I was on a mini-vaction in the great state of Maine this weekend. Man, is it nice to be in a place where everybody wears a Sox hat. Old or young, male or female, white or... white (sadly), everybody's down with the Old Towne Team, as a "real" writer might call them. I hope you northern New Englanders appreciate what you've got. Now I'm back in bandwagon yankee fan land. But I don't expect to see many "NY"'s tomorrow. Well, actually I do, because those fools just don't pay attention.

So on August 7th, I said we just needed to cut the then 10 1/2 game lead down to six, since we've got six to play vs. NY. And even though it was still 10 1/2 about a week ago, it's now down to 5 1/2. So we're already a little ahead of schedule.

Somebody commented anonymously (i.e. they're a yankee fan) three days ago saying, "Red Sox 8 1/2 back. What else is there to say?" Well, there's a lot. The yanks are doing just what they should've been doing all along--losing because their pitching just isn't that good. And today, the Angels finished them off in the ninth so easily with just a one-run lead, I didn't even have time to get nervous. And the Sox are finally playing just about to their potential, as I've been repeatedly requesting of them. So now it's a little scary for these yankee fans. How key is a dual weekend sweep? Them swept at home, and us sweeping on the road at that!

I love this team. I love that these are the guys I get to root for. And overcoming Manny's little slip tonight was something other Sox teams wouldn't have done.

In "me getting to see my team" news, there's been somewhat of a development. I returned from Maine to find a slight change in my cable lineup. We used to have "RNN"--Regional News Network. The region they covered was New Jersey. Remember, I live in Connecticut. Well, that ridiculousness is apparently over, as Comcast has given us NECN--New England Cable News. Okay, a step in the right direction. It's like they finally realized we actually are in New England. I've also noticed that the channel next to it is a black screen, and Outdoor Life Network has been axed. Could this station be reserved for NESN, home of the Sox? I hope to all that is holy that it is. In the meantime, though, with NECN, I have a station which seems to have a sports report every ten minutes, including mega-Sox highlights. The reporter even referred to the Sox as the "good guys."

So many things are coming up Milhouse, but there's still a ways to go.

Errata: In my last post, I asked if Charley Steiner had any last words before his execution. I meant to ask what he wanted for his last meal, as is the tradition. Well, actually, they do ask about last words, too. Maybe. I don't know, either way, the man needs to be taken down for his crimes to humanity. Speaking of that, Jon Sterling today, in describing the beauty of yankee Stadium, made it sound like the players were playing a game in heaven, unapologetically, about a thousand times. It was a most pathetic display. I almost blew chunks. But he had to do what he could to make up for the yankees' ugly play.

The magic number to beat the yanks is plummeting, and now stands at 46.