Scholarship Competitions.

Sorry.

This is another sports post. Some people write about crafts, some about their new children, some about their wildly exciting travels. I just moved to a new state and structured activity doesn't start for a while, so the Orioles 12-0 win over the Yanquis of former New Amsterdam is the highlight of my day.
Let's be clear that being a fan of the Orioles is not a lighthearted undertaking. They haven't been good in 10 years, and their owner is not willing to spend on the players it takes to compete against my least favorite professional sport franchises (the Yanquis and the Red Sox, who have formed themselves into a slightly cuter incarnation of the Yanquis). Since firing Sam Perlozzo, an inept manager if ever I saw one, the O's have been above .500, recently taking series from both of the aforementioned Atlantic seaboard baseball vampires. This makes me happy, and a 12-0 win against the New York American league ballclub, viewed in HD at home, made my week.
Pity me if you must, but I'm happy.

756

I don't really want to write about 756. Everything that could possibly be said about it has been said several times in recent weeks. It's an incredible accomplishment by a guy who is the best player of his generation, and in the pantheon of best ever. Ty Cobb and Pete Rose weren't real nice guys either, and Gaylord Perry and Whitey Ford cheated, so it seems to me that the expectation that Barry Bonds has to be nice and clean is a bit misplaced. I reserve the right not to root for him, and exercise that right routinely, but 756 is an incredible achievement.

Big Country and I witnessed .13% of Barry's home runs. It was an inside-out, opposite field shot off of his fists in Camden Yards, against Rodrigo Lopez. Maybe he had some help making it go so far, but making good contact and driving that pitch is a feat that very, very few baseball players ever could have pulled off, and one that drugs cannot perform for you. Congratulations, BLB.