Yeah, that's great.

A few things on this Wednesday...

1) Allow me to discuss my favorite team in professional sports, the New York Yankees. I know, you are probably saying, the Yankees suck because they spend too much, the Yankees buy their talent, etc. Let's get a few things straight. Yes, anyone can be a Yankees fan, just like anyone could have been a Dallas Cowboys fan, or Chicago Bulls Fan in the 1990's, or dare I say Boston Redsox fan today. It's the society we live in. We're allowed to choose who we want to root for. But, back in the late 80's-early 90's when the Yankees sucked, they were still my favorite.

Also, is it hard to understand that I live in New York, and have pride in a team that is from my state. People ask, "Why are you a Yankees Fan", and the first answer that comes to mind is that "I'm from New York". Also, both sides of my family are from downstate, with my dad being born and raised in Brooklyn (but he wasn't a Giants fan).

Through Hollywood (the movie Major League), the stage (Damn Yankees), and classless chants (Yankees Suck) throughout any New England event, the Yankees are made out to be the bad guys. When in actuality, they are the most prestigous team in professional sports. Twenty-Six World Championships. Regardless of what happened last year, or what happens this year, they will remain my favorite team. So as this pennant race/MVP race heats up, let the competition remain fair, and the best team win. In closing, there are Yankees fans who started rooting for them before 1996.

2) That being said, another topic that comes to mind is that of swimming. Since swimming isn't a sport with the amount of competitions to rival that of other professional sports, I don't have a favorite team besides the good old U S of A. But after reading what P.A.T. wrote, along with his friend Joey J., I have been thinking a lot more about my swimming career, especially at Geneseo. Even though I'm not too far removed, I still do have some feelings about the team.

For starters, it has been difficult to watch different people quit over the years. We (the blue wave) have been lucky, especially on the mens side, to have a superior amount of depth where it has not affected us as much. But overall, I loved my 4 years swimming. I can't say I greeted 3X1000's decend with the same enthusiasm as P.A.T. tends to recall about practice, but I think I did my part to try to keep my attitude positive through it all.

To watch people leave this team that they have committed to a certain degree frustrates/ed me. It's tough, because I want everyone to have the same experience of coming into a team, working hard, bonding with friends, going through hell, and coming out the other end in one piece. I have realized that that is not the case. It's just not for some people, and I have come to accept that. I still feel as though my swimming experience is too close to me, and that I need more time to process my feelings.

It has been very unique to not be swimming this fall. I have been running for about 3 weeks now, and I'm feeling much better cardio-vascularly which is nice. But it really doesn't get much better than standing on the bulkhead Saturday night. If you've been there, you know.

3) We sold our 1989 Volvo 240DL (aka "the blue bomb") a few weeks ago. My first car. It will be sadly missed. This is the first time my family hasn't had a Volvo in the garage in around 17 years.

4) I listened to a great program on NPR today while driving to practice. Literally one of the best talks I've heard in a long time. It was a lot about our society today and consumers. I have some notes written down in my car which I will bring in eventually. I've never taken notes while driving, it was a very interesting experience.