Waiting for flotsam

Today's strip is an anachronism, set outside the regular chronological pace of the 162 game schedule and set into that place between light and shadow, where it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge, between the Apollonian and Dionysian, or what some have called The Creepy Zone …

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
[Sigh]

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
[Spits]

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
Do you ever imagine what it would be like to...

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
You know, stop it?

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
Stop what?

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
This whole Red Sox thing.

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
Being a fan?

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
Yeah, that.

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
Do you mean on the grand universal to the end of all time kind of scale or are you talking about something with more ambivalence like today or this week or some other fixed Cartesian coordinate in time?

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
Uh... I dunno... I'm not sure I understand the difference, frankly.

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
Do I think about it?

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
Yeah, well, you know.

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
Yeah, I think about it.

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
Just a little, right?

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
Yeah, just a little bit of all the fucking time

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
Really?

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
For realz, güey.

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
And how does it feel?

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
Like drowning.

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
Drowning?

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
Yep.

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
They say it's peaceful.

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
Could be.

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
Really?

 

---

Two guys walking, tall guy speaks:
Why not?

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Two guys walking, short guy speaks:
OK.

 

---

Two guys walking, no words exchanged:

 

---

Comments

[COD]

Actually, I'm pretty sure I've read that drowning is about the most terrifying way to die.

Kind of like how following the Red Sox is the most painful way to experience baseball.

[Bob]

I think it'd be more like getting lured into a storm drain with balloons and promises of peace.

Float? Oh yes, indeed they do. They float!

[Harwich Rich]

I can't go for that,no can do.

[James]

We all float down here!

[ParkerStPete]

This year feels like a good old-fashioned waterboarding.

[soxinsix]

"Getting caught in the gears of a combine, having your balls bit off by a Laplander, having your parachute not open, now that's how I'd like to die"

[Jack Wrong]

Personally, I could think of about a million ways I would prefer to shuffle off this mortal coil than having my lungs fill with water while still conscious...but it might be preferable to hearing what a Renaissance man Joe Madden is...hearing Joe Castiglone & Dave O'Brien drone on about his use of computers, over-shifts and his knowledge of wine...geez! How about more talk about how many players in the majors are from New Mexico - I'll take that any day

[Harwich Rich]

All at once??

[Bob]

I saw Bob Melvin (manager of the A's) on "Selling New York" last night. He and his wife Morticia Addams were buying a multi-million dollar loft in Manhattan. I don't think there are any dirt dig managers anymore; they're all so rich that they become "Renaissance men" if they weren't before.

[Go Sox, Go Heels, etc.]

Okay, i'm here to play devil's advocate. Everybody needs to just calm the fuck down. It's a bunch of jocks hitting a ball with a stick. We've won two WS in the last decade. Only Cardinals fans can say that. We're going through a tough year (boo hoo, have you ever looked a Pirates fan in the eye?), we have an incredibly unlikable ownership and front office (boo hoo, have you heard of the Steinbrenners? the Wilpons? have you ever looked a Pirates fan in the eye?), we are stuck with some bad free agent signings (boo hoo, have you heard of Carl Pavano? Vernon Wells? Kevin Brown? Barry Zito?), we may have some clubhouse chemistry issues (boo hoo, have you ever heard of the 2011 Red Sox? oh, wait...), and we have a manager that hasn't impressed anybody and is vehemently hated by many (boo hoo, have you ever heard of Billy Fucking Martin?).

Anyhow, baseball is the best game ever invented. The Red Sox are a fun organization to follow precisely because they break your heart once in a while. But they do manage to work in a reach-around while they're ... you know, doing their thing.

All I'm saying is this: I watched some of the game last night. I enjoyed it, I hoped our guys would win, I cursed at the ump a bit. I made fun of BV when he pretended to give a shit enough to run out and argue a couple of calls. It was a good time, and I look forward to several more months of this distraction. That is all.

[Natalie]

I hadn't heard drowning was peaceful, but more that after the flailing and panic and lungs filling with water there's a moment of euphoria brought on by lack of oxygen to the brain (the sensation that auto-asphyxia nuts chase). But I think hb nailed it: it's an apt metaphor for the transition to non-fandom (not the bile-fueled bus, but an absolute lack of caring): it's painful to consider the blankness that follows a life of rooting so passionately, so your body instinctively rails against the loss, but if you force it to happen there will be a moment of blinding clarity, sweetness and light before eternal darkness sets in. And sometimes a blank (the complete absence of a shit given) is a good thing: sort of how I feel about the NBA or sushi or U2. Hmmmmmm, is the end destination of the bus the bottom of the Charles River? :)

[soxdownunder]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-05-18/magpies-get-revenge-in-grand-final-rematch/4020948?section=vic

[h.b.]

