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Getting Over It
2008-05-19 05:33
by Alex Belth

"Come to bed, honey."

My wife's voice was weak.  She was almost asleep.  I turned the TV off, picked up my cat and went to the bedroom.  I let out a big sigh and Em told me that she was sorry that the Yankees are causing me so much agita.  "Try and let it go, babe, it's going to do you no good to stay upset about something you've got no control over.  You need your energy for the week." 

I've heard that line before and know it to be true.  This time, I didn't fight it for too long and soon enough I was asleep.  It is more than slightly ridiculous to get furious over a ball club, right?

It was sunny and crisp this morning on my way to work.  I read the morning papers on the subway.  Johnny Damon said the game was "embarrassing."  I shoved the papers into my napsack and put on my headphones.  A young Spanish girl, all of six years old was sitting across from me, next to her mother.  The girls' feet were three or four inches off the ground.  She wore pink sneakers, a power blue sweat suit and had a barette in her hair.  An i pod nano was in her little palm, little white plug headphones in her ears.  She had the most serious expression on her face and she mouthed the words to whatever she was listening to, nodding her head in an exaggerated motion.  I couldn't help but laugh.  Not only because she was so intent, so committed to her schtick but because she reminded me of how preposterous I must look at times, snapping my neck to the beat, wearing my super-sized dorky headphones.  

Yeah, the Yankees are awful right now.  Let them be embarrassed by how poorly they are playing.  We don't need to be embarrassed about anything.  Hey, we weren't embarrassed to root for them when they were winning.  Doesn't mean we have to be happy about what's going on, but in the end, their performance doesn't have much to do with us at all, does it?

    

Comments
2008-05-19 06:03:02
1.   3rd gen yankee fan
Right. Except for the razzing that WE have to take from the Mets fans now.
2008-05-19 06:11:25
2.   rbj
And then there'll be the eruption from Mount Hank Steinbrenner.
2008-05-19 06:22:50
3.   JL25and3
1 The best way to defuse the razzing is to agree with them. There's no defending the Yankees, so there's no need even to try.
2008-05-19 06:23:54
4.   Alex Belth
Yeah, I just gave the dirtiest look to a Met fan I know this morning who tried that. Shocked the hell out of her actually. But I never talk sh** so I don't take kindly when people do it to me. So much for getting over it. LOL. Met fans NEED something to crow about after how they've been going. Let them have their moment.
2008-05-19 06:30:10
5.   vockins
If this keeps up, perhaps the tickets in the new Yankee Stadium will be very affordable.
2008-05-19 06:35:18
6.   Just fair
Anyone remember the song "Bound to the floor?"
"And you learn to accept it
You know it's so pathetic."
Yeah, that's about right.
2008-05-19 06:38:16
7.   Bagel Boy
5 Not for another two years, at least. Indeed, that's why this is the perfect time for a youth movement. They've already sold 4 million tix this year. And next year it will be just as easy.
2008-05-19 07:35:45
8.   pistolpete
>> But I never talk sh** so I don't take kindly when people do it to me >>

Same here, not even in the heyday of the recent dynasty. The most you could accuse me of trash-talking was the constant smug grin I had on my face for practically ALL of the 1998 season.

You're also right about not wasting time getting upset about it. If the Yankees aren't throwing helmets and turning over catering tables, then why should the rest of us spend our time with a giant knot in our stomach...?

Weather's beautiful and there's a ton of home repairs I have on a list somewhere. I'll be working on that list until we get back over .500, thank you very much.

2008-05-19 07:36:20
9.   Raf
1 Eh, it's not that big a deal. The way I look at Red Sox & Mets fans is that I'm sure I'd probably dislike them and their teams, if I cared...

4 Same here; I don't talk smack either, so I don't take kindly to it either. But push comes to shove, I can hold my own.

Anyway, the time to talk is after the season, not during. Last year showed that.

2008-05-19 07:37:27
10.   pistolpete
5 Heh, the Yanks should be forced to stay at the old park for 2009 if they miss the playoffs this year.
2008-05-19 07:51:24
11.   Hank
This whole thing is really pissing me off. What sucks for me is that when they're losing, the games tend to dominate my life. I can't just wash my hands of them. The best part of '98, for me, was that I just knew they we were gonna win on a given night. Each loss seemed like such an aberration that it wasn't even worth thinking about afterwards. The only worry was whether or not they'd get to 108 or 114 wins.

When things are going like this, it's quite different. I'm sure this has been mentioned here someplace, but here's what's frustrating me now. This is the third straight spin through the rotation that we've seen the Yanks drop both games started by Pettitte and Wang. Sure, Wang pitched well twice without support, and Pettitte had a game blown by Joba, of all people, but 0-6 is still 0-6. It's going to be terribly difficult to right the ship if they can't win games behind their top two starters.

2008-05-19 07:52:21
12.   Bagel Boy
On the talking smack, I moved up in Boston in January. Wearing my camo NY cap around town, I get some grief. My retort is simple: Enjoy the good times while they last.
2008-05-19 07:53:43
13.   Bagel Boy
11 How about you stop spouting off to the press at least? ;)
2008-05-19 07:59:55
14.   Raf
To put things in perspective, remember the 1990 season.
2008-05-19 10:01:09
15.   Murray
We're gonna party like it's 1965.
2008-05-19 14:58:02
16.   Adrian
14 That was my first season following the team, so I never really inherited the bandwagon smugness of other Yankees fans. For me, the dynasty was the sun rising after a long cold night. For others, who had never known the darkness, it was merely their due as fans. I'm a big believer that you can't call yourself a fan until you've been through the dark times.
2008-05-19 20:59:37
17.   nick
16 long cold night, you mean from 1990 to 1995?

good thing fans of other teams don't read BB.....

;)

(started in 1980 myself)

2008-05-20 05:25:21
18.   Raf
17 I started in '85 :)

Actually, the Yanks contended in 1988 & 1993, so that period of darkness lasted from 1989-92.

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