Happy is the New Sad

By Metstradamus
Posted Friday, July 25, 2008

They say that you shouldn't only enjoy your destination, but that you should enjoy the journey too.

Well, we're not at the destination yet. And there have been many parts of this journey that I haven't enjoyed ... to be honest. But even with everything that's happened, it's July 25th ... and the New York Mets are in first place.

Once upon a time, Billy Wagner threw his teammates under multiple buses. Carlos Delgado feuded with Jon Heyman. And there was that whole matter of firing a manager at 3AM (of which Fred Wilpon is just now getting around to admitting he screwed up on ... oops!) Moises Alou? Done for the year. Ryan Church? He's been Lindrosized. Luis Castillo? He's on that milk carton you just bought. And after all of that, the Mets are in first place. By themselves.

So what have we learned?

I'll tell you what I learned ... I learned that mood swings, when it comes to baseball, are okay. Because why not be able to enjoy the good times if you get so down about the bad times?

Why not derive a chuckle out of Jimmy "Team to Beat" Rollins showing up late and being benched?

Why not laugh along with Carlos Delgado as he chucks a bat towards Jaime Moyer? Because what's funnier than a cranky old man laughing at a crankier old man? Besides, we've been owed one bat chuck for a while now. And while we're at it, why not laugh at Delgado attempting a bunt on the 105-year-old Moyer? Because again, what's funnier than a cranky old man trying to beat out an infield hit fielded by a crankier old man?

I admit, I laugh at the strangest things.

But in a world and especially in a city where everybody seems to be on some drug to even them out, whether it be ritalin, or the antidote to ritalin which as you know is ritalout, it's nice to know that baseball is one of the few things left where it's okay to let your emotions reach the extremes. Mets fans have felt a lot of the low-end extremes in the past year. So why not allow yourselves to feel those good emotions? Walk with that spring in your step. Skip yourselves to work. Be happy ... and don't be ashamed. Your team, after your journey has had you trudge through the valley of sad which has proven to be the size of Wisconsin, is in first place.

Enjoy it. Who knows how long it will last.