there is only tonight

it's almost go time.
i've been sitting on this blog entry for two days now. or well, sitting on Joshy's victory that brought us back home to Fenway one more time.

i just wanted to soak in the supreme awesomeness our ace brought to The Jake Thursday night. remember the feeling of fist pumps & screams of power, as only Joshy can summon up.

i never doubted that he would lead us home. i've been saying it for days now: we would win Game Five behind Commander Kick Ass, because something happens to this team when he is on the mound. they draw on his fire, and rain brimstone down on the opposition with relentless fury. and they proved my gut feeling right. Youk busted out of the gate with a solid shot over the left field wall, and the Sox never looked back. nothing could slow them down. they stole the Indians' momentum like a bully steals your lunch money. they didn't just have one whacked out inning of scoring; they spread their hits & their runs over the whole game, not caring who was throwing the baseball off the mound, and reminding us just what this offense is capable of. there was nothing these boys wouldn't do for Joshy, and nothing, not even field rules that made what would be a home run in Boston the game's longest single ever, not endless revisiting to a Manny quote that i still feel was taken out of context & proving why Manny hates talking to the the press, nothing was going to force them to waste that gem he was pitching for them.

and we got what "they" have said we needed: to bring the series back to Boston. to put the ball in Schill's hand and let him do what he's done so well for so long. especially in October. the towels have been put away in Cleveland. the drum is silent now, traded in for "Tessie" and "Sweet Caroline." the roar of the crowd tonight will chant "here we go, Red Sox, here we go!"...

...but tonight, though i want more than anything to win, to see a Game Seven on Sunday, i want to take in the sights & sounds of Fenway Park one more time in 2007. just in case it's the last one for this incredible season. just in case it's the last time we see Schill in a Sox uniform, to appreicate what he has meant to us. just in case Theo breaks my heart and Mike Lowell is not manning the hot corner in Fort Myers in February. just in case this is my final view of The Green Monster til April.

since Joshy can't start every game in the ALCS, i can't think of anyone else than Curt Schilling that i want to see out there tonight. and i am going to remember that little pre Game Six pep talk we were treated to -- oh how i ♥ Kevin Millar! -- and i am going to believe. i am going to enjoy.

and it doesn't hurt to know that Jacoby Ellsbury will be patrolling center field, hopefully bringing with him the spark that rallied us late in the regular season, maybe to rally us again, late in a series where every spark is priceless. because there is no tomorrow. there is only tonight.

And sometimes when the game is on the line
Tessie always carried them away...