Seven Villages, Janet Joakim

Despite the opening day fiasco against what was, in the recent past, one of the worst teams in baseball: I BELIEVE.

(more photos)
Two weeks ago Wednesday, we got off our Jet Blue flight at 10:30 in Tampa, grabbed our budget priced rental car, set the GPS for the Pirates spring training field in Bradenton. We arrived at the ticket window, 10 minutes before the game between the Pirates and the Red Sox would begin. Despite “sold out” signs taped up all over the windows, I asked if there were any seats available. I had dodged scalpers selling tickets for $40 a piece – I had no cash, just a credit card and a friend had told me to that seats were usually available at the window the day of the game.

“Two seats will be $32,” the young man behind the window told me.

“Where are the seats?” I asked.

He pointed to a spot on a seating map that looked like it was about 12 rows behind home plate. I figured that might be a mistake, but I was hot, tired and the national anthem was beginning. As I was standing hand over heart straining to see the flag from the ticket office my husband joined me – he had just parked the car in a $5 lot.

“I just heard someone say that Dice-K is pitching today,” he said as we went through the security gate.

We were shown to our seats, 12th row behind home plate. Wow. You have to be kidding, we were saying to each other as my favorite player, Jason Varitek came up to bat.

Incredible seats, 80 degrees and breezy, sitting in our shorts and t-shirts, and I was taking photos (a favorite hobby) of my favorite team, so close …. this was heaven and we were only a couple of hours into the well deserved 8 days rest prescribed by everyone close to us.

We were entertained by our new $100,000 man. I have been suspicious of the money this team has put forth for this new pitcher. But the attention that he generates, the seats and t-shirts he will sell all seem to point to profits even if, by chance, he doesn’t prove himself the world star he appears to be now.

After hitting the first batter, he threw a fast and furious pitch that got the best of most of the batters. In the 6th inning when Francona headed to the mound to pull him, he smiled and bowed, gave a quick wave and the entire place cheered and applauded. Apparently, the first time this happened he was confused and unhappy because in Japan a pitcher must finish the inning.

Manny Delcarmen quickly provided us with the reasons Francona later decided to send him back to the minors, and we left early.

Another game the next day at the Phillies spring training field with Wakefield became even more exiting for me when Papelbon relieved. I learned later that he had asked, and Franconia was happy to oblige him, to stay on as a closer and not move to a starter position.

Sunsets and morning walks on the beach, (accessible to all, as no one owns the beach!) visits with our daughter, a drive down the coast to Key West and lots of sun and sandy feet made it a perfect respite from the stress of the past couple of months.

With a little more peace in the sould, I can now I read the summaries of the COG slog (provided to me by a constiutent) with a little more empathy for those who write it. Perhaps a couple shots of JD helps fortify those who bang on the keys of hate. Of course it helps to keep the textbooks from my college phsych 101 and 102 at hand when reading these summaries, but most of all it is best to not read the COG slog in its entirety, and someday, maybe I won’t read it at all……