Red, White & Blue - It's All Good

This is one of my occasional postings that's not about IP, and touches on some of the other things that keep me up at night! Being both Canadian and American, I take extra solace in the halo of all the flag-waving that just passed this weekend. This was one of those years where both Canada Day and Independence Day lined up as bookends to the weekend. Both countries have things to feel good about, although you'd never know it from the G8 meetings. That said, there's some nice convergence there for me that covers red, white and blue!

Now a little bit more on red and little bit on blue....

My beloved Red Sox are somehow in first place! As we approach the All Star break, I read somewhere that the Sox haven't been in first place this late in the season since 2001. At face value this is good news, but any card-carrying member of the Nation just sees this as a harbinger of doom. Are the Yankees making their move now? Will they stay this hot? What if Schilling's return doesn't pick up the pitching staff? What if Foulke is done? What if Clement's run is over? What if Bellhorn keeps striking out at this rate? What if nobody else steps up the offense aside from Manny and Ortiz? What happens when Damon's hit streak ends? What if Renteria keeps making errors and just hits ok? Will Millar ever find his swing? What's wrong with Trot? What happens if someone gets hurt? What happens if they can't find a way to beat the Blue Jays? I could go on forever, but I think you get the idea. I only posted once about the Sox at the very beginning of the season, and I still have the same doubts now. But at least this time, we're in first place. I'll check back in again on this after the next Sox-Yankees series.

Blue is about the blues - my favorite form of music. Blues are a big part of my life, and I've been on the board of the Toronto Blues Society forever. We just celebrated our 20th anniversary, and I'm wearing my TBS hat now to share that news with the blogging community. To commemorate the event, we just produced a special CD that showcases Canada's best blues talent. If you're a blues fan, and want a taste of what's coming from the Great White North, this is the ultimate sampler. It's a double CD, with 37 tracks - household names for Canadian blues fans, and a great way to broaden your horizons for first rate blues.











If you want to check it out, or learn more about the Toronto Blues Society, please visit our website. You can also order the CD online or call our toll free number, which is posted on the site. At $20 CDN it's a great deal. While you're there, check out our t-shirts, hats and mugs. We'll get you covered and feeling good about the blues in no time!