So, the story broke about the Redskins Catfish this week. (For those of you who do not know, "Catfish" is a term for people online pretending to be someone they are not) I had 3 years worth of Sidney Ackerman stories, and I felt the need to share them. I ended up typing over 4000 words on her, so I deceided to split up the stories year by year, otherwise no one is going to read my ramblings.
August/September
2009 - Found Sidney's profile (RedheadedSlut) on twitter and started
following cause I was still new to twitter and she was a local skins
fan. We talked but she didn't follow back.
October 2,
2009 - I'm at home just on twitter, I see her tweets about being at a
bar and I half jokingly say that we should drink together and she direct
messages me and says she is at some DC club and says I should come out.
It was late, I had to work in the morning, and I didnt have a car, so I
say no, and don't come out.
October 3, 2009 - Sidney
follows me back and she DMs me and asks if I want to go to the Redskins
game the next day. I was having my fantasy hockey draft the next day but
she says I should let her know if I ever want to go to a Redskins game
because someone who was on the 2009 Redskins but no longer in the league
can get her extra tickets if needed. (I don't know the
legality/etiquette of naming the players involved in the catfishing, but
because the legitimate press didn't, I won't but will give vague clues)
I see that Sidney and the Redskins player she is talking about actually talk to each other and follow each other on twitter, so I have no reason to think she is lying. She tells me that she lives on Hackamore Lane in the River Falls
neighborhood of Potomac. She also gives me her phone number and says to
text her, cause it is easier. All of this is unsolicited. I never asked
for tickets or asked for her number or address but I give her my number and am
pretty stoked that I might be going to a Redskins game soon.
The
week of October 5, 2009 - I text her Monday, saying that I want to go to
the Redskins v Chiefs game on October 18th. She agrees. We text/tweet
back and forth between those 2 weeks.
October 16, 2009 -
Maryland is having some bad weather, so Sidney goes to Atlantic City
for the weekend but says she will be back for the game.
Ocotber
18, 2009 - Due to daydrinking on the 17th, I blacked out and was too hungover to go to the game. Good news! Sidney stayed in Atlantic City because I wasn't
answering texts so no harm no foul. We agree to meet up for the Redskins
v Broncos game on November 15th.
October 31, 2009 - I
see Cypress Hill in concert. I tweeted about it prior because I was
pumped because this was the first concert I ever attended. I do not
believe I specifically told Sidney about it . But when I'm at the
concert, before Cypress Hill took the stage, Sidney tells me that she is
backstage with B-real smoking weed with him. She knew him from a
paintball tournament and they have the same birthday. (My friend Rob, who is
more knowledgeable about Cypress Hill than I am is able to confirm that
B-real loves paintball) Since we both happened to be at the same
concert, we text back and forth, I'm trying to get her to at least come
out and say hi or even try to get backstage myself. I have a good time
at the concert, without seeing her, but we are still on for the Denver
game. (Rob is suspicious but sometime later on, I look at some of
Sidney's favorited tweets and I see that there is a tweet from B-real
wishing her a happy birthday so I figure she was legitamely there.
November 11, 2009 - Sidney changes her twitter username from Redheadedslut to Red_Ridn_Hood
November
14, 2009 - Sidney's mother dies from an aneurysm. I dont have the
tickets and she has to go to North Carolina for the funeral. Somehow,
through StubHub, she leaves the tickets at Stubhub Willcall, all I had
to give her was my email address and name.
November
15, 2009 - Everything goes fine without a hitch, I get the tickets at
Willcall. I enjoy the seats with my friend Arun. The seats were about 8
rows up from the field, and behind the Redskins bench. The last time I
sat that close to a football game was when I watched high school
football. She calls me afterwards to see if I had a fun time and see how
everything worked out.
December 6, 2009 - During the
Redskins v Saints game, the Redskins have a lead and she tweets
something about having a party if the Redskins win. I let her know I am
interested but no party because the Redskins lose. During the game, she texts me a pic of the 2 guys behind her and asks if they were at the game in November. I had a crappy phone so I was not able to view the pic but I remember that a woman sat directly behind me so I know it is not them.
December
9, 2009 - Through casual twitter conversation, she tells me she has a
website. (It is no longer active now, but it was backed up using Wayback
Machine.)Here , here and here.