Note to my dear creepy readers: the tall guy really likes to fuck with the short guy.

Don't be so literal.

[Steve in MD]

"That he which hath no stomach to this fight, Let him depart" (on the bus). "And gentlemen in (New) England now-a-bed Shall think themselves accurs’d they were not here, And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks" of the first title under Bobby V.

It's St. Crispin's Day for Red Sox Nation.

[pseudosanity78]

Childhood trauma alert!

I read IT when I was about eleven years old and it scared the shit out of me so much I pissed in the sink for a week.

Then my mum caught me and instead of punishing me she laughed her ass off and would torture me everytime I went to the toilet by whispering at the door 'We all float down here.'

She should have written a book on parenting...

[Go Sox, Go Heels, etc.]

hb, i loved today's strip, don't get me wrong. it's a conversation we've all had at one point. in fact, as always you have your finger on the pulse of the red sox condition.

And I know nobody asked, but... Josh Reddick has 10 HRs.

[Natalie]

Maybe I took it literally, but taken literally it's something I have actually contemplated seriously: is my time as a Sox fan running out? Actively rooting against them this year feels like a weird coda to declining interest since '04 (which was exacerbated by 2 years in London where I just didn't see many games). Am I drawn to them now by mere nostalgia? Is my passion gone forever? Or is my general Sox ennui due to this particular incarnation of the team/management/ownership and it will come back when there are fun, talented Sox teams that are enjoyable to root for? Or maybe this is the hiatus before I have kids and sharing/passing down the fandom will reignite it. I dunno....

[h.b.]

Oh, sorry for adding to the confusion... definitely the "quitting forever and ever" should be taken literally from this... it the "drowning being pleasant" thing where the big guy is busting the lil' guy's balls a bit.

With that said, this strip is somewhat of a foreshadowing as I'm fairly certain I'm going to retire as H.B. later this year... though I still plan to release the "best of" book and the site may morph into something diff with occasional postings but the regular strips etc is reaching the end of its course.

[COD]

And that sound you just heard was thousands dozens of creepy Red Sox fans screaming in horror.

[soxinsix]

Shit.

I blame BV.

[yazbread]

Looks like 38 Studios is drowning in debt.

[COD]

I was just reading the Globe article.They are going to miss payroll and default on the loan guarantee. I guess Curt should have stuck to playing games and not designing them.

[Harwich Rich]

Public Office,here he comes ;D

[Kaz]

"But we can't drown right now."

"Why not?"

"Because we're waiting."

"For what?"

"Godot. A new coach named Godot."

[Jeff in NC]

I grew up an avid Redskins fan. Then little Danny Snyder took over - that my friends is bad ownership - and the end was there. I can not tell you a single name on the current roster, nor e coach's name, nor even the current color of the home uniforms. THAT is fandom no more. When you dont have any idea what is goingon with a team, then you are no longer a fan. As long as you still do have any clue whatsoever, your fandom breathes on.

[Bob]

Another turning point a fork stuck in the road
Time grabs you by the wrist directs you where to go

[Natalie]

True, Jeff, but did you opt out the second Danny Snyder took over, or was it a war of attrition, a slow erosion of your fandom until one day you looked up and realized, I don't give a shit any more? I am really afraid that I am on that road to Damascus, and this bus thing is a last gasp effort to find a reason to stay involved....If Soxaholix didn't exist, I probably would not know what the standings are or the last weeks of results. I didn't reup my MLB TV/internet subscriptions from last year and I stopped reading the Globe. Sigh. My late daddy would be sad at this turn of events....

[pseudosanity78]

I seem to be on a different plane than those who have chosen to ride the bus because I have introduced the game to my husband and it has truly reinvigorated my love for the Red Sox and the game of baseball on the whole. I love watching him watch the games and high five me when there's a good play.

I get the indifference from a lot of people this season and if it weren't for him I can't say I wouldn't be right there with you. But for now, I'm still ticking along and actually enjoying it.

