I don't know. I don't want to be so completely absorbed to think that anything I write people would have interest in. Especially if it's something that only revolves around me, like how I fold my clothes or which jeans I feel give my figure the biggest boost. So there were a couple topics that seemed completely reasonable to discuss--the World Series, football, SEPTA--and all of them had a pretty distinct focus on Philadelphia for the last week or so, which means I was right in the heat of the action.
The Phils have made it back to the Series. Congratulations. As has been covered here
time and time again, I'm not a Phillies fan. So I'm not really happy, nor really disappointed by these events. They played the Dodgers again, they whipped the Dodgers again, this storyline is getting old. Unfortunately this year I didn't even have the Rays to root for. A Yankees-Phils World Series is testing my gag reflex.
REJOICE!
The Eagles took down the Giants big time in a battle of the top NFC East teams, 40-17. It was such a thorough annihilation that I'm not sure what to take of it--either
the Giants suck bad or the Eagles had one of those "put it all together" games. Whether or not you like the Eagles, you have to admit, when they have a "put it all together" game, they're pretty much unbeatable. It's just it seems to happen very infrequently. (But it's the infrequent times that it happens that leads everyone, including sportswriters nationwide, to pencil them in as their "surprise" Super Bowl pick. Until they check the columns and see that everyone has them. Can we stop this please? What about last year's 9-6-1 record has everyone thinking we'll be heading to South Florida this winter?)
All told, solid game. Who cares if I thought the Giants +1 would be a good bet in this game? I'll take it.
GRUMBLE!
My sincerest apologies go out to all the Phillies fans. It was a tough break. The Yankees had something of a juggernaut going, even though I think each one of their players is immensely overvalued, they're still well above average and combined to make the best roster in the league. (A payroll that rivaled some national economies didn't hurt--
Falkland Islands, scorched! You're next, Saint Kitts and Saint Vincent.) As it is, it's an impressive feat to reach the World Series in consecutive years, and to win one is even more impressive.
The one thing I think all Phillies fans should take home from this series is that they mopped the floor with Yankees fans. You can blame lots of things for this--Yankees seats are absurdly priced, and I would absolutely throw a fit if I was a Yankees fan (then again I'd have no self-respect, so maybe I wouldn't), so it's a little unfair to point the finger at the fans for not showing up. But still. It's the World Series. If you're not excited for it, find a new team. And if you're at the game, make some noise. If people in New York didn't have money to afford these kinds of things, the team wouldn't be the global giant that it is.
(Also, I don't mean to mislead anyone, that "sincerest apologies" thing was just for show. You shouldn't feel sad about finishing #2 out of 30. I have no sympathy.)
GRUMBLE!
SEPTA goes on strike. Oh glorious day! My roommate, Jon, came into my room at 7:30 to announce to me that SEPTA had gone on strike and that I should probably get up earlier so I could get to work on time. Do you think this is what I want to hear when I first open my eyes in the morning? Seriously. What the shit?
I don't really know a whole lot about why they went on strike, but all I've gathered is some bits and pieces here and there. I could go the professional route and actually do the research, but instead I'll just feed you those delicious morsels here and see if anything trickles back to me--
What I've heard is that SEPTA workers (who get paid on average $54,000 a year) are not happy with a couple things: Their pensions haven't gone up, the state isn't issuing them raises this year, and the income they produce is being filtered by the state government into other projects, even ones in other states. That last bit is something I heard on a public service announcement by the union leader while watching television this weekend. He seemed very upset that "their money" was going to "other states". Is that what it is? Really? Because it's going to other states? Or is it just that it's not going into your pocket?
Governor Rendell seemed completely miffed by this whole deal. From what I've heard, the last contract the state offered SEPTA was to include 11 percent wage increases over the next 5 years, but none this year as the economy is clearly faltering. Apparently they walked out on that deal, claiming they wanted a 4-year contract with 2 percent increases annually. So let me get this straight: 11 percent over 5 years or 8 percent over 4 years, and they picked the latter? It'd really be nice to get an explanation on this from the union leaders, you know, so I can learn why I spent an extra hour each day walking to and from work (and to be honest, that was on the SHORTER end of the time cost spectrum for city residents). WHO is getting raises this year? Really? Half the states economies are in the toilet, everyone else is treading water, and instead of being promised a raise next year, they close down all public transit and demand a raise this year? I'm sorry, I know I don't have all the facts in this case, but that just seems completely irresponsible.