She tells me to sign up and become a member so I do. No payment
necessary, didn't have to enter a credit card. Site was a bunch of
pictures and some blogs. I don't think I visited often.
December
19-20, 2009 - There was a snowstorm in the DC area, Sidney lets me know
that she might have an extra ticket for the Monday Night Football game
vs the Giants.
December 21, 2009 - I am able to get the
extra ticket. Again it is at StubHub Willcall, but it is no problem. I
go to the game, sitting by myself but we agree to meet up after
halftime. I had a problem getting texts because there was so much data
in the air at FedEx Field so I ended up getting texts about 10+ minutes
after they were sent. We did our best to text back and forth. The
Redskins were getting blown out, it was cold, so she left early. She
texts me that she's coming by my section, but with my text delay, I got
the text after she left. Again, I fail to meet Sidney.
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Friday, November 23, 2012
Doing Stuff on my Bucketlist (If I had One)
Yesterday, I crossed an item off my bucket list (if one exists, which I won't confirm or deny that one exists). I had turducken. For those of you who didn't grow up in the 90s/00s watching Pat Summerall and John Madden do football broadcasts on Thanksgiving, a turducken is when you stuff a chicken inside a duck and then you stuff all of that and stuff it into a turkey.
My friend Ashley (who I solely know off of twitter) invited me up to Baltimore for Thanksgiving dinner, this is the second year of her tradition of inviting people in the area for turducken. We're not sure who is crazier, her for inviting an internet stranger to her house or me for going to Baltimore to a houseful of internet strangers who could've been gang or KKK members.
Traveling from Germantown to Baltimore without a car wasn't that hard. I spent less than $7 to use mass transit. There's a bus that goes from my local metro station to BWI airport for $5, and then from there I took the light rail the rest of the way. I kind of wonder, how much theft happens on there. I mean, there really isn't a surefire way to make sure you paid. I've heard that they have random fare checkers (I've ridden twice and I've never been asked to show proof). I guess when rides are less than $2, there really isn't a point of stealing rides. Coming back was more expensive, Amtrak isn't cheap, but all in all, I made the trip and back and I only had to sacrifice $35, 35% of my laptop screen and some of my dignity when I tripped infront of a lightrail-ful of people getting off, but I digress...
The turducken was awesome. I wish I took notes when I was eating this. It was just full of awesome that's hard to describe off of memory. I didn't really notice the difference in the meats but it was very filling. It tasted a lot like turkey and chicken, I didn't really notice the duck meat. There was other fixins, stuffing, biscuits, mashed potatoes, which I had and those were delicious. There were some green beans too, I honestly cant remember if I ate them. I was too in love with the turducken to pay attention to healthy vegetables. I finished off three massive plates of turducken and fixins yesterday.
It was a great day. One of the highlights was when Sush (one of the guests) and I were somehow talking about the KKK and how they would be after her as well. And I asked her if she was black and she laughed and said she was Jewish. (I wasn't thinking, I had been drinking all day and half of my blood was busy digesting turducken.) For the record, Sush does not look black or mixed at all.
Another highlight was when the Redskins beat the Cowboys. It was weird, Ashley is a Cowboys fan, and I'm a Redskins fan but each of us thought the opposing team would win. It was like the movie Face-off. I have a list of Top 10 Sporting Events I Have Attended . I do not have one for games I have watched on TV (too many to consider, I've watched over 1,000) but this would probably make it.
It was nice getting something crossed off my bucket list (if one exists) The next thing I hope to cross off is attend a Super Bowl or attend a victorious playoff game for a DC Sports team. I've been to 3 Capitals playoff games and 1 Nationals playoff game, all of them have been losses
My friend Ashley (who I solely know off of twitter) invited me up to Baltimore for Thanksgiving dinner, this is the second year of her tradition of inviting people in the area for turducken. We're not sure who is crazier, her for inviting an internet stranger to her house or me for going to Baltimore to a houseful of internet strangers who could've been gang or KKK members.