With that said, while I do read baseball news and I'll take a cursory glance at some other sites, this is the only Red Sox exclusive site that I pay attention to every day, and I will mourn when it's no longer out there getting its creep on.

[JimLoomis]

For my money, Go Sox, Go Heels, etc. nailed it. This may not be a FUN team to watch a lot of the time, but it's sure as hell interesting. And being interesting is SOMETHING, isn't it?
ISN'T IT???

[Jeff in NC]

No, not the moment he took over. I was as idiotic as any other fan thinking he would do well. It was more like later on (a few seasons), i was asked how the skins were doing. I realized I had no idea. Now I refuse them on principle of him.

For any sports team, I need comraderie to stay interested. 2 weeks back, i wore a redsox t shirt all day one day at the NO Jazzfest. All day long I got Go Sox and knucklebumps. We all had our pride at half mast, there were a few keep the faith comments and fucking valentine comments (i had not the time to advertise the virtues of our bus ride), but the bothrhood and sisterhood was there. And I was all too aware of the factthat the Orioles were kicking us in the balls each day.

[Jeff in NC]

Even on the bus I am the most wretched creature on earth, a Redsox fan.

[COD]

Living in DC I've even flirted with the idea that after 14 years here maybe it is finally time to give a shit about the Nationals.

And then the Red Sox win 5 or 6 in a row (whatever it was), and they reel me back in just a little bit...

[vermonter]

I knew the end was coming hb. I could feel it.

[jfm]

Loved the strip today.

[Bob]

Well, after the weightiness of today's conversation, have a great weekend all. Hopefully we'll have something fun to yak about on Monday.

[buckner was framed]

"and all the boys got around me ... so I just went back and slotted it and gave it a fist"

Jeez, sdu. There IS life after baseball

[buckner was framed]

as for today's conversation, for me it's how I feel as a Bruins fan. Came of age in the Big Bad 70s (look it up, lc) and lived and died with them for many years.... then came a prolonged 'meh' period and only in the past 5 years or so has my interest really come back. The fact that they're playing well definitely helps, but I think it's more a function of my getting older and priorities ebb and flow. Never really die out but flare up as someone blows wind up my kilt. I feel the same way as this year about the Sox. Still love the game and going to games, will always be a fan, but it's an off year for me

[Steve in MD]

We are 2 games under .500 and 2.5 games out of the playoffs with TWELVE players on the DL. We've won 4 of 6 against the best team in the AL East (O's will fade). We are .500 on the road (the goal for a playoff team). We have the second best offense in the AL and statistically the best defense. The only real issue is pitching at Fenway (and it is a pretty big issue that is likely due to the loss of Tek and getting a new pitching coach). But since the debacle on 4/21 we have the third best record in the AL, better than 3 of the 5 teams that would make the playoffs if they started today.

[rolo]

Preach on Steve in MD! Only thing that worries me about the O's is that in recent years they and their fans seem to have made it their personal mission to wreck the Sox at any opportunity, both by playing the Sox tough and by going down on their knees for anyone else in the AL East. But if you're in MD I don't have to remind you of that :-D

As to being a fan ... it's not something you choose to be so I can't imagine it's something you can choose not to be. It's an emotional connection which is either there or not.

And Jeff, you can name one player on the Redskins, their new QB is Griffin. Although in two years their new QB will be Peyton Manning. You heard it here first.

[Jay]

I've been feeling rather lackluster about the team lately also. Thought it was the normal "life getting in the way" thing. During one of the games last week Remy mentioned it would be hard to get a group of guys together as interesting as the group from '04. I really think this is the root of my decline. The players on the sox, aside from Pedey and Ortiz, aren't all that likable. At least not to me. I've tried to jump on the Gonzo train and can't seem to board. Wake and Tek were the last straw me thinks.....

[Rich]

My lord, it was priceless when the ump's gum went flying at BV, and he pointed the finger, like ok, we meet after school, you and me. Fffing priceless. Baseball, not just the Sox does it, so take whatever grain of salt your team provides.

[Lazlo Freem]

So I'm at sea for 2 weeks and hear nothing of the world which includes the RS. I come home and don't even recognize 1/2 the team. I did catch former RS closer and current douchebag Papelbon run off his mouth. Don't recall him being THAT stupid. My, my, there sure is a thin line between live and hate.

[Chip]

H.B.,

How about a hiatus, instead?

Chip

[soxdownunder]

No love for Collingwood? You people suck.