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All even, 21-21

Bill:
Well, there goes anothah outfieldah.

 

Mike:
Ross joins Crawford, Ellsbury, Ryan Kalish, Darnell McDonald, and Jason Repko as outfieldahs on the DL.

 

Bill:
We're gonna need a bigger DL.

 

Mike:
Hey, but don't worry, Cherington says "Our medical staff is confident surgery won’t be necessary."

 

Bill:
Ah, yes, that crack and nevah whack Red Sox medical staff who always pride themselves on insisting surgery will not be necessary until that eventual moment when surgery is absolutely completely necessary.

 

Mike:
Yeah, like, you know, let's put that surgery off until, I dunno, next April?

 

Bill:
Sigh. At least we're looking at .500 again.

 

Mike:
Absolutely. And in the remaining 120 they only need go 69 and 51 to match last year's record and make the playoffs and... well, why not?

 

Bill:
Nice use of the rhetorical question.

 

Mike:
Yeah, well, if you like that, check out this negative assertion:

That was a Septembah! When comes such anothah?

 

Comments

Bring on the swollen gourd ;D

At this rate, it's possible that I could be playing center field by July.

Josh Beckett wears my numbah though, I'm sure with appropriate compensation he would be willing to change it.

Does anyone know if he likes bratwurst and hookers?

69-51? Why not us?

I am so effing sick of O's fans complaining about all the money the Sox spend. Last night their first place team, with the best record in the league, playing what is arguably thier biggest rival, managed to put less than 17,000 fans in the park, and at least a third of those were Sox fans. There's a reason your owner won't invest money bitches...

Showalter is the chief whiner. How about a televised cage match between him & BV? Have Buck start by spitting gum at BV like that ump did on Friday, then watch BV point the finger and go berserk like old school Hulk Hogan. That would give us some fun entertainment on the bus...

Does Josh Beckett like bratwurst and hookers? His family crest is two sausages crossed over a Petri dish of chlamydia culture.

Did you go to the game Steve? Is the team as miserable in person as they seem on tv?

@pseudo, no I wathced most of the O's broadcast last night, but I plan to attend this evening's contest. My comment was more directed at the local gym rats I encountered this am.

BTW Pseudo and Natalie, there is talk of my company offering me an expat position in Cambria, in northwest England. What questions should I ask?

You've brought up one of my pet peeves ... the old "they'll have to play at such-and-such a pace". Baseball's a streaky sport. Teams have good stretches and bad stretches. The Sox are on a good stretch right now and a lot of people don't notice because they started the season with a bad stretch. (okay, a really bad, awful, Charlie Brown-esque stretch).


69-51 is .500 ball wrapped around an 20-2 stretch. All it takes is one sizzling hot streak to make a team look really, really good. Does this team have a fantastic 3 weeks in them over the course of a season? I'll tell you in October.

Also, Steve in MD, I've been working in Germany for years now. The questions you want to ask your prospective employer are, are they willing to pay or contribute to your relocation costs? (It's a total writeoff for them). Are they capable of helping you with legal stuff (work visas, registration, tax stuff) and mundane stuff (finding you a place to live, a car, whatever you need).


The questions you need to ask yourself are, are you prepared to live in another country and another time zone for [however long it turns out to be]. You can't know for sure until you've tried it, but it's a big deal to see friends and family, Sox games are often in the early hours of the morning and never on TV, and don't underestimate the time difference - your friends are at work when you get home, you're going to bed as they're leaving work.


That said, it's an awesome experience that will change you in ways that you've never expected and give you a perspective of the world that you can't get any other way. I'm not trying to talk you out of it. Good luck though :-D

You mean Cumbria Steve? If so, the area is GORGEOUS, just on the edge of the Lake District(pub crawling by boat!) and really close to Scotland.

But I suppose with it being so far north and all the biggest question is 'Will I be able to understand what the fuck people are saying?'

Seriously, the accent that far north is messed up. They sound like they're trying to eat their own faces.

Steve- cosign everything rolo says. A couple other things: you imagine that because English is a shared language and we are cultural siblings that there will be no real culture shock. Not true- Brits are way less friendly/open than Americans, they can drive you nuts in a business sense with not being direct/being overly polite at the expense of getting to where they want to go (Michael Palin-esque), and basic friendliness you've taken for granted in the States is absent. The British reserve is alive and well. That WILL come as a surprise. As will the fact that you can't watch your TV programs (they are season(s) behind often and Hulu is blocked) and, as rolo said, you will be able to see about 10 Sox games live all season, unless you turn into a serious night owl. And the weather fucking blows (and the dark from 3pm to 7am in winter is killer).


On a more positive note, you can drink outside everywhere, dogs (if relevant) are allowed off-leash in all parks, the architecture/landscape is stunning, the history (I love WW2 stuff) and literature is fascinating, snd it is SO easy/cheap to see the rest of Europe and even the world. Travel as much as you can! I miss my ridiculous $150 fares to European cultural capitals.


