12/12/09
Dear Rory,
Yes, I know, it's been a long time. Not a day goes by where I don’t think about you still, which I am sure you know, but recently I haven’t taken much time to talk to you directly. Part of that has been intentional and part of that has not.
I have been hearing the trains at home a lot more than normal lately. Is that coincidental considering the trees have dropped their leaves? Probably, but I still entertain the idea that you have something to do with that.
Why haven’t I been talking to you? Most of all I think it’s because I don’t miss you anymore, at least not in the conventional sense. Selfishly I still miss you dearly but the last two years has given me a lot of time to rationalize the emotional struggles I have in regards to you.
While I still know that I am never going to be OK with your choice, with your suicide, I am not saddened thinking about the fact that you are no longer here with us physically.
I’ve spend a lot of time trying to understand what you dealt with at the core of your being. The pain and hurt you felt on a daily basis (mentally and emotionally) I wouldn’t wish on anyone, especially not on you.
You are in a better place, I know that. My faith is as strong as ever and I am at ease knowing where you are instead.
Boat Drinks,
Bri
Last night was a great game. It wasn't a well played game but for anyone who doesn't think baseball is capable of being exciting, that game could be used as example A to disprove them.
That being said, as much as I love the Twins and were pulling for them to win last night it was the Tigers, who are the more complete team, that would have had a better shot at beating the Yankees in a short series. I do think that both Pettite and Burnett are beatable though so if the Twins could somehow steal one tonight from C.C. they'd have a pretty decent chance to take this series.
I hope I am wrong, but here are my annual MLB playoff predictions:
Award Predictions: AL MVP – Joe Mauer and it won’t be close. He had it pretty easily either way but last night’s win cemented it. NL MVP – Albert Pujols will win easily too. There were some great seasons by NL first basemen but he was definitely the cream of the crop.
AL Cy Young – Zack Greinke but I am not sure why no one cares that the Cy comes from a losing team when it’s such a big deal for the MVP too. Then again, I don’t believe in pitchers winning MVPs so that is probably the difference. Greinke was the best pitcher in the AL and deserves the award based on the logic that the voters use.
NL Cy Young – Chris Carpenter had a bigger impact on his squad than anyone else in the NL from a pitching perspective and that’s why he’s going to win.
AL Rookie of the Year – Andrew Bailey
NL Rookie of the Year – Chris Coghlan
AL Manager of the Year – Mike Scioscia (Gardy will finish second)
NL Manager of the Year – Jim Tracy
With Molly moving out this weekend, it's very probable that our days of having cable are coming to an end soon. While there are things I will miss (mainly the Twins and shows like Deadliest Catch, Paranormal State, Dirty Jobs, How It's Made, Mythbusters and Good Eats that we would catch here and there during the year), I've never been addicted to the TV so it's not that big if a deal to me. Surprisingly though, I do have six shows on primetime that I will at least try and keep up on this season (a much higher number than normal). Much of this stuff below is new to me (as of this summer) so many of you probably have already developed your opinions on them. If you haven't, however, I suggest tuning in if you get a chance.
The must: The Big Bang Theory
Holy balls this show is good. It's worth watching for Sheldon alone (best character on TV) but add in Howard and the rest of the crew into the mix and you have the best show on television...it's not even close. Add in the fact that I'm a geek at heart and I'm quite drawn to this show. Thank you Jason/Crystal for borrowing us the first season this summer.
The nice to haves: How I Met Your Mother and The Mentalist
How I Met Your Mother is a very good show. Episode after episode I find myself being entertained (though we are still watching season one and have a lot of catching up to do). It's no Big Bang Theory but Neil Patrick Harris is amazing as Barney (second best character on TV). Marshall is great too.
The Mentalist is quality entertainment as well. Simon Baker's portrayal of Patrick is a lot of fun to watch (third best character on TV) and the cast as a whole is pretty solid. I also like Kimball a lot.
The here and there's: Glee, So You Think You Can Dance and The Office
Glee looks like fun but I am not sure I will get into or not yet. Gina will be watching it for sure though. It will likely be a show that if I don't have something pressing going on I will sit down and watch with her.
So You Think You Can Dance should not be on this fall. It's hard enough keeping up with it in the summer when we are watching nothing else. I am not pleased with any show that is on multiple nights each week. I want to at least know what is going on with it but I am not going to go out of my way by any means to keep up on things.
The Office is definitely good. But, I mainly watched it because Molly was addicted to it. I'll catch episodes now and then but only when it's conventient. It is a huge season for me with where the show goes though. I could easily get bored after a couple of episodes and not watch anymore. If they do something creative with the plot line though, I could get reeled back in. And, well, Dwight is delightful (fourth best character on TV).
Click on the picture a couple of times to take a closer look. Check out the guys circled with Morneau and Pujols from our recent trip to STL and KC to follow the Twins.
June was quite a good month to be Shane, as several exciting things happened during that time. First off, we had our yearly company satisfaction survey at work. To encourage as many employees as possible to take it, they distributed a raffle ticket to each employee and had a daily prize drawing. The winner each day got to choose an item from the big box o' prizes. I won on the third day and selected a very nice Port Metro Vancouver jacket. It came down to that or a foot-long Toblerone bar...I think I made the right choice.
On June 12, I ran in the Longest Day 5K, which took place on the UBC (University of British Columbia) campus. After my half-marathon earlier this spring, I decided to take advantage of being in good running shape and attempt to break my PR (Personal Record) in the 5K, which was 22:45. My goal for the race was 22:00, and I ended up running a great race and finishing in 21:24, blowing my previous time out of the water.
I probably won't try for another PR in the 5K, only because running a race that fast is not really fun. You're pushing yourself the entire time and concentrating hard to maintain your speed. There's really no chance to look around and enjoy yourself. Longer races are more up my alley. Still, it felt damn good to finish that fast!
Finally, I flew back to Minnesota the last week of June to go on the annual baseball road trip with friends. Details (and pictures) are coming soon in a separate post. Stay tuned!
Yesterday Mom, Jacks and I (along with our regular Ordway Show seeing friends) went to go see "Singin' in the Rain." It was amazing. It could be because it's my favorite movie ever, or that they made it rain on stage, or that every single part of the show was EXACTLY like the movie. Either way, it was amazing!
Here is a picture after Sunday night's softball games. A few of my cousins weren't there but I'd have to say we are a good lookin' bunch.
Here is a picture of the route we took and some other pics from an enjoyable trip on the Cannon River (from Cannon Falls to Welch) we took with Amy and Joe a couple of weekends ago.
