Pittsburgh Trip

            Last April I visited Pittsburgh and then Niagara Falls with my family.  I know that sounds random.  I’ll explain.  We wanted to see Niagara Falls; my mom has always wanted to see them.  But how long can you look at a couple of water falls?  I wanted to visit a new stadium.  The closest stadiums to Niagara Falls are Toronto and Cleveland.  However, we are National League people; Pittsburgh wasn’t that much farther than Cleveland, so that is where we decided to go.  The plan was to fly into Pittsburgh, spend a couple of days, drive to Niagara Falls, spend a few days and then fly back out of Buffalo.  Honestly, I was most excited about Pittsburgh.  Aside from being a huge baseball fan about to visit a new ballpark, I am also hockey fan and my team is the Pittsburgh Penguins.  We were not going to try to go to a Penguins game.  The playoffs would have been in full swing by then and we did not try to plan the trip around them.  It worked out that they were not in town while we were anyway.  I was very excited nonetheless. 

            We arrived in Pittsburgh early Saturday afternoon and had tickets to the Pirates game that night.  One of the first observations I had about the city was that every third or fourth person I saw had on something associated with the Penguins, Pirates or Steelers.  Hailing from a state with no professional sports franchises, I was jealous.  I would love to live in a city that has professional sports teams because there seemed to be such a great sense of camaraderie.  I was very excited about visiting PNC Park.  It is not a huge park, but it is built like a classic ballpark; which became popular after the round, all-purpose, cookie-cutter stadiums.  I am sorry to say that I did not see near as much of the park as I would have liked.  As anyone would (or at least, should) we watched the weather for a week or so before leaving.  Every day the expected temperatures for our trip dropped.  That night at PNC Park was COLD.  The residents of Pittsburgh may not have felt this extreme about it because they are probably a little more used to it: but being from Alabama, we were very cold.  We went straight to our seats and the only time any of us moved was when my mom and I went to get hot chocolate for everyone.  We did have a great view of the field and Roberto Clemente Bridge behind centerfield.  The Pirates beat the Cardinals 2-0 and that was A.J. Burnett’s debut as a Pirate.  I would love to go back to PNC Park and actually get to walk around.  I understand they have a river walk.  I bet that’s nice.  It was just not happening that night. 



Roberto Clemente Bridge behind centerfield



            As I mentioned, the weather was very cold.  Here’s how cold it was.  We were supposed to spend two nights in Pittsburgh.  The next day (after our first night) we decided we needed to leave for Niagara Falls a day early because an ice storm was coming.  Literally, the local weather said the ice storm would be worst between Pittsburgh and Buffalo; the exact route we were taking.  The lovely people at the hotel in Pittsburgh agreed and were kind enough to let us out of our second night’s reservations and luckily the hotel we had reservations with at Niagara Falls were able to have our rooms available a day early.

The falls as seen from the Maid of the Mist tour

The Niagara Falls are beautiful.  Our first couple of days there were also cold and we really only had one day (our last day) with temperate weather.  It snowed, and when you’re from Alabama, that’s big.  It did not stick, but it was so pretty falling.  I am probably the only one from that trip that would say that as cold as it was, it was bearable.  That is because I was the most prepared with ear muffs, gloves and scarves.  We had a great view of the falls from our room and we visited some of the restaurants and shops on those cold days.  One of the most ironic moments in the trip was when we went to Margaritaville, ate Cheeseburgers in Paradise, drank margaritas and then walked back out into the snow.  I looked for a shirt in the gift shop that read, “The weather is here, I wish you were beautiful.” but I could not find one I liked; it would have been fitting.  That last day was great.  We took the Maid of the Mist tour, visited the flower clock, saw a couple of films about the falls.  The most interesting thing about the falls is how much they have eroded over the last few hundred years and the methods they are using to slow the erosion now.  It is amazing to think that they can slow down such a powerful force of nature.  They really are something to see.   




