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Friday, October 29, 2004

"It breaks your heart. It

"It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in the spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone. You count on it, rely on it to buffer the passage of time, to keep the memory of sunshine and high skies alive, and then just when the days are all twilight, when you need it most, it stops." ?A. Bartlett Giamatti

It just hit me that the baseball season is really over. I had been mourning the Astros' NLCS loss and was just coming out of that funk when the Sox swept the Cardinals. The World Series was over and done with so quickly that I barely noticed it was happening at all. I thought it was going to be a good series, a competitive series, a seven-gamer...and then it was done. And the winter is here.

Three and a half months till pitchers and catchers report for spring training!

My new lens got here yesterday, and it is so cool. It's a 75-300mm image-stabilized zoom. I wish I'd had it while baseball was still going on -- my shots would have been even better. I wish I'd had it Wednesday night for the eclipse too.

Last night's softball game was excellent -- I had the game-winning hit! Me! Woohoo! That kind of stuff never happens to me, but it did last night. The game started out well because I got to play first base (since Katie was out), which I love. The other team jumped out to a 3-0 lead, but we battled back to tie it 3-3, go up 5-3, and then allowed two more runs to leave the score tied at 5-5 going into the 7th inning. We held them scoreless and then it was our turn to bat. Jen and Gavin both got on base, and I came up with one out, Jen on third, Gavin on first. The other team actually moved their infield in. (Does double play depth exist in coed rec softball?)

All I needed was a hit to score Jen and we'd win the game, and on the first pitch I managed to knock one over the first baseman's head into right field. We win! Yay! I felt like Jeff Kent in Game 5 of the NLCS; if I'd had a helmet, I would have tossed it as I jumped into the pile of teammates. ;)

Seriously though, it was cool.

Thursday, October 28, 2004

Oh, and for the record

Oh, and for the record -- congrats to the Red Sox, and the Astros so could have put up a better fight than the freaking Cardinals.

Thursday, October 28, 2004

like sometimes / when I hear myself / on the radio / have you seen me lately?

Gavin, Nacho and I watched the eclipse over in Nassau Bay last night. I am a bit disappointed in the performance of my camera, because I really didn't get many great shots. Many of the shots, especially those taken with longer shutter speeds during full totality, were too blurry to be useful despite the fact that I was shooting on a tripod both with and without the lens's image stabilization turned on. It was pretty windy by the water though; my best guess is simply that the wind blew the camera around just enough to blur the pictures. They're not so blurry that you can't tell what I was taking a picture of, but I didn't get any of the detail of the lunar topography that I expected to be able to capture.

When totality hit, I started shooting in RAW format, and the files were too big for me to transfer quickly to my server this morning, so I'll have some of those tomorrow. In the meantime, here are the better shots from pre-totality.

The moon, pre-eclipse:

Our eclipse viewing spot:

Overexposed glowing moon:

Partial eclipse:

Overexposed just enough to show the red color:

Bonus picture of me looking very creepy taken through Ignacio's camera with night vision:

Wednesday, October 27, 2004

Not much to say today.

Not much to say today. It's Safety and Total Health Day at work, which I think is actually pretty dumb, because no one does any work. It's a stand-down day to think about safety, but there's not actually that much to do, so we just sit around and goof off. Matt and I left to go vote though, so that was productive. We had to wait in line for an hour. An hour! For early voting! Crazy.

I'm going to try to take some good pictures of the lunar eclipse tonight with my new camera. Hopefully I'll get some good ones.

Tuesday, October 26, 2004

I'm just so tired / won't you sing me to sleep / and fly through my dreams /
so I can hitch a ride with you tonight

Hey -- this guy hates the Right Now! graphic on Fox baseball broadcasts as much as I do! God forbid you actually have to pay attention to the game to find out what's happening.

"Then there's Fox's "Right Now!" graphic. It tells you what's happening Right Now! I'm glad they're clear about that, because once in a while they might put up information about, say, August 1939, and due to the length of the game and my diminished mental capacity, I might think that stuff pertains to Right Now!"

I think it's the exclamation point that really makes it so irksome.

Anyway.

We hit the climbing gym last night for the first time in a couple months, and my arms and hands are paying for it today. It was fun to go back, but I'm still getting far too frustrated over not seeing much improvement in my climbing abilities. I just don't have the arm strength to haul myself up certain parts of the wall, and I'm starting to doubt that I'll ever have it. I have bigger biceps than I ever have, and I still can't do a pull-up. Doesn't seem promising.

While pondering why I wasn't climbing on the previous Monday, I remembered that it was because I was attending the BEST BASEBALL GAME I HAVE EVER WITNESSED. (Brandon Backe, Woody Williams, NLCS Game 5.) Ah, the memories.

Monday, October 25, 2004

and I'm sure the view from heaven / beats the hell out of mine here /
and if we all believe in heaven / maybe we'll make it through one more year

This weekend was filled with two of my favorite things: soccer and owl cookies! I played Friday night (we lost horribly, and I was extremely frustrated with my team) and Saturday morning (we lost, but only slightly, and the extremely hot Brazilian subbing for my team made everything better).

Last night I played my first game with my new women's team, and it went pretty well. We lost the game 3-1 after losing two players at halftime and having to play the second half short a player, but I personally had a great game at right fullback. I miss playing sweeper, but maybe I'll get to fill in there occasionally. In the meantime, I'll be content at fullback. I was glad I played well, because I wanted to make a good first impression! I love playing in the women's league -- I feel like I can be so much more competitive when I don't have to try to out-sprint speedy boys.

On Saturday afternoon I made the dough for my owl cookies, and that night I didn't play soccer, but watched it instead. The US Women's National Team was in town for an exhibition against Ireland as part of their "yay we won the gold medal and now some of our best players are retiring" tour. It was a really fun game to watch, even if Ireland was completely overmatched. I'm constantly amazed at the skill level of professional soccer players -- they way their passes always go right where they're intended to go, their trapping skills, and especially the way they seem to intuitively know where their teammates are. They have such incredible awareness of what's happening on the field, where to place the ball so that their teammate can rush in. There's no hoarding the ball, and good passing is of utmost importance. It was awesome to watch.

When I started playing soccer again a year and a half ago, I rediscovered how much I like the sport. It's such a great game, and unlike most other sports, I love watching women play even more than men. Women soccer players seem so much more real to me; I feel like I understand them a bit. What they do is something that I feel like I might have been able to do if I'd followed a different path. Once upon a time, with lots of dedication and practice, I feel like playing pro soccer could have been a realistic goal for me.

