When you wish upon a star

I have to admit to something. It's kind of silly...but for the past several weeks, I have this funny little thing that I do every day. When I go out to collect the newspaper in the morning, I can see one very bright star in the sky. (It's actually, probably a planet, but let's not quibble). I look up a the star, and I say that old rhyme "Star light star bright..." And every morning, my wish is the same: please let the Boston Red Sox win the 2007 World Series. (I started out just saying win the WS, but realized I needed to be specific or it could happen in ten years!).

So, they won. I'm not claiming responsibility, but I'm simply pointed out that they didn't lose on my account!

Yesterday, the Sox got back to Boston, and the big Rolling Rally Victory Parade was at noon. It looked like a huge crowd - one commenter said a million, but crowd estimates are rough. All along the route, Theo was greeted by chants of "Re-Sign Lowell" and "Don't sign A-Rod." Lowell's agent must be drooling - clearly, the fans want Lowell and that might give them an edge in negotiating. Since he's simply my favorite player this year, I can't comment objectively. I do love this photo from the Globe:



What nice hardware he has - and the trophies aren't bad either!

Back in April, I wrote an entry with my wishes for the Sox for 2007. Let's revisit it, shall we?

I'd like to share some of my wishes and hopes for the year. I hope that --

1. Josh Beckett makes his case to be the staff ace. A lot was written about Beckett's "down" year - but he actually ended up with some pretty good numbers. Now that he knows the American League and has some familiarity with the opposing teams, I look for him to have a HUGE year. With Schilling making noises about retirement, we need some of these young guys to step it up. Done

2. Papelbon has a lights out year as closer. Now that he's chosen the role himself, I hope he does become Mariano Rivera. Done

3. Tek bounces back for a much better year. He's got something to prove - that age hasn't affected him - and he's got the kind of inner drive to silence the critics. Done

4. Coco has something to prove too. And his recent interviews show that he knows people are going to be watching him closely. We saw hints of huge potential last year...Somewhat accomplished - although it looks like Ellsbury has played himself into the starting position in CF. That makes Coco explendable.

5. JD Drew stays healthy. Please make it so! Done. And although he had a mediocre year, he's shown signs recently that next year he will bounce back.

6. David Ortiz is named MVP of the American League. I hope those voters are starting to realize their past mistakes, and will vote for him. The man is clearly the most valuable player on this team. Oh, well, it's definitely A-Rod's year again.

7. Manny is still with us at the year's end. And please no drama this year at the trade deadline - although I'll be in attendance at that game again this year, so I can at least see the drama first hand. Done

8. A-Rod is in his last year with the Yankees. Wow - this looks like it's true

9. The Red Sox win the American League East! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! YEAH is right! We won the East - and the American League Championship - and the World Championship!

So, maybe I should head to Vegas next!