No, Moonshine Mountain hasn’t been decimated by an asteroid or ravaged by plague or anything like that. Although I did have me a nasty head cold last week – it was more like Phlegm Mountain around here. Plus I was busy putting together these summer preview listings, and coming up with all those knee-slapping quips really knocked the wind out of me. (See also my Critic’s Choice, however, please note that this is not so much my pick of the summer crop, merely my pick of what was left over after all the good stuff had been covered in other parts of the preview.)

This past weekend I made a pilgrimage to Arlington, Texas, home of Six Flags, but more to the point, home of Ameriquest Field, formerly known as the Ballpark in Arlington. There I met up with a contingent of Texas refugees of Red Sox Nation for barbecue, beer and a ballgame. I stumbled upon these folks through the Sons of Sam Horn message board; they had purchased a big block o’ tickets – nice seats on the lower deck - so I snapped one of ‘em up and met up with them in the parking lot a couple hours before game time. Everyone was pretty well lubricated by the first pitch, much to the dismay of the few Rangers fans in our section (especially since the Sawx won, 9-2). Good times! I stayed overnight and returned for the day game on Sunday, this time sitting in the second deck, which was much like sitting in a frying pan. I am red of face and arms today.