Traveling from Germantown to Baltimore without a car wasn't that hard. I spent less than $7 to use mass transit. There's a bus that goes from my local metro station to BWI airport for $5, and then from there I took the light rail the rest of the way. I kind of wonder, how much theft happens on there. I mean, there really isn't a surefire way to make sure you paid. I've heard that they have random fare checkers (I've ridden twice and I've never been asked to show proof). I guess when rides are less than $2, there really isn't a point of stealing rides. Coming back was more expensive, Amtrak isn't cheap, but all in all, I made the trip and back and I only had to sacrifice $35, 35% of my laptop screen and some of my dignity when I tripped infront of a lightrail-ful of people getting off, but I digress...
The turducken was awesome. I wish I took notes when I was eating this. It was just full of awesome that's hard to describe off of memory. I didn't really notice the difference in the meats but it was very filling. It tasted a lot like turkey and chicken, I didn't really notice the duck meat. There was other fixins, stuffing, biscuits, mashed potatoes, which I had and those were delicious. There were some green beans too, I honestly cant remember if I ate them. I was too in love with the turducken to pay attention to healthy vegetables. I finished off three massive plates of turducken and fixins yesterday.
It was a great day. One of the highlights was when Sush (one of the guests) and I were somehow talking about the KKK and how they would be after her as well. And I asked her if she was black and she laughed and said she was Jewish. (I wasn't thinking, I had been drinking all day and half of my blood was busy digesting turducken.) For the record, Sush does not look black or mixed at all.
Another highlight was when the Redskins beat the Cowboys. It was weird, Ashley is a Cowboys fan, and I'm a Redskins fan but each of us thought the opposing team would win. It was like the movie Face-off. I have a list of Top 10 Sporting Events I Have Attended . I do not have one for games I have watched on TV (too many to consider, I've watched over 1,000) but this would probably make it.
It was nice getting something crossed off my bucket list (if one exists) The next thing I hope to cross off is attend a Super Bowl or attend a victorious playoff game for a DC Sports team. I've been to 3 Capitals playoff games and 1 Nationals playoff game, all of them have been losses
Friday, October 5, 2012
Tolu Robertson, Stand-up Comedian
I finally decieded to do stand-up. I kind of wanted to try my hand at stand-up for a while, but never had the balls to do it, until recently.
I'm sure one of the factors is the fact that I made a little bit of a stir in the comedy world as Tolu Robertson . And part of it was seeing a couple of friends go to some open mike nights and doing okay. I figured I've listened to enough comedy albums (true story, I would listen to comedians' records before going to sleep or when doing homework my junior year of college), and I have enough funny stories that I can come up with 5 minutes of decent stand-up comedy.
I pretty much came up with most of my set on a lazy Sunday waiting for the Redskins v Rams game to come on. A lot of it was self referential, I figure if I'm going to go onstage and be nervous and talk, it should be about a subject I am an expert in (myself). Plus its impossible to steal material (intentional or unintential) when most of the jokes you're making are about yourself and are based on real life experiences. At an open mike once, I saw a guy pretty much do Mitch Hedberg's act but with his own material. Technically it's not stealing but when you go out and take someone's delivery and manerisms on stage, you're not being yourself and I'd rather go out on stage and bomb/suceed with my own material.
Here's video of my standup. It was performed at the Blue Banana in DC on September 25th. I'm very self critical of myself, I still haven't watched it and I probably won't watch the video for a while. Before going on stage, I felt really nervous but once on stage, I really didn't feel anything. Maybe it was cause I knew my material, maybe it was the alcohol or maybe the cheatsheet I had on the side of the stage helped me. I felt like I did a good job, considering I'm an amatuer and had no idea what I was doing. I got some groans from the Jerry Sandusky joke I did, but that inspired me to write more Jerry Sandusky material... But I am kind of mad that I forgot to include a really funny herpes joke in my set. It was fun, I can't wait to do this again
I'm sure one of the factors is the fact that I made a little bit of a stir in the comedy world as Tolu Robertson . And part of it was seeing a couple of friends go to some open mike nights and doing okay. I figured I've listened to enough comedy albums (true story, I would listen to comedians' records before going to sleep or when doing homework my junior year of college), and I have enough funny stories that I can come up with 5 minutes of decent stand-up comedy.
