Brad

The Mets catcher, Paul LoDuca, said they came to Atlanta to bury the Mets and they are in fact doing it. It's 7-0 so far. Not sure why you hate the Mets since they've rarely tasted success since the late 80s early 90s. In fact, if they win the division this year, it will be their first division title since 1988. That's a pretty long streak. I understand hating the Yankees because of their record of success but I'm not sure why you hate the Sox also. That's one of the more likeable teams around. And I'll be, as I have been, rooting for them to get back to the Series.

I assumed the shrink wrap they put on new cd was water impermeable although I never put it to the test.

Not to my knowledge. However, it was the subject of an AOTW a couple of years ago and thank god I have it.

Metsies win again. Braves came into this series predicting they were going to sweep the Mets. Showed those MFs something didn't they? Bye-bye Tomahawk chopping fools. Are you still in the league?

Obviously has a bad drinking problem and needs assistance. I don't really like him but he has my sympathy.

Great box set so far. Listened to most of two discs. What I found strange and I haven't looked at the liners is how the two takes of Afternoon in Paris sound differently. BTW, at the DJ Lounge is one of my favorite Sonnys. Have it in both LP and Cd.

P.S. And that Joe Henderson box set, too. From your lips to Concord's ears.

Oh, he is worthy, but not sure of the Yankee fans. All they are doing now is shooting themselves in the foot, if whateever he does is not good enough for them, he can't play for them, so they have to trade away there best player, and probably for a lot less than he is worth. But I bet that doesn't happen til the offseason. Boo the other team, duh! Only situation I can think of kind of like this was Mike Schmidt with the Phillies. He'd hit a homer in the 1st inning, and if he struck out the next 3 times, he was roundly booed that last at bat. But not the whole damn game. Until Maris came along, the fans use to boo Mantle regularly. Tells you the mentality.

Guess it's fast.

Noticed there is a RVG version of this disc available. You can neve have too much Red. Not a bad one in the bunch.

It is a tough town. That's just the way it is here and I don't expect anyone to understand it coming from elsewhere. I don't like it when players get booed and I don't do it myself but it happens. The trouble with Arod is that he's a little too open and he just doesn't produce for the Yanks when it matters. He also said some things about Jeter that didn't go over well. The perception about Arod is that he's been a little more concerned with himself than the team. That's part of the reason the Mets shied away from him although they didn't want to spend the money either. The guy just hasn't produced big hits here for the Yanks. Until he does that, he's going to get booed. He's also suffering in comparison to the other 3rd baseman in town, David Wright, who is Mr. Clutch, who's always getting big hits. It's a line but I think it's true: if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere. I actually think Philadelphia fans are rougher and Boston can be tough too. Yup, it's no picnic around here. Just ask Ed Whitson.

Just finished Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises. Not too sure what to make of the obvious anti semitism in there, which is an underlying theme of the book as villain of the piece, Robert Cohn, is Jewish.

What rule instructs you to listen to them all at once? None, but I've gotten to the point where I like the individual albums. You tend to lose that with a box. And the 16 are not just leader Cds but dates in which he participated as a sideman. Just too much.

I had this box and sold it. At 16 Cds it's just too much. As I think take 5, listening to that many cds reduces it too scholarly tedium. I'm starting to feel that way about all boxes actually. A 6 Cd bpx is easier to take and I'll be interested to see what's on it.

Wickman to Braves? Eh, not that impressed. That's always been the Braves achilles heel. I guess he can't hurt.

Sorry to hear about your dad Kevin. My best regards to your mother and the rest of your family. I didn't know you came from Western Mass. I went to law school at Western New England and have fond memories of Holyoke, South Hadley, Northampton and the whole area.

From the BBC: Zinedine Zidane has been banned for three games and fined £3,260 for head-butting Italy's Marco Materazzi during the World Cup final. Following an investigation by world governing body Fifa, Materazzi was suspended for two games and fined £2,170 for provoking Zidane. A Fifa statement said: "Both players stressed Materazzi's comments had been defamatory but not of a racist nature." Zidane's ban is academic as he retired from football after the finals. However the 34-year-old will instead work with football's world governing body Fifa for three days. Fifa added: "Zinedine Zidane has agreed to do community service work with children and youngsters. "During the course of their hearings both players also apologised to Fifa for their inappropriate behaviour and expressed their regret at the incident."

The last team I want to see in the playoffs is the Braves, considering the history so I'll be hoping they cool off soon. No argument from me about the starting pitching. I've mentioned Pedro's problem, Glavine's tailing off a little bit and no reliable fourth, let alone fifth starter. I'd like to see what this kid Pelfrey can do although it's too much to expect a lot, even though he's won his first two decisions. Once the hitters find out about him, we'll have to see if he can adjust. Bannister should be back soon so we'll see what he can do. I know they're worried about El Duque's being hammered the last couple of starts. However, when you have a big lead, you have the luxury of getting these things sorted out. All I can say is that the Mets are breathing rarified air. It's not too often, we're in this position so Mets fans need to enjoy while it lasts.

If they can make up 12 games in a couple of months, more power to 'em. The chances of that happening are slim. They're on a tear right now but let's see if they can keep it up. The Phillies rolled off about 10 in a row but then couldn't maintain a constant winning pace.

The beat goes on. Another day, another Beltran grand slam. Mets win again.

I'd stay away from all those guys Dave mentions, except for Abreu. To trade Hughes for anybody except Dontrelle (don't hold your breath) would not be smart and that includes Zito. He's about as good as he's going to get before going downhill. Unless you're sure that someone you can acquire is going to win the AL for you this year, don't bother. They're getting Sheffield and Mitsui back sometime this year and those guys should be relatively fresh, having had a few months off. If I were Cashman, I'd save the money.

Thanks.

What's the site address?

Hmm. They didn't look too good but it's only 3 games. I think Dan is mad because the Yanks are starting to put a little heat on his BoSox. I don't think he hates the pale hose per se. As far as the Mets going all the way, I think that's a little early for that. They have some pitching problems themselves. Pedro is hurt, Glavine hasn't looked too good lately and the rest of the starting rotation is suspect. With the lead they'll have, they'll try to fix those problems. However, they don't want to let the Braves get too close.

My mistake. I assumed the Cookbook was the RVG one. If they're going not to make these anymore, why not some other Evans titles or Volumes 2 and 3 of the Cookbook. I'd gladly get those. We knew this was coming -- Chuck did warn us awhile ago -- and this should us make us better appreciate Fantasy more for having kept all those titles in circulation.