Monday, October 29, 2007
[Red Sox] 2004-2007
October 17th, 2004
大風雨中，跟地下的朋友們像瘋子一樣的跑到中崙高中的室內場去打球。打到一半，急著問晚來的朋友們比數。「沒救了啦！連 Wakefield 都上來了！」我們只能圍坐成一圈，訕訕的談笑著。今年大概也就這樣了吧，我想。
October 18th, 2004
颱風天停止上班上課，讓我有機會自 1999 跟 2003 年之後又一次親眼目睹這支球隊被洋基隊幹掉。
出乎意料之外的，Derek Lowe 沒有跟昨天殘破的投手陣一樣自爆。雙方的比數一直很接近，不過當比賽進行到八局時，我幾乎已經放棄所有的希望了。
然後是 Dave Roberts 的那個盜壘。當他真的在 Rivera 投的第一個球就起跑時，我怒不可抑，簡直不敢相信自己的眼睛－這是什麼他媽的白癡戰術！透過電視轉播，我肉眼的第一印象是球比人快。幸好，二壘審的名字叫 Joe West。
事情開始變得有趣起來，因為在打擊區的那個人叫做 Bill Mueller。果然！
然後是漫長的煎熬和拉扯，直到 Ortiz 終於決定結束所有人的煎熬。
We have another day, and that's all we can ask for.
October 19th, 2004
下午五點的開賽時間很體貼地配合身在台灣的上班族，讓我可以熬夜看球。當 Pedro 在六局上半被打下三分時，我一度曾經以為這就會是今年的句點了。但比賽進行到八局時，我卻感覺到自己的自信心比起昨天已經高出了不少。
當洋基換上 Tom Gordon 時，我很清楚地感覺到我們的機會來了－這不是說 Gordon 是個多差勁的投手，而只是一種難以解釋的直覺。接著，他們又太晚才把 Rivera 推出來，讓他多了一次 BS。
進入延長賽，我和公司編了個理由可以晚點進去。奇怪的事情接二連三的發生，洋基隊似乎再怎麼樣都得不了分，甚至連 Jason Varitek 連續三次想接好 Wakefield－那個昨天已經被打爆過，2003 年還被人再見的傢伙－的球，卻還是失誤之後，他們也得不了分。似乎所有人都把比賽交到 Ortiz 的手裡，希望他能再一次結束這場比賽，而他也真的做到了。
我開始感覺到，自己可能正在目睹一個可以留名青史的季後賽對戰系列。
October 21th, 2004
第七戰開賽前的十二小時，我從郵箱裡收到了自己從 ebay 定的紅襪隊棒球外套。從下標到收到夾克只花了八天。
我寫了一封致謝函給住在美國的這隊賣家夫婦，謝謝他讓我能在這個時刻收到。八分鐘之後，我收到了回應：
"I have been a diehard Sox fan since the mid-70's, and it's time to lose all the baggage and go to the Series in the most dramatic fashion possible - coming back from three games down and winning in Yankee Stadium.
BELIEVE, my friend!"
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隔天中午，公司的阿姨看著我誇讚著：「這件紅色外套很漂亮喔！」
「謝謝。」我笑容滿面地回答。
December 17th, 2006
時間接近下午三點左右。我一個人在 Fenway Park 的商店裡等待著稍後的導覽行程。買票時，一個白髮蒼蒼，穿著紅色球隊外套的老先生大概怕我走失，特別用他的大嗓門對我喊：「小子，你別緊張，導覽等下的出發點就在這裡，你到時候再回來就可以。」
我是隊伍裡唯一的東方面孔。老先生在聽到我來自台灣時，一開始有點迷惑，但隨即用恍然大悟的眼神看著我說：「是了，你就是跟那個王建民同一個國家的對吧？」，接著露出不懷好意的神情。
全部的人都看著我笑，包括一個掛著單眼相機，戴著黑框眼鏡的單眼皮年輕女生。
唱作俱佳的老先生，把導覽的氣氛營造的很熱烈，當講到例如 "the red seat" 等典故時，更是搞得全場哈哈大笑。已經有點感冒的我，在風勢頗大的 Green Monster 頂端不停按著快門，一邊還得注意身旁的參觀人潮是不是已經移動到下個景點去。偶爾回頭一看，那個單眼皮女生或許是全場除了我之外拍下最多照片的人。
導覽結束後，人潮很快地散去，街上又回復週日下午的一片死寂。我懶得翻開手上的地圖，索性就沿著球場周圍繞行。紀念今年球季球迷進場人數破紀錄的感謝看板，懸掛在一旁的房屋頂端，Gate B 前面，Ted Williams 的銅像佇立在四下無人的街角。在已經偏暗的冬日天色裡，我停下腳步，想像著當明年春暖花開時，人聲鼎沸的場景。
October 2nd, 2007
"Hey, you know that the division series are going to play in few days?" 我一邊和 Kirk McCaskill 與 Mark Langston 講話，一邊故意轉動著自己手腕上的紅襪隊手錶。這個舉動果然引起了他們的白眼。
接下來幾天，當我們有機會一同欣賞季後賽的電視轉播時，他們總是故意喊著："Leave George alone, he's gonna enjoy his Red Sox games!"；當某天我穿著 Matsuzaka 的 tshirt 時，Kirk 也沒有放過揶揄我的機會。儘管如此，當我問他們覺得紅襪和天使的系列戰誰會贏球時，他們也總是誠實地回答，看起來紅襪隊的勝算比較高一點。
"But game 2 is crucial." 我回應。"Matsuzaka was inconsistent during the past month, and Escobar has been great."
