phillies

About a Girl: New Shoes

on: the girl

“hello new shoes, bye bye blues.”
– paolo nutini, “new shoes”

So many exciting things to write about this week! There’s been a lot going on in my life – though the weather in Evanston is still pretty treacherous (if warm) – and a lot of joy and thrills, but I’m making an actual effort to regularly blog this time around.

Some tidbits on me/life in general:

  • Red Sox sweep their series against the Yankees earlier this week! And the Bravesare holding strong at just above .500, especially after a win tonight against the Phillies. Gotta love that sort of success, even if the Phillies are whooping us in the NL East.

    San Francisco, CA

  • I found out Wednesday I will be placed in beautiful San Francisco, California, for my JR this fall! I’ll be working at San Francisco magazine for three months beginning in mid-September, and I’m truly thrilled to begin. There’s so much to do in SF, and I’m hoping to hit up AT&T Park, the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market (y’know, the one at the Embarcadero), Haight, the sea lions, etc. It’s surely going to be a whirlwind experience, and I’ll be damned if I waste a single second of it.
  • I’ve become a serious fashionista in the last few weeks or so, cleaning my closet a bit (throwing out some still-gross pukey flats and donating some beloved and still fashionable Gap T-shirts) and repopulating it with some pretty exceptional (if secondhand) designer threads. I’ve picked up a little Vera Neumann, some Kate Spade and, of course, Marc Jacobs and Betsey Johnson. I’ve been doing a good bit of clearance rack diving at Anthropologie, Gap, J. Crew and even Macy’s, where I picked up a gorgeous pair of navy Marc Fisher pumps. I’ve given my wallet a brand new policy – I only purchase clothes which I will want to wear to the office in the future. That means no more Threadless tees, no matter how hilarious, and a depleted Converse collection, though I like to believe that I can still wear Chuck Taylors in the real world. All in all, I think I’m really becoming a clothes horse – and I love it.
  • I chopped off all of my hair. Reinvention. It hasn’t been this short since…well, ever.
  • It’s formal season here at Northwestern, and, though I’ve all but removed myself from my chapter to claim allegiance to a particular fraternity, I attended both my sorority formal and my favorite fraternity’s formal this weekend. The latter was at the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower, the 66th floor, and it was a truly gorgeous venue. I had a blast, and the view was absolutely exceptional. I do love college, Asher.
  • Northwestern’s Dillo Day is next weekend. B.O.B. was announced as the night headliner months ago, while both the New Pornographers  and Chiddy Bang were announced last week as the early and late afternoon performers.

    The Mighty Ducks' Charlie Conway

  • And, finally, my brand new (birthday) bicycle is here and built and totally perfect. It’s a smokin’ hot Bianchi hybrid, and I just want to keep it in my bed and cherish it always. It’s got a built-in bike light in the seat and a sweet streamlined style. I’m calling in Charlie Conway after my reignited passion for the Mighty Ducks trilogy. I’m rewatching D2 as I type this, and I’d forgotten how great (slash terrible slash slightly racist slash totally jingoistic) this film is. But I seriously do love this movie. All of ’em. Even 3.

    The Bianchi Milano Citta, my brand new baby

  • I took my bike for a nice ride along the lake tonight. There was a storm a-brewin’, and it was a bit eerie. The waves were lapping, and there were birds flying really low at the shore. It was indescribably beautiful.

Okay, that was a heck of a lot. I’ll be back tomorrow with a new mix (I promise!), and some other fun stuff, so check back then. Happy living!

xoxococo

A.V. Club: Winter Vacation

in: the press, in: viewing room

The Dunce Cap’s been on such a hiatus, but we’re back! So much to share.

I’m spending some quality time with Chaucer, so I’ll keep these fairly brief. But, if I can stick to the plan, I’ll be posting a couple of things every day for the entirety of vacation.

dumbdumb

Jason Bateman and Will Arnett started this ingenious comedy enterprise, dumbdumb productions, which creates and distributes hilarious web content. They began with a series of videos for Orbit Dirty Shorts, including this one.

Canine Arts n’ Crafts

Also a major winner.  This video for Best Friends Animal Society encourages you to adopt a pet this holiday season, and I think this particular tactic will really work. [The Daily What]

And in the News Flash! category, two big things a-happenin’.

