I know, I'm sorry too.
However, for me this time of year is one of great hope. At this point I can still somewhat delude myself into believing there is a chance . . . even the slimmest of chances, that this could be the year.
By next month a series of injuries, clubhouse dramas, and playing the Reds will have ended those hopes. It's an inevitability. But for now . . . hope.
And in 2008 those hopes were alive and well. Plus, after the first game of the season I was convinced Kosuke Fukudome was going to be the MVP. (He went 3-3 with a clutch 3-run homer! How could I not be excited? And I'm not exaggerating, I actually made the prediction that he'd be MVP . . sad.)
Opening day had been a Monday, followed by an off day (or a day for my Fukudome mania to spread) and Wednesday April 2nd was the second game of the year. Better yet, it was Cubs vs Brewers and that nice little rivalry was really starting to come to life that season (sidenote: Never, ever disrespect D-Lee seen above).
Also, Wednesday mornings we did men's prayer at 7:30 AM and being spring of my senior year my class load was notably light.
So, that morning I got up. Early. And dragged myself over the the beloved behemoth called Union South (sidenote: I loved that building.) After prayer I was talking to my buddy Mike, who comes up a lot in these writings, and we were discussing the upcoming season. Him as a Brewer's fan, me as a Cub's fan.
It was casually mentioned how awesome it would be to go to the game.
This was at 9:30. First pitch was 1:20. At Wrigley Field. The World's Greatest Baseball Venue.
With the mere mention, the decision was made.
Mike and I had several problems. 1. We had no car (and Chicago was 2 hours away). 2. We had no tickets.
So immediately we took to solving problem one. This consisted of calling everyone we know who either had a car or plausibly could borrow a car. We started with our obvious candidates and eventually even were calling people who had no interest in baseball. It was shameless. (sidenote: feel free to disrespect Ryan Theriot)
We also made a key move. We recruited our friend Ben to come with and help. This was great strategy because Ben is manipulative. If anyone could do it, he would be able to convince someone to drive us. And sure enough, a few calls later we got our friend Rick on the phone as he was sitting down in a lecture. But through effective cajoling moments later Rick was back on his feet walking out the door and acquiring us a driver. He's a wonderful man.
With problem one solved Mike and I joyfully skipped back to my apartment and went online looking for any possible tickets and sure enough we found four in the second deck way up behind the plate.
The idea was proposed at 9:30 and less than an hour later the four of us were on the road, headed to Chicago.
I did make one miscalculation.
I went with four Brewers fans. And as far as the result of that day's game . . . let's just remember that what really matters is that the Cubs won the division by over 7 games. Let's just focus on that fact and not think too much about April 2nd at Wrigley.
All in all, one of the best decisions of my college career.
0 comments:
Post a Comment