Fall

This has always been a weird time of year for me.  As I discussed before, I have no real affection for the fall.  This years seems a little different though.  It is the first time in the last 21 years that the Pirates are in the postseason.  After the season they have had, I should be happier.  But even with all that it could be over in one day.  The Pirate fans who have suffered so long may not get to see another home game this season.  With the play-in game coming down to fate (ask the Braves), it could be anti- climactic. So we just have to watch the final few days play out and wait for next Tuesday.  The division title would have been nice, especially where the Pirates were for most of the season.  I guess beggars can't be choosers.  It has been 21 long years.
I am also having trouble getting excited about football.  Michigan has played two stinker of games over the last two weeks and the Steelers have already been all but eliminated.  Hockey is getting ready to fire up but it is a long season where many teams are just jockeying for playoff positioning.  I have no grasp on the state of the Canadiens this season.  Last season was fun with the schedule being shortened, which placed a heavier emphasis on the regular season.
Even more frustrating is the fact that I have had difficulty in being able to finish a book lately.  I pick one up, make it through a few chapters, and then move on to something else.  The cycle repeats and I am looking for another book soon after.  Maybe I should just watch TV.

Finally

Well that was an interesting week.  First the debacle in St Louis, then sweeping the Rangers in Arlington.  It was a week of highs and lows.  So we enter a four game series with the Cubbies down one to the Cardinals and up two on the Reds.  The monkey of 82 wins is finally off our back and now we have a real push for the playoffs to contend with.  Hopefully they can find an inner strength to take the division.  This should be a fun final few weeks.

Changes

I have never been a big fan of the fall.  I mean it is beautiful but it signifies the end to me.  Summer is my favorite season.  The kids are off from school and our pace is not so hectic.  There are ball games on the radio and everything is right with the world.  The fall brings and end to that and our pace changes.  Everyone in my household becomes much busier, excluding me of course.  We rarely have much quality family time together.  I also signifies the ending of the baseball season.  I love sports but baseball is my one true religion.  If I am not watching or listening to baseball, then I am reading about it.  My love of history spurs me on to read more about the history of the sport.  I try to read fiction or other subjects but I am always drawn back to baseball. 
I am also trying to lose some of the weight I have added over the last few decades.  Slowly but surely, I have dropped 15 lbs.  It has come in little spurts but I still have my eyes on the goal.  One of the things that has worked well for me is Weight Watchers.  It is not a diet but you do have to track what you eat.  That is the only extra work that you have to do.  I have also started to do my Nordic Track more religiously.  It is one of those old style skiers that most people are using as a clothing rack.  I am up to 30 min a day, for three to five days a week.
The best way I have found to enjoy my time on the skier is to read.  It makes the time go by much faster.  I am back reading Murakami.  His use of fantastic situations is one of his strong points.  He seems to take an idea that other would see as too farcical and make it seem common place.  It doesn't hurt that he decided to become a writer while at a baseball game.

82*

The Pirates won their 81st game last night in dramatic fashion.  They are a single win from clinching their first winning season since 1993.  That is also the season of their last playoff appearance, but we won't relive that.  Their success this season has cause me to be a bit conflicted.  A few years ago I would have been ready to pop the champagne when the Buccos reached that elusive 82 win mark.  I swore that if possible I would make the trip to see them finally break the streak.  However now, with the Pirates being so close to actually WINNING THE DIVISION, the fact that they are ready to hit 82 wins means absolutely nothing.  So with a two game lead over the Cardinals. today's game is just another step toward the playoffs in October and, hopefully, a division title.