On top of it, I'm sure the only ones who are really affected by this are the union chiefs, the guys who sit in the offices all day taking phone calls. The drivers and mechanics getting their hands dirty at 5 AM every morning won't see enough of an increase to make a difference. And I'm sure they'd rather just get back to work as soon as they can to avoid any potential loss--and the ill will they're very likely to receive for the next few weeks as riders come down from their anti-SEPTA tantrums.
Either way, I'm not happy about this. Regional rail lines were up to 3 hours on Friday, when I was trying to get to the suburbs to visit my family. And that's just a one time occurrence. I can only imagine what it was like for people who were trying to do that EVERY day. Unreal.
GRUMBLE!
Everyone and their grandmom were psyched for the showdown Sunday night at home versus the Cowboys. Two teams sitting at 5-2 with the division lead at stake, the Eagles coming off a huge victory over the Giants last week, and Tony Romo's noted big game jinx coming to town.
Then they pooped the bed.
Like I said, the Eagles have those "put it all together" games only once in a while--typically when people aren't expecting much of them. But when they flash their brilliant side, it's likely they'll come back with a less than stellar performance the next week. And not only did they lose to the Cowboys, but they lost to the Cowboys at home. On Sunday Night Football. With the sole division lead at their fingertips.
Last year, in a pretty identical scenario, we spanked the Boys 44-6 and tiptoed into the playoffs at 9-6-1. This year, we looked like we just had some screws loose. Andy Reid challenged two spots of the ball (and admittedly, the second one, the 4th down sneak, looked like highway robbery as Donovan's arm came to rest with the ball in his hand but the refs promptly moved it back 12 inches) and made the decision to kick a field goal with 4:30 left on the clock, down 7 with no timeouts. Down 6, I could almost see the validity of this move (or down 9), but down 7? I just didn't get it. It still put us in need of a touchdown with no way to stop the clock. The Cowboys needed one first down on their ensuing possession to crush our hopes, and two would seal the game. Well, they got their first downs.
Donovan looked imprecise during the game. Not horrible, despite his two picks (one of which definitely wasn't his fault)--just a little bit off. DeSean didn't get involved, and I can't say for certain it was because the defense made a concerted effort to lock him down. It just seemed like we ran no plays. The Cowboys were moving the ball with a running game and short passes, and although they didn't score a lot, they drained the clock, while the Eagles were getting stopped on a bunch of 3rd & shorts, or shooting ourselves in the foot with dropped passes and false starts.
As an interesting side note, though, they announced during the game that as of Sunday, McNabb was the NFL all time leader in interception percentage. The dude just doesn't turn the ball over. And though he threw 2 of them on Sunday, note that the first went directly off of rookie Maclin's hands and floated ten yards before being snagged. Say what you will about McNabb, but I'm just going to chalk up another tally on my own personal "Why I Love McNabb" scoreboard.
REJOICE!
The SEPTA strike ended on Monday, though I wasn't aware of it until after I had already gotten to work, which means I was SOL on the morning subway commute. I had started to grow somewhat fond of the walk. It was refreshing in the morning, when I needed to wake up, and the weather recently hadn't been too bad. However, it made me incredibly hungry by the time I got to work, and going home after the 8-hour day wasn't much fun (plus 40th St. is quite a bit uphill from 19th St.).
After reading an
Inquirer synopsis of the agreement, I'm not sure what the union workers gained from the strike. It seems like there's an increase in maximum pension contribution, but again, anything with the word "maximum" probably only affects a small number of SEPTA employees, and I doubt the everyday worker has seen any change in their pay stubs. I have to admit I'm not entirely sold on the concept of unions, and while it might be somewhat naive of me to say that, from my experience there has only been a slew of negatives surrounding them--with very, very few positives to offset them. And really it's hard to blame the workers themselves. They sort of have to take what is handed to them. If the union leaders strike, they strike, if they go back to work, they go back to work. These workers all have bosses in their everyday jobs, and in addition, they're paying out money for someone to manage them. You can criticize my viewpoint on this topic if you want, that'd be fair, but something so far rubs me the wrong way. Maybe if I was in a union, I'd feel differently, but I'd certainly like to do more research into this before I stick my foot in my mouth.
In any event, SEPTA's back, I can take the subway home, I'm left scratching my head a little bit about why it happened in the first place, but now I at least have fare hikes to look forward to in 2010--even though Philadelphia fares are already among the highest in the nation. Hooray!
And, finally, but much less seriously...
GRUMBLE!
The Philadelphia Passion lost its home opener in the Lingerie Football League to the Miami Caliente, 37-26. This right on the heels of a dominating victory over the New York Majesty 40-6 (hmm, sounds familiar). Males might have interest in checking out this
gallery, though I, for one, find it shameless.
