72-year old Buddy Guy has been playing the blues since he made his first guitar by attaching two strings to a piece of wood with his mother’s hairpins when he was seven years old.  He wouldn’t own a real guitar until a decade later, but now his Harmony acoustic guitar is on display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland and the City of Chicago, which he has called home since 1957, is honoring him as the First Annual Great Performer of Illinois this July 20th.

Guy, who owns the Chicago blues club, Buddy Guy’s Legends, is also releasing Skin Deep, an album of all original material with guest appearances from fellow musicians including Eric Clapton, Robert Randolph, Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks.  Guy, who keeps a busy schedule including being at his club on a daily basis, took time to talk to Red about his new album.

Why the name Skin Deep?

My mother told me, “Boy, beauty is only skin deep,” and I never forgot that and I always thought that I needed to write a song about that.  We were sharecroppers and we were living on a plantation.  There was a little boy living in the house there, and as a baby, and when he got older, his parents would bring him to our house so we could play with him and they could get some rest.  We rode horses together, we had fun but then when he was about 13 his parents wouldn’t let us play together anymore.  They said he had white blood and I had black blood.  We took a flashlight and held it to our skin and all we could see was red blood and that’s what I mean by skin deep.

That must have been painful for you.

It was.  He came backstage at one of my shows a while back and he asked me if I was mad at him because of what had happened and I told him no, you were the best friend I ever had.

Tell us about the album.

It’s all new material.  This is the first time I ever really had control. Everything in here is new.  Most of the other albums I’ve made have been a few new songs and then back to the older stuff or the covers–which is fine, but you gotta be creative.  I would talk to Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck when they were all making records and they would tell me that they would go in the studio with the freedom to play what they wanted.  This time, I had that.

How did you go about making it?

I just try to get the best players and hope I can pop the top off this can and show that the blues are back.  I learned from the people who played on the album, some of them were a lot younger.  And these guys got me feeling like when I was 22 years old and went into the studio with Muddy Waters.

You know, some people might say that at 72, you should just sit back and relax instead of being in your club all the time and making a new album.  What’s your take on that?

If you get too old to learn, you might as well go out of this world backwards.  It’s like being a prizefighter–if you lay down, you never have a chance to win.  But if you keep punching, you might hit ‘em with the one that lays them down.

Blues legend Buddy Guy has earned five Grammy Awards, 23 W.C. Handy Blues Awards (the most any artist has received), the Billboard Century Award and the Presidential National Medal of Arts just to name a few.

He grew up on in a poor family on a plantation in Louisiana, and though he moved to Chicago over 50 years ago, Guy kept some of his country ways.  He talked to Red early in the morning, because that’s when he likes to get going.

Do you normally do interviews at seven in the morning?

Ever since I was day one, I was up early and I never lost it.  I love getting up early this time of the year because I love listening to the birds and hearing them fight for their territory.  On the farm, I got up at 4:30 because I had three and half hours of farm chores to do before I could go to school.  In those years, we didn’t have trucks and automobiles, running water, air conditioning, nothing.  My mom would get up at four in the morning to cook and it would get the house nice and warm and that way she could be done with her cooking before the day got too hot.  My oldest sister, who is 83, tells me, “We got you out of the country but we’ll never get the country out of you.”

But you work late at your club Buddy Guy’s Legends, don’t you get tired?

I work until around 2:30 and then I take a nap so I cut the day in half.  When I get up, I’m ready for the second part of my day.

This year is your club’s 20th anniversary.  Are you surprised by its continued success?

It wasn’t a success for such a long time, I lost a bit of money for the first eight or nine years after I opened it. I would go to the bank and borrow money so I could pay the people who worked for me and pay the bills.  Just before I opened Legends, I owned the Checkerboard Lounge. Back then the only white faces we’d see in there were policeman.  At the time, there were blues clubs all over the city, now they’re three or four blues clubs left.  I’m glad I’m one of them.  But there was a time, when the club wasn’t making money and the Chicago winters were cold that I thought the birds had more sense than me because they go south.

You’re still going strong at 72.  How do you do it?

