One season ends, another beckons

The friend's phone call was nice, sincere, concerned.

No, I said. I'm not under suicide watch.

No, I didn't trash the house.

Yes, I'm hanging in there.

Despite the Philadelphia Eagles getting smoked by the Dallas Cowboys for the second straight weekend, bringing my favorite NFL team's season to a crashing end.

Shocked? Not at all.

I saw it coming, so the letdown wasn't as bad as the disappointment I felt after previous seasons.

It's only a game.

That's what I usually told my fiancee after yet another loss by her favorite NFL team, the Tampa Bay Bucs.

So my Eagle jerseys have been put away. T-shirts and hats, too.

I've moved on, thank you.

An e-mail arrived a couple of days later that helped me along nicely.

Phillies spring training tickets.

Baseball season.

I'm ready.