Smell ya later

Now that free agent outfielder Jason Bay has signed with the Mets, I can say that I saw both his first game with the Red Sox, as well as his last. Sure, he was only around a year-and-a-half, but that's still bragable.

I have to say that his first appearance was certainly better -- he scored both runs in a 2-1, 12-inning win over the Athletics. His final game, was the unfortunate meltdown in ALDS game three against the Angels back in October.

Regardless of how it ended, I will miss his home run swing.

Out of order indeed

When I saw this bathroom in Suwanee, Ga., I couldn't help but think of the Leelee Sobieski vehicle Joy Ride. Can't say why, though.

On language

Earlier this year, the principal of Danvers (MA) High School banned students from saying "Meep," the phrase uttered by the Muppets' Beaker, for fear it would lead to a schoolwide disruption.

Students were warned they could be suspended if they said or displayed the word.

It's really a shame -- "Meep" is far better than many alternatives for saying nothing when you need to say something, as detailed in the Boston Globe Ideas section.

... and we're back!

Some of you may have thought this blog was dead. Well I'm here to tell you that reports of our demise were greatly exaggerated. And just why were we exhumed from the dead? There is one answer, in the form of two words.

Sad Peyton.

Behold it:



Hooray for pulling the starters with homefield advantage locked up! Hooray for Sad Peyton! And go Pats!

Spotted!

Almost exactly a year ago, I compared dormant construction equipment -- backhoes, frontloaders, the like -- to sleeping dinosaurs. It was my great pleasure this week to spot a living dinosaur walking on the road:

Who's that knocking at my door?

There was a time in the distant past when logging on to my email was a welcome adventure. I didn't know what would be waiting, and the surprise was almost always worth it. This was late 1996, when email was still sort of new and when a day with 10 messages was a busy day.

Now e-mail is something of a chore, a lasso tying me to my obligations, a reminder I check by rote.

But I've been getting that same feeling of excitement I got back in '96 again, this time from this little guy:


When someone friends me on facebook, I have no idea who it might be. What part of my past will they remind me of? I like that feeling, but I can't help but see the writing on the wall -- facebook too shall pass.

Sole Survivor

For the second time in the blog's history, here's a picture of a wild turkey roaming the (mean) streets of Boston.


I can't believe this guy survived Thanksgiving. Now I guess he feels like he can strut about like the cock of the walk.