Miles from Fenway: Q&A Take 2 Part 2

Well, you asked, and I answered. Here we go:

Mike is first up:

1. With Boston and Atlanta missing the playoffs are you watching them, and is there a team or player that you're cheering for now?

I'm watching when I can, which is difficult in an apartment that doesn't have cable and with a television that doesn't have an antenna. That said, I haven't followed the Braves closely in years. Since I moved to NYC the Mets have been my NL team, and I'm following their games avidly. Plus I wanted to see how quickly the Yankees got bounced, and well, we all know what happened there. So yes, I'm still watching. Rooting for the Mets, following Detroit since they're making things exciting.

2. What was the last fictional book you read?

Well, if it's a fictional book does that mean I made it up? Sorry had to do it. The last work of fiction that I read was damn, hold on this one is making me think. I'm reading Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer at the moment because I loved Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close but that's what I'm currently reading not what I read last. Before this it was Chuck Klosterman's A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas but that's non-fiction. So before that it was, Jesus, you know I am looking at my bookshelf right now and I can’t remember. So whatever it was, it clearly wasn't that great. Now the three books I just mentioned? Fantastic, you should all read them.

3. Do you put the same shoe on first every time?

Actually, yeah, I do, and I didn't realize how creepy that was until I wrote it. I always put my right shoe on first. That's it, I'm putting the left one on first tomorrow just to prove to myself that I can do it.

Ok, next up is Ari:

1. If you could be anything in life, teacher president nun, etc what would it be and why??

Professional writer, not even a second thought. Ok, many second thoughts. I'd love to be a professor of literature, or a small business owner (book store) but the top choice would be a writer. Why? Because it's what I love. There is nothing more exhilarating to me than a well crafted story. Now if only I could clear my brain enough to finish one I'm happy with. Which is actually why I started my new blog (the new link is in the top left-hand corner of this page). I figure, with that link staring me in the face every day, I'll at least be mildly motivated to just post something, even if I'm not totally happy with it, just to get my writing out there.

2. What is your favorite city in the world??

Ok, here is where I admit to something that I am terribly embarrassed by: I don't have a passport. That's right, it's a fact that makes me hang my head in shame, but I the only two places I have ever been outside the United States are Canada and the Dominican Republic. So I don't know that I have a favorite. I love Boston and New York, but in entirely different ways.

3. If we all had our perfectly planned life where would you be now, and isn't life better with suprises???

Well, I guess that depends on which plan we're going with. If it was the plan when I was five I would be a famous pop star on par with Whitney Houston. If we're going with the plan I had when I left college, I'd be living on Long Island, married to The Ex, and probably have a smattering of babies. Now I don't have a "plan" per se, and yes, it's a hell of a lot more fun this way. I've gone through a lot of rough times in the past four years, but I wouldn't change any of it for the world. It's made me who I am, it's brought me to where I am, and it's all happened for a reason.

Mikey, what can I do for you?

Wait, we get three questions? OK.

A/S/L? Oh crap, does that count as all three?

Yeah, I don't know how that happened either.

26/F/NYC and technically since you asked if that counted, that was FOUR questions. But I guess I'll let it slide. On to your actual questions

1. Name your favorite Sox moment that didn't happen in 2004.

Does Johnny Pesky raising the World Series banner at Fenway on opening day in 2005 count? Cause I am assuming that you're looking for something non-World Series related. So I'll go with my favorite outside of that. It's a tough one.

You know, it'd have to be Game 6 of the ALCS in 2003. Yes, that year ended terribly for us, but I was actually at the game in Yankee Stadium that night, and it was one of the best games I've ever seen live. It was such a roller-coaster of a game. The Yanks went up with a run in the first, the Sox answered with 4 in the third. The score changed in the Yankees favor when they scored 4 themselves in the fourth making it 5-4 and they added another run in the fifth. The Sox took a one run lead when they scored three in the seventh and added two insurance runs in the ninth to win it 9-6.

Besides games I saw in 2004 (the Jeter into the stands game, the 2004 ALDS clincher and many many more that season) that was easily the most electric I've felt a baseball stadium. And the circumstances surrounding my getting there help it's standing as one of my favorite. The game started at 4:10 or something like that, and around noon the facilities manager of my office wanders over to my desk.

FM: So, I was just given two tickets to the game tonight. I've invited my buddy, but if he can't get out of work, can you leave early?
FINY: Dude, that's just mean. Because you know I'd walk out of here without a second thought, but clearly your guy is going to do the same. It's Game 6 of the ALCS!
FM: Yeah, that's probably true, but I want to have a back up.
FINY: You're an ass.

So back to work I go, not really giving it a second thought other than how mean it was for him to torture me that way. Then two o'clock hits and over my cubicle wall a hand drops a ticket onto my desk. "Meet me in the lobby in an hour".

The seats were amazing, the ticket literally just fell from the sky, and the game was incredible. Add all of those together and it was probably one of my favorite Red Sox moments ever.

Of course, the very next day is tops on the "Worst Red Sox Moment Ever" list, but whatever.

2. Go through your archives and pick out your favorite blog post. It could be because of your writing, or it could be because of the comments left on it... either way.

Easily it was my "social experiment" posts. http://soxfaninnyc.blogspot.com/2005/06/social-experiment.html (there was a series of them, but this was the first). Not only for the comments it got, the emails I received, and the idea itself, but because those posts were the way many of my current loyal readers found my site. Now I just wish I could think up another one!

3. What are you wearing?
Only you, mikey, only you. At the time of writing this, I'm wearing black pleated dress pants, cropped right below the knee, black knee high boots, a white tank top and a grey long sleeved scoop neck shirt. I can't believe I actually just answered that question.