Of course, today I'm a mediocre player (at best), but I guess I feel like at one point in my life, playing pro soccer might have been attainable. And that makes it much more interesting to me.

Did I mention how cool my new camera is? I took it to the game Saturday and got the above shots, plus a few more good ones. Later that night, Nick accidentally dropped my camera -- but only about 6 inches, and it was ok, just scratched. I momentarily freaked out, but calmed down once I realized that nothing was irreparably damaged. I even colored in the scratch with black sharpie, and you can hardly see it. Crisis averted, but Nick felt so bad that he surprised me last night with gifts of a tripod, lens cloth, lens cap leash, and remote controller. Nick is awesome. I told him that he can drop my stuff anytime. ;)

Yesterday I had a lovely lazy day in which I made owl cookies, watched my new Aladdin DVD, and finally went to the grocery store -- my first real grocery trip since September 8. Yes, September 8. I discovered that when I went to enter the money I spent into my money software. Now, grocery shopping is one of my least favorite chores, but I can't believe I went a month and a half without a major grocery store trip. I knew I was seriously low on food (as Katie and Joel can attest to), but geez. I have no idea what I've been eating for the past month!

Sunday, October 24, 2004

I came back from my

I came back from my soccer game tonight, opened the door, and walked into my apartment. The entire place smelled like...

...OWL COOKIES!

It's that time of year. Yum yum. :)

Friday, October 22, 2004

if I could find you now things would get better /
we could leave this town and run forever

I'm so incredibly bummed that the Astros lost. I really felt good about their chances; I really thought they were going to the Series. But 2 runs just isn't enough to beat the Cardinals, even with Clemens on the mound. Sad, sad. But I have to look at the bright side -- the Astros had a fantastic, magical season that ended in a way no one could have predicted two months ago. So thanks Astros, it was an exciting end to my summer.

Now please pull off another feat and re-sign Beltran!

I'll probably watch the World Series, but for me, baseball is over until April. Winter's dark enough without having to hate the day after the end of baseball. Poo.

I don't have anything scheduled for the weekend except lots of soccer. Soccer tonight, soccer tomorrow morning, going to see the US women's soccer team play at Reliant tomorrow night, and more soccer on Sunday. For the first time this fall, all three of my teams (two coed and a women's) are playing this weekend.

Thursday, October 21, 2004

The Astros lost. Sadness, and

The Astros lost. Sadness, and a long winter ahead.

Thursday, October 21, 2004

About Saroy

updated Jan 2007

My name is Sarah, I'm 28 years old, and I currently live and work deep in the heart of Texas (aka Houston). This is my meant-to-be-temporary-but-actually-somewhat-permanent "about me" page...

A reverse chronology of my life
(idea borrowed from kottke.org)

2007: Currently happening. Read the blog to see how it's going...

2006: This year was arguably the best of my life thus far. In January I started dating someone that will hopefully be around for a long, long time; in August I got a full-time job in Mission Control, one that at this point in my career could be called my dream job. The year's fabulous trip abroad was a week and a half in the Patagonia region in southern Argentina and Chile, and I later learned to ski while spending my 28th birthday at Tahoe.

2005: I blinked and it was gone. It was the first year since college that I didn't leave the country. The year that my sister got married in the most beautiful wedding ever (yes, ever, of course). The year I got "serious" about photography. The year I got to be on the field for the World Series.

2004: The year of the Best. Trip. Ever. I tend to say that about whatever my most recent trip was, but this time I mean it. I went to Peru with 7 friends, hiked the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, and loved every minute of it.

2003: I started the year with a week in France. A few days after I came back, we lost Columbia as it was coming back to Earth. For me, the event was more terrible and hit with more force than 9/11. Also the year that my five-years-younger-than-me sister got engaged. And I went to Greece.

2002: Decided that grad school was scary and making money sounded nice. I decided to leave Stanford with a Master's instead of a Ph.D. and moved to Houston. I went to Europe for the second time, a week of driving around Scotland.

2001: I graduated from Georgia Tech and finally escaped the country! For a month. We did a whirlwind 28-day European tour, hitting London, Paris, Munich, Fussen (Germany), Montreaux (Switzerland), Venice, Florence, Rome, the Riviera, Barcelona, back through Paris, and Amsterdam. I drank beer in Germany. I did not smoke pot in Amsterdam. In September, I began what I thought would be 4-5 years of grad school. My dad flew from Atlanta to Houston 3 days after 9/11 to drive to California with me. Because of 9/11, we didn't get to go inside the Hoover Dam or tour Dryden Flight Research Center. Freaking terrorists.

2000: I rang in the new millenium overlooking the LA basin from the Palos Verdes peninsula. I love California. I also went to New York for the second time. I love New York.

1999: The year of best living arrangement ever. I moved into Harris with Courtney, and shared a suite with Leila. People could just knock on the back door to be let in. On Sundays we'd go across the hall to Josh's room and watch The Simpsons while sitting on the futon cushion on the floor. During commercials, we'd wrestle.

1998: Fell in love for the first time. It didn't work out.

1997: Spent my last summer at home before starting my coop job with NASA. In September, a group of almost 30 of us drove from Houston to Florida and that's when I saw my first space shuttle launch. It was a night launch. The light was so bright, and the noise was so loud. It cracked and popped and rumbled and was extremely cool.

1996: Graduated high school and moved to Atlanta to study aerospace engineering at Georgia Tech. My brother moved into my bedroom as soon as I moved out, which I'm still bitter about even though I know it only made sense because he'd been sharing a room with my other brother blah blah blah. He stole my room. I didn't know anyone in Georgia and was extremely homesick for the first few months.

1995: The Braves won the World Series while my family and I were at my last-ever marching band competition at UNC in Chapel Hill. Katie heard Marquis Grissom make the last out on a walkman in the parking lot after the competition as we were loading everything back onto the bus. We screamed with joy, and went to my grandmother's condo to watch all the post-game celebrations. My marching band had won that night as well. One of the best nights of my life; I just remember feeling totally and completely content.

1994: Baseball went on strike right as I was transitioning from casual fan to serious fan. It didn't really affect much. I'm still a serious fan.

1993: I spent a week in the summer riding my bike from the North Carolina mountains to the coast. I don't remember much about the trip except for three things: seeing Jurassic Park in Raleigh, climbing the Cape Hatteras lighthouse, and going sailing on Pamlico Sound.

1992: My 9th grade physics teacher offered extra credit to anyone who wrote a paper for a science contest about Mars missions. I was a sucker for extra credit and wrote the paper. As it turned out, it was good enough to win a trip to Kennedy Space Center. I saw Endeavor on the launch pad and for the first time realized that one day I could do space stuff, as, like, my job. Whoa.