I pretty much came up with most of my set on a lazy Sunday waiting for the Redskins v Rams game to come on. A lot of it was self referential, I figure if I'm going to go onstage and be nervous and talk, it should be about a subject I am an expert in (myself). Plus its impossible to steal material (intentional or unintential) when most of the jokes you're making are about yourself and are based on real life experiences. At an open mike once, I saw a guy pretty much do Mitch Hedberg's act but with his own material. Technically it's not stealing but when you go out and take someone's delivery and manerisms on stage, you're not being yourself and I'd rather go out on stage and bomb/suceed with my own material.
Here's video of my standup. It was performed at the Blue Banana in DC on September 25th. I'm very self critical of myself, I still haven't watched it and I probably won't watch the video for a while. Before going on stage, I felt really nervous but once on stage, I really didn't feel anything. Maybe it was cause I knew my material, maybe it was the alcohol or maybe the cheatsheet I had on the side of the stage helped me. I felt like I did a good job, considering I'm an amatuer and had no idea what I was doing. I got some groans from the Jerry Sandusky joke I did, but that inspired me to write more Jerry Sandusky material... But I am kind of mad that I forgot to include a really funny herpes joke in my set. It was fun, I can't wait to do this again
Monday, September 3, 2012
Predicting the Redskins Schedule
I'm going to try and attempt to go through game by game and predict the Redskins' record. First time I've ever tried to do this. Most seasons I convince myself that they will win 10+ games with no real reason, though last season I predicted 5 or less wins at the start and I was right.
Week 1 @ New Orleans W
I'd normally pick the Saints but considering Bountygate, I am going with the Skins for this game. Their coach and interim coach (as well as other players) are suspended for this game. I want to see the interim interim coach suspended or get thrown out to see if Skynet becomes self aware and starts coaching in this game.
Week 2 @ St. Louis W
With a third offensive coordinator in three years, Sam Bradford is slowly following the same gameplan Jason Campbell followed to mediocrity. Another road win for the Redskins.
Week 3 vs Cincinnati L
I see RGIII's first game in DC (Well Maryland technically) as a loss. With a true offseason under their belt Andy Dalton and AJ Green will find a way to expose the Redskins biggest defensive weakness, the secondary.
Week 4 @ Tampa Bay W
RGIII bounces back from his first professional loss to win big in Tampa in a nationalized televised game. I'm not buying Tampa as legitimate. I hate Josh Freeman cause he was a bad backup QB in fantasy football and I distrust college coaches making the jump to the NFL (see Spurrier, Steve; Petrino, Bobby and Saban, Nick)
Week 5 vs Atlanta L
RGIII will get his numbers but it will not be enough with Roddy White, Tony Gonzalez and Julio Jones catching passes for the other team
Week 6 vs Minnesota W
Redskins get "revenge" for the Christmas Eve game last year where Joe Webb and Toby Gearhart took over the injured Christian Ponder and Adrian Peterson. Supposedly Adrian Peterson will be healthy enough to play all 4 quarters, but the front 7 should be able to neutralize him.
Week 7 @ New York Giants W
Redskins win for the 3rd time in 3 tries vs the Giants.
Week 8 @ Pittsburgh L
Dick LeBeau and his zone blitz defense will be in midseason form and they will eat RGIII alive in this game.
Week 9 vs Carolina L
2 highly rated black quarterbacks going against each other in this game. I will give the edge to Newton in this one. Hopefully we see this matchup many times in the playoffs in future years.
Week 11 vs Philadelphia W
I am planning on going to this game (birthday weekend) and the Redskins are 8-4 when I attend their games. If for some reason I cant go, I'm sure a nagging injury from Vick will limit his effectiveness and the Redskins will capitalize off that.
Week 12 @ Dallas L
Redskins are 0-6 on Thanksgiving Day games vs the Cowboys and with a rookie quarterback playing on short rest, I do not see him being the stopper. May later in his career he will get a Thanksgiving Day win but not today.
Week 13 vs Giants L
RGIII will play well but Eli will go on a run at the end of the game to rally his team to victory.
Week 14 vs Ravens L
RGIII will hit the rookie wall and not play well against a perenially good Ravens defense.
Week 15 @ Browns W
Rookie vs Rookie QB, probably in a cold weather game. Both teams have storied pasts but have stunk as recent. Redskins win in an ugly, run dominated because Morris + Helu + Royster > Richardson and his balky knee.
Week 16 @ Eagles L
No real reasoning, just feel like the Eagles will win in this game.
