The playoffs officially begin tomorrow and I couldn't be more excited. I am sitting here watching the White Sox vs. Twins game thinking, wow, when did baseball become such an important part of my life? Growing up in a suburb of Chicago, my parents were quite into baseball. They are South-Siders (seriously, my dad talks exactly like one of the Super Fans from SNL, actually I think he might be one of those guys), so obviously the White Sox were the team we cheered on. Cubs fans were the people we picked on! I guess back then I was so into being a kid and then a teenager that I never understood what this wonderful sport has to offer. I love EVERYTHING about it. Many say that it is boring, but I can watch it all day. I even prefer watching from home rather than being at the stadium so there aren't as many distractions.

When I moved to California in 2001 I had yet to discover my true love for the Angels. Back then, a good friend of mine, Megan and I decided that we would support this relatively unknown team. I think it had a bit to do with us wanting to assimilate to the California culture, which was honestly a little different than the Midwest. Meeting my husband certainly helped the cause because he is a die-hard Angels fan himself.

Fast forward seven years or so and here I am. I make my own Angels shirts, my entire classroom is Angels themed, I have moved two miles from the stadium, have named my dogs Figgins and Halo, and with the exception of things like my wedding, have watched EVERY Angels game. Much more than any man I know in California. I have met (without stalking, mind you) John Lackey, Adam Kennedy, Orlando Cabrera, Jarod Weaver, Gary Mathews Jr., Scot Shields, Jeff Mathis, and I spoke to Mike Napoli at US Cellular field, but we won't count that one. Each of these players were kind and friendly (with the exception of Cabrera, but that's the White Sox's problem now!) They are the type of men who you want to root for because they give it their all on the field and they actually care about their fans. There is one player that I MUST meet someday, and that is my hero, Chone Figgins. Ever hear the story about the Little Engine that could? I believe it was written about him:)

We start the playoffs paired with Boston, we have had their number all year. The past two series we have swept them, and I can only hope we can play as strongly as we did then. I cannot wait until tomorrow, I can barely keep my mind on anything else! Wish us luck, and good luck to all of your teams! Have a great October!!

GO ANGELS!!

-Heather