1991: In 8th grade I was on my school's varsity soccer team. I played defense. In one game I got a really good foot on a fast moving ball and sent it flying way down the field and way up in the air. I heard a classmate, watching from the sideline, say "WHOA" and it made me feel really good.

1990:

1989: Hurricane Hugo blows through Charlotte in the fall of my 6th grade year, with 80 mph winds even after having traveled a few hundred miles inland. We were out of school for a week. Our house was on a small string of power lines that wasn't high on the repair priority list. The houses across the street had power within 48 hours, but we waited two weeks.

1988: The Hornets start their first season in Charlotte. One night I was cheering loudly and got so excited that I was pumping my arms up and down. I was holding a blanket, and it got caught on my braces, ripping one of the brackets off my tooth. I was leaving town on a church trip the next day, so my mom and I had to go to the orthodontist's office at like 11:00 at night. He actually came out and fixed my braces. He was nice, except for the whole braces thing. Braces suck.

1987:

1986: I watched the Challenger explosion live on TV in Ms. Hackney's 2nd grade class.

1985:

1984: I think this was the year I brought home chicken pox from school. And gave it to all three of my siblings. This is probably also the year that my dad caught me on video tape throwing alphabet blocks at my sister, who was helpless in her high chair. She still hasn't forgiven me for that one.

1983: My brother and sister are born. Twins. With two parents and four kids, the family is now complete.

1982:

1981:

1980: After two lovely years (not that I remember them, but I assume they were lovely) as an only child, my brother is born.

1979: My first hazy memory is of Christmas 1979. In a pre-school classroom, we were making handprint art to go with a little poem: "Sometimes you get discouraged / Because I am so small / And always leave my fingerprints / On furniture and walls. // But everyday I'm growing / I'll be grown up someday / And all those tiny handprints / Will surely fade away. // So here's a final handprint / Just so you can recall / Exactly how my fingers looked / When I was very small." I distinctly remember some adult taking my wrist, picking up my hand, dipping it in paint, and flattening my palm on a piece of paper. The paint was cold.

1978: I was born at 7:56 in the evening on Easter Sunday. The cherry trees were blooming outside the hospital window, or so I've been told.

Thursday, October 21, 2004

World on Fire --------

World on Fire

Thursday, October 21, 2004

thought I'd let you know / who you are / what you've done / makes me burn

I'm so bummed that the Astros lost last night. Despite Munro's poor outing, the bullpen pulled a reversal and actually shut the Cardinals down! Amazing. I don't hate the Chads (Harville and Qualls) quite as much as I did last week, so that's a start. Clemens takes the mound tonight as I have a zillion heart attacks hoping the Astros will win.

This morning at badge check, the security guard was joking around with me and called me a pretty girl. It totally made my morning. My friends can tell me that I look nice all day long, but it matters more when it comes from a total stranger. Why is that? It makes no sense whatsoever and is very bizarre. What my friends think is much more important.

On Tuesday night, I was sitting at home when I suddenly realized there were dozens, maybe hundreds, of dragonflies flitting about outside my apartment window. I went outside to sit on the balcony and watch them. I don't know where they came from or what they were doing, but they were everywhere. It was both weird and cool at the same time.

I didn't go to bed early enough last night, despite promising that I'd try. I don't know what it is, but it's very hard for me to make myself go to sleep.

Thursday, October 21, 2004

I was reading this article

I was reading this article and had to laugh at the following:

Heading into yesterday most media types were treating the NLCS as a mere warm-up act for the main attraction over in the American League. For example, the front page of ESPN.com, loosely translated, looked something like this for most of the day:

SOX-YANKEES
DIVINE WARFARE
ARMAGEDDON
APOCALYPSE

*cards vs. astros at 4pm eastern

Wednesday, October 20, 2004

being emailed around the office

T'was the day of the game and all through the park
Not a Cardinal was stirring, the place was still dark
The dugout was ready, gloves hung with care
In hopes that St Backe would soon be there

The fans were ready, kids had been fed
And visions of winning ran through their head
Garner was waiting, the Astros would come
The NLCS was not yet done

Then out on the field the 'Stros did appear
TVs turned on fans ready to cheer
The line up was set, the umpires had met
St Backe appeared, ready and set

Then out on the field the first pitch was thrown
Strike one called the ump he let it be known
The fans just roared, the walls they rumbled
Strike three from the ump, the Cardinals had tumbled

Backe looked up at the white flags flying
No time to give up, we just keep trying
More rapid than rockets, the strikes kept coming
Three Cardinals down, Backe was stunning

The roar of the fans, the smiles on our face
Nothing to fear, not in this place
From the top of the 1st to the top of eight
The Astros were patient, Cardinals waiting their fate

Lidge had appeared, in the top of nine
No time to falter, just look at the signs
The Cardinals went down, the B's started humming
On Biggio, On Bagwell, On Beltran and Berkman

Then Beltran came up, bat ready and waiting
Cardinals in awe, not anticipating
The fire in the drive, the stolen base
The walk to Berkman, the look on Kents face

As he came to the plate, fire in his eyes
Don't mess with the 'Stros, you'll meet your demise
The pitch neared the plate, Kent raised his bat
One crack it was gone and that was that

The Astros had won, the damage was done,
Meet us in St Louis, we only need one!

Wednesday, October 20, 2004

I'll be around / what else am I supposed to do

My heel hurts for reasons unknown. My nose is running again because I haven't been getting enough sleep. Nick's desk looks girly because someone put fake flowers all over it. I'm wearing my Astros jersey at work, and am already getting nervous about the game this afternoon. I haven't decided whether to listen on internet radio here at work, or just take the afternoon off to go home and watch on TV.

That's about it.

Tuesday, October 19, 2004

the day after

Astros.com: "Astros second baseman Jeff Kent and third baseman Morgan Ensberg were conferring near the on-deck circle at Minute Maid Park moments before Kent launched his walk-off home run on Monday night to beat St. Louis, 3-0, in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series.

"We were just wondering, since neither one of us are Killer B's, what are we exactly?," Ensberg said. "Are we the pollen? Are we the pollen spreaders who supply the B's? We just figured it was time for the rest of us who aren't Killer B's to step up, even if we don't have a nickname."

Due to pressing matters awaiting Kent at the plate, the two Astros never did resolve their philosophical discussion..."

