Mike's Mets: Joyce Mandelkern Archives

More of the Same

I haven't posted in a while because what could I possibly say that hasn't been said since last June? Every game, every loss, every problem seems the same to me at this point as it did last year. All I can say is that we are not a very good...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 1:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Here We Go Again - or Still

The more things change the more they stay the same. And when it comes to the 2008 Mets, that is not a good thing. I wish I had something new to bring to the table here folks. Truth is, I don't. I've said it all before. Unfortunately, I said it...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 3:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Slay the Dragon

Slay the dragon. These were the three words my oldest son texted me right before the Giants took the field against the Dallas Cowboys in the playoffs. Although he is a Jet fan, he understood perfectly what it was going to take for the Giants to advance. And he was...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 9:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

One Day at a Time

Hi everyone. I hope you all had a wonderful winter. I also hope we all have a wonderful spring, summer, and fall. However, I'm not going to count on it. And not because I'm not optimistic, but because I actually learned something this winter. Something that my New York Football...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 5:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Just Say No

I know this will come as a shock to all of you, but something has really been bugging me. I know it is media induced but it is still making me crazy. I'm going to try and explain it the best way I can. I am the oldest of my...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 8:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Recovery 101

I have spent the last week or so getting my equilibrium back. Baseball is so woven into the fabric of my life that it leaves a large void to fill when it suddenly disappears. I find myself with no game to go to or watch in the evening, and I...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 12:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

Love Hurts

First and foremost, I want to thank Mike for his incredible work and insight during this entire 2007 season. The amount of time and effort it takes to keep this blog current and running is enormous and to write in addition to that, and at the level he does it,...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 8:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)

Groundhog Day

For those of you who are interested, I wanted to give you a feel for what it is like to be at Shea these days - its miserable. All the pregame chatter revolves around tiebreaker scenarios and wild card possibilities. Everyone is in disbelief over what has happened to our...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 12:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Running on Empty

I am going to make this simple. For the next three days I am a huge Braves fan. As much as it disgusts me to even think or utter these words, its the truth. I, Joyce Mandelkern, diehard Mets fan, who bleeds orange and blue, has to root hard for...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 10:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)

Slip Sliding Away

Wanna laugh? Our playoff tickets came today. The world series tickets are right on top!! How is that for bad karma? Any one who reads my posts regularly knows by now that I am extremely superstitious. You probably don't know the extent of it, and if you did, you have...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 3:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)

Swept Away

Okay, so here's the deal...I'm in sports hell. This has been one lousy baseball weekend...and it had so much promise. I will give the Mets credit for one thing. They keep finding new and creative ways of blowing games to the Phillies. Just when I think they have found every...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 6:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The Brighter Side of Disaster

After the Phillies debacle, I did what any heartbroken Mets fan would do - I left town. I fled to my happy place. Actually, it was a planned trip with the family to Arizona, but it couldn't have come at a better time for me. After the four games against...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 2:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda

Editor's Note: Joyce wrote this piece before the Dodgers series. - M.S. My daughter-in-law, whom I love and adore with all my heart, and I, have a long standing "joke" that she is to put on my gravestone, "Here lies my mother-in-law...the Mets bullpen put her here." Granted some years...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 8:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

I've been quiet for a long time in hopes of being able to write something truly positive. And there have been moments where I actually thought that was going to happen. There have been more times, however, when the exact opposite as occurred. Since I did not want to be...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 10:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (10)

Effort-Loss

I wanted to write this post when I got home from the game last night, but I was so frustrated, angry and disgusted I thought it best to wait until today since Mike has a no curse rule. I normally don't curse, but I was afraid that last night might've...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 5:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Shea is Ain't So...Good

I don't get it. I can no longer say that we are in a slump. At this point, I'm beginning to think that we are no longer a good baseball team playing poorly. I'm honestly beginning to think that maybe we're just not that good. In any case, I'm here...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 6:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Mets Redux

I would like to come in off the ledge. I don't like heights and it is getting crowded up here. I have decided to be rational and logical, as opposed to emotional, or as I prefer to call it, passionate. Prior to Friday night's game, I said that the Mets...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 5:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Cold Turkey

I am sure that none of you have noticed, but I have not posted in over two weeks. Pete and I were in Italy with our friends. We left on May 25th following the Braves series and returned last evening. My luggage, however, was having such a great time, it...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 7:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

True Confessions

If Mike will indulge me, there is something I need to come clean about. My name is Joyce and I am a Yankee hater. There. I said it for all of you to hear and know. This statement will come of absolutely no surprise at all to those of you...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 12:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (9)

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

I now love this team. Well, I've always loved them, but now I respect them. I love what they did yesterday. The fact that they went out and won a ball game against the SF Giants was nice too, but I love that they shaved their heads. All of them...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 5:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Friday Night Lights

I am such a creature of habit. It boggles my mind how ballplayers and coaches can go on the road and adjust so well and so easily. I had stayed up to watch the entire game Thursday night. After only a couple of hours of sleep Thursday night, I was...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 12:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Road Trip

The Mandelkerns are hitting the road with the Mets. We are going to Arizona and going to 3 of the 4 games scheduled there. No, I am not a stalker or a groupie. We actually go back and forth to Arizona very often during the course of the year. It...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 1:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)

