brown, but nothing seems to exist, at least in Tucson.

Happy birthday, little bro!

Today is my little brother's birthday. He's spending it with friends in our childhood state of Washington. It made me very happy to hear that he's spending the evening with good friends Dick and Ann, and they were about to tap the pony keg of Coors Light and watch the Washington Huskies play UCLA. Go Dawgs, and happy birthday to Neil & Lute!

Impoliteness

Before I started this blog, my sweetie had suggested that I should start one, mainly as a vehicle for getting some of the more negative thoughts out of my system. Apparently he doesn't want to be the only audience for my rants. I think I'm a generally positive person, and my intent is not to subject any readers to negativity. But I just have to get this off my chest. It has recently been noted that the world has become less polite than it used to be. Here's an example. Some people seem to think that it has become acceptable to use shopping carts as trash cans. What are people thinking when they throw their garbage into a cart? It used to be that selecting a shopping cart at the grocery store or Target just meant finding one without wobbles and squeaks. Now I also reject the ones that have other peoples' trash in them. I guess I could help by cleaning them out, but eeew. So the poor store employees have to pick up after all the thoughtless slobs. That probably isn't even specified in their job descriptions. Of course, plenty of the store employees don't want to deal with icky garbage any more than I do, and they just bring in the carts from wherever they've been left all over the parking lot, and leave the trash where it is. I can't really blame them.

Our other summer vacation

We hadn't even recovered from Alaska and Seattle when it was time to go to Colorado. What a rough life! Once again, we had wonderful weather (for the most part). It was great going to Crystal Lakes up in the beautiful Rocky Mountains, even though the Labor Day crowds scared the fish into not biting. And of course, we had to go to a game at Coors Field, which was lots of fun (the Rockies beat the Padres -- woo hoo!), and once again, it was a beautiful evening for baseball. It was nice being in Greeley, too, and eating at JB's -- yum! Dogs make vacations even better, and they help keep us from missing our own two goofdogs.

What a difference a day makes

Last night the Diamondbacks played a wonderful game, and beat the Giants 5-0. Micah Owings pitched a 2-hit complete game shutout. And with her usual luck, my mom was at the game. She saw a good one! They opened the roof at Chase Field and it was a beautiful evening in Phoenix. That's what makes baseball great. Good weather, a hot dog, a cold beverage, and even better, your team winning. The world looks much brighter after my team wins. And Kirk Herbstreit is predicting that my alma mater, Washington, will upset UCLA in football. Sometimes the anticipation is better than the event. Let's savor the moment.

How I spent my summer vacation

What could be more perfect -- an Alaska cruise, beginning and ending with time in my old hometown, Seattle. The weather was wonderful (most of the time), and even the few times when it was cool and rainy, it was OK with us desert rats. Pictures hardly do justice to the beauty and majesty of Alaska. And to think that we only saw bits of the very southern tail of the enormous state. Being back in Seattle was much better than I thought it would be. I love everything about it, except the weather. Vacations are great, but there's no place like home!

Too many toys

Fandom

The problem with putting your heart and soul into a sports team is that while the highs are high, the lows are really low. I need to work on putting the D'backs' losses behind me, but last night's was really hard to take. The game was in hand, then Tony Pena gave up "5 of the fastest runs I've ever seen" (broadcaster Mark Grace) to the hated S.F. Giants. Sigh. The good guys have only a one game lead over the Padres in the NL West. On the brighter side, it's September 18, and my team is still very much in the hunt for the post-season. And yes, I know the picture isn't of "my" team, but of one of my favorite players on one of my other favorite teams.