Image from Disnology.com

First – Zanessa is dunzo! No more Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens lovin’. Sources (however unreliable) say the duo’s relationship has run its course. [LA Times] Maybe it was Zefron’s excellent new facial hair.

From a more reputable expert comes the following exchange:

C: “Efron. Single.”
D: “Efron. Gay.”

Lee's back in the Phillies uniform with R2C2

Second – Cliff Lee signs to the Phillies. Again. This makes the Phillies’ rotation as follows: Cliff Lee, Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt, Cole Hamels. Which begs the question: WTF?! [ESPN]

And, for shits n’ giggles, I joined free dating site OKCupid!, so expect some fun anecdotes from that endeavor in the coming weeks. I am not using the website for its intended purpose. It’s amusing, y’know? It’s a sociological experiment of sorts.

Dunce Flash: Phillie Phanatic Sued – Again?

in: the press

Image courtesy of photojournalist Mary Schwalm

Hi folks. It’s time again for the latest installment of Phanatic drama. My favorite mascot – the cherubic green monster of Philadelphia Phillies fame – has gotten his jelly roll into some trouble. A 75-year-old woman from Wernersville, Pa., is suing the Phanatic (my pal Tom Burgoyne), the Philadelphia Phillies and the club’s minor league outfit, the Reading Phillies.

Grace Crass is seeking $50,000 in damages for injuries sustained during a 2008 Reading Phillies minor league game. The adorable cross between Telly Monster and those damned Sesame Street Honkers allegedly maneuvered his muffin top through the crowd, roughing up Crass and causing injury to her knees.

Crass’s attorney, John Speicher, claims Phanatic climbed atop Crass’s legs to the point of her crying out in pain, and says he expects him “to come to a deposition, stick his stomach and his tongue out at me and not say anything,” adding that people around him have said that this is “like suing Santa Claus.” Speicher mentions the Phanatic’s infamous anteater-like tongue in his commentary to The Philadelphia Daily News, but it was Phanatic’s giant structure which aggravated Crass’s arthritis.

Phanatic isn’t a rookie when it comes to litigation. Bob Jarvis, professor of sports law at Nova Southeastern University, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., says that the Phanatic holds the “dubious record as the most-sued mascot in the majors.” In a study published in the May 2002 Cardozo Law Review, Jarvis mused that Phanatic likely held that ill-coveted honor because of both his girth and ready excitability.  He’s a mover, a shaker and a knee quaker.

The last major civil case in recent memory occurred when the Phillies had to pay a judgment of $2.5 million to a man at a paint store event when the Phanatic got out of control and decided to jump the patron and wrestle him into a rough-house bear hug, from which the man sustained serious back injuries and litigated for damages. FX’s It’s Always Sunny in Philadephia had the last laugh on that one in 2009.

writes Rachel Levitin of We Love DC

Phanatic is a delight, though, and, again, my favorite mascot in all of sportsdom. He is a part of the game of baseball, and it’s sad to see him headed to court – again. He’s just bein’ the Jolly Green Giant, y’know?

A.V. Club: My favorite video of the week

in: viewing room

Bat Romance at Phillies-Nationals


Phillie Phanatic, my favorite mascot in professional sports, shakes his tail feather to a little Gaga.

This video legitimately made me laugh like a hyena. Combining two things I love – athletic mascots and Lady Gaga – into one concise taunting of the Nationals was a sheer act of genius. Phanatic – Tom Burgoyne – donned Gaga drag to heckle Nats third-base coach Pat Listach. And this wasn’t any of the tamer (cough) Gaga get-ups but rather her blood-stained VMAs outfit, complete with Max crown, a la Where the Wild Things Are.

Now, I’m not much of a Phils fan. When I root for the National League – and I always root for the National League – I cheer on my hometown Brav-os. I do have an untold appreciation, however, for Phillie Phanatic. He’s adorable, a fuzzy, green, frenetic dancing creature, all flailing arms and donut waist. And this performance just took the cake. The Nats, though, seem less than pleased.

Below is a photographic comparison of both Phanatic Gaga and regular ol’ crazy Gaga.

It’s nice to see the enthusiasm and the spectacle returning to America’s favorite sport!

Photo courtesy of Flickr

Photo from MTV