Cubs at Phillies

I went to my first baseball game ever when I was in college. I went to see the Chicago Cubs play at Wrigley Field when me and some friends drove another friend to the Windy City for a college interview.  I have always been an avid Cubs fan so it was a truly wonderful experience for me...one I'll definitely never forget.  It was Ryne Sandberg's last year playing...Mark Grace