This is the big finale – the showdown between such powerhouse video stars as Bill “Surf Dog” Connell and my own mother, the Grande Dame of She-Fans, along with a couple of surprise contenders. Who will win the golden fan in this major category?

You’ll be the judge and it won’t be easy. Without further ado, here are the nominees for the 2010 She-Fan Video Award/Best Yankee Fan Video Period…

(Drum roll)

1) Rachel, the Yankee Fan Nurse. In January, my husband Michael was a patient at Cottage Hospital here in Santa Barbara. I was understandably nervous when he was first admitted to his room, but when his nurse came in to take his history and I asked her if she was a baseball fan (I have no idea why I even brought up the subject, given the setting) AND out popped the fact that she and her husband were Yankee fans….Well, she became my new favorite person. She provided some much needed cheer and for that she deserves consideration this year.

2) Mom, the 93-year-old-soon-to-be-94-year-old Yankee fan. When I spent a month back east this summer, the trip afforded me lots of time with my mother, who was a runner up to Surf Dog Bill for last year’s She-Fan Video Award. This time the interview was so long that I had to split it into two parts. In Part 1, she discussed her affection for Mo (she uttered the memorable “Mo’s spit is different from A-Rod’s” line). In Part 2, shown here, she has a few words for readers of this blog.

3) Jane, the HOPE Week Yankee Fan. See what I mean about tough competition? I’m throwing Jane Lang and her lovable guide dog into the mix. Jane, as most Yankee fans know, was celebrated at the Stadium this summer. Although blind, she takes the train to the Bronx from NJ so she can “watch” her boys. When she was honored by Girardi and the players, she reached up and touched their faces, just as she did with mine after our interview – “to get a sense of you” is how she put it. How can Jane Lang not be a nominee?

4) Bill, the “Surf Dog” Yankee fan. Who can forget the guy with the hot dog stand here in Carpinteria, California? He singlehandedly turns even casual beach goers into diehards with his animated (OK, rabid) fandom. His cart sports a Yankees flag. He carries a Yankees wallet in his pocket. And he’ll talk about the Yankees to anybody who’ll listen – and I mean anybody. The 2009 champ, will he hold onto the golden fan? I interviewed him last month as the Yanks were still fighting for the division title. His predictions for them were a bit off, but they were spot on for the Giants!

So there you have it – four nominees that need your votes. (One vote to a customer.) Go ahead and pick a winner! You can do it!

Yikes. It wasn’t even close this time. My mother won in a landslide and poor Surf Dog didn’t get a single vote. Nurse Rachel, on the other hand, was a better-than-expected contender and, of course, a couple of you championed Jane Lang. I can’t wait to tell Mom the good news. Thanks, everybody. I know it’ll make her day when I explain that she is now the holder of the golden fan.