I don’t eat between meals. When I’m home I love to cook like my mother taught me and then I go to the club. I have grandchildren, I take care of my house, I go to the store myself to buy my groceries. I never let my little success go to my head, I go home at night listen to some spiritual music, take a shower, read the paper. In the 20 years of my club I haven’t missed many nights.  If people walk in hoping to see Buddy Guy, they will, I’ll be right there.

Having lived such a long and eventful life, do you have any words of wisdom for us before we say goodbye?

My mother told me before she died, “If you got flowers to give, give them to me before I die so I can smell them now.”

–Interview by Jane Ammeson, Red Editorial Staff
–Photo Credits Paul Natkin and James Waynauskas

I know it’s on everyone’s minds, so I am just gonna say it.  The San Jose Sharks: always the bridesmaids but never the brides (yes, they get the chick flick reference for having generated so much regular season excitement and not stepping up).

Fans in San Jose had every right to be confused, stunned and upset as they truly were not used to seeing their home team lose on home ice (32-5-4 in the Shark Tank, best in the league).

Who’s to blame for their flaccid performances?  Was it their almighty defensive corps that was riddled full of holes by the time the playoffs came around (almost every player rated a negative in the +/- column in the post-season)?  Or, was it underconfident, inexperienced coaching?

In the post-season press conference, Vice-President and General Manager for the Sharks, Doug Wilson said, “Changes will be made, this is pro sports and winning is . . . blah, blah, blah, blah.”  Sorry Dougie, I just feel like we’ve heard it all before.

Speaking about blame, I have a feeling that John Tortorella is feeling a little bit sheepish over in New York.  Not only was he unable to adjust to the Capitals’ third period onslaught in the seventh and final game, but we can place the blame for the Rangers’ loss in game six squarely on his shoulders for having been suspended for his game 5 antics (he squirted a Washington fan with a water bottle).

John, here is my advice to you: It’s difficult for the rest of the league, let alone any team that you coach, to take you seriously when you have to look up to Sean Avery as an example of maturity and conduct during a game.

Moving on and looking ahead, hockey fans, the NHL and their broadcasters must be jumping up and down for joy as the Penguins and Caps are about to add a new chapter to the Ovetchkin/Semin vs. Crosby/Malkin rivalry.

Personally, I plan on calling in sick at my day job to make sure my spot at my favorite pub is warmed up and ready go when the first game of this series gets under way (Note to all those that work with me at my day job: COUGH! I forgot my doctor’s note at the bar. I mean at home.)

Is it just me, or does anybody else feel sorry for the Carolina Hurricanes?  They are about to get pounded next week by a well rested, focused and talented Boston Bruins team. Though many believe that we are seeing the old Hurricanes from their days as Stanley Cup champs.  While they did prevent Martin Brodeur from winning another cup, I think Tim Thomas and the bruins may just be too much to swallow after a grueling series with the Devils.

In the West, it is all about re-births.  I personally can’t wait to see the re-invigorated Chicago Blackhawks franchise take on captain Roberto Luongo and the Vancouver Canucks in series that will be all about momentum and skill.  I think that Vancouver may just have the upper hand in this series as Chicago is missing a few players due to injuries incurred against the Calgary Flames.

Finally, keep an eye on the Anaheim ducks as they face-off against the defending Stanley Cup champs, the Detroit Red-Wings.  Can Detroit stop the Ducks’ momentum?  The key in this series will be to make sure that Detroit does not under-estimate the Ducks’ speedy forward lines (a mistake the Sharks made).

Sorry, I had to take one last jab at the Sharks before leaving.

–Ryan Matwiy, Red Editorial Staff.

Chaucer once wrote, “There is an end to everything, to good things as well.” Last night saw the end of two things–one good, the other less so.

Emerging Royals ace, Zack Greinke, who prior to last night’s game had pitched 29 innings this year and 43 total dating back to September 13 without allowing an earned run, saw the streak end in the first inning after a two-out Vernon Wells RBI single.

The 25-year-old right-hander did, however, pick up his Major League leading fifth win in the 11-3 rout of the Blue Jays last night in K.C., striking out eight with two walks in his seven innings of work. His eight K’s boosted his season total to 44 putting him on top of the league in strikeouts as well.