Our view of Niagara Falls from our room

 





St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

            I love St. Patrick’s Day!  I am part Irish; not that that matters, everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day.  I will wear my green today, eat corn beef and cabbage (in the form of a Reuben sandwich) and life will be grand.  But there is one thing about St. Patrick’s Day that I am not fond of…..MLB’s St. Patrick’s Day merchandise.  This time of year there are entire sections of the online MLB shop devoted to green clothes: shirts, hats, shorts, you name it.  I don’t know if it’s because I am an accountant and tend to be frugal so I do not understand buying this merchandise that is only relevant for ONE day (not even a day during the regular season at that) or if it’s because only one team has green in their color scheme so this merchandise looks somewhat awkward, but I just don’t like it.  Apparently some people enjoy it; it comes back year after year and occasionally you will see a random green hat with an MLB logo on it.  It wouldn’t be so bad if the players did not have to incorporate green into their uniforms.  Last year the Braves wore their blue jerseys with the red tomahawk and lettering and a green hat.  I love green and navy together, but it was a weird look.  The Dodgers wore a green jersey with “Dodgers” in white and the traditional red numbers and the Cardinals wore green jerseys with the traditional red cardinals sitting on the bat and “Cardinals” underneath.  Red on green just makes me think of Christmas. 

            I have never been a fan of merchandise in any color other than the team’s official colors.  Okay, that’s not entirely true.  While I was in college a ton of Auburn shirts came out in various colors and I bought a brown sweatshirt with pink letters.  In my defense, my sorority’s colors are brown and mode (light brown) and we love to incorporate pink; so it was sort of relevant…to me.  Also, in my defense, I never wore it to a sporting event.  For a while there was a lot of women’s merchandise that was baby pink, regardless of the team’s colors.  I find that practice a little offensive.  That trend seems to have tapered off.  Hopefully this means female fans are being taken more seriously.  Because it’s hard to take anyone seriously when they are wearing shirt or hat representing a team, but the shirt or hat is a completely random color.          

Say it ain't so Chipper

            There is a rumor going around that the Yankees are trying to talk Chipper Jones out of retirement.  I have seen one article, but I'm sure there are more.  I just cannot imagine this.    To say this would be devastating to Braves fans would be an understatement.  Chipper is "our guy".  To have had a franchise player of that caliber means the world to us.  I think it means a great deal to Chipper too.  At least that's the impression I got from all of the interviews I saw last season.  In one interview he went as far to say that he did not know if he would have been a franchise player if he had been with another team.  He loved Atlanta and the area that much.  Plus, I got the impression that he was genuinely ready to retire; he wanted to spend more time with his kids, his knees weren't what they used to be, etc., etc.  I just do not think he would come out of retirement; especially for a team other than the Braves.

            Another thing to factor in is that it would be tacky.  I know that is not a real life concern, but it would.  Every team the Braves visited last season commemorated Chipper's last year.  As did MLB as a whole.  It was THE story for the entire season.  Not to mention the Braves have already scheduled to retire his number this season.  I don't follow the NFL, but even I got tired of the whole Brett Farve situation.  I would hate to see Chipper go out like that  Of course, I guess when it comes to making millions one could look past being tacky. 

            Overall, I think it is a non-issue; Chipper wouldn't do that..........would he?   

 

St. Louis Trip

            During the summer of 2010 I visited St. Louis.  It’s kind of funny how the trip came about.  I was at Momma Goldberg’s with a girl friend and she mentioned that she was going up there for a wedding.  She was leaving on a Friday and coming back on Sunday.  She was meeting some girls up there, they were going to the Cardinals game Friday, the wedding Saturday and then home on Sunday.  I started to get jealous.  Then she told me that her husband had just taken a new job and could not make the trip because he had training.  We finished dinner and headed home.  On the way home it hit me…they have an extra ticket to the Cardinals game.  Dare I call her and ask if I could tag along?  The idea seemed so intrusive and really not like me.  I am still a little embarrassed that I invited myself along like I did.  But I called her and said, “Hey, what if I went with you?  I could go the game and use the extra ticket Friday, do my own thing Saturday while you are at the wedding, and then we leave Sunday.”  She said yes.  I was so excited!  The next day I got the okay to take off that Friday and booked a seat on the same flight as my friend.  I was set.

            About a week later we left for St. Louis.  We had a funny conversation on the fight there about how few red articles of clothing we owned; I am an Auburn girl who just does not own very much red.  We landed in St. Louis, went for a quick ride on the MetroLink and then walked for a couple of blocks to the hotel.  Once all of her friends made it to the hotel we went out for a bite and then headed to the stadium.  We were staying about two blocks from the stadium so we were able to walk.  I have said before that one of the first things I like about the Cardinals was their stadium, and that was just after seeing it on TV.  In person it is even better.  All of the seats are bright Cardinal red.  They contrast very well with the vibrant green grass.  The exterior and some of the interior is red brick.  The entire facility has a very bold look to it.  The Gateway Arch towers over centerfield and its image is cut into the grass across the outfield.  That night the Cardinals beat the Brewers 8-0.  Adam Wainwright pitched a complete game and only allowed two hits. 

