I've Got Detroit Tiger Pennant Fever!

For the superstious baseball fan (and most are) there are about 500 things wrong with the title of this blog but I don't care. I have lived in this area 10 years now and the Tigers have sucked for every one of them. But not this year.

This year we are #1.

Now I know we have some tough games in front of us and the season is young (it is still only May) but it feels really good to be able to take pride in the Tigers. I live with a dyed in the wool, true blue, born with a Old English D hat, through thick and thin, Tiger fan who has been saying for years he would gladly trade every Piston or Red Wings success if the Tigers could just make the playoffs. So it's a joy to see for that reason too.

I went to my first game of the season last night and it was a blast and not just cause I finally got to wear my Detroit Stars hat I got for the holidays. (The Stars were the Detroit Negro League team primarily known as the home of the great Turkey Stearns.) There was a palpable sense of pride in the stadium different from any other time I have gone. It was a very welcome change.

Hell, it's almost enough to make a loudmouth girl wanna buy a big foam finger.

Go Tigers!

Blogs You Should Read

After 70 or so entries in this thing of mine I can't honestly say I feel I have this blog thing down. Considering how easy is (literally anyone can do it) it's harder than I thought it would be to do it well. Blog writing is very specialized-it needs to be universal enough to have wide appeal to people who don't know you but specific enough to ring true. That can be a tough balance. There's also the other, private considerations. Some people in your life don't want to be written about and blogging about work can totally come back and bite you on the butt.

The blog that made me want to do it because she does it so well is my friend Lisa's (thetalkingtoaster.blogspot.com). The subtitle is "Thoughts that pop into my head" which is very apt. She has a fun way of getting at some basic truths and her enthusiam shines through. She's also a MySpace person now but after the Vanity Fair article I'm a little skittish about MySpace though I am sure she does that well too.

The other great blog we're into right now at my house is Kristen Hersh's. Kristin is the singer/head muse in Throwing Muses (and my boyfriend's rock n' roll girlfriend) and she keeps a blog at their site (throwingmusic.com). Anyone who has heard her intense lyrics knows she can write but she is very deft at the blog format as well. Check out the one called "Not in This Lifetime" where in the space of a few paragraphs she makes you laugh (on the subject of how hard it is to rent with a dog- "Don't landlords know cats shit inside the house?") and cry (how her ex refuses her custody wishes-the not in this lifetime of the title). She could be the Jedi Master of the blog world.

If you're trolling for something new to read, check these ladies out.

Go Rosie Go

My new girl power hero is 18 year old Maryland jockey, Rosie Napravnik, who currently leads the Jockey Standings at Pimlico. Granted it is Pimlico, perhaps the lowest tier of what might be thought of as Grade I racing sites (not exactly Santa Anita or Belmont but certainly not Great Lakes Downs either) but this apprentice has a 22% win percentage and is in the money 50% of the time which are impressive numbers for bug boys anywhere.

For those watching the undercard on a otherwise dark Preakness Day, Rosie's win on My Lord was a bright spot. Coming on strong in extreme deep stretch way out from the rail they just got there, causing a flurry of fun commentary full of "My Lords!". In her post race interview Rosie was pleased but poised, refraining from doing her happy dance until she was securely off camera.

With the emergence of apprentice Julien Leparoux at some of the bigger tracks, Rosie will probably be out of the money when it comes to Eclipse Award Apprentice of the Year but who knows? The season is long and Rosie's hand is hot. I say, you go girl!

For the Ladies Only

You know it's a baad period when you have to run to Target on your break for additional supplies. It was so bad that phrases like "bleeding out" were running through my head. Not at all normal for me. (Without a thyroid now I guess it's not surprising that things are changing-hope it's not permanant.) So I scoot in as quickly as possible and am scanning the cashiers for a kindly face to ring my oh so incriminating purchase when I see a sweet old lady in the express line. I step over to take care of business then I get a glimpse of her nametag and have to laugh. It said

wait for it,

can you guess?

Flo.

I shit you not.

You can't make this stuff up-that's one of the cool things about life.

Dear HBO

Dear Home Box Office,

I was excited to see the release of Season Two of your X-rated western, "Deadwood" this week. It's about time! Judging by the cover there appears to be loads of special features (including one just on Wu) so that mollified me about the delay somewhat but begs the bigger question-where's Season Three of "The Wire"? It's been over a year since it was shown (and nominated for an Emmy)-what's the holdup? I thought for the holidays, nope. Maybe for Father's Day? Nope.
Hello? Thanks to the New York Times I already know one of the big twists (Stringer Bell!) but I'd like to be able to fill in some of the other blanks. As long as it's been there better be the Holy Grail of special features on that bad boy.

