I have a general rule that I avoid UAL unless they're less money or a significantly better itinerary. I've also flown a different airline for more money when traveling on business and reimbursed our company the difference. Why? Because they're absolutely horrible.
From my friend Gary Leff's blog, yet another illustration of how much they suck.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Canyon of Heroes, Part 2
Two more videos from the Championship parade. First one is of Andy Pettitte:
Andy pitched the clinching game of all 3 series in this year's playoffs. He has more postseason wins than any other pitcher in history. He's in the twilight of his career, and he'll be sorely missed when he goes. Here's hoping for one more year.
Second video is of the greatest closer in baseball history, Mariano Rivera. Let's hope he was serious when he said he wanted to pitch for another 5 years!
Andy pitched the clinching game of all 3 series in this year's playoffs. He has more postseason wins than any other pitcher in history. He's in the twilight of his career, and he'll be sorely missed when he goes. Here's hoping for one more year.
Second video is of the greatest closer in baseball history, Mariano Rivera. Let's hope he was serious when he said he wanted to pitch for another 5 years!
Friday, November 6, 2009
Yankees are Champions! Canyon of Heroes Part 1
So, I made it up for the parade. While it was a bit cold, it was one hell of an experience. I spent a little over five hours there, and got some good pictures, along with lots of bad ones. With the tremendous crowds, it was tough to get good pictures, but I did manage a few. My apologies for the quality. Here's just a few for starters. More to follow:
The stage at city hall:
The championship trophy. Although hard to see, Joe Girardi is to the right of the trophy in a beige suede jacket with his family.
Confetti in the canyon of heroes:
Yes, you need to look closely, but that's Joba Chamberlain's head poking up at the back of the float.
The stage at city hall:
The championship trophy. Although hard to see, Joe Girardi is to the right of the trophy in a beige suede jacket with his family.
Confetti in the canyon of heroes:
Yes, you need to look closely, but that's Joba Chamberlain's head poking up at the back of the float.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
The Canyon of Heroes
The Yankees celebrated their 27th World Series last night. While it's only been 9 years, it seems like an eternity since we were able to stand as champions.
This marked the first year where I had the means (translated: cash) to attend a World Series game. But a combination of travel for work and the desire to actually see what my wife and daughter looked like, I wasn't able to get to a game.
I quickly ruled out going to the championship parade this morning in favor of spending time with family, which is by all measures the right decision.
But my wife encouraged me to go. My wheels started turning, and I ended up changing my mind. So, tomorrow morning, I'll wake up at 3am, and board a train to NYC at 5am.
My father brought me to my first sporting event ever when I was a young boy. Obviously, it was a Yankees game. We sat in the second deck, under the overhang. It rained the entire game. The Yankees lost 14-2 to the Kansas City Royals (back when the Royals still played professional baseball). This little boy couldn't have been happier.
We went to the concession stand to get a souvenir. My father pointed to a pencil with the Yankees logo on it. I pointed at the baseball with signatures of all the current players. We weren't a wealthy family, and obviously couldn't afford the baseball. But I kept pointing at it. And my father kept telling me how great the pencil was. I didn't believe him, but that's where we ended up. My father motioned the clerk over, "See that pencil there?" he said.
"Well, we want the baseball next to it." Boy, you've never seen a kid's eyes light up like mine did. Roughly 30 years later, I can remember that day vividly. I only hope I can share a moment like that with Catherine (my 3 1/2 year old daughter) someday soon, who told my wife last night before the game, "Mommy, you need to tell Daddy the Yankees are playing tonight. They're going to win everything!"
I started rooting for the Yankees in earnest right around the time they started getting good again. It was painful to watch them lose to Seattle in '95. But then, a core group of young players meshed with a group of veterans, and the Yankees were back in control.
I grew to love baseball in the days of Jeter, Rivera, Pettitte, Posada and Williams. While Bernie's gone, the rest are still there. I'll always love the Yankees. But the chances that *this* group wins again are slim. They're all in the 8th or 9th inning of their careers.
I suspect tomorrow will be a very special day in the Canyon of Heroes. Millions of fans have cheered hundreds of Yankees there. I'll proudly add my name to that list, and possibly even say goodbye to some of the greatest to play the game. Because some day they'll be gone. And while I'll always love the Yankees, I doubt any group will feel more like my Yankees than these.
The only thing that would make the day more special would be to have my wife, who's grown into an unabashed Yankees fan, along with me to share the day. I love you, Michelle. Thanks for always making my life special.
As an aside, I spoke with my cousin's husband (cousin-in-law???) this evening to see if he wanted to join me. I was shocked to hear that his friend, best man at his wedding, is in a coma after a heart attack at the age of 27. So, Ron won't be joining me tomorrow. Here's hoping he has better things to celebrate by the time the day ends.
This marked the first year where I had the means (translated: cash) to attend a World Series game. But a combination of travel for work and the desire to actually see what my wife and daughter looked like, I wasn't able to get to a game.
I quickly ruled out going to the championship parade this morning in favor of spending time with family, which is by all measures the right decision.
But my wife encouraged me to go. My wheels started turning, and I ended up changing my mind. So, tomorrow morning, I'll wake up at 3am, and board a train to NYC at 5am.
My father brought me to my first sporting event ever when I was a young boy. Obviously, it was a Yankees game. We sat in the second deck, under the overhang. It rained the entire game. The Yankees lost 14-2 to the Kansas City Royals (back when the Royals still played professional baseball). This little boy couldn't have been happier.
We went to the concession stand to get a souvenir. My father pointed to a pencil with the Yankees logo on it. I pointed at the baseball with signatures of all the current players. We weren't a wealthy family, and obviously couldn't afford the baseball. But I kept pointing at it. And my father kept telling me how great the pencil was. I didn't believe him, but that's where we ended up. My father motioned the clerk over, "See that pencil there?" he said.
"Well, we want the baseball next to it." Boy, you've never seen a kid's eyes light up like mine did. Roughly 30 years later, I can remember that day vividly. I only hope I can share a moment like that with Catherine (my 3 1/2 year old daughter) someday soon, who told my wife last night before the game, "Mommy, you need to tell Daddy the Yankees are playing tonight. They're going to win everything!"
I started rooting for the Yankees in earnest right around the time they started getting good again. It was painful to watch them lose to Seattle in '95. But then, a core group of young players meshed with a group of veterans, and the Yankees were back in control.
I grew to love baseball in the days of Jeter, Rivera, Pettitte, Posada and Williams. While Bernie's gone, the rest are still there. I'll always love the Yankees. But the chances that *this* group wins again are slim. They're all in the 8th or 9th inning of their careers.
I suspect tomorrow will be a very special day in the Canyon of Heroes. Millions of fans have cheered hundreds of Yankees there. I'll proudly add my name to that list, and possibly even say goodbye to some of the greatest to play the game. Because some day they'll be gone. And while I'll always love the Yankees, I doubt any group will feel more like my Yankees than these.
The only thing that would make the day more special would be to have my wife, who's grown into an unabashed Yankees fan, along with me to share the day. I love you, Michelle. Thanks for always making my life special.
As an aside, I spoke with my cousin's husband (cousin-in-law???) this evening to see if he wanted to join me. I was shocked to hear that his friend, best man at his wedding, is in a coma after a heart attack at the age of 27. So, Ron won't be joining me tomorrow. Here's hoping he has better things to celebrate by the time the day ends.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)