My adoration of #51: Carlos Ruiz

Many moons ago when I first started to get into the Phillies, I didn't pay a whole lot of attention to the active roster.  I thought Shane Victorino was adorable and great speed racer.  But while the local community gushed of Chase Utley and Ryan Howard, I hung back and surveyed the scene.  Not really a band wagon jumper, I got into the game, the team, and players very gradually.  Baseball had always been a very boring sport to me and moreover the silliness of bandwagon fans when things would go well made me want to smack people.  So gradually over 2-3 years I started to understand the game, the calls, the pitches, the players and the competition.  There is a lot to comprehend.

I also noticed this adorable catcher, Carlos Ruiz, in 2008 and 2009 who seemed to fly under the radar all the time.  He quietly called the pitches and at certain times in the season could really be a clutch player.  I started to follow his moves back then and on any given day the Phils played, I'd be over my laptop typing (errr, screaming) "CHOOOCH!" into my FB status whenever he'd make a killer play or hit.  Doc's no hit game he credited to Ruiz...and many other well played games.  Who doesn't remember the commercial with Doc and the blow up Chooch doll promoting the start of last season?  The two were a force last year and I really credit both of them for being such class acts but Doc especially for elevating Ruiz to a new place of respect. 

Here we are in 2012 and I broke down this April and got myself a Chooch jersey.  I'd had a tee shirt and his bobble head but not a Jersey.  It was a long time coming.  Like I said, I was never a fan of the sport...or any commercial sport for that matter.  And frankly, I don't do jerseys.  It's a look I never liked nor identified with.  I still don't.  It conjures up images of starter jackets, hot shorts, Lee Press On Nails, hair with bad roots and bo-bos.  But I wanted something more official than the Chooch tee.  I wrestled with this decision for years.  SO conflicted.  It's not my style at all.  When I finally made the decision and sprung for it, I vowed to keep it indie in spirit and style and took a pic with Instagram and said, "Made him wait 3 years.  Had to know my feelings were real, ya know?"  Word.

And here we are this season with a pathetic offense and some of our ace pitchers looking like they are losing their focus and who is playing like an ace?  My man.  Ruiz is killing it every night he's out there.  He's had more homers this spring than all of last season and more RBIs.  For the first time in his career, he hit 4th in the line up last night.  Now, he's been playing well and totally deserves all this attention and reward if you will.  But if our offense were actually bringing their A game, he'd be further down on the line up, but no doubt still playing great.

Here are some of my favorite Chooch pics I've found over the years.  My little curated Chooch gallery if you will. 

 

2012 Summer Olympics: Eye on Gymnastics and Nastia Liukin

How excited am I for the Olympics?  I love my Phillie Carlos Ruiz but nothing quite compares to the rawness that is an amateur (if you can really call an Olympian that?) vying for gold.  For as long as I can remember, I've watched both summer and winter Olympics with summer being my favorite - the gymnasts, the runners, the swimmers and divers.  I never considered myself overly patriotic either.  That is until I'd find myself standing and screaming at the TV, biting my nails in anticipation, scared some athlete who has given up her life for this sport might slip on the beam at any given moment, hollering, "Come ON!" for Team USA.  Four years ago  I watched with an infant son and I am excited to introduce him to this 8 week long TV ritual.

I am routing for this amazing gal - who I loved watching in 2008 - and I am hoping makes it to London this summer.  A gorgeous young woman who is strong and athletic.  I'm just a tad obsessed with how can do these amazing things with her body.  Go Nastia Liukin.

 

Just A Little Boy

As a mom of a little guy about to be four...foreseeing endless baseball games in the coming years (and/or track meets, soccer games, etc.), I saw this today on FB and had to post.  It's so sweet and humbling.

I believe we all have to face/endure/forge through disappointments, set backs and as my grandfather would say, "Don't let the bastards get you down!" Teaching girls and boys about winning and losing gracefully, about team spirit, about trying and moving forward or knowing when it makes sense to walk away, how to handle the conflicts with dignity and integrity -- definitely. We have to lead with hope and compassion as well as wisdom and empathy that comes from what we've lived.  But let's not lose site of the fact that some times the boy at the plate is indeed 4 or 6 or 8 years old.  With feelings. 

Thanksgiving

I had a moment yesterday to get outside and really enjoy the gorgeous crisp fall afternoon.  In between preparing a turkey and aromatic stuffing and tidying up the place for the family, I escaped for about an hour to go for a short two mile run.  Sans my iTunes, it was me and the sound of the pavement and the wind blowing. With all my traveling this fall, I was happy to sneak in a run at a hotel's gym, a walk outside with the dog, or a visit to the gym for a spinning class.  It was like therapy to get outside in my gear and move.  I saw the last of the fall foliage set against a backdrop of a cloudless blue sky. I stared longingly at a tree outside the church and considered for a moment myself at 20, curled up underneath with a text book or a file of photography contact sheets, the Smiths playing from my disc man.

Runs are amazing, whether I have music or not.  My head is cleared and I get perspective.  On Thanksgiving Day, I had a moment to reflect on my blessings -- my family, sweet son, home, friends, colleagues, work, and characteristics the Lord has bestowed on me like fight, determination and perseverance.  And of course the ability to recognize that things happen for a reason and we are all part of His master plan.

It'll get chillier now with December waving his hand at us but I hope I can squeeze in a few more late fall runs before snow falls.

 A recent sunset on a warmer November day.

World Series

Not too much for me to say...not much of a baseball fan but we did take the little fella to a game back in September (dollar dog night!) and I know enough to impress the occasional guy. This is a true team...not one diva...just a hang on the edge of your seat several games (in the cold and rain and in Philly, yes it can do unprecedented things like be suspended). But it's what sports is all about.

Hours after the horn blowing and screaming and madness subsided, I, exhausted from no sleep because of the aforementioned commotion, canvased a 2 block radius of my office in and around 15th and Locust for the morning edition of the Inquirer but at 3 p.m. was happy to take home the "Extra." Thanks to philly.com for the commemorative cover photos in jpeg format. Now the city anticipates 1 million plus downtown for the parade tomorrow.