"Yes. Who won game 2 probably will win the series."
他們兩個人對於目前的這支紅襪隊已經很不熟悉了，除了一個人之外。
"Manny is great." Mark 給了一個令我很驚訝的答案。"Manny is my man."
"But how about what we saw and read from all the medias about Manny?"
"That's not him. You gotta know him. He is a just great guy. I love Manny." Mark 回答。"Let me tell you a story about him."
"It was 1999. I was in the Indians dugout at Jacobs field, full-packed. 2 outs, bases loaded, Manny at bat." "And he got struck out."
"He sat next to me after he got struck out. He turned toward me, with his eyes wide." 回想這段往事的 Mark 眼睛裡閃爍著光芒。"And he said to me, with his naive tone: 'It is ok. Sometimes, they got me. Sometimes, I got him.'"
"I can guarantee you, this is the best advice I have ever heard from someone in facing adversity." "Few innings later, he hit a homerun."
三天之後，我結束這次出差，在颱風裡冒著大風雨回家。好不容易能坐在家裡的沙發上，準備享用媽媽的佳肴，一打開電視，就看到 Manny 把 K-Rod 的球掃到外太空去。
In those moments, life is good.
October 30th, 2007
在又一天累人的工作和瑣事之後，我躺在沙發上，看著 Papelbon 興奮的丟開帽子狂吼，全隊衝出來抱在一起。我發現自己的眼眶裡充滿淚水。棒球或許成為了我的工作，但我的人生卻離開運動越來越遠。如今，我發現自己和朋友與工作夥伴聊天的話題，更多地圍繞在金錢或是女人身上。我距離上一次認真運動流汗的時間越來越久，把目光停留在體育新聞相關網站的時間卻越來越短。我的頭銜和身份越來越多（雖然可能還是沒有我的球衣收藏多），但真正能夠了解我心境轉折的朋友卻越來越少。
很幸運的，我能擁有像今天這樣的短暫片刻。它讓我重新想起了當年觀賞運動比賽的初衷，也提醒了我，這個世界上或許還是有一些能夠恆久如新的事物。
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Friday, October 12, 2007
[Job] A Brief Job Description
Industry: Sports, Leisure & Recreations
Alternate Titles: Translator; Coordinator; Guide; Photographer; Troubleshooter; Babysitter
The Ordinary Plot:
My clients and I meet at the airport. We shake hands. The trip
from airport to hotel is mostly filled with meaningless casual talks
to ease the nerves. Both side show certain degree of oiliness toward each
other during the first day working together. More than a few times
I misunderstand the meanings of my clients during their oral expressions
initially and cover it up later nearly seamlessly with my speedy reactions
or/and previous working experiences. The degree of strangeness between
my clients and I usually is at the peak in the morning of the second day,
then falling down sharply. We gradually open ourselves little by little
to each other. I get a nickname (in some occasions accompanied with a
silly folksong) derived from my formal nickname George in the second
afternoon from my clients. Tensions rise between my clients and local
people due to drastically different working concepts and methods. Tensions
fall moderately between my clients and local people due to quirky ways of
social interactions started from the local people with my clients.
My clients and I begin chat about various topics during meals, with the
specific focus on Taiwanese and oriental females. I show my broad
range of knowledges to my clients by answering different kinds of
questions from my clients about Taiwan and Taiwanese with limited
vocabularies and poor grammar without much hesitation. The quality of
my interpretation improves by better understanding and repeated listening
of my clients' expressions, but still leaves much to desire. My clients
start say hello to strangers/girls/bartenders/female clerks/waitress
without notice and get positive responses most of the time. My clients
and I talk more about women during meals and drinking. My clients
ask why I am still single, the question which I have wondered for a long
time as well. My clients start to introduce me to the girls/bartenders/
female clerks/waitress with the opening phrase like "This is George,
he is a very fine young man..." very often. I feel embarrassed, smile
and say sorry to the girls/bartenders/female clerks/waitress politely
in Chinese. Some of the girls/bartenders/female clerks/waitress agree
with my clients that I am a very shy person. My clients begin to notice that
I have the permissive nature within that I love self-blaming. My clients get angry
with my permissive nature and reiterate that I am a smart, humorous and
good-looking young man and should be proud of myself. My clients and I
drink more the night before my clients leave. I begin to show my true
colors to my clients with the help of alcohol. The conversation topic
shifts to the situation of sexual/racial discriminations in different
societies. My clients, all of them are white Americans, get uneasy with
this topic. The conversation shifts to another topic. My clients offer
me opportunities to work oversea and invite me to their place once I
traveled to the United States again. We drink more and take photos
together. We shake hands. We say goodbye to each other. I ride my scooter
home in chilly rain.
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