Week 17 vs Cowboys W
Home game featuring 2 mediocre teams, I'll pick the home team for this one.
This season is going to be a lot like a previous Shanahan seasons, a hot start but then a regression back to reality in the 2nd half of the season. But there is stuff to look forward to. 8-8 would be the Redskins best record since Zorn's first year in DC. Plus every single Week 1 offensive starter is under 30 and only 2 Week 1 defensive starters are over 30. Maybe next year the Redskins can make a run at the playoffs.
I hope Shanahan gets a Year 4. You don't pay a guy 7 million dollars a year and give him partial GM power for 19-29(which includes my 8-8 prediction) over 3 years, but the Redskins had one of the oldest rosters in Year 1 of the Shanahan takeover and now have one of the youngest. The team is in better shape than the one he inherited.
Week 1 @ New Orleans W
I'd normally pick the Saints but considering Bountygate, I am going with the Skins for this game. Their coach and interim coach (as well as other players) are suspended for this game. I want to see the interim interim coach suspended or get thrown out to see if Skynet becomes self aware and starts coaching in this game.
Week 2 @ St. Louis W
With a third offensive coordinator in three years, Sam Bradford is slowly following the same gameplan Jason Campbell followed to mediocrity. Another road win for the Redskins.
Week 3 vs Cincinnati L
I see RGIII's first game in DC (Well Maryland technically) as a loss. With a true offseason under their belt Andy Dalton and AJ Green will find a way to expose the Redskins biggest defensive weakness, the secondary.
Week 4 @ Tampa Bay W
RGIII bounces back from his first professional loss to win big in Tampa in a nationalized televised game. I'm not buying Tampa as legitimate. I hate Josh Freeman cause he was a bad backup QB in fantasy football and I distrust college coaches making the jump to the NFL (see Spurrier, Steve; Petrino, Bobby and Saban, Nick)
Week 5 vs Atlanta L
RGIII will get his numbers but it will not be enough with Roddy White, Tony Gonzalez and Julio Jones catching passes for the other team
Week 6 vs Minnesota W
Redskins get "revenge" for the Christmas Eve game last year where Joe Webb and Toby Gearhart took over the injured Christian Ponder and Adrian Peterson. Supposedly Adrian Peterson will be healthy enough to play all 4 quarters, but the front 7 should be able to neutralize him.
Week 7 @ New York Giants W
Redskins win for the 3rd time in 3 tries vs the Giants.
Week 8 @ Pittsburgh L
Dick LeBeau and his zone blitz defense will be in midseason form and they will eat RGIII alive in this game.
Week 9 vs Carolina L
2 highly rated black quarterbacks going against each other in this game. I will give the edge to Newton in this one. Hopefully we see this matchup many times in the playoffs in future years.
Week 11 vs Philadelphia W
I am planning on going to this game (birthday weekend) and the Redskins are 8-4 when I attend their games. If for some reason I cant go, I'm sure a nagging injury from Vick will limit his effectiveness and the Redskins will capitalize off that.
Week 12 @ Dallas L
Redskins are 0-6 on Thanksgiving Day games vs the Cowboys and with a rookie quarterback playing on short rest, I do not see him being the stopper. May later in his career he will get a Thanksgiving Day win but not today.
Week 13 vs Giants L
RGIII will play well but Eli will go on a run at the end of the game to rally his team to victory.
Week 14 vs Ravens L
RGIII will hit the rookie wall and not play well against a perenially good Ravens defense.
Week 15 @ Browns W
Rookie vs Rookie QB, probably in a cold weather game. Both teams have storied pasts but have stunk as recent. Redskins win in an ugly, run dominated because Morris + Helu + Royster > Richardson and his balky knee.
Week 16 @ Eagles L
No real reasoning, just feel like the Eagles will win in this game.
Week 17 vs Cowboys W
Home game featuring 2 mediocre teams, I'll pick the home team for this one.
This season is going to be a lot like a previous Shanahan seasons, a hot start but then a regression back to reality in the 2nd half of the season. But there is stuff to look forward to. 8-8 would be the Redskins best record since Zorn's first year in DC. Plus every single Week 1 offensive starter is under 30 and only 2 Week 1 defensive starters are over 30. Maybe next year the Redskins can make a run at the playoffs.