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "In Game 5 of the NL Championship Series at Minute Maid Park, the Astros and the Cardinals hooked up in a memorable duel, with the drama and tension escalating to the point where you hoped someone would press a button and open the stadium's retractable roof, just to let the steam out."

Houston Chronicle: "Once it ended, fans did what they've almost never done in Houston ? refused to leave.

They stayed to cheer and celebrate. They screamed at replays of Kent's homer as if they were living it over again. They savored the moment, the finest this franchise has had."

Post-Dispatch: "That nugget ? actually, it's a gleaming, brilliant pitching gem ? is Astros closer Brad Lidge. Within a dazzling (for the Astros) and disheartening (for the Cardinals) 24-hour span, Lidge has taken this NLCS and flipped it completely upside down."

Mike Gallo via Astros.com: "Our crowd was unbelievable, again. That's the loudest I've ever heard the crowd. Houston's pumped. It's awesome."

Astros.com: "In between, just one hit, some amazing defense behind him, and a city full of fellow Texans chanting his name.

Of that, too, Backe was aware.

"I kind of fall back on the crowd, to tell you the truth," Backe said. "They help me out, keep me going."

Chronicle:"Whatever the next few games bring, whether the Astros get to the World Series or not, thank you, guys, for making this the best baseball year of my life."

Jayson Stark via ESPN.com: "Backe was such a mystery man before this postseason, you might think he's just some guy the Astros stumbled across walking around the Galleria. Well, even though his catcher, Brad Ausmus, concedes that "you might see him walking around the Galleria," he is stamping himself these days as a pitcher to watch."

More Jayson Stark: "Astros 3, Cardinals 0 -- in a classic postseason baseball game that just about no one will ever tell their grandchildren they saw. Because they didn't.

And it's all because those bums, the Yankees and Red Sox, kept hogging TV screens all across America, in that greedy way of theirs. Maybe one of these days, they'll figure out a way to play a game in under five hours. Maybe one of these days, somebody will notice there's another series going on -- and it's every bit as good as that one."

ESPN.com: "Instead, it was headed for the very top of the only center-field hill in baseball -- until Beltran sprinted to the mountain peak, then smoothly backpedaled up the hill and caught it. "He didn't just make it look easy," Bagwell marveled. "He went up the hill backward. In case you hadn't noticed, he's a decent player."

More: "A Beltran single to start the ninth. An intentional walk of Berkman -- with two strikes on him -- following a Beltran steal of second. And then a first-pitch NASA launch by Kent that practically tore up the left-field train tracks and threw Minute Maid Park into rarified bedlam."

Monday, October 18, 2004

Last summer, I was lucky

Last summer, I was lucky enough to be in the crowd at Yankee Stadium when the Astros used six pitchers to no-hit the Yankees at home for the first time in forty-something years. It was the best baseball game I'd ever seen.

It's now second-best.

Tonight I was at Minute Maid Park for the most exciting, most nail-biting, most incredible, most nerve-wracking, most FREAKING AMAZING BASEBALL GAME I HAVE EVER SEEN.

Brandon Backe, a kid from Galveston who was in the minor leagues 4 months ago -- eight innings, one hit. Woody Williams, the veteran from Houston pitching for the enemy -- seven innings, one hit. Brad Lidge, the lights out closer -- one inning, no hits. Carlos Beltran, the guy who's so hot that last night he golfed a pitch a foot off the ground for a home run -- an incredible, gravity-defying center field catch. Jeff Kent, the country boy in a bit of a slump -- bottom of the ninth, three-run game-winning walk-off HOME RUN.

Astros win! Astros win! Astros win!

Monday, October 18, 2004

don't waste your time on me / you're already the voice inside my head

Whew -- what a weekend! Katie and Joel are visiting and the Astros are playing and life is crazy and busy.

I spent Friday night relaxing and watching movies, and stayed up far too late, but ah well, that's how it goes. Katie and Joel couldn't leave Atlanta until 6 or so because Joel had an interview, so they drove through the night and arrived around 5 a.m. Saturday morning. After letting them in, we all crashed. I got up and went to my soccer game, and by the time I got home around 12:30, they were up and about, if a little sleepy. Ah, I remember life as a college student. Crazy hours and crazy road trips.

We grabbed lunch at Jason's Deli and headed downtown for Game 3 of the NLCS. (When Katie told me they were officially coming for the weekend, the Astros hadn't yet won the NLDS and I thought my weekend might be pretty open. But the Astros beat the Braves, and suddenly I had three baseball games in three days on my schedule.)

Saturday's game was awesome. Chris flew back for the weekend for the games, and Jason and Betsy and Edgar were all along as well, and Katie and Joel had standing-room-only tickets but managed to find seats right behind us, and then of course Clemens threw seven innings and gave up only four hits, and two runs on two solo homers. It was a pitcher's duel until the Astros tacked on 2 runs in the 8th to make it 5-2, and Lidge closed it out. Woohoo!! Katie and Joel and I then had dinner at Mely's and went to bed fairly early.

Yesterday morning I was up far too early again to run the 20K downtown. I really was not to the point in my marathon training to run 20k (12.4 miles), but I did it anyway, and survived -- barely. The first 10 miles were ok, and I passed the 10 mile mark in about the same time as in the 10-miler race two weeks ago, despite having only run 3 miles in the past two weeks because I was sick for much of it. But after mile 10, I totally hit the wall. I don't think that had ever happened to me before -- seriously.

I could not get my legs to move any faster. It was a struggle just to keep jogging, and not slow entirely to a walk. My legs have never felt so heavy. My knees ached, and my hips ached (never had that happen before). I finished the run in 2:29:45, for a horribly depressing average of 12:05 per mile. Yes, 12:05 per mile despite the fact that I really did run, er, jog, the entire way. I didn't walk at all, and the fastest jog I could manage was 12:05 per mile!! Granted, that average was raised by a good 20-30 seconds per mile by my struggles in the last 2.4 miles of the race, but still. UGH.

I really have got to start running more regularly or I'll never make the marathon. Now that my cold seems to be disappearing, that shouldn't be a problem.

I came home from the race and Katie and Joel and I had lunch in Kemah. I met Jason to head to the ballpark for Game 4 while the Techies headed over to the Galleria area to visit with some family friends of Joel's that live in Houston. Game 4 was incredibly nerve-wracking, but turned out wonderfully in the end -- a 6-5 win for the Astros. The series is all tied up, 2-2, with Backe pitching tonight! I'll be in the stands!