Why don't I subscribe? Well, I work retail and basic cable is expensive enough. And besides, for every one hour of "The Wire" or "Deadwood" I'd love to watch there'd be thirteen hours of "Soul Plane" or some other crap. No, I'll wait for the DVD.

And another thing. I get you're HBO, the best of the best, but what's up with those prices? TV on DVD, along with Performance DVD, is the fastest growing segment of DVD sales and accordingly the prices have gone down. But not HBO. When you're having that release date meeting how about lowering some prices while you're at it?

Sincerely,

the hoyden

Preakness Blues

At the risk of incurring the wrath of the friendly commenter who doesn't appreciate horse racing (imagine being called a moron on your own blog!) I must say I am completely bummed. I was rooting for Brother Derek in today's Preakness with the thought that if Barbaro won I could still be happy with possible Triple Crown thoughts. Unfortunately, neither was meant to be. Brother Derek, in Daily Racing Form speak, "failed to fire" (it's hard to beat the Form for concise, sensical writing) and poor Barbaro broke his ankle in two places after a fractious post parade and a surprising false start (the magnets that hold the starting gate closed are pretty strong-a horse has to hit it hard to get out before the start) .

Now as any racing fan knows (and the Pimlico entertainment guy somewhat callously said in the Winner's Circle) it happens. You can't have all that rushing power going so fast without some element of danger. I am hard pressed to think of any other sport where the ambulance follows the participants around as they compete. Any breakdown is bad and tragic for the connections (I clearly remember the first I witnessed-High Crest was his name) but it always seems worse when it happens in the big races. When you have lots of people watching who don't normally it feels worse because the showcase is ruined.

I hope that Barbaro is able to recover and that any people possibly put off by today's events give racing another try. I can assure you that's the exception, not the rule.

Spring Showers

For my money the worst part of spring are the showers. Not rain showers-bridal showers. I personally consider them one of the worst parts about being a woman right up there with menstrution, mammograms and menopause.

Maybe it's because I am not one of those "never met a stranger" types (though my closest friends are) but I find the idea of being trapped in a room with an awkward cross section of women I don't know playing boring games I suck at completely dreadful. And it doesn't matter how I feel about the bride, it could be one of those close friends and I would still hate it. Guess it's just one of those painful parts of womanhood you just have to grit your teeth and bear.

Post Derby Blues

Well, I guess it was egg on my face. Brother Derek did not win the Derby. I can't really fault him too much though, he was so wide all the way around because of his number 18 post it's kind of amazing he got up to tie for fourth. I look forward to the Preakness with its smaller, more managable field. Unless you are from Maryland no one really dreams of winning the black eyed Susans (HINT: they're actually colored daisies, black eyed Susans aren't in season yet) so there are less pretenders ( yes, I mean you Keyed Entry and you too Seaside Retreat).

I'm back home now and back to work. Derby week is over for another year. I'll be throwing myself into NBA playoffs (Go Pistons!) but it's not the same.

Confessions of a Chalk Eating Weasel

Drumroll please.

My Derby horse is Brother Derek. Yes, I know he's the favorite (favorites have not fared so well on the first Saturday in May lately-see Giacomo 2005) and he comes from California (there hasn't been a California winner in a good long time) but of all the prep races I saw, his Santa Anita win was the most impressive. I saw him up close in paddock on Tuesday and he looks great-fit and shiny. There was a filly in the paddock at the same time who got away from her handler and led the outriders on a merry chase but Brother Derek was calm through it all. Yes, there's a full field and who knows what could happen in the stampede but Brother Derek is my horse. We'll know Saturday afternoon whether it's egg on my face or chalk on my hands.

My Old Kentucky Home

I'm blogging this week from my hometown Louisville, Kentucky. I come home every year for Derby and my birthday (yes, in that order). It's a good time and an easy, if very Christian, drive. First, there's the plastics factory that proclaims CHRIST IS THE ANSWER ("Rabbi, I have one word for you. Plastics.") then the Solid Rock church with its giant Jesus emerging from the reflecting pool with his cross (my boyfriend said "Look, the Jesus water slide!") and finally the looming Jesus sign in the landfill with the ABORTION KILLS logo (of that he would only say, "Good place for it."). Now I'm a big a fan of Jesus as the next lapsed Catholic, but one right after each other in a six hour drive is a bit much. Seperation of church and state is one thing but it's enough to make you long for some seperation of church and driver.