Another add to rolo on what to ask: remember, your salary should not just be your current $ wage converted via exchange rate to pounds. It is MUCH more expensive to live in London. Make sure they adjust accordingly.


Finally, pseudo, "eat their own faces" is hilarious and spot on. The further north you get, the crazier the English/accent. I was hit on by a guy from Aberdeen, Scotland in a bar in London and I legitimately didn't understand a word he said. After 3 "what?"s I gave up and nodded and murmured discouragingly until he went away. It can be almost as crazy in more rural parts of Northern England...

To Natalie's very well thought out comment (that I definitely agree with! $45 to Brussels, yes please!) I would also like to add the complete lack of customer service in this country pisses me right the hell off. Hate people? Fine, I don't care. Just don't work in the service industry ferchrissakes!

I've been here five years- but I CHOSE to move here, and that's a very different beast to someone who comes for the purpose of work.

I also have to add that North England is VERY different from London/Home Counties. The village life is still very much alive and well up that way. Less miserable faces and more invitations round for a cuppa. That said, it doesn't matter where you are this is a country of 'no-touchy!' which was a real adjustment for me when I moved because I'm kind of touchy-feely with people I know well and it doesn't translate here. They either think I'm a) creepy or b) trying to shake hands with their proposition boner.

Thanks all, and yes I did mean Cumbria, Sellafield to be precise. I spent 4 years myself in Germany (defending Democracy along the Iron Curtain), and whole heartedly agree that it can be an awesome experince.

Excellent advice on the 'two people separated by a comnon language' issue, and cost of living issue. Are there any special tax issues I should know about?

Also, a short story: I'm in an upscale pub in Porton Down several years ago, and an Englishman hears my American accent and remarks "American, huh. We English civilized you". My retort was "Well my ancestors are Norman, I believe we civilized you." He walked away.

Steve: other than the fact that they tax the shit out of you over there? (marginal tax rate around 45%, i think?) Well, I don't know about Cumbria but in London I had to pay an additional council tax, which varied by neighborhood. Oh, and they charge you an annual fee of like 150 quid for a TV license. Random. Pseudo, what am I missing? As I said, it's tres expensive. Although booze is cheap! :)

BTW- council tax can run you thousands of pounds a year. I hope that's London only, for your sake, Steve.

Oh, finally, negotiate that they have to pay for your accountant! You still have to file US taxes and shit gets weird when you have partial years here and abroad. It's no joke to navigate that code, and requires specialization you pay through the nose for.

Your tax should be taken care of for you when you come. Typically it's on a PAYE (Pay As You Earn) scale so that you don't owe anything at the end of the year. Natalie could probably tell you more on this- because my husband is British and I am self employed (and settled- soon to be citizen) that's how it works for us.

I'm sure you know about VAT already? 20% on everything except most food and second hand items...but as it's already added in you won't notice.


The best pub conversations I always have are the old boy English guys bitching and moaning about the 'fecking immigrants' which is my cue to point out that I too am an immigrant.
Oi, not you love, I didn't mean someone like you!
Ha.

Council tax is everywhere Natalie.

What you pay depends on what 'band' you're in which itself depends on the value of the property. Ours is over a grand a year too and we're not even IN London.

Yes, it is PAYE, so for a few months until you wind up in your right bracket you are making out like a banshee. And yes, in England, you don't have to file taxes and it all just "comes out" of your paycheck (if your employer is doing it right). It's just that what they take out is MORE than you are used to, more than likely, unless you are in a very high tax bracket here (albeit not the one that offshores its money to avoid taxes ;). Do your research on this so you make sure to negotiate the right salary. In re: council tax, definitely look into that when you sign on to a lease. It makes a big difference (and it's not always logical- my council tax in affluent Notting Hill was significantly lower than my council tax in Belsize Park North London because NH has businesses/retailers that offset it, or something like that....

Pseudosanity, getting back to Baltimore- wasn't proposition boner in The Wire"? I am going tonight and I don't think they will top more than 20K. I have a good NESN sign: "Hi Jerry! It's my birthday. Please call Buck an evil fuckbrain on the air."

Steve, just so we don't keep beating this horse and hijacking the conversation, if you have any more ?'s you can email me. My address is just my user name at gmail.

Ha, Pa I thought that very same thing after it popped out of my head. If it weren't for his damn nephew cheese he might get a bit more play.

All, thanks for the insights. I'll be in touch if this thing actually moves along.

No disrespect, but who he fuck is Jason Repco, and what the fuck should I care.

Ah, well. This team seems to be allergic to .500, but atleast I got a foul bowl from Adrian Gonzalez...

Strange experience at Camden Yards last night - not nearly as many Sox fans as usual. No Yanks Suck chants, only one sustained Let's Go Red Sox chant, (and that was killed by an inning ending strike out looking, not by O's fans.) 2 lousy hits. On the plus side Felix D. pitched outstanding I thought, Albers not so much.

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