The only thing I won't be able to do tonight is yell. The race yesterday, or more likely the combined effect of my screaming through two NLCS games already, have made me lose my voice. Yup, I sound horrible today, like a teenage boy whose voice is breaking. Sometimes normal things come out, but sometimes I sound like a horse. If I whisper, it's usually ok. I can't even remember the last time I lost my voice, but it is sort of funny and frustrating at the same time. Woe is me. How will I cheer tonight??? I guess I will just have to wave my rally towel even more.

Anyway. I'm off to head home to get Katie and Joel so I can give them the NASA tour before they end their quick weekend trip to Houston and head back to Atlanta.
--------

Sunday, October 17, 2004

Oh. My. God. The Astros

Oh. My. God. The Astros are going. To give me. A heart attack.

Four games into the NLCS and the Astros have tied it up 2-2, my nerves are shot, my arm hurts from waving my rally towel, and my voice is gone from screaming my head off yesterday and today. It was so incredibly loud at the park today. SO loud. I hope my voice recovers in time for tomorrow night's game!

Friday, October 15, 2004

the closer you get, the better I feel /
the closer you are, the more I see /
why everyone says that I look happier when you're around

This morning I hit the snooze button a few times. Suddenly I woke up with a start, knowing that I had overslept. I hesitated to look at the clock for a moment, trying to guess how late I was for work, but I finally rolled over and the clock stared at me. 10:15. Very late.

At least I'm well-rested today.

The Astros game last night was painful and nerve-wracking again, and this time all I could do was pace myself apartment with no one else there to distract me. The worst part is that the Astros really had legitimate chances to win both of the first two games, but the middle relief is just not getting it done. I also think Phil Garner has yanked both Backe (in game 1) and Munro (last night) a bit too early. They were both pitching decently, got into some trouble, and weren't given the opportunity to work themselves out of the inning. Instead, Garner turns it over to the verrrrrry shaky bullpen. The only consolation at the moment is that Clemens and Oswalt will be starting the next couple games and Phil Garner should hopefully let them go past the 5th inning.

Funny line from an article about Carlos Beltran's impending free agency: "But now that Beltran has been unleashed in October, thanks to Houston's surprising dash to the wild card, the numbers he's put up so far translate to a conga line of zeroes on his next contract, wherever he decides to sign."

Sigh. Go Astros! Please win tomorrow for me!

People are working on the room across the hall from us here at work, and I have no idea what they're doing, but the noise is incredibly grating. I turn up the volume on the iPod, loving this new U2 song...

The biggest news of all for today, however, is being buried here at the bottom of my entry in an attempt to avoid "you bought what for how much?" comments. I just bought a new camera! For those keeping score at home, I now have a film point-n-shoot, a film SLR, a digital point-n-shoot, and...a digital SLR. A used Canon 10D. I'm such a closet camera junkie. It is pretty, and should take even prettier pictures. Yay!

Thursday, October 14, 2004

you were just friends / at least that's what you said /
now I know better

My nose has reclogged. My ears have remuffled themselves. I'm sneezing. My throat has started to ache again. My eyes are watering. Yes, I've relapsed and am sick again. Boo hoo.

I am, however, for the time being, at work. And on the plus side, this means more delicious cherry NyQuil for me! JAJA.

On another topic, here's a note to Phil Garner: Chad Qualls sucks. That's twice in four days that he's let the opposing team back into the game. So, please don't let him pitch in key situations. Please. It's not good for my nerves. Thanks.

I watched most of the ballgame last night. I say "most" only because I get so nervous watching my team in playoff games that I can't sit still. So I pace around the apartment busying myself with little things. I make tea, send email, call people, distract myself a bit. Pace some more. Curse at Chad Qualls.

I just get so nervous! My dad told me once that he used to get so nervous watching Duke play that he couldn't watch at all. I guess I picked up some of that quality. But by the time the 9th inning rolled around, the nerves were gone and I was just feeling glum. I'd been wearing my Astros jersey over my pajamas, but took it off with 2 outs. As soon as I hung it in the closet, Mike Lamb hit a home run and Craig Biggio hit a double. It was suggested that I take off more clothes to help the Astros win, and maybe I should have, because Isringhausen then came in and got the final out. Poo.

I was impressed with Backe's performance on only 3 days rest, however. He pitched well enough; it was the bullpen that allowed the Cardinals to blow the game wide open. Here's hoping Pete Munro pitches the game of his life tonight.

Wednesday, October 13, 2004

As I wait for the

As I wait for the NLCS to begin, I'm watching the US-Panama World Cup qualifier on ESPN2. I watch. They run. I watch. The team captain for this game scores a goal to put the US up 1-0. And I think...

"Dude. I met that guy. We had a two hour, late night, pajama-clad conversation."

Pause. Watch him celebrate. Think...

"That is cool."

Wednesday, October 13, 2004

shake it / shake it / shake it like a Polaroid picture

You are Snoopy!


Which Peanuts Character are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Wednesday, October 13, 2004

I don't wanna be anything other than what I've been trying to be lately

Hello and greetings to those of you with short attention spans. Today's entry won't be as long as yesterday's, so rest easy. My incredibly fun weekend has left me sleepy, a bit confused, and asking a couple "life questions"...but all in a good, possibly exciting, possibly fun way. We'll see where that takes me, but I'm thinking that it could be something good. Or at least good for me...

Anyway. I know that's cryptic, but you'll all survive till I'm ready to say more. Also, Gavin is reading over my shoulder and it creeps me out. I know he reads my blog and all, but over my shoulder is still work-in-progress, Gavin, so cut it out!

The Chronicle has a great sidebar today comparing the presidential debates to the first game of the NLCS -- which will you be watching??

TIME
? Politics: 8 p.m. on most broadcast and cable TV stations
? Playoffs: 7:19 p.m. on Channel 26

PLACE
? Politics: Arizona State University
? Playoffs: Busch Stadium

MANAGERS
? Politics: Ken Mehlman for Bush, Mary Beth Cahill for Kerry
? Playoffs: Phil Garner for Astros, Tony La Russa for Cardinals

THE STAKES
? Politics: Leadership of the free world
? Playoffs: NL championship and a spot in the World Series

AUDIENCE
? Politics: In the hall, 100-150 "soft" supporters of either candidate. They must sit on their hands and not cheer.
? Playoffs: In the stadium, more than 50,000 Cardinals fans. Standing, cheering and shouting are encoured.

GROUND RULES
? Politics: Sixteen questions. Topic is economic and domestic policy. No props or diagrams. No nose-to-nose direct questioning. Debaters must stay at podiums. Coin toss determines order of closing statements. No extra innings.
? Playoffs: Double-switches and flipflopping OK, as long as you win. So is being single-minded and sticking to your guns, unless it costs you the game. At postgame interview, team members may be questioned, blamed or criticized, depending on their performance.