I hope Shanahan gets a Year 4. You don't pay a guy 7 million dollars a year and give him partial GM power for 19-29(which includes my 8-8 prediction) over 3 years, but the Redskins had one of the oldest rosters in Year 1 of the Shanahan takeover and now have one of the youngest. The team is in better shape than the one he inherited.
Monday, July 16, 2012
Something I noticed today
Isn't it ironic, that Chick-Fil-A, an organization that donates to anti gay rights organizations like Focus on the Family and others, has a twitter account run by the Germantown, MD franchise with the handle @cFAGtown ?
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
#IYNT
Wednesday, July 3, was the first Ignite Your Natitude Tweetup, but not the first Nationals tweetup. In the spirit of twitter, all
paragraphs will be 140 characters or less...
I got there around 3:15, gates didn't open until 4, game didn't start until 6:30. People wanted the meet n greet with the players, that
was available to the first 10 people to check in. I almost got it, I was 13th in line. I probably would've gotten it if my belt had been
tied tighter (i was essentially mooning people for a couple of seconds while running to the check in table) or if the ticket I had was
scanning properly (first time using mobile tickets so it took me a couple of swipes). My friend Tracy was able to win the meet n greet
, and I felt compelled to give him the ball I got from Livan Hernandez to have that signed. Tracy eventually got that ball signed by
Stephen Strasburg, and I kind of feel like that symbolizes a turning point of the franchise, a passing of the torch of staff aces.
Had a great time. I guess any time that the Nationals win is a good time. This was espicailly exciting because this is the first
time I've seen a Jordan Zimmermann win live(yes, I actually keep track of these things along with other stats). It's not that he doesn't
pitch well, when I go to the ballpark ( 3.65 ERA over 7 starts) but the offense never comes through for him, or he's not pitching when
the game is decieded. Its always fun nerding out with other Nats tweeters (the Center Field Gate Alliance, singing along to walkup music,
sacreligious Jesus Flores puns) even if you aren't familiar with them. I lucked out, my seat was near other tweeters I knew. One of the
things that I kind of hate about tweetups is that I tend to gravitate to people I've known previously. I need to do a better job of
introducing myself to new people and striking up conversations.
Two things really pissed me off. The special ticket offer came with 6 bucks credit for concessions. I've ordered tickets with
food credits on them before, no problem, but I was a little concerned since it was on my phone, so I asked one of the employees
working the Ignite Your Natitude Tweetup sign-in table and he tod me that it would be fine. Thinking I have 6 bucks credit, I go to
Jammin Island and order the combo with chicken and ribs and rice n beans and potato salad, only to be told that they couldn't scan the
code off my phone. (it hurt me deep to leave all that food stranded) Thinking that the stand doesn't know what they were doing, I go
to another concessions area, but I'm told the same thing. I go back to the sign in table, and another employee tells me that I need to go to
guest services, and they were able to resolve the issue. Would've been a lot easier just to tell me to go to guest services initially.
Before the food credit fiasco, I had a decent appetite, and wanted to go for the 8 pound Strasburger. I've taken doen a 6 pound milkshake
with a 1.5 lb sandwhich before, so 8 pounds of bread/meat/veggies should be no problem. I politely asked the person at the Red Loft if they
were serving the Strasburger today, she said no. TURNS OUT THEY WERE BECAUSE MY FRIEND STEPHANIE ORDERED ONE AND ATE IT WITH FRIENDS! That
is a customer service fail! This is your signature item, EVERY single employee at the Red Loft should be able to give a correct answer if
asked if its being served. If they do not know, ASK! It is a $50 burger, it is worth your time to ask. With the secrecy of when it is
available, and the failure of tonight, I'm starting to think there is a worldwide conspiracy for me not to eat this burger. Thankfully
Stephanie saved me a slice, very succulent, and I can't to eat 8 pounds of that.
(Note that invalidates most of this rant. Turns out they weren't selling the Strasburger, but Travel Channel was at the park and filmed a special on the burger and my friend Andrea asked if she could have it afterwards and they said yes. Still, it would've been nice to have it available when a special about it is being filmed)
I wish they had charging stations for us tweeters. My droid uses its battery pretty fast and I was already on orange in the 3rd inning.
Luckily, there was a rain delay and I used that opportunity to find an outlet and charge up.
