I Have Never Thought Of It That Way

My sister Julie thinks that my area of research, single-agent search, sounds like a dating service for spys.

Ricardo, Richard, Rick, Ricky, and Dick

Maybe it is because St. Richard's Day was only a few weeks ago, but I am still somewhat surprised to have stumbled on a few different interesting ideas about my name since then.

For those who aren't in the know, when I was younger I generally went by the name Ricky. At some point, I decided to move on to Rick, just as I assume Timmy's generally move on to Tim at some point. This was a semi-conscious decision which was done by slowly phasing out the old name - mostly by introducing myself to new people as Rick instead of Ricky.

Anyways, while Ricky Gervais proves that the name is not just for children any more, Michael Ian Black, in a recent blog post, describes why it is the perfect name for a drug dealer:

My hypothetical drug dealer’s name is Ricky because it sounds like the kind of name that is both friendly but also scummy, which is how I want my drug dealer to be.

Considering that Ricky from Trailer Park Boys is a friendly yet scummy drug dealer, it is starting to seem that this belief is fairly universal.

Now, while Richard is my legal name, only a handful of people call me that, including my Nonna, who pronounces it "Ric-kard" (as in rhyming with mallard). I don't really have a problem with Richard, as it is a fine name. It just sounds so regal, which is why I don't really go by it except in formal situations. In any case, I share said name with one Rick Ankiel of the St. Louis Cardinals who, accordng to stltoday.com, apparently has similarly been pondering the various incarnations of his name:

Ankiel has been preoccupied recently about when it is age appropriate for him to shorten his given name, Richard, to "Dick" instead of "Rick." Some friends and clubhouse denizens have already taken to calling him "Dick" this spring. He calls it an instant "ice-breaker."

Interesting. So at some point, I felt "Rick" was more age-appropriate than "Ricky," and now Mr. Ankiel believes that I should move onto "Dick" in the near future. Well, I suppose it is better than being a friendly, but kinda scummy kid.

Update: I'd like to dedicate this post to Ricky Romero who was nails tonight in the Jay game, even if they lost. I'd like to dedicate the use of the word nails to the Drunk Jays Fans and some anonymous fan named Joshua Waitzkin.

More Opening Day Hype

This video has been floating around various Jays blogs for the last few weeks, but I still have to throw it up here:




Thanks to the Tao of Stieb and the DrunkJaysFans for finding it first.

Sometimes I think I am too young to be this nostalgic.

Boundless Optimism

I haven't posted in a while and so I thought I better write something to appease my rabid fanbase (by which I mean the 3 people who actually check this blog out, mostly just to humour me).

I am also a little hesitant to throw up another baseball post because I want to keep things as varied as possible. But today is Opening Day and so I must.

For the uninitiated, I am referring to the first day of the new baseball season. More specifically, I am referring to the first home game of your favourite team.

I love Opening Day. Until I moved to Edmonton, I had seen something like 5 or 6 straight Opening Day games in person. It was a tradition for a group of us. The only classes of undergrad that I missed (I was really adamant about going to every class so that I would get my moneys worth) were for Opening Day.

In Toronto, Opening Day is the only game of the year that will reliably be sold out (at least until they reliably become a playoff team), and while I can do without some of the morons who only show up for that game - really people, do you have to throw stuff on the field or run on the field - the atmosphere can be electric.

I still remember a particularly good Opening Day in 2005. The opponent was the hated (well I hate them) Red Sox. I am pretty sure this is the game when Rogers made the ill-advised decision to give out fridge-magnet schedules that would be thrown onto the field in large quantities. But regardless of the stupidity of the others in the crowd, baseball prevailed.

In the bottom of the ninth, with the Jays down 6-3, good ole Corey Koskie singled to start the rally. As the Jays battled back, the crowd became electric. Of the group that day was a friend of mine who only had a cursory understanding of baseball, and I remember her mentioning that even though she didn't quite know what was going on, she was trembling from excitement. Even though the Jays feel achingly short with two men on and one run short, I remember thinking "This is what Opening Day is about." For those in the know, I believe it was after this game that I ordered that glorious Molson Ex.

Anyways, my expectations for the Jays are pretty low for this season. But today is Opening Day, and so I can't help but think about the things that may break the right way this year. Particularly with Roy Halladay, maybe my favourite athlete (nay, human being) on the planet today, pitching today, I can't help but be optimistic. What was that Morgan Freeman said about hope?