Ok, now it's on toEsther's questions.

How many "oops" moments have you had with guys? I know I've been around for several, but it's hard to keep track ...

After some clarification, I finally understood what Esther meant with this question. The answer is complicated I guess. Esther saw me through what we're going to call my rebound years. Those years directly after my break up with The Ex in which I, let's say I made up for lost time. Mom, Dad, if you're reading, you may want to stop right here.

I am assuming when Esther refers to "oops"s, she talking about things like New Years 2003 when I vowed to stop sleeping with guys I wasn't actually dating only to break said resolution a mere 2 hours into the New Year. So if we're talking one night stands … there have been, hmm, seven. I'd like to qualify that statement with the fact that I was very good friends (and still am) with three of them, three of them I knew well enough for them to be on the acquaintance/friend line, and ok, so one I can't even remember his name. I think he's probably the only true "oops".

But then again, I've had some relationships you could probably qualify as "oops"s. Dating Crazy Rebound Guy just three months after The Ex split was probably one of the stupider things I've done. Dating the assh0le probably wasn't that smart either (he's the one I went to the 2004 ALDS game with unfortunately).

But the problem with the term "oops" is it implies regret, and I don't regret any of my past decisions. Would I make the same decisions now? No, but that's because I learned from my mistakes. And honest? I had a pretty good time making those mistakes. It's all just a part of growing up.

So, short answer? Number of "oops moments with guys"? 0.

Darren! I feel like I haven't heard from you in ages!

Will you buy me Sox season tickets?

Well, that depends on what you'll give me for them! :)

Whew, this is getting seriously long. Ed, what do you have for me?

1.) What are the female rules for the bathroom stall usage? I.E. stuff like unoccupied stalls near occupied stalls, stall near the door, etc. I'm curious if women have a similar set of unwritten rules like men do for Urinal usage.
The only place they seem to breakdown is at major events where it all goes out the window and every urinal is used.

Ok, I don't know that there is a general, over-all, rule for women. My main concern is cleanliness. I'm picking the cleanest stall regardless of whether someone is right next to it, it's near the door, etc. Screw than, if my ass is going to come anywhere near coming in contact with a public toilet, I could care less if someone else is nearby as long as said toilet is clean. But I am hoping my female readers help you out a bit more on this one, Ed.

2.) What frustrates you the most living in the city and what do you love the most? Why? (I know I'm cheating a little on this one)

That is cheating. That's three questions right there! But, as I did with mikey, I guess I'll let it slide.

Ok, what annoys me the most? Easy, the cost. If I were getting paid what I am getting paid in 90% of the country I'd be pretty well off. I'd at the very least have a savings account. 4 years out of school and I live paycheck to paycheck. Granted that is my own doing because when I got a new job I immediately moved into a new apartment in which I could live on my own, but it's pretty incredible that I'm paying almost half my salary in rent and I got a "deal"!

Now, what do I love the most? That's tough, because there is so SO much. But I think overall it's the diversity. The diversity of cultures, races, religions, etc. means that there's always something interesting to do or see.

3.) Zombie's are taking over your neighborhood. Do you go with a machete or firearm of some type for protection?

Ok, well let's look at this rationally. They're already dead right, so it's not like I can kill them again. So I'd go for the firearm. That way I could shoot them enough times to slow them down and run away without having to get close enough for them to be within striking distance and potentially grab me.

So now that I've escaped from the zombies, what are your three questions, Derek?.

1. Hey, how come you're so bad at calling me back??

The easy answer is that I suck. Seriously. The long answer is that you tend to call the night-of when you're going out, at which time 9 times out of 10, I've already got other plans. But you still love me, right?

2. What is the Finy life plan?

Short term? I have absolutely no idea. This sort of goes in line with what Ari asked before. I've had any number of "plans" in the past, none of which worked out and in a way I am glad they didn't. However, it's stopped me from looking too far into the future, I guess. Just trying to be happy. Sure, someday I want to find a man to fall in love with, I want to get married, I want to have children. But I'm not going to settle. And I'm not going to stop being me in order to do so. So for now, I'm just rolling with whatever life throws at me. That's the plan.

3. What are you going to do about the bugs?

See, I've sort of avoided talking about this because I am afraid of jinxing myself but *Finy knocks on wood* I haven't seen a bug in about a week and a half. When my parents came to visit they caulked and steel-wooled basically my entire apartment. After that, I saw maybe five or six, all tiny and all on the verge of death. But it's been a while now. Of course I am still being totally anal about cleaning and all of my food being in tupperwear or Ziplock baggies, but I am no longer afraid of my kitchen! Yay for parents!!!

And finally, Jack Roy!

1. What is your name?
2. What is your quest?
3. What is the... oh, shoot, I always forget the third one.

To steal a line from The Sports Guy ... these are my readers! :)

Labels: Q and A

posted by FINY @ Thursday, October 12, 2006

3 Comments:

At 10/12/2006, kate.d. said…

ha, see i immediately assumed that an "oops" moment was like, "oops, my period's a week late and um maybe i should go to CVS now?"

and i'm thinking, i hope she hasn't had too many of THOSE! :)

but i won't ask you about it!
At 10/12/2006, Esther said…

When I'm at the bathroom in my office, I try to leave a stall in between, but there are only 3. Any other public bathroom has Finy's rule - cleanest is the most important factor, woman in the next stall be damned.

Thanks for a great post - and I had a feeling your answer would turn into what it did. Though I had forgotten about New Year's guy.
At 10/16/2006, Derek said…

OF COURSE i still love you. Well, at least a strong "like."