His 0.50 speck of an ERA puts Greinke at the forefront of the American League Triple Crown for pitching, a feat last achieved in ‘06 by the Twins’ Johan Santana.

His six game streak without an earned run includes back-to-back complete games with 10 K’s each and tied him with Dodgers’ pitching legends Don Drysdale and Orel Hershiser . . . now, that’s some mighty good company.

In his complete game last Friday against the Tigers he set down 15 straight batters after an error resulted in an unearned run. In his previous start he shutout the explosive Rangers offense.

He throws four pitches with pinpoint accuracy. His fastball tops out at around 96mph, his slider breaks eight inches, his curve ball drops off the table at 58mph befuddling hitters and his changeup can sail in at a deceptively slow 73mph.

But maybe even more impressive than his dazzling numbers thus far is how Zack got to where he is today.

In 2006 Greinke left the game when he was diagnosed with severe social anxiety disorder and depression. The first round draft pick wanted to hit, wanted to play at shortstop, hated pitching and was beginning to hate the game. He cried himself to sleep clutching to a bat and even considered a career as a professional golfer.

He was called a head-case and another Royals bust in a very long line, but then he began taking medication for his condition. He returned to Double A ball in Wichita in June, rejuvenated and ready to embrace his role as a pitcher. He started throwing harder, pushing his fastball up into the 96-98mph range and when he returned to the big leagues in late 2007 he started seven games and had an 1.85 ERA at the season’s end. In ‘08 he ranked fifth in K’s with 183 and tenth in ERA with 3.47.

But this year is completely different. His stuff his electric. He is frustrating even the best hitters and just looks unhittable.

Last year Cliff Lee started the season with five wins and an ERA of less than one and last year Lee was the Cy Young winner. It is early but right now Greinke looks every bit like the 2009 Cy Young recipient.

As for the other thing that came to an end last night? Well, this week the new Sports Illustrated hits the newsstands with Greinke on the dreaded cover. But no matter to Zack, he didn’t even know the cover bore a curse.

And for his take on being this week’s cover boy Greinke said, “So it’s a mistake. They’ll probably sell their least amount of magazines in a long time–except when NASCAR was on the cover.”

That’s Zack.

–Aaron Whitebread, Red Editorial Staff

The fact that both Champions League semi-final ties are evenly poised after the first leg sets up a couple of intriguing matches next week.

There has been plenty of criticism aimed in Chelsea’s direction–mainly from the Spanish media–after they did an effective job in keeping Barcelona at bay at the Nou Camp.

What were they expected to do–go to Spain and play an open, attacking game?

No, they did what many teams have done since the introduction of European competition: kept it tight at the back and packed their midfield with the aim of keeping a clean sheet and possibly nicking a goal on the break.

The former was achieved and they would have grabbed a valuable away goal if Didier Drogba had put away a good chance.

The other semi-final between Manchester United and Arsenal is also in the balance after John O’Shea’s goal gave Sir Alex Ferguson’s men a slender lead.

It all means that neutral football fans could be in for a couple of cracking games next week.

Chelsea clearly need to match their fine defensive display in Spain with a similar attacking threat at Stamford Bridge.

An early goal for Barca would certainly put the Blues under much pressure, knowing they have to score twice to reach the final.

In the other tie, rest assured that United will not be content to sit back and defend their one-goal lead.

They will be going to the capital with the intention of putting the Gunners under strong pressure from the kick-off.

Arsenal are expected to have leading goalscorer Robin van Persie available after a groin strain ruled him out of the first leg.

Arsene Wenger’s plans for the match will receive a further boost if the rib injury suffered by Rio Ferdinand is serious enough to rule him out of the return match.

All things considered, for what it’s worth, I’m standing by my original prediction of a Manchester United-Barcelona final.

I can’t see United letting slip a one-goal lead–especially against familiar opposition–and I don’t think Barca will fire blanks again.

–Nick Johnson, Red U.K. Editorial Staff

One of the more interesting developments to come out of this whole swine flu scare isn’t how susceptible a person is to the spread of influenza.

It’s the spread of influence we’ve really got to watch out for.

