Today just isn't my day. At eight o'clock on Wednesday, my much abhorred foes/newly crowned American League Champions Boston Red Sox will face off against the undefeated/underappreciated Colorado Rockies at Fenway Park in Game One of the World Series, the Bo-Sox's second trip to the Fall Classic in four years, while my beloved Yankees search for a new manager whose name hopefully doesn't begin with "Don" and end in "Mattingly".
On Sunday, the New England Patriots turned the Miami Dolphins into their own personal dart board, behind Tom Brady firing a career-best six touchdown passes, a couple of which (particularly the bomb to Randy Moss) actually made the Madden video game look realistic. Brady's crew thrashed Cleo Lemon & Co. 49-28 to improve to 7-0, while the Jets blew another 10-point halftime lead and lost 38-31 to the Bengals, moving closer and closer to that No. 1 draft pick at 1-6.
The Boston Celtics, led by their new intrepid trio of Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce, crushed the Knicks 101-61 in a recent preseason game, and were well on their way to reemerging as a dominant force in the league this season.
The Boston Bruins were off to a surprisingly solid start at 5-3, good for second place in the Northeast division going into Thursday, while the star-studded Rangers look like Sloth from "The Goonies" at 2-5-1?good for last place in the Atlantic division.
The Boston College Eagles football squad is currently ranked second in the country. Heck, even Major League Soccer's New England Revolution finished with the second best record in the Eastern Conference.
And on top of all of that, my dog of nearly 13 years was laid to rest on Monday after an elongated battle with cancer. Today just isn't my day.
I remember when it was my day, when I was a young kid watching Yankees third baseman Charlie Hayes catch the final out of the 1996 World Series, beating Atlanta four games to two, as closer John Wetteland flew upwards into the arms of exultant catcher Joe Girardi; and I remember the Bronx Bombers solidifying their dynasty in a three-peat in 2000 when they beat the New York Mets in the Subway Series.
I remember Jets quarterback Vinny Testaverde erasing a 30-7 fourth quarter deficit with four touchdown passes, somehow winning 40-37 in overtime over the rival Dolphins in the Monday Night Miracle of 2000, and when they made the AFC title game in '98.
I remember when the '99 Knicks became the first eight-seed in NBA history to make the finals.
And of course, I remember my dog. That's the key: I remember. It's just too bad all of those memories took place so long ago.
In my lifetime, my New York professional sports teams have won five major championships: the Yankees with four ('96, '98-'00) and the Rangers with one ('94; but I don't remember it).
In my youth, New York was the ultimate sports city, fueled by the unparalleled success of the Yankees, but also others like the consistency of the Knicks, Jets, the NFC title-winning Giants of 2000, and maybe even the NYU chess team.
Being the naïve 7th grader that I was in 2000, after the Yankees won their fourth title in five years, I just assumed that it was only natural that New York's reign over the baseball world continue and that its supremacy as the sports capital of the world would also sustain itself. I was wrong.
Faster than you can say Luis Gonzalez, Chad Pennington, Stephon Marbury, Eric Lindros, or any other sports figure who has caused New York or me more frustration than that papier-mâché toilet I had to make for art class that one time, the Big Apple's stellar reputation as a sports city was gradually beginning to erode away.
I like to think that it started before Mariano Rivera's blown save against Arizona, and instead on September 23, 2001 at Foxboro Stadium in Massachusetts when the Jets beat the Patriots in a 10-3 shootout.
What gets lost in a game that was probably more painful than watching "Maid in Manhattan," was Drew Bledsoe's career-tarnishing, life-threatening, world-altering "sprint" (if any of you have ever seen Bledsoe try to elude a pass rusher you know exactly what I'm talking about) to the sideline. There, he was pummeled by Jets linebacker Mo Lewis, and as a result suffered a collapsed lung and had to be replaced by second-year pro Tom Brady?yeah, I hate to quote T.I. here, but you know what it is?the rest is history.
The Patriots won three Super Bowls in four years, the Red Sox reversed the curse in '04, the Celtics nearly made the finals in '02, and Bruins' fans didn't have to suffer through another first round playoff exit with the NHL lockout in effect through '04-'05.
And while the Celtics have had their ups and downs since, as have the Sox throughout the last couple of years, right now (if you couldn't tell) Boston has become the new sports Mecca of the world, and possibly, the best sports city in history.
If you need to refresh your memory on just how well the city's teams are currently playing, just revisit the first paragraph?it's incredible when you think about it, unprecedented really. Discounting the Bruins, who, despite their hot start, probably won't be able to keep it up, Boston sports teams actually have a legitimate shot to win five (yes, FIVE!) major championships.
Whereas in New York, the only team without question marks surrounding it is the Giants who, at 5-2, will probably begin their annual collapse this weekend in London against the Dolphins (and the MLS Red Bulls?yeah, there's a team named after a drink).
I didn't even think about writing a World Series preview for all of you, because let's face it?the Sox are definitely going to win (either in four or five games).
It's not that I don't think the Rockies can win; it's just that they're not going to.
And the Patriots? Well, let's just say that's a horse of a different color...kind of like the Colts...who are blue...and white...and who will probably also lay victim to New England's wrath when the two untouchables square off next weekend.
The Celtics will be forces in the East if nothing else, the Eagles will make the Orange Bowl if nothing else, and the Revolution will still get to play against David Beckham next year if nothing else.
There's no doubt that it's great to be a Boston sports fan these days.
And while I'll never say that I wish I was one of them right now, lest I succumb to some of the most abrasive, obnoxious fans in sports, it's hard for me to conceal my jealousy.
New York hasn't won a major championship in seven years; Boston in three (and in a week, a couple of days).
It's been a while for New Yorkers, but so was 86 years back in 2004 for Bostonians, so it's hard for me to fully castigate this self-proclaimed Red Sox Nation for being so in-your-face ecstatic.
So in the meantime, I'll try my best to not worry, hoping the Rockies pull another National League aberration out of thin air by knocking off the Sox, hoping Peyton Manning replicates his last performance against the Patriots, that the Celtics flop out of lack of chemistry, the Bruins stay bad, the Eagles get smoked by Florida State, and the Revs...well...nobody's going to watch soccer, anyway.
And even if none of that comes to fruition, I can always find comfort in Nelly Furtado's hit song "All Good Things Come to an End." Your dominance is only temporary, Boston. Enjoy it while it lasts.