TEAM LOGOS
? Politics: Elephant and donkey.
? Playoffs: Star and cardinal.

UNIFORM
? Politics: Dark blue suits, with power ties in red or blue. No caps.
? Playoffs: Gray for Astros, white for Cardinals. No suits. No ties.

Tuesday, October 12, 2004

sometimes the only way is jumping / hope you're not afraid of heights

Yesterday was a government holiday (thanks Columbus!), which meant no work for me and a three-day weekend of which I took full advantage. I haven't had a weekend as good as this one in a long time. In short summary before I get into the details:

• I love haunted houses.
• I love Minute Maid Park with the roof closed.
• I love cheering loud enough to shake the entire building.
• I love weddings.
• I love wedding receptions.
• I love dancing.
• I love forcing guys who don't like to dance to dance.
• I love discovering that a guy who says he doesn't know how to dance actually does -- and better than me.
• I love getting the ultimate shoot-the-moon hand in hearts.
• I love the boot game.
• I love Carlos Beltran.
• I love the Astros going to the NLCS.

Onward to the details...

It started with a slow, relaxing Friday night. I stayed at home alone watching movies, which turned out to be a good move -- saving my energy for the next 48 hours during which I was alone only to sleep just enough to allow myself to continue to function!

Things got off to a great start on Saturday when Jason and I headed down to Minute Maid Park bright and early for the noon game. We had to wait in an annoyingly long line at the clubhouse store, but I finally left just before first pitch with a new Astros jersey. I promised the team I'd buy one if they won the Wild Card, so I had to make good on it. Chris was in town and sitting with us as usual, and Ron and Edgar were a couple sections over. I have never heard a baseball stadium as loud as Minute Maid was on Saturday -- we wondered why they didn't open the roof, but later realized that having the roof closed only helped to make the atmosphere inside more electric. Good move, Astros grounds staff.

The Astros won the game 8-5 and we left the park feeling really good about their chances for Sunday. We weren't sure we would make the game Sunday because they still hadn't announced the time -- noon if either the Yankees or Cardinals lost, but 6:30 otherwise. Noon we could make, 6:30 we couldn't because of Edgar and Betsy's wedding. Thankfully the Dodgers beat the Cardinals, and Sunday's game was set for noon.

From the game, I went to the mall and found a new dress to wear to the wedding. Ok, actually I found a new dress, and three new skirts. I have no idea where I'm going to wear all these skirts, but I liked them all! What's a girl to do?

From the mall I went to BJ's to celebrate Curt's 27th birthday. After that we decided to forget about laser tag and go to the haunted house in Kemah instead. At least three people in the group (Nick, Jo, and Debbie) had never been to a haunted house before, which was just sad and...sad. As haunted houses go, I was actually pretty impressed with Kemah's. A good mix of gruesome scenes with plenty of people popping out at you in scary costumes. I love it when people pop out at you -- I always scream, then laugh. It's great. I also had a bit of fun with Jo, hiding in a corner and waiting until she caught up to me to jump out at her. Sorry Jo! :)

From Kemah I headed over to Boondoggle's where the boys were all reliving the previous night's bachelor party. I didn't realize it was going to be the entire group of guys there, but it was fun anyway. I don't know how I do it, but I have a strong tendancy to end up as the only girl in large groups of guys. It's fun though.

I made it home Saturday night by 1:00 or so, in time to crash for 8 hours before getting up to prepare for both an Astros game and a wedding! Jason and I hopped in my car decked out in Astros gear with our wedding clothes carefully laid in the backseat. The game was a nailbiter, and we were not happy when we had to leave after the top of the 9th. (The wedding was at 4:30; we left the ballpark at 3:20.) We heard the end of the game in the car and would have been in a bad mood for the rest of the night if not for Betsy and Edgar and their awesome, awesome wedding.

Jason and I drove straight from the park to the wedding and changed clothes in the bathroom. We got a few weird looks walking in wearing pants and t-shirts, but most of our friends knew where we'd been, and we changed quickly! The wedding ceremony was short and sweet, but lovely. Stephanie, Hilary and Trish looked great in their bridesmaid dresses, Betsy was gorgeous, and even Edgar, Ron, and Chris cleaned up well for their roles as groom and groomsmen. :)

After the ceremony we headed inside for the reception. There was a fountain of chocolate, which, when paired with the candle at our table, allowed us to make s'mores! There was a keg of Shiner and lots of wine. There was polka music for the Wisconsonites (Betsy's side), salsa and meringue for the Colombian-Americans (Edgar's side), and plenty of other music for the rest of us. And did I mention there was a fountain of chocolate??

I did a lot of dancing, as I usually do at weddings. I danced with Chris and spun him around in his chair till he was dizzy. I forced Jason to dance with me after promising that if he did, I'd stop harassing him. Phil and I tore up the dance floor on song after song and he even serenaded me. Woo woo!

I even got Ignacio to dance with me for two songs, which I thought would be impressive on my part, but it turns out that he's a big liar and that he does, in fact, know how to dance. Beautifully. And better than me. For the record, it's slightly embarassing to spend a lot of time telling someone you're going to make them dance with you while they protest saying they don't know how...and then it turns out that they do know how. But Nacho, I forgive you. ;)

The reception wound down around 9:00, but we all followed the keg to Chip's place for the "wedding after-party." I played hearts for a while and won (I had the lowest score when poor Chris hit 100 points), and had the best hand ever to shoot the moon -- 10, jack, queen, king and ace of clubs, king and ace of hearts, king and ace of diamonds, and ace of spaces. I won every single trick in that round, it was awesome! When the hearts game finished, I played pinball for a while and then decided to join Kevin, Chip, Kylie, Trish and Nacho for the boot game.

Apparently the boot game is from a specific bar in Madison (Wisconsin). It involves filling a boot with beer, and passing it around the table, never letting it touch the table until it's empty. You don't want to drink so much that you get sick, but you also don't want to leave so little in the boot that the next person can finish it -- or you lose that round (which at the bar means you have to buy the next boot, but at Chip's meant that you had to dance and be given a nickname). Simple, and fairly pointless, as most drinking games are...but fun. The six of us went through 7 one-liter boots, and needless to say, finished off the keg. Each person ended up finishing off the boot at one point or another, and we didn't leave Chip's until 4 a.m. at which point sober Jason, Chris, and Ian were kind enough to drive the rest of us home. Much fun was had by all.