There are plenty of “reports,” for lack of a better word, outing the Internet’s newest golden child Twitter for playing a major role in dispensing false and/or sensational misinformation about humanity’s latest obsession.

According to an article from CNN, “Some observers say Twitter–a micro-blogging site where users post 140-character messages–has become a hotbed of unnecessary hype and misinformation about the outbreak.”

Brennon Slattery, a contributing writer for PC World magazine, was quoted in the same article saying, “This is a good example of why [Twitter is] headed in that wrong direction, because it’s just propagating fear amongst people as opposed to seeking actual solutions or key information.”

Sigh.

So now it’s Twitter’s fault?  Twitter is to blame for the panic?  Am I the only guy who thinks this is entirely off the mark?  Am I the only guy who read reports from credible media that mentioned the word “pandemic” eleven times?  Am I the only guy who saw the CNN article about the earliest case of swine flu being linked to a 5-year old kid in Mexico who’s being nicknamed “patient zero?”

Way to go fellas, if this swine flu gets out of control, life for that kid and his family will become very, very difficult.  And I’m sure you’ll cover the whole thing with pictures of “ground zero” where “patient zero” lives, right at the “epicenter” where it all started.

Might as well give that kid a security detail now.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves yet.  The media is going to have to spend the next several weeks running pictures of people wearing facemasks and air interviews of news anchors pressing a CDC representative as to when they plan on shutting down all the airlines, subway and train stations all over the country.

That’s all they want to know: not IF this is going to get worse, but WHEN.

There’s no reason to use Twitter as the scapegoat here when Twitter isn’t where the sensationalism started–that’s just where it ended up.  Believing that Twitter is “propagating fear” is the most clear-cut example of shooting the messenger I’ve ever seen.

It’s not the car’s fault if the people in the back seat are idiots.

Now, if you’d like to believe that some PEOPLE using Twitter are propagating fear, then yes, a pat on the back for that . . . because it’s an accurate thing to say.  But it’s much too far of a stretch to blame the medium itself for propagating fear like our last administration.

If you want to use that logic, you’ll have to condemn not just Twitter, but the entire Internet.

Hey, doesn’t the media use the Internet as well?

–Joey Alfino, Red Editorial Staff.

Like any team beaten on penalties, Chelsea felt unfortunate to lose last season’s Champions League final to Manchester United.

But they could not complain about any lack of luck after last night’s goalless semi-final first leg at Barcelona.

Chelsea showed all the resolve and organisation their caretaker manager Guus Hiddink demanded to shackle Barça’s mesmerising forwards.

There were commanding performances from centre-half John Terry and midfielder John Obi Mikel, who was given the thankless task of stifling playmaker Xavi.

And Hiddink admitted that Petr Cech “saved the game for us”.

The much-criticised goalkeeper made a series of outstanding saves to deny the likes of Samuel Eto’o and Alexander Hleb.

It was the first time Barcelona have failed to score at Camp Nou this season.

But the Blues also enjoyed the sort of luck that suggests this is their year.

Central defender Alex might have received a second yellow card, and therefore a red, for a late aerial challenge that left Thierry Henry dazed.

Moments later Barcelona centre-half Rafael Márquez sustained a knee injury that will keep him out of next Wednesday’s return.

Then his replacement, Carlos Puyol, received a caution that sees him suspended for the Stamford Bridge game.

Their absence is a big blow for Barça boss Pep Guardiola, who will have to improvise in defence.

Which is hardly ideal when the slightest slip might cost a place in the final.

Other factors helped Chelsea, not least the denial of a penalty when Henry was pulled over in the penalty area by José Bosingwa.

And Michael Ballack escaped a second booking for a cynical foul that felled Andrés Iniesta as the Spanish midfielder surged towards the Chelsea penalty area.

That decision, among others, the Barcelona players furious with German referee Wolfgang Stark.

“Don’t talk to me about the referee,” Iniesta told journalists. “You all saw it. He didn’t show Ballack a second yellow because he didn’t want to.”

Even the fixtures have fallen more kindly for Chelsea, who entertain Fulham in the Premier League on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Barcelona face a trip to deadly rivals Real Madrid, knowing that defeat would cut the Catalans’ lead in La Liga to just a point.