All in all, it was a great night at the ballpark, the metro ride home, that's a different story, but I'm looking forward to future baseball
tweetups, both informal and organized by the team.
paragraphs will be 140 characters or less...
I got there around 3:15, gates didn't open until 4, game didn't start until 6:30. People wanted the meet n greet with the players, that
was available to the first 10 people to check in. I almost got it, I was 13th in line. I probably would've gotten it if my belt had been
tied tighter (i was essentially mooning people for a couple of seconds while running to the check in table) or if the ticket I had was
scanning properly (first time using mobile tickets so it took me a couple of swipes). My friend Tracy was able to win the meet n greet
, and I felt compelled to give him the ball I got from Livan Hernandez to have that signed. Tracy eventually got that ball signed by
Stephen Strasburg, and I kind of feel like that symbolizes a turning point of the franchise, a passing of the torch of staff aces.
Had a great time. I guess any time that the Nationals win is a good time. This was espicailly exciting because this is the first
time I've seen a Jordan Zimmermann win live(yes, I actually keep track of these things along with other stats). It's not that he doesn't
pitch well, when I go to the ballpark ( 3.65 ERA over 7 starts) but the offense never comes through for him, or he's not pitching when
the game is decieded. Its always fun nerding out with other Nats tweeters (the Center Field Gate Alliance, singing along to walkup music,
sacreligious Jesus Flores puns) even if you aren't familiar with them. I lucked out, my seat was near other tweeters I knew. One of the
things that I kind of hate about tweetups is that I tend to gravitate to people I've known previously. I need to do a better job of
introducing myself to new people and striking up conversations.
Two things really pissed me off. The special ticket offer came with 6 bucks credit for concessions. I've ordered tickets with
food credits on them before, no problem, but I was a little concerned since it was on my phone, so I asked one of the employees
working the Ignite Your Natitude Tweetup sign-in table and he tod me that it would be fine. Thinking I have 6 bucks credit, I go to
Jammin Island and order the combo with chicken and ribs and rice n beans and potato salad, only to be told that they couldn't scan the
code off my phone. (it hurt me deep to leave all that food stranded) Thinking that the stand doesn't know what they were doing, I go
to another concessions area, but I'm told the same thing. I go back to the sign in table, and another employee tells me that I need to go to
guest services, and they were able to resolve the issue. Would've been a lot easier just to tell me to go to guest services initially.
Before the food credit fiasco, I had a decent appetite, and wanted to go for the 8 pound Strasburger. I've taken doen a 6 pound milkshake
with a 1.5 lb sandwhich before, so 8 pounds of bread/meat/veggies should be no problem. I politely asked the person at the Red Loft if they
were serving the Strasburger today, she said no. TURNS OUT THEY WERE BECAUSE MY FRIEND STEPHANIE ORDERED ONE AND ATE IT WITH FRIENDS! That
is a customer service fail! This is your signature item, EVERY single employee at the Red Loft should be able to give a correct answer if
asked if its being served. If they do not know, ASK! It is a $50 burger, it is worth your time to ask. With the secrecy of when it is
available, and the failure of tonight, I'm starting to think there is a worldwide conspiracy for me not to eat this burger. Thankfully
Stephanie saved me a slice, very succulent, and I can't to eat 8 pounds of that.
(Note that invalidates most of this rant. Turns out they weren't selling the Strasburger, but Travel Channel was at the park and filmed a special on the burger and my friend Andrea asked if she could have it afterwards and they said yes. Still, it would've been nice to have it available when a special about it is being filmed)
I wish they had charging stations for us tweeters. My droid uses its battery pretty fast and I was already on orange in the 3rd inning.
Luckily, there was a rain delay and I used that opportunity to find an outlet and charge up.
All in all, it was a great night at the ballpark, the metro ride home, that's a different story, but I'm looking forward to future baseball
tweetups, both informal and organized by the team.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Rick Eckstein, The Most Interesting Man in Washington
Hadn't blogged in a while. Part of it was lacking a computer and part of it was not having any good thoughts but here goes my thoughts on the Nationals hitting coach, Rick Eckstein and if he should stay or go.
