Barb’s Burblings

One of the things I love about baseball is that it’s every day, and with so many games being played, lots of crazy stuff happens. So check out Jayson Stark’s column. Skip all the MVP, Cy Young, blah blah blah stuff, and go about halfway down–start with the top 5 injuries of the year (including Oriole Dennis Sarfate, who managed to injure himself by slamming his car door on himself in April, and not realizing he broke his clavicle–requiring surgery!–until September). After that, it’s just all awesomeness.

I’ve never liked Sunday nights, and tonight is a bit more of a bummer than normal. It was the last day of the regular baseball season, and the O’s managed to lose horribly and get Brian injured in the process. (He got hit by a pitch, and I imagine it’s nothing terribly serious, but it’s not cool to see him limp off the field.) Yet I’m already sad about not being able to listen to games every night anymore.
I spent the day with my mother and grandmother, which was lovely. However, it was also my mom’s last day on the East Coast before heading back to Oregon; I won’t see her until November. I just wish we lived closer to each other. And while it’s great that my grandmother is recovering well from her hip surgery, it’s sad to see her get older. Not surprising–she is almost 90, after all–but it’s tough.
On the positive side, I was happy to see that Mike Mussina picked up his 20th win of the season. Congrats, Moose!

Dave and I spent Tuesday evening at Camden Yards for the double-header against the Rays. The O’s lost both, but it was super fun. We spent the 6.5 hours wandering around the stadium, trying to figure out where to get season tickets next year. In the middle of the second game, we wound up next to the bullpens.

So cool! There were some nice girls in front of us who had season tickets there who helped us identify relievers. And we were only a few rows in front of where Evan Longoria’s home run landed. You can actually see me in the video. I had a delayed reaction in running after it, so the annoying Rays fans behind us wound up with it. Ah well.
We were also not far behind the seat where Cal’s 278th home run hit (breaking the records for most home runs hit by a shortstop, at the time). Pretty!

I periodically check out real estate listings near me, and I saw a place not too far from where I live. (And by “not far” I mean “a quarter of a mile”). It looked really nice. I saw an “Open House” sign last Sunday and stopped by.
And oh my gosh, what a fab apartment. It’s very similar to my apartment–only better. Much, much better. The buildings were built around the same time, but the condo’s building was completely redone. New electric, new plumbing. There’s a washer/dryer and a dishwasher. There’s another bedroom. A jacuzzi tub. Recessed lighting. A food processor. Carpeted bedrooms, but really nice hardwood floors in the living room. All new appliances. The only thing missing is a linen closet, but there’s a whole extra bedroom–with a closet, even–that would make up for it. I love this condo.
And I just can’t afford it. Which is crazy, because the price is awesome for this area. Seriously, every person I’ve told about this who lives here is like, “It’s only $230K?” I could swing the mortgage payments…if I somehow managed to scrounge up a 20% down payment. The mortgage would be about my current rent plus my car payment, and since I’m on the verge of paying that off, I could make it happen. But where am I supposed to come up with $46,000? I could probably get some from my parents–hey, that wedding fund should go somewhere useful, right? But I’d still be tens of thousands of dollars short.
It’s depressing, honestly. I feel like this is a good time to buy real estate (though getting credit might be a teensy bit rough, even though I do have good credit), and this is a good price for a nice apartment and…I can’t make it happen. And I keep thinking about this place (seeing the “Open House” sign periodically doesn’t help) and man, I’m bummed. It’s so frustrating. I want the pretty, pretty condo, dammit!
Of course, just driving around, I wonder how anyone affords to buy any of the houses around here. Who are these people? How can I make that much money?

All eyes are on Yankee Stadium tonight (well, all eyes that aren’t on the Emmys; how evil is this?), and it’s easy to see why. Brian Roberts, Aubrey Huff, and Nick Markakis could possibly be the first three teammates ever to have 50 doubles each! Isn’t that nuts? Brian already has 51 (a career high!), Aubrey has 48, and Nick has 47. Who knows where they’ll be after tonight?
No, seriously, I’ve been glued to ESPN for a good chunk of the evening watching the salutes to Yankee Stadium. I grew up going to games there; the last time I went was 4 years ago.

I remember going when I was little, bringing in food and cheering them on. I remember the great feeling as we left, listening to Frank singing. Mind you, these were the days when the Yankees sucked. They won that game in 1992 (if I recall, they lost maybe 1 game I actually attended), but went 76-86 for the season. (Of course, compared to how the O’s have done the last 10 years, that’s not too bad!) I didn’t go to another major league baseball stadium until, I think, 1993, when I saw a game at Camden Yards. To me, like so many others, Yankee Stadium was the stadium. It still is, much as I love Camden Yards. (Of course, to me, New York remains The City, must as I love others.)
But I couldn’t make it up this season, much less this weekend, so I decided to honor the occasion by visiting Babe Ruth’s birthplace in downtown Baltimore. (His dad owned a bar that stood around where shallow right field at Camden Yards now is.) It was neat going to the birthplace; it’s a nice museum and it’s just so cool seeing all of those Ruth items. I definitely recommend it. It was also neat that there were a fair number of people there.

And, of course, I had to swing by Camden Yards…

Here’s hoping the magic moves across the street.

I was so excited to find another site that does a Friday Five! Huzzah! So here we go…
1. What did you want to be when you were a kid?
When I was little, I wanted to be President. (Didn’t everyone?) But overall, I never was really interested in any particular career.
2. What is your proudest accomplishment so far?
The Gettysburgian, and winning the Pacemaker for senior year. It was just so fun, and we still managed to get a paper out each week. And getting outside validation that it was good was the icing on the cake.
3. What is your dream job?
Hmm. Not working? Maybe usher at a Broadway theater? Editing trashy romances while also ushering?
4. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Man, this is like a job interview. I honestly don’t know. I don’t necessarily want to be a manager or go into management. I like my job now; it’d be great if I were in a place with a bit more assistance than I have now, though.
5. What does it take to make you happy?
A lot of the time, not much. Cake. Baseball. Cute boys. Friends. Group dances.

So, how many of my 101 in 1001 did I actually complete? Some are more cut-and-dry than others. In general, though, it’s a good list to have, and I’ll certainly try to complete it. I think I did decently. Complete breakdown after the jump; completed items are bolded, comments in italics.

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It’s been 1000 days. And just how did my 101 in 1001 work out? Find out tomorrow!

I pulled into a parking garage at Tyson’s Corner tonight and saw that there were a few open spaces at the very end of the garage–where you’re normally see the handicapped spots. Only the sign said they were for hybrid cars. I paused for a moment. I have a hybrid, but was still suspicious. Would it be like the HOV lanes in Virginia, where you need special license plates? I parked there, but I was nervous about it. Probably because I’ve already gotten a parking ticket and a speeding ticket (one of those electronic ones that you get in the mail) this week.
But it all worked out. Huzzah! More places should have those parking spaces.

When I’m on the Jersey Turnpike heading north, my eye naturally finds the Empire State Building and still instinctively tracks right to try to find the towers that aren’t there.
I still love you New York.