Even so, it will be fascinating to see how Chelsea approach the home leg, when they will have to score to reach the final.

Surely they won’t opt for all-out defence then.

–Rob Wightman, Red U.K.  Senior Sports Writer

A simple fact of life is that many things just don’t turn out as planned. The Hillary Clinton/Rudy Giuliani showdown for president in 2008 never materialized, while, shockingly, the mini disc never replaced CDs.

The same is of course true in sports. Sebastian Telfair failed to do much of anything in the NBA after being only the second high school basketball player in history to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated and Karl Malone never got a championship ring despite joining a supposedly loaded and unbeatable Lakers team.

Script deviation seems to be the most prevalent in baseball, though. For example, even though every year people peg the Yankees to finally get that increasingly elusive 27th championship (like the Sporting News did this year), the Yanks rarely even ever advance past the first round anymore. Likewise, countless sure things never pan out (Sean Burroughs, Felix Pie) and just as many out-of-nowheres (Albert Pujols, Mike Piazza) do.

But the ascension of the mid-2000s Diamondbacks was a really sure thing. Arizona’s “Baby Backs” were (are?) so loaded with young talent that it was seen as all but inevitable that they would bring another title back to the desert.

For a while, things went to plan. Only three years removed from a 111-loss season, the D-Backs won 90 games in 2007 to take the NL west and advanced to the NLCS. Even though they got swept, it wasn’t seen as a failure: these Baby Backs were way ahead of schedule.

So expectations were understandably high in 2008, especially with the off-season acquisition of elite starting pitcher Dan Haren.

And just like they did in 2007, things just kept going right for Arizona. They exploded out of the gates to a 20-8 April record and looked well on their way to reprising their division title and NLCS appearance.

But then, the requisite funny thing happened: they fell apart. They posted only one winning month the rest of the season and finished only two games above .500. This was in spite of Brandon Webb’s 22 wins and an incredibly weak NL West.

Even their one pleasant surprise–Mark Reynolds’ 28 home runs and 97 RBIs–was offset by Reynolds’ MLB record 204 strikeouts and league leading 34 errors.

Flash forward to 2009, and the Diamondbacks haven’t missed a beat–they’re still struggling to win games and really struggling to hit the ball. Through 18 games, they are sitting at 8-11, six games worse than their 2008 record of 14-5. They are batting an absurd .226, and are last or second to last in the NL in runs, hits, RBIs and .OBP.

What has gone so wrong in the desert?

Simply, their ballyhooed bevy of young offensive talent has dramatically regressed.

Although he only batted only .237 and struck out 141 times, then 23-year-old Chris Young electrified baseball in 2007 with his 32 homers and 27 steals.

But in 2008 his production fell spectacularly. While he did manage to raise his average to .248, playing in 12 more games than he did in 2007, Young hit 10 fewer home runs, stole 13 fewer bases and struck out 24 more times. So far in 2009, he is hitting only .217 with two home runs.

Things have gone even worse for the first pick of the 2005 draft, Justin Upton.

Despite only batting .221 in his 43-game cup of coffee in 2007, Upton was poised for a breakout season in 2008, especially after batting .357 in limited playing time in the 2007 playoffs. Instead, he batted .250 with one steal and 121 strikeouts. In 2009, he is hitting only .224.

Meanwhile, Conor Jackson, Chad Tracy and Chris Snyder all continue to struggle.

Now with Webb out for an extended period of time, even more pressure is falling on the D-Backs struggling youthful bats. If they can rebound and hit somewhere near.260 as a collective, then the Backs ascension to young NL power should continue. If not, the Baby Backs will go down in history as just another failed prodigy.

–Patrick Daugherty, Red Editorial Staff

I think we all know who’s going to be in the Finals by now, even though at the moment, Denver might be playing the best basketball in the league (That’s how I choose to see it.  So good, in fact, they made New Orleans look like the Flint Michigan Tropics.  Woody Harrelson could have run circles around David West for that game).

