Wrestlemania 28 - Entry 1

Do you remember that Christmas when you came tripping down the stairs to see those shiny presents?  There was the one present that was neatly wrapped, but by its shape and prominence in front of the twinkling tree, you knew exactly what it was. 

                Santa came to work today.  My present, carefully wrapped in a slim FedEx shipping sleeve, left very little to the imagination.  I knew exactly what it was.  I ripped through package and found, expectantly, three crisp tickets to Wrestlemania 28 in Miami, Florida.  In one month’s time, fellow Horsemen Avenue writer Anthony Zorzi and I will fly down to the land of LeBron and C.S.I. spin-offs,  We will be meeting up with my long-time college bud and Horsemen Avenue contributor John “The Entertainment Blender” Sturgeon for a weekend that will kick off spring, baseball season, and warm weather. 

                As the mega-event draws nearer, I plan on updating the blog with personal Wrestlemania 28 thoughts.  In addition to the wrestling festivities, Z and I will be attending one of the first ever games played in the spectacular new Marlins stadium. 

                As far as the actual wrestling is concerned, the main event could be one of the most epic battles of all time; that is to say if WWE books it correctly.  The Electrifying One vs. The Doctor of Thuganomics.  The Rock vs. John Cena.  In reality, they are average in terms of overall wrestling ability but are masters of “puttin’ on a show”. 

-More to come in the month leading up to the event at Sun Life Stadium.

JUSTIFIED continues to kick ass and take names for FX

Back in 2010, I was pumped for the debut of Justified, an FX series based on infamous crime novel writer Elmore Leonard’s short story, Fire in the Hole. The main character of the show is U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant), a rugged, tough loner with a cowboy hat who happens to know how to use a gun expertly to get out of precarious situations that he encounters protecting Harlan County in Kentucky. In the Pilot, his chief adversary and rival Boyd Crowder (Walton Goggins) starts blowing up churches and other buildings with a rocket launcher. Raylan eventually finds Boyd and puts a bullet in his chest. With great action, novel-like dialogue, and excitement throughout the pilot, the foundation was laid for a great series.

Pitchers and Catchers

            By themselves, the three words are boring, but strung together they make the phrase baseball fans dream about all winter. 

            Every Spring Training is identical to the last.  First, the wobbly camera shot of workers loading of 5 million baseballs, 4 trillion bats, and 80 million cases of cotton-candy flavored bubble gum en route to I-95 and Florida.  The countdown box in the Inquirer.  Sports talk radio hosts turning to the optimistic Phils as the pessimistic Birds chatter hibernates for the rest of winter.   The romantic “spring baseball as a metaphor for new life” columns such as this are everywhere.

            Those lucky enough to travel to Florida salivate at the thought of 70 degree weather and Grouper sandwiches.  The rest just love seeing the boys stretching next to palm trees on the 6’o clock news. 

            I too associate Pitchers and Catchers with these things, but I think each person has a personal attachment to the day as well.  In the DiBiase household on East Oak Road in Vineland it marked the beginning of our season of Phillies complaints about Eddy Wade, Tito Francona, and the frugal ownership group.  With just a lukewarm cup of coffee, a folded over Atlantic City Press, and a plate of Grandmom’s biscotti, my Grandpop held his own Spring training right there in the kitchen.  I’d argue with him about a player, have a biscotti, argue about another player, and then have 2 more biscotti.  With her grandsons around, my Grandmom’s face lit up like a candle.  It’s one of the fondest memories of my childhood.

            He passed away on April 2^nd, 2010, just three days before the Phillies season opener in Washington.  I watched the entire 11-1 romp through misty eyes.  I didn’t have Grandpop to call after my man Ryan Howard blasted a John Lannon fastball deep into the seats at Nationals Park.  I called my Dad and mustered a joke my through the emotional moment.

            For years, I wondered what was it about baseball that made grown men weep.  (“Wanna have a catch, Dad?”)  I’ve settled on the notion that it never really was about the game or the team or the ’80 or ’08 championship.  Baseball could be replaced by soccer or the cooking channel.  When you’re six feet under, it’s not going matter how many rings your boys got, all that's going to matter is the effect you have on the world and those closest to you.

            It’s not about what’s in front of you on the television, it’s about who’s around you at the table every Sunday passing around the spaghetti and meatballs.   

            Since his passing, the start of the baseball season has meant a little more to me than just the smell of pine tar and figuring out the fifth man in the Phils rotation.  It reminds me of my Grandpop and all my family, living and deceased, and how wonderful it is to have a game that means so little bring so much joy to my life.  

Enjoy Pitchers and Catchers, everyone. And enjoy the 2012 Phillies!