Monday musings

*We have a lot of new visitors today, as a bunch of people are checking in to read Matt's Dispatches from Iraq piece (scroll down a bit if you haven't seen it). The site's previous high for page views in a 24-hour span was 1,200, and we passed that around mid-afternoon. If you're new, welcome. Dispatches from Iraq is updated every other Sunday -- Matt is still in Iraq and not in everyday contact, so we're spreading out the material we already have on hand.

It is clear there are two separate audiences for the site -- the folks who tune in primarily for Matt's pieces, and the 250-300 or so people who drop by daily or several times per week. I'm going to be making some changes, hopefully by the end of the summer, to make the two main facets of the site distinct from one another, and also to add more features in time for football season. So thanks again for your continued interest, and stay tuned.

If you're new and like what you see, the site has grown almost entirely through grassroots word of mouth, so if you wouldn't mind passing along the link to the site to a friend or two, I'd appreciate it.

*There's a new sheriff in town. Jeff Sullivan has joined the ranks of the blogging world.

I go back a decade with Jeff, to the school newspaper at UMass Boston. We had quite a crew in those days -- I was the sports editor, and Jeff and another local legend, Randolph Charlotin (who now works for New England Cable News), were my assistants.

Jeff has one defining attribute -- he has his opinions, he doesn't care who knows those opinions, and if he thinks he's right he doesn't mince words or back down. There are some places where, if it is raining buckets outside, those in the know will insist on telling you it is a bright, bright, sunshiny day. Not only will they insist you acknowledge the sun is shining, they will also make you go out into the rain, stand on a boulevard corner, and get drenched by passing cars whizzing through deep puddles, then make you report back and tell them with a big smile about what a great tan you got while you went out and enjoyed your sunny beach day. In such places, maintaining the illusion the sun is shining is of far more importance than being prepared for the rain, and anyone who suggests bringing along an umbrella is singled out and punished. Jeff would size things up in this sort of purely hypothetical environment and say something like "Actually, it's raining out. Look out the window," which is akin to pointing out that there is no great and powerful Wizard of Oz.

Anyway, now Jeff has his own outlet, and if you want to know why he's the sheriff, you'll just have to click on his site and read the story.

*Monday's wacky stats of the day, heading into tonight's MLB play: Tampa Bay has the worst record in the AL at 35-64 and is a half-game ahead of Colorado for the worst record in baseball. That's not the wacky part. The wacky part is, despite this, Tampa's record in AL East play (19-22) is better than both the Red Sox (20-25) and Yankees (17-21). Toronto by far leads the pack in division play at 23-16. (Not all 23 wins have come against the Red Sox; it only seems that way).

*So I'm heading out to a baseball game tomorrow night for sure. The options are: Mariners vs. Tigers at Safeco; Iowa Cubs at the Tacoma Rainiers in Pacific Coast League play; and the Eugene Somethingoranothers at the Everett AquaSox in Class A ball. I'm leaning towards the Rainiers. For one, though not exactly a state-of-the-art park, Cheney Stadium offers an unparalled view of Mt. Rainier from the left-field seats on sunny days; and for another, there is no more fierce rivalry anywhere up and down the Pacific Coast than the one between Tacoma and Iowa.
Last Monday's Musings

Feedback