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Man, did the Red Sox stink last night, making some nobody pitcher named Shaun Marcum look like the second coming of Cy Young.

The game started out as an unlikely pitching duel, both pitchers taking a no-hitter into the 5th. But if I'm ever going to see a no-hitter, it's not going to be thrown by Tim Wakefield. The Jays had two good innings, but one run would have been enough to put the game out of reach. The Sox eeked out only two measly little hits - neither left the infield - and got one runner to second base, all night.

Our last game at Skydome, Josh Beckett threw batting practice for Vernon Wells and Troy Glaus. Better luck next year, eh?

In a year where Sox fans expected to be neck-and-neck with the Yankees all season, in serious contention for the division, finishing third behind the Blue Jays is too much to contemplate.

However...

I had a really good time last night. It felt great to be at a ballgame with new friends. ("New" meaning friendships made in Canada.)

It's a wonderful feeling, very hard to describe. Something perhaps most people take for granted, just going out with friends, watching a ball game, hanging out. But we came here with only each other.

I used to organize ballgame outings all the time, sometimes as a way to get together with friends we didn't see often. I might have imagined that was a thing of the past. But here we are, one year later, and we know people - people we like and respect, whose company we enjoy, and some of them even like baseball! (One was even cheering for the Sox!)

You know what it is? A feeling of belongingness. Very cool.