Thanks for Four Years of Awesome
So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish
Blogged Around Philly: Farewell Edition
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It was Carlos Ruiz bobblehead night. There was magic in the air. This magic not-so-quickly transformed into a long sudden death match between two teams of angry, tired baseball players. It was Tuesday, August 24th, and the Phils game after midnight wasn't a rerun; this game was still going on.
The Phillies and Astros battled for sixteen innings (approximately 5.5 hours), tied at two. Things remained fairly normal until Ryan Howard went up to bat in the 14th. An appealed checked swing was called a strike-out by third base umpire Scott Barry. The remaining fans at the ballpark disagreed, as did Ryan Howard. He disagreed so much that we were able to tell (on live television) exactly which expletives he decided to use against the ump after the botched call. (What do you think, did his bat go all the way around?!)
Howard's ejection led to some shuffling of the line-up, Raul Ibanez at first, and semi-newbie Roy Oswalt in left field. Say what you will about a pitcher in left field, but Oswalt actually held down the fort out there. Unfortunately the Phils' desperate efforts weren't enough and they ended up losing the game.
By now you're thinking to yourself, "Why are they bringing this up again?" Never fear—there is a method to our madness. Last Tuesday also marked the most recent full moon. The full moon, and a day or two before, is a time for hippies to dance, psychics to feel hypersensitive, and werewolves to attempt to control themselves. Here in Philly, it is also a time for crazy shit to happen. This time around, some of it was nationally televised.
Also last Tuesday, a woman was allegedly attacked by a naked man on Frankford Avenue in Holmesburg in Northeast Philly. This event was, thankfully, not televised. According to philly.com, the woman reported that the nude man "jumped out of the woods" and attempted to sexually assault her near the Pennypack Trail. Luckily, a nearby cop heard the woman's cries for help and scared the naked assailant away. He fled back into the park, showing both the victim and the cop a full moon of his own. (Oh, come on! You know we had to make that joke.)
It is somewhat of a myth that during this sort-of-monthly (approximately every 29.5 days) lunar event, there are increased car accidents, crimes, hospitalizations, etc. Skeptics argue that there is no proof, or that the reason why it seems this way is simply because there is more light outside during the night, mixed with media influence and a little biased thinking sprinkled on top. The fact remains, though, we just do not see a Phillies game like that every day. To our knowledge naked naked men don't jump out of the woods nightly, either, but we're less sure about that one.
Okay, okay ... if you read about the full moon's influence on human behavior, you will discover that the "lunar effect" is scientifically impossible. It may be a coincidence, or it may be an influence on our behavior from the moon's position in the atmosphere. You decide. Meanwhile, Phillyist will continue to keep our eyes and ears open for any lunar-related happenings in our fine town and report them to you.
The next full moon will occur on September 23rd. We hope you see something strange—but not too strange!
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