After only 3 hours of sleep (I didn't get into bed until almost 5 a.m.), I woke up and felt surprisingly good! I tried tracking down Ignacio but he was dead to the world, so I headed over to South Shore for the breakfast Edgar and Betsy were having for everybody before people left town. It was then that I realized I hadn't eaten anything meaningful since lunch the day before, except some things dipped in the chocolate fountain (chocolate fountain!!). I was starved.

From breakfast, Chris and Ian and I headed to Starbucks (three hours of sleep means you need lots of caffeine), and then found Nacho alive, if not well. Ian had to head to the airport, but Chris and Nacho and I had lunch on the patio at Mediterraneo's before heading to Betsy and Edgar's to pick up Trish, whose flight was leaving at the same time as Chris's. I drove them both all the way to IAH with Nacho along for the ride. We'd forgotten that most people did have to work yesterday and we were momentarily stuck in sucky rush hour traffic, but luckily the two of us got to take the HOV lane on the way back to Clear Lake. Smooth sailing, baby.

We didn't get back to my apartment until 5:30, at which point Ignacio crashed on my couch amidst my fuzzy pillows and Mexico blanket while I took a much-wanted, and possibly much-needed, shower. I had to wake Nacho up a little before 7 so we could go back to Betsy and Edgar's to watch the Astros-Braves game on Chris's hi-def, widescreen TV (the TV is on loan while Chris is at Stanford for the year). It was a nailbiter for the first 6 innings, but the Astros exploded in the 7th and 8th to win big and advance to the National League Championship Series -- the team's first postseason series win in franchise history! WOOOOOOHOOOOOO! Bring on the Cardinals! I'd never cheered against the Braves in my life before this past week, but it turned out well enough in the end. Go 'Stros!

God I hope Drayton McLane resigns Carlos Beltran next year.

So that was my incredibly busy and incredibly fun weekend. This coming weekend promises to be great as well -- Katie and Joel are officially coming to visit, and will be here late Friday, and then I'll be going to NLCS games Saturday, Sunday, and likely Monday as well.

My fingers are tired, that's enough writing for today.

Monday, October 11, 2004

It has been an amazing

It has been an amazing weekend, perfectly capped by the huge Astros win tonight to move on to the NLCS. Full update in the a.m. :)

Saturday, October 09, 2004

"Do you wanna go out sometime? I'm like, totally adorable"

I rented two movies last night, "Mean Girls" on Jo's recommendation, and "Saved!" on nobody's recommendation. The first was mildly entertaining but not that great, and I lost interest before even 45 minutes had passed. "Saved!" however, was awesome. It was clever, it was funny, it was well-written and well-acted. I've always been a fan of Jena Malone, who plays the main character, and she was good in this. Mandy Moore, as a holier-than-thou senior, completely cracked me up ("I crashed my van into Jesus!"). Patrick Fugit is still adorable ("what about tomorrow night, will you be dating then?"). And the rest of the cast was great as well.

I'm not really in the mood to write much more of a movie review, so I'll just stop here. But I highly recommend "Saved!" Very funny and clever movie.

Friday, October 08, 2004

So I just watched the

So I just watched the end of the Red Sox-Angels game, and all I could say as it ended was wow, how much does it SUCK to be Jarrod Washburn right now?? One pitch from Washburn, one home run by Ortiz, one sweep by the Sox.

Friday, October 08, 2004

baby if you could love someone like me / there's no end to the possibilities

While I'm home sleeping every night, I think my computer here at work is doing some SERIOUS CRACK COCAINE. I have no other explanation for why it appears possessed. It must be drugs.

In other news, I rode along with Nacho to pick up Chris at the airport last night. It was so weird for him to be coming into town for the weekend (for Betsy and Edgar's wedding on Sunday) when three weeks ago he still lived here. It was good to see him, and we all had a lovely, if late, dinner at Chili's. He's enjoying Stanford, but it's more work than he expected. "I told you so," says I.

He and all the boys are doing the Edgar-bachelor-party-thing today. They're renting a 15-passenger van to drive around town in. I volunteered to be the designated driver and even said I'd wear something skimpy, but alas, I'm a girl, and thus I am not allowed to participate in the bachelor party. Too bad. Bachelor parties sound much more fun than bridal showers.

(Note to Betsy -- not that bridal showers aren't fun! Yours was very fun!)

I am very excited about their wedding on Sunday. I love going to weddings, and it should be lots of fun.

So I was at work until almost 7:00 last night working on stupid footprints (sorry Dad, but they're stupid) and listening to the Astros-Braves game. I can't believe Rafael Furcal hit the game-winning home run. He's like three feet tall! Come on! It was a weird game, all in all. Bullpen phones supposedly not working, Garner putting Lidge in with only 1 out in the 7th, Lidge then giving up the tying run, etc etc. Weird. But it's good for the Astros to leave Atlanta with a split, and hopefully Backe can pitch another good game tomorrow for a win.

Thursday, October 07, 2004

I just paid $10 to

I just paid $10 to be able to listen to the Braves-Astros game online while at work for the rest of the afternoon. Granted, that $10 gets me live audio for every game for the rest of the postseason, so it's not that bad a deal, but still... Addiction to baseball is a bad thing.

Thursday, October 07, 2004

To summarize the most important

To summarize the most important parts of yesterday -- the Astros won behind a barrage of home runs and a gutsy Clemens performance, and the freaking Yankees won on a freaking sac fly in the freaking 12th.

I'll let you guess which outcome made me happy and which didn't.

"Over those first four innings, the Braves moved eight runners into scoring position. How six walks, two wild pitches, three hits, one error and one stolen base translated into a grand total of one Atlanta run (and no earned runs) is hard to explain. But there's no better way to sum it up than this: That was Roger Clemens, official living legend, out there."

Clemens, despite not having his best stuff, muscled through seven innings and the Astros took a 1-0 series lead over the Braves. I really, really, really hope Carlos Beltran is ok to play today after taking a pitch off his ribcage (ouch!). It makes me sad to root against the Braves, but that's the way it goes. In August, when the Braves came to Houston and the Astros were a bazillion games out of the wild card lead and everyone thought their season was over, I cheered for the Braves. Because they've been my team for so long, and because they had a chance for October, while the Astros were dead dead dead.

But then the Astros pulled their miracle recovery, won the wild card by a game, and here they are. It's October 7, but they're still playing. After a finish like the Astros had, I can't not root for them. They are, after all, my hometown team now.

So that's yesterday's news. And if you didn't see my post last night and are in need of a web domain or hosting space, see below...

