The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
The concert hall at the Syndey Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 16,000 times in 2011. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 6 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.
“Though I’ve never met you
And we’ve spoke not a word
I’ll never forget you
Through the stories that I’ve heard”
- “Unknown Brother” by The Black Keys
August 26, 1987 – November 21, 2011
I could not write this post yesterday. I was too pissed off. Too sad. Too hurt. It took me awhile to gather my thoughts on Greg Halman. I’m not sure if I can really pen it all out but I’ll try my best.
Greg Halman was a product of the Seattle Mariners since he was a young teenager. He came to this country as the rawest of the raw in regards to baseball prospects. You don’t have to look too far into your Google search to know not many players come from The Netherlands; Halman bucked that trend.
For a minor league system that struggled for much of the 2000’s, the Seattle Mariners did great by landing Halman. June 26, 2004 to be exact. Two days after I turned 21 years old. Yes, I still had (and still have) much ahead in my life but Greg Halman was two months to the Continue reading
One year ago today, the city of Seattle lost its most iconic sports figure of all-time. The voice of the Seattle Mariners Dave Niehaus passed away from a heart attack. The city was left with a giant hole in its stomach. His passing completely gutted me that day and it still does now. The man may be gone but he can never ever be replaced.
For me, Dave Niehaus was a huge part of growing up. He was like family. Or a friend I knew I could rely upon. I knew where to find him when I needed him.
Continue reading
The day the Seattle Mariners win the World Series.
Where will I be? At what stage in my lifetime does this happen? For all that we’ve been through, jealous of those who did it before, no more wasted time. All I’d see in my vision is “champions”.
I want this so bad. I want that uncanny feeling of enlightenment that comes in sports when winning a world championship. To taste from the cup of victory as a fan, at the highest level within a sport I would never want to live without. Baseball has kept me going my entire life. In good times, in bad times, in just passing the time times; it has been my rock. The Seattle Mariners have me Continue reading
The Mariners had a terrible 2011 season (Thanks Captain Obvious!). Despite this uninspiring and downright gut-wrenching bomb (17 game losing streak) of a season, I do applaud one thing: the Mariners brass made a commitment to letting young players play.
Now with that last statement comes an instant realization your beloved team is bad. If your lineup is filled with Continue reading
I know it, you know it, the baseball world knows it. The Seattle Mariners are an undesirable and very limited offensive team in their current state. As the 2011 season comes to a halt, arguably the two best Mariner hitters were not on this team to start the season. That’s both sad and uplifting in a way.
Dustin Ackley and Mike Carp saved this franchise from complete “record book bad”. Yes, the team will still finish last in many key stats such as batting average, runs scored and on-base percentage, but if you removed them, I don’t know what I would have done… Continue reading
First post since my 20th anniversary post… and simply put, THANK YOU for the incredible support. The love and positive vibes I received were incredibly humbling.
Should a pitcher be able to win the prestigious Most Valuable Player award? Yes. Justin Verlander has made the case in the 2011 season to be honored as the Most VALUABLE Player in the game of baseball. Until the recently ended 12-game winning streak, where would the Tigers be without him?
I personally think it would Continue reading
Today is a celebration of life. That’s the case for me every year on this particular date. I’ve had this one marked on my calendar for a long time. The day of August 29th is a day of remembrance, a day of reality and a day I’ll never forget.
If you only read one thing that I ever write, please let it be this “real life” post. It’s from my heart and something that means so much to me that I truly cannot pen all of my emotions. This is my story of a serious, life-altering, scary, unique portion of my life in 1991.
20 years and counting, I share my story with you…
- IF you have read my original post from a year ago, I do have new commentary below the next “——” bold line. Please skip down and read that too. IF this is your first read, thank you in advance.
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This is a very special blog to me. I decided to create a “voiceover” for you to play-along while reading the blog if you want to.
(It’s simply me reading the blog post almost word for word from what’s beneath it.)
Many things in life we feel we have control over. We can prepare, practice, and do repetitive things over and over in anticipation. But for some things, to use a sports analogy, the ball is taken from you on the mound and the remaining innings are out of your control. Life has an interesting even flow to it. Some people get dealt a great hand and some have what seems like never-ending bad luck. But it’s when adversity strikes and you bounce back with a resounding effort to turn the tables in your direction, when you can really appreciate something for what it is.
I will always remember the date of August 29th for one main reason Continue reading
Webbly and I before the game!
It was an absolutely picture perfect night for a baseball game. The sky was so blue. The weather never felt like it dipped below 70 degrees. It was “Thirsty Thursday”, which if you know me, definitely brought a smile to my face. I got to take somebody to their first AquaSox game (I think she liked it!). But on top of all of this, when it actually came to game action, everybody in the Everett Memorial Stadium on Thursday, August 25th, may have witnessed Continue reading
I was drinking some adult beverages at a local establishment in good ‘ol Issaquah, WA when my most recent hat purchase was complimented. It then got me thinking about the success of the Mariners (or the lack thereof) while wearing their original logo.
And you know I couldn’t just leave it as a thought! Detective Boydwonder got to work. A little surprising, but we Continue reading