So yes, the Nuggets could be a huge spoiler that has a lot of Vegas bookies sweating out their Gin, but until we see Denver in the next round, the playoffs are still just something to pass the time until the Cavs and Lakers tip off in June.

If anything, this year’s playoffs have given us more information about what we’re losing than where we’re going.

The two biggest story lines to come out of the Finals will either be LeBron’s first ring or Kobe’s first ring without Shaq (and the song I hope he writes about it afterwards), but it’s going to be pretty hard to look back on this postseason without noting how 2009 was the year San Antonio and Detroit finally flat lined.

For the Spurs–who for over a decade have been (rightly) lauded as one of the league’s most upstanding and well-managed organizations with four rings since 1999 to prove it–the end is little more than a waiting game.  It’s coming.  If not this round, than in the next.

And even if the Spurs deserve every benefit of the doubt (and they do) going into tonight’s game down 3-1, and even if they can pull off the unthinkable and win three straight to hit the second round, the fact still remains that right now, the Spurs are struggling against a pedestrian Dallas team who shouldn’t be leading two games against the Spurs . . . or at least the Spurs we think of when we think of the Spurs.

Duncan is 33-years old, Manu is 32 and injured, and it doesn’t matter how old the supporting cast around Tony Parker is because none of them are really standing out in the first place.

But the good news for the Spurs is that this death (or transition, to be kind) is at least a natural one.  The Spurs’ dynasty is suffering the effects of old age, and they’re aging gracefully.

Detroit’s ship, on the other hand, was scuttled.

The Pistons won’t be attending the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in seven years, and even though we can’t be too surprised that Cleveland put Detroit away, we CAN be surprised that is was such a decisive sweep.

Cleveland’s 11-point margin of victory in Game 3 was its smallest, and really, the Pistons were never in it.  It seemed more of a formality than a series, and even though he might get more bad press than he deserves it’s hard not to pin some of this on Iverson.

Ok, that’s not entirely fair since he didn’t even play, but maybe that was for the best, eh?  A.I. might not have been a good fit for the Pistons since the Pistons weren’t built around A.I., so in that case, I imagine Joe Dumars can’t be too happy right now.

Yeah, there’s more reasons than Iverson for the Pistons’ dynasty dissolving, but you can’t tell me that anyone in Detroit’s front office can look at Chauncey Billups in Denver and Allen Iverson in the doldrums and say, “Thank GOD we made that trade!”

Times are tough for Detroit fans, and I’m pulling for them.  The only thing more disappointing than the end of a long run is how long it might take them to rebuild.

But that doesn’t have anything to do with basketball . . .

–Joey Alfino, Red Editorial Staff

When Boston fell to 2-6 to start the season, Red Sox Nation inhaled deeply and held their collective breath. Eleven wins and no losses later and the Nation can breathe a sigh of relief.

During the 11-game streak the Sox have swept the O’s, took both ends of a double-header from the Twins and swept their hated rivals the Yankees in three games over the weekend in a classic Yanks-Sox series.

Game one on Friday saw Yankees’ closer Mariano Rivera blowing a save on the wings of a two-run Jason Bay shot to knot it at 4 before Kevin Youkilis raked a solo walk-off dinger in the eleventh.

Game two saw the Yanks jump out to a 6-run lead early off Josh Beckett, only to lose 16-11 thanks in part to Jason Varitek’s grand slam in the fourth.

The finale on Sunday was the classic insult to injury scenario as Jacoby Ellsbury made a straight steal of home off lefty Andy Pettitte in the 4-1 victory. The stolen base was the first at home for the Sox since ‘99.

Last night the Sox continued their April run in Cleveland with veteran Tim Wakefield on the mound. Wake hurled seven scoreless innings as his devastating knuckleball danced across the zone like it were a celebrity on a certain prime-time reality show. Wakefield was coming off a near no-hitter in Oakland and back-to-back complete games before last night’s 112-pitch, one-hit performance, lowering his ERA to a diminutive 1.86 over his four starts.

Unfortunately, Wake left with a no-decision as Cleveland’s Cliff Lee kept the Sox off the board through eight.