Wednesday, October 06, 2004

HEY! Attention anyone out there

HEY! Attention anyone out there who has been thinking of getting their own domain name and/or web hosting...

The host I use for this site, Dreamhost, is having a huge sale at the moment in celebration of their 7th anniversary. The first 777 people to sign up for new accounts can get the basic level (800MB of storage space, free domain registration, lots of other good stuff that I can attest to) at only $0.77 per month for the first year. Seriously, I'm not kidding. I just signed up a new domain for the Houston Yuri's Night party myself, and it was only $9.24 for the next 12 months. All you have to do is make sure to put in "777" as the promotion code.

It doesn't get any better than that, people. All I ask is that if you do decide you want your own domain name and 800MB of space, you put me (www.saroy.net) down as a referral -- follow this link and it will do it automatically. Then we both win! :)

Wednesday, October 06, 2004

So here I am at

So here I am at work. I felt ok again this morning and made it in without incident. But now I feel like crap again, enough that I'm going home after I finish starting more sims. Also, today my throat really hurts. This is absurd. And sucky. I freaking hate being sick. Why did I run freaking 10 miles on Sunday?

Yesterday I did nothing but sit around watching TV. Thank goodness baseball was on, or I might have fallen into a stupid-TV-induced stupor. Instead, I watched 7 hours of baseball, with the Cardinals whomping the Dodgers and the Red Sox doing the same to the Angels, interrupted only by a nap.

Tuesday, October 05, 2004

I noticed this ad in

I noticed this ad in a recent issue of Runner's World and it made me laugh. I don't know exactly why; I just thought it was very clever, and worthy of sharing.

Tuesday, October 05, 2004

I love Nyquil. It is

I love Nyquil. It is a beautiful, beautiful thing. It's pretty and red! It tastes like cherries! It lets me sleep at night! All hail Nyquil!

I got up this morning with every intention of going to work. I felt a bit better, and wanted to go to my training class. So I got dressed, got in the car, drove to Starbucks...and as I sat in line at the drive-thru, I realized that I still feel like poo. The feeling-better thing I'd had when I woke up, alas, was temporary. As I sat in my car (the line was long), I decided that it was stupid to force myself to go to a training class when I feel bad and have more than 300 hours of sick time.

So I came back home. I'd feel like I was playing hooky if I weren't having to concentrate so hard on breathing. And the tumor on the back of my head. (Buzz says it's a swollen lymph node, and Nacho has assured me it's not a tumor. But it's still weird.)

I shouldn't have done that 10-miler, I guess. I can see George shaking his head and saying I do too much...

Monday, October 04, 2004

I ran the 10-miler yesterday

I ran the 10-miler yesterday and it went well enough. I covered the distance, though slowly, and didn't have to walk at all. Today, however, I feel like crap. I was going to stay home from work, but 1) I'm supposed to be in a training class all week and 2) Rich and Gavin need their stupid footprint data. Grr. It's not their fault I'm sick, but I wish I could have stayed home. Anyway, I went to the class to at least pick up the textbook so I can learn the stuff on my own, and now I'm in my office to fix the footprint stuff, and then with any luck I can take some sick hours, go home and sleep.

The weekend was crazy and busy, which is probably why I'm now sick. Friday night I played soccer (we lost), then Saturday morning I was up early to get an oil change (my Xterra's first -- awwww) and then headed over to Gavin and Jen's to visit the dogs. I was (sort of) taking care of them this weekend, but I did a really bad job of it because I was too freaking busy and not feeling good. But for the record, Gavin and Jen, I took them on two long walks.

Saturday afternoon I had another soccer game (we won), then quickly ran home to shower and head to the Astros game. It was a home run fest that the Astros won, and with the Giants loss, the stadium was rockin' as the Astros took the wild card lead. Yesterday morning I ran the 10-miler, came home, showered, went over to Becca's to take Roxy and Zoya on a walk, and ended up getting fed a great breakfast thanks to Cari, who was being all homemaker-ish despite me having woken her up at 10 a.m. Yay Cari.

Yesterday afternoon I went to the Astros game with Nacho and Jason, the final game of the regular season but not of the season itself, because they won and thus clinched the National League Wild Card. I've never heard the park as loud as it was during the 9th inning yesterday as Brad Lidge struck out the side. It was awesome.

Sunday, October 03, 2004

Astros win! Astros win! The

Astros win! Astros win! The Astros win the wild card! Postseason, baby!

Saturday, October 02, 2004

Amazing. The Cubs lost to

Amazing.

The Cubs lost to the Braves today, eliminating themselves from the postseason.

Amazing.

The Dodgers came back with seven runs in the bottom of the 9th inning, including a walk-off grand slam, to beat the Giants, throwing the Giants a half game behind the Astros for the wild card.

Amazing.

The Astros went home run crazy tonight at Minute Maid in front of me and 43,000 others to beat the Rockies and go a full game ahead of the Giants for the wild card. Two homers for Biggio, two for Kent, and a bunch of others. It was the highest-scoring sub-2.5 hour game I've ever seen. You should have heard the crowd when we saw the Giants loss posted on the scoreboard. You should have heard the crowd when the Astros win became official.

Amazing.

The Astros control their own destiny. They win tomorrow, they go to the postseason. And I'll be at the game screaming my lungs out. This is the best end-of-the-season I have ever seen.

Friday, October 01, 2004

Note to my new Friday

Note to my new Friday night coed team: You can't play the offside trap if you're not going to stay with your runner.

Dude. Seriously. It's not hard. If you want to play the trap, you have to watch the runners. Otherwise, there's no freaking point.

Friday, October 01, 2004

I only saw about 10

I only saw about 10 minutes of the debates last night; I played softball instead (and we won). Of the little that I did see, Kerry looked pretty pulled together, while Bush said "um" a lot and "nu-cu-ler" at least once. Sigh. I can't really comment on what they said -- which, yes, was the more important part -- because I only saw ten minutes, and half of that was closing arguments. But then again, I already know who I'm voting for, and there's not much that will change that.

We just gave a slideshow about our Peru trip to the rest of the division, and Jo helpfully reminded everyone about it yesterday with this (click for bigger version):

I think both the email poster and the slideshow were hits, though I had nothing to do with the email -- Jo obviously has too much time on her hands! I mean, why did I have to be clinging to Gavin's leg?? Ew! ;) Anyway, after Marc and Josh's Kilimanjaro slideshow and our Peru trip, I think people are antsy to go on a cool hiking trip as well.

As for me, the whole thing just made me want to go back to Peru for the umpteenth time.

Because it was, you know, just so pretty there.