Friday, February 8, 2008

Welcome to Church of the Fonz!



Welcome to Church of the Fonz... where baseball is religion and Shea Stadium our place of worship. I've been a Mets fan since birth as evidenced above-check how I rocked the cap Reyes style. I guess when I really fell hard for the Mets was back in 1999, staying up to watch the playoff games with my big brother. From that point there's been no turning back. Edgardo Alfonzo became my first real favorite player (not counting Butch Huskey, who I picked only because I was 6 and his name sounded like the Balto dog), and I even got to meet him during one magical Christmas trip to Macy's when I was 12. I shed my first baseball tears when the Braves ended their run that year, and the Mets have been breaking my heart on a pretty consistent basis ever since. But I wouldn't trade it for anything.


To paraphrase one of my all-time favorite movies Fever Pitch:


Why do we keep inflicting ourselves?
Why? I'll tell you why, cause the Mets never let you down. That's right. I mean- why?
Because they suffered the worst collapse in baseball history? So what? They're here. Every April, they're here. At 1:05 or at 7:05, there is a game. And if it gets rained out, guess what? They make it up to you. Does anyone else in your life do that?



The Mets have just been that one constant in my life; that one thing I can always care about season after season. No matter how messed up every thing else can get, the Mets always give me something to cheer for, something to get excited about. And as cynical as I may get about the rest of the world, I can always find a way to believe in this team. I love every minute- every run up the ramps, every 7 train ride, every Meet the Mets singalong, every Lazy Mary at the 7th inning stretch, every time that Home Run Apple comes out of the hat, every time I feel the seats of Shea Stadium rock, every high five (or heckling match) with a random stranger. To me being a Mets fan is about investing yourself in something beyond your control, giving your heart and your loyalty to something bigger than yourself. Its having faith for no logical reason and its feeling connected to people you don't even know. I'm a Mets fan because thats how I was raised. I'm a Mets fan because they are my team and I can't imagine ever rooting for anyone else.

The past couple of years one of the things I've loved the most about following the Mets has been reading all of the wonderful Mets blogs out there. I love the celebratory posts after the good wins, I love comiserating after the tough losses. From the hilarious to the heartbreaking, they've always provided me with such a sense of comraderie as a Mets fan, and I've been hoping to start my own for a long time now. And yes, I realize there are maybe 10 million Mets blogs out there already, but hopefully mine can offer at least one or two unique bits along the way, in any case I can promise it will always be heartfelt. At the very least, maybe writing it will make me feel slightly more productive about the insane number of hours I dedicate to baseball.

Photo by Nick Vleck Citypages.com

With spring training just around the corner (and hopefully my first trip to Port St. Lucie!) there's suddenly so much to be excited about as a Mets fan. Its amazing how much can change in just a couple of months. St. Omar just pulled off possibly one of the greatest trades in Mets history and has the best pitcher in baseball donning the orange and blue. Already the collapse, the Mitchell Report, and all the general ugliness that was 2007 seem like ancient history. I've had enough of this winter already, I'm ready for some real live baseball games. Here's hoping Johan and all our guys make 2008 a season to remember and give Shea the sendoff it deserves. Let's go Mets!!!

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Congrats on your new blog Megan...and great opening lead-in! Makes me wish opening day were rightthissecond. Thanks for linking to My Summer Family (nother reference to that movie you bring up, LOL) and I will do the same for you.

Anonymous said...

PS I also like the Family Guy reference. LOL

Megan said...

Thanks Coop, you're the best!
I love Family Guy way too much. And also I think every other Mets reference has been taken.

Anonymous said...

well said. best of luck to you.