            The next day they headed to the wedding and I was on my own to do some sight-seeing.  I visited the St. Louis Zoo.  I love zoos, always have; and St. Louis has a huge zoo.  After the zoo I went back to the hotel to figure out my next move and saw that the Cardinals had just started their game.  So I went back to the stadium.  I bought a standing room only ticket and after wandering around for a bit I found a seat that no one else appeared to be using.  I figured worse case scenario someone would tell me it was their seat and I would just find another one; but no one ever came to claim the seat.  That day the Cardinals beat the Brewers 5-4 in eleven innings.



            The next day we visited the Gateway Arch before heading home.  The Arch is so much bigger than you think it is.  Our hotel was right in front of it, but when we started walking toward it we realized we were not as close as we thought, meaning the Arch was just that much bigger.  The museum, gift shop and entrance to the ride into the Arch are all underground, so the area outside is just a big park, the Mississippi River and the Arch.  It is very spacious and nice.  We rode the elevator into the top of the Arch, which is 630 feet high.  The view was incredible, especially the view of the stadium.  After touring the Arch we headed back to the airport to go home.  It was a great weekend and a great trip.        





View of Busch Stadium from the Gateway Arch

 







My Baseball Playlist

            I have a baseball playlist on my iPod.  I love it.  It started off as songs that I already had on my iPod that I grouped together to listen to as I patiently waited on Spring Training games to start.  I also thought it would be fun to listen to on the way to games.  Now I listen to it fairly often; waiting on Spring Training, en route to games and anytime I need something fun and nostalgic.  I know seek out songs just for it and it has grown quite a bit.  Here is what I have so far:

“Take Me Out to the Ballgame” – Carly Simon – The full song.  In case you didn’t know, what we sing during the seventh inning stretch is just the chorus.

Milo Hamilton’s radio call of Hank Aaron’s 715^th home run

“Willie, Mickey & “The Duke” (Talkin’ Baseball)” – Terry Cashman

“Centerfield” – John Fogerty

“Glory Days” – Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band

“This Town” – O.A.R.

Jack Buck’s radio call of Ozzie Smith’s walk-off home run in the 1985 National League Championship Series – “Go crazy folks!  Go crazy!"

“Take Me Out to the Ballgame” – Billy Joel; live at Shea Stadium – Billy Joel plays the intro to “Piano Man”, but then goes into “Take Me Out to the Ballgame”; this version has a fun, carnival like sound.

“Right Field” – Peter, Paul & Mary – The cutest baseball song ever.

“Mrs. Robinson” – Simon & Garfunkle – “Where have you gone Joe DiMaggio? Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you.”  That statement is as true now as it was in 1968 when the song was released.

“Joltin’ Joe DiMaggio” – Les Brown and His Orchestra

“I Love Mickey” – Teresa Brewer

“Did You See Jackie Robinson Hit That Ball?” -  Count Basie and His Orchestra

“Say Hey (The Willie Mays Song)” – The Treniers

“Who’s on First?” – Bud Abbot & Lou Costello

“Take Me Out to the Ballgame” – Jimmy Buffett; live at Fenway Park

“Dirty Water” – The Standells

“Tessie” – Dropkick Murphys

“Sweet Caroline” – Neil Diamond – The last three songs are about Boston and the Red Sox or commonly played at Fenway Park.  I am not a Red Sox fan, but I do love the movie “Fever Pitch”, which also features these songs.

“Take Me Out to the Ballgame” – Carly Simon – This version is a little less upbeat and has a soulful piano solo.

“I Love LA” – Randy Newman - “We love it!”

“Dodger Blue” – Dave Frishberg

Jack Buck’s radio call of Kirk Gibson’s walk-off home run in game one of the 1988 World Series

“Don’t Stop Believin’” – Journey – No self-respecting playlist about sports is without this one.

            I have rearranged the playlist several times, trying to come up with just the right order.  You cannot listen to it on shuffle because inevitably “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” will come on three times in a row.  I would LOVE to find more radio calls, but there just are not that many in iTunes.  In particular, I would love to have the following:

- Sid Bream’s slide that won the 1992 National League pennant for the Braves

- Vin Scully’s call of Kirk Gibson’s walk-off home run in game one of the 1988 World Series; “In the year of the improbable, the impossible has happened!”

- Tom Cheek’s call of Joe Carter’s 1993 World Series winning walk-off home run; “Touch ‘em all Joe! You’ll never hit a bigger home run!”

I guess I’ll keep looking.

Let me know if I’m missing anything crucial.