Tough Crowd

There were 39,000 people at Shea last night that I did not recognize. My Shea brethren, for the most part, disgusted me. When did this happen? When did we Met fans become so intolerant and demanding of our hometown heroes? When did we become so arrogant that we expect to...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 2:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

Mea Culpa

I congratulate the Mets on winning a tough series. Who knew the Nats were going to throw Seaver, Kofax and Ryan against us. Or so it seemed. Hits and runs were hard to come by. Good and fair umpiring was tough to come by. Perseverance and heart, good pitching, defense,...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 12:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

The Blame Game

One bad pitch should not lose you a ball game. Unless it is in the bottom of the ninth inning. And certainly not if it is in the first inning against the Washington Nationals and you are the New York Mets with an "American League" lineup. This loss, I place...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 1:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The Lost Weekend

OK. I am in a very, very bad mood. It started Friday night. The Jackie Robinson ceremony was very nice. I was very moved by it. I only wish the Mets had been. Ralph Branca was there. The man can sing a mean "God Bless America." Before the game started,...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 11:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (10)

The Boys are Back in Town

The Mets home opener. In our house it is a holy day. I even laid out my clothes the night before. Layers and layers of Mets clothes. I prepared our seat cushions and our blanket. I selected not one, but two Met hats. I do this just in case I...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 5:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Random Thoughts

A couple of thoughts as the season is now officially underway. I am as happy as the next guy that the Mets made mince meat of the Cardinals. However, not for one moment, did it make me forget or in any way even feel better about losing the NLCS. But...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 2:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Spring Fever

The 2007 season is now a reality to me. Our season tickets arrived yesterday. I can see them and touch them. I can read the accompanying media guide. What I can't do, however, is predict how the season will play out. I have watched and/or listened to every spring training...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 10:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Great Expectations

I am a sports pessimist by nature. As Wellington Mara once said, "Hope for the best and expect the worst," and that is pretty much how I live my sports life. My glass isn't just half empty, it is shattered into a million little bits. My pessimism is self-preservation at...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 5:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

The Arms Race

I'm not exactly sure whom Omar is keeping busier this offseason - Rick Peterson or Mike Steffanos, with all the additions to the pitching staff. I'm guessing Mike, since Rick only needs to spend 15 minutes with each to "fix" them a la Victor Zambrano and Mike's in depth write-ups...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 5:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Got Baseball?

Finally!! I don't know about you guys, but for me, just seeing guys in uniforms with bats and balls made me feel much better. I know it just mini-camp, but I have REALLY missed my Mets and baseball. I follow college and pro football and college basketball and have teams...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 6:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

To Sign or Not To Sign Him...

The debate is raging on sports talk radio, in newspapers and blogs. It is raging in my mind and in my heart. Do we cave in and give in to the market and in this case to Scott Boras or do we sit tight and hold fast to what we...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 10:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes

Here is my disclaimer - I don't do well with change. I like the status quo. I'm comfortable with things that work. Chad Bradford out of the bullpen worked. I'm no longer comfortable. I am going to venture a guess that it wasn't the money but the length of the...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 10:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

Editor's Note: This is the first post to this blog by an author other than myself. Please welcome passionate Mets fan Joyce Mandelkern to this web site. - M.S. Tom Glavine has a decision to make. He has known for quite some time now that he needs to make this...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 7:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)

About Joyce Mandelkern

I am an insanely passionate die-hard Mets fan since 1962 who is also a season ticket holder and usually can't bear to look and buries her head in her hands or starts pacing when I'm home when things get tense (especially when the closer is in) and begins to pray...

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By Joyce Mandelkern, posted at 6:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

Mike's Mets

New York Mets discussion, news and historical perspective -- now getting by with a little help from my friends.

May 16, 2008

More of the Same

April 9, 2008

Here We Go Again - or Still

April 4, 2008

Slay the Dragon

April 1, 2008

One Day at a Time

October 25, 2007

Just Say No

October 11, 2007

Recovery 101

October 1, 2007

Love Hurts

September 26, 2007

Groundhog Day

September 25, 2007

Running on Empty

September 19, 2007

Slip Sliding Away

September 17, 2007

Swept Away

September 3, 2007

The Brighter Side of Disaster

August 25, 2007

Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda

August 14, 2007

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

June 27, 2007

Effort-Loss

June 21, 2007

Shea is Ain't So...Good

June 18, 2007

Mets Redux

June 11, 2007

Cold Turkey

May 18, 2007

True Confessions

May 9, 2007

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

May 5, 2007

Friday Night Lights

May 3, 2007

Road Trip

May 1, 2007

Tough Crowd

April 30, 2007

Mea Culpa

April 28, 2007

The Blame Game

April 23, 2007

The Lost Weekend

April 10, 2007

The Boys are Back in Town

April 7, 2007

Random Thoughts

March 28, 2007

Spring Fever

February 15, 2007

Great Expectations

January 17, 2007

The Arms Race

January 11, 2007

Got Baseball?

December 14, 2006

To Sign or Not To Sign Him...

November 30, 2006

Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes

November 27, 2006

Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

November 23, 2006

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