High Holy Days

There is a hint of crispness in the air lately, leaves are changing color and falling from trees, it has been getting dark outside way too early, all of which can mean only one thing - postseason baseball is upon us once again. Sparky loves this time of year, he is the biggest baseball fan I know. The Dodgers are his team, and luckily this year they are in the playoffs. They are playing tonight in Philadelphia, and for some odd reason the game is on cable only. That means that Sparky will be listening to Vin Sculley call the game on his trusty old transistor radio, which is missing its antenna and is held together with a rubber band. To Sparky the playoffs and the World Series are the High Holy Days, as baseball is his religion. Sleeford was also a huge baseball fanatic, and we spent many a night watching a game with him, either on the television or at Dodger Stadium. One time Sparky was out walking Glenn The Dog in Elysian during a playoff game, and Sleeford watched the game from home and called it out to Sparky over the phone. Sparky says he did a pretty good job - it was almost as if he was there. If Sleef were still around, we would be spending much of these playoff games with him, which is what makes this time of year so bittersweet. The Dodgers might actually make it to the World Series this year, for the first time since 1988 - High Holy Days indeed!