Plans were made, and the trip was set. I got up this morning with a promise of a high for the day of 62 degrees. The early morning temperature was a mere 34 degrees with frost on the window. The coolers were already in the back of the big ass Dodge Hemi, so all I had to do was defrost and go! Man cub's girly friend even gave him permission to spend some quality time with dear ole Dad. The closer I got to Starkvegas, the more excited I got. Once I passed through Louisville, I sent Teresa a text, telling her I'd be there soon with the delivery of her two cooler boxes.
The GPS is a funny thing. For fun, I followed its instructions to a T. It had me turn right off of Hwy 25, right before you get to HWY 82, on Reed Road, which turns into Garrard, then to Old West Point Road. I saw stuff I'd never seen before. I even crossed North Montgomery, a mile north of our Condo. I ended up on a gravel road, then made the insurance call to make sure I was in the right place for the delivery. Confirmed!
After meeting Teresa and her husband Gerald, we discovered how small the world is. Teresa's Aunt and Uncle were Pete and Cricket King, from my home town of Inverness. Turns out we had several friends in common as well. Delivery complete, it was time for some MSU baseball!
I picked up the man cub, then the search for a parking spot began. MSU had tennis, basketball, and baseball going on at the same time. I suggested a spot near the architecture school. Man cub said "no way, too far to walk! Go behind the Hump!" Well! around in circles we went! All lots were preassigned, especially with both basketball and baseball happening at the same time. Man cub looked over at me and said,"I hate it when you are right!" (most of the time :-) )
As we made our way to the ball park, an older gentleman was holding up two tickets. I stopped and asked "basketball or baseball?" He replied "baseball, two chairback seats and a double header, $20". Well that was a no brainer, even if the man cub could get in free with his student ID. Dad was gonna be a big spender today! And wouldn't you know, the seats were right behind home plate, row 2, and seats on the end of the row. Winner, winner chicken dinner!
It wasn't long before an older than me couple sat down in front of us. They were loyal baseball fans that have been coming for years. The guy even offered us two tickets for free for Sunday's game, which we politely declined, since we were there just for the double header, and man cub needed to study on Sunday. I made it a day trip visit since with the live in girly friend, its hard to sleep triple in a queen size bed, if you know what I mean....
It wasn't hard to strike up a conversation with our neighbors. I asked the man cub how his arts and crafts class projects were going. The lady spun her head around, then commented "you're taking arts and crafts? My granddaughter goes here and she takes arts and crafts. Maybe ya'll are in the same class!"
One of the items that I brought with me was "the ring". I asked him what his plans were with "the ring". Before he could answer, the lady spun around and said, "you're giving your girl a ring? I hope she says yes! You seem like a nice boy! Yep, She'll say yes!" We just looked at each other and chuckled, wondering what other topics the lady might be interested in.....
The husband left to get some food. He came back with a handful of food including two hot dogs. I asked " did you dress hers like she likes it or the way you like it?" He replied "her way, of course!" The lady looks at me, said they like it the same and winked at me! Lord! For a second, I thought she was flirting with me!
Our seats were absolutely fantastic, except for one thing. The whole time we were at the game, we were in the shade. I asked the couple, does the sun ever shine on these seats???? The reply was "NEVER!", a good thing in late April and the month of May, but quite chilly on this late February afternoon!
After the first game was over, we stopped at concessions for a snack, then made our way over to the 3rd base bleachers for some warmth. Within 30 minutes the sun was again already behind the home stands, making even more shade. Since neither of us had ever been to the "Left Field Lounge", we decided to stretch our legs, find some more sun rays, and see what it was all about. No sooner had we gotten around the MSU pull pen, one of the lounge lizards was offering us a taste of homemade brats and pig wings! That was some fine eating!
As we worked our way over to the third base side, we were able to get a good look at the "Left Field Lounge Redneck Skyboxes"! These contraptions have to be mobile so that once the baseball season is over, they all mist be removed. Some of this will change with the renovations that are planned get underway. It was really neat to see and smell the sights and hear the sounds of the game. You can see and smell the charcoal smoke in the air and start guessing what might be cooking on the grills. There was also the smell of recently boiled mudbugs in the air as well.
Being a people watcher, the man cub noticed, jabbed me in the side, and said "Dad, you're supposed to be watching the game!" Gals were there wearing every fashion available, with their high top Converse sneakers, boots, and flippers! And as custom, all the young bucks were right behind with ice chests with locks in tow. A fella can get awful thirsty, watching, at a baseball game, especially from the lizard lounge!
MSU won both games of the double header. I came out a winner too! Saw 2 games, plenty of bird watching, and best of all, quality time with the man cub, minus the lady with the sonar ears! Its always a good time to be had when you hear the words "play ball!" and this good time will be revisited, as we have tickets for two games when the spousal units Black Bears come to town in a month.
Time next time!
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