Livin on a prayer
2004-10-27

Wow, one more game to go and the Sox win the series. I know that doesn't mean much to most of you. It's just a silly baseball game right? But to most of us long suffering Red S0X fans it's something we've waited our whole lives for and now it is almost at hand.
I can't ever remember not being a Sox fan. There weren't that many games on TV then. I use to listen at night under the covers with the ear piece in on my small yellow transistor radio. I wasn't worth crap in school the next day, but hell, you do what you have to do.
During the Imp0ssible dream year, my dad packed all six of us kids in the station wagon and drove around following the radio signal all of us living and dying on every pitch. By the time the game was done, we were all the way to Cape Ann, a zillion miles away, and nobody cared. They won on the last day of the season and were going to the world series. Longborg and champagne, until B0B Gibson broke our hearts.
In 75 it was the Big Red Machine, Luis Tiant and Fisks dramatic homerun. A rookie blew game seven. We were old enough to cry in our beers by then.
Don't even talk to me about 78 and Bucky F'n Dent. Don't go there I'm telling you now. We were in the city trying to buy tickets off scalpers. We would have taken anything, but there were none to be found. Everybody wanted to be a part of history. They were... We watched them lose in a bar and drank to our pain.
In 86 it was finally over. We were one pitch, one freaking pitch away from winning it all and of course the ball went through Buckners legs, beaten by a guy named M00KIE. Maybe there was a curse? On that day I really wondered. What did we do as a collective population do to deserve this agony? What?
In between it all was the humiliation of living next to the evil empire the Yankees. Born on third base and thinking they hit a triple, they are the most obnoxious of all fans and we had to hear it all daily. Somethings broke, don't worry, George will buy another player. Need a pitcher? He'll buy two. Hell he even buys people just so we couldn't get them. Ahh the joy...
But this year is different. I'm going to see something my dad and grandfather never did. The Sox win the series. 86 years.... All those fans who never had this moment. Some how I think dad is watching. Some how I think they are all watching. Guys this one is for you, for all of us. Ding dong the curse is dead, and life goes on.

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