Jason Bay’s ninth inning homer off Indians’ closer Kerry Wood put the Sox up 3-0 and despite Sox closer, Jonathan Pappelbon, allowing one run and the tying run on base the Red Sox pulled out their 11th straight win.

Boston can attribute this recent success to two things: their rejuvenated offense and a bullpen that runs nearly as deep as the Marianas Trench, with guys like Hideki Okajima, Takashi Saito, Ramon Ramirez, Justin Masterson and Manny Delcarmen

During the streak the bullpen has a 4-0 record, a miniscule 1.39 ERA and has struck out 23 over 32 1/3 innings.

Then there’s the offense. Over the last 11 games Boston has improved their on-base percentage from .237 to .406 and nearly doubled their runs per game from 3.6 to 7.5.

Youkilis is currently slugging a whopping .729 with five homers, 13 RBIs and a .414 average. Not to be out done, Jason Bay also has five long balls with 19 RBIs and a .344 average. Mike Lowell has gone yard four times and knocked in 22, and after horrendous offensive production last season, Varitek has found his swing again belting four also this season.

Tonight Brad Penny takes the hill to try and stretch the streak to 12 . . . and consider this: the Sox have done all this with Daisuke Matsusaka, Julio Lugo and John Smoltz on the DL and without a single David Ortiz homer.

–Aaron Whitebread, Red Editorial Staff

The sound they make is like a stomach growling with the intensity of a freight train.  It carries for miles in the steamy jungle air, and it was our 4 a.m. wake-up call each day during our visit to the Lapa Rios EcoLodge on Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula.

The noise came from howler monkeys, one of dozens of intriguing species we encountered while hiking through the jungle or simply sitting at the breakfast table in the midst of this 1,000 acre nature preserve.

The Osa Peninsula is nicknamed “the lungs of the world” because of the massive output of oxygen from the rain forest, a forest that is home to a greater biodiversity of species than any where else in the world.

“This is why it matters when you cut down one tree,” said Olman Hernandez Lodo with the Costa Rican Tourism Board as we dodged the half-eaten mangos being tossed aside by the monkeys jumping from limb to limb above us.  “The monkeys, they use this as a highway to their food source.  They need each tree to get to the next one safely.”

This is also why more than 25 percent of lands in Costa Rica are in a nature preserve or natural park and why conservation here is more than political oratory. It is a beatitude and a way of life.

Lapa Rios is the first of only five hotels in Costa Rica to achieve the highest levels of sustainability, meaning the properties score above 95 percent in four categories as determined by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute. These categories measure the hotel’s impact on the natural habitat, management policies, opportunities for guests to become involved, and socio-economic environment.

Opened in 1992, Lapa Rios is recognized worldwide as an example of profitable and successful eco tourism.  With only 16 guest rooms, Lapa Rios employs 50 individuals, most of them locals, contributing to greater and more diverse economic opportunities for the region.

Some of the ways these categories are visible to the guest include ordering the evening meal at breakfast, therefore minimizing waste.  Trails are minimally lit and each guest room is provided a rechargeable battery operated flashlight for nighttime walks on the property.

Electricity is generated via solar panels, which are also used to provide line-drying of bed linens and guest towels in the 100 percent humidity of the rain forest.

And Coca-Cola is served from glass bottles, something that was impossible to find in Costa Rica until Lapa Rios organized support from other hotels to demand that the Coca-Cola Company abandon aluminum cans in favor of the more environmentally friendly glass bottles.

The name Lapa Rios literally translates to “the river of the Scarlet Macaw,” one of the endangered species found in greater abundance here on the Osa Peninsula than anywhere else in the country.  Overall, the peninsula is home to 140 species of mammals, 370 birds, 120 amphibians and reptiles and 6000 insects.

It is entirely possible to see many of these creatures while simply walking the trails from guest rooms to dining room to beach to yoga. However, guests may immerse themselves in the rainforest with guided nighttime tours, local medicine tours, wild waterfall hikes, and kayak tours through mangroves.

Information on more sustainable hotels in Costa Rica can be found at http://www.cayugaonline.com/hotels_and_resorts.html.

–Diana Lambdin Meyer, Red travel writer
–Photo of white-faced monkey by Bruce N. Meyer