The Nationals offense has not been good at all this year, and the past week, it has gone even colder. I'm not sure how much of that is Rick's fault though. The Nationals have scored 265 runs, have an On Base % of .304 and a Slugging % of .387, all below the MLB average. Some of that is the rash of injuries. Opening day starters Wilson Ramos, Ryan Zimmerman and Jayson Werth have spent time on the disabled list and Michael Morse, who would've been a starter for opening day if it wasn't for an injury, has only played 22 games.
Good stuff has happened under Eckstein too. 19 Year old Bryce Harper rarely looks his age when facing Major League pitching. Ryan Zimmerman won a Silver Slugger and had a 30 game hitting streak. Adam Dunn slugged 76 homers and Josh Willingham hit 40 homers and batted .263 in their 2 years here. Michael Morse hit .303 with 31 homers last year. Before his injury, Jayson Werth was playing like the Jayson Werth of old, and not the stressed out model the Nationals didn't know what to do with last year. The pitchers actually look like decent hitters.
I wanted to try and remove injuries from the situation and judge Rick Eckstein by a jury of his peers. Eckstein's first full season as the National's hitting coach was in 2009. Six other hitting coaches have been with their team as long as Eckstein (Kevin Long, Yankees;Dave Magadan, Red Sox; Brook Jacoby, Reds; Kevin Seitzer, Royals; Lloyd McClendon, Tigers; Joe Vavra, Twins). Three others have been hitting coaches since 2009 but with multiple teams (Greg Walker, White Sox and Braves; Derek Shelton, Braves and Rays; Don Baylor, Rockies and Diamondbacks). Amongst all of those coaches, Eckstein ranks last in Batting Average, On Base %, Slugging %, OPS and runs.
I did the research with an open mind. Even though the Nationals offense had been slumping, I was pro Eckstein because of all the injuries that have happened. Now that I took a step back and looked at the data, he should be let go at the end of the season. I know some of this data is "misleading" because when you can buy the best players, coaching makes a negligible difference (you know who I'm talking about). But when the Royals are hitting better than you, that's a problem. Twenty-three teams have changed their hitting coach during Rick Eckstein's tenure. The Nationals gave him a fair chance, here's to a new hitting coach in 2013.
The Nationals offense has not been good at all this year, and the past week, it has gone even colder. I'm not sure how much of that is Rick's fault though. The Nationals have scored 265 runs, have an On Base % of .304 and a Slugging % of .387, all below the MLB average. Some of that is the rash of injuries. Opening day starters Wilson Ramos, Ryan Zimmerman and Jayson Werth have spent time on the disabled list and Michael Morse, who would've been a starter for opening day if it wasn't for an injury, has only played 22 games.
Good stuff has happened under Eckstein too. 19 Year old Bryce Harper rarely looks his age when facing Major League pitching. Ryan Zimmerman won a Silver Slugger and had a 30 game hitting streak. Adam Dunn slugged 76 homers and Josh Willingham hit 40 homers and batted .263 in their 2 years here. Michael Morse hit .303 with 31 homers last year. Before his injury, Jayson Werth was playing like the Jayson Werth of old, and not the stressed out model the Nationals didn't know what to do with last year. The pitchers actually look like decent hitters.
I wanted to try and remove injuries from the situation and judge Rick Eckstein by a jury of his peers. Eckstein's first full season as the National's hitting coach was in 2009. Six other hitting coaches have been with their team as long as Eckstein (Kevin Long, Yankees;Dave Magadan, Red Sox; Brook Jacoby, Reds; Kevin Seitzer, Royals; Lloyd McClendon, Tigers; Joe Vavra, Twins). Three others have been hitting coaches since 2009 but with multiple teams (Greg Walker, White Sox and Braves; Derek Shelton, Braves and Rays; Don Baylor, Rockies and Diamondbacks). Amongst all of those coaches, Eckstein ranks last in Batting Average, On Base %, Slugging %, OPS and runs.
I did the research with an open mind. Even though the Nationals offense had been slumping, I was pro Eckstein because of all the injuries that have happened. Now that I took a step back and looked at the data, he should be let go at the end of the season. I know some of this data is "misleading" because when you can buy the best players, coaching makes a negligible difference (you know who I'm talking about). But when the Royals are hitting better than you, that's a problem. Twenty-three teams have changed their hitting coach during Rick Eckstein's tenure. The Nationals gave him a fair chance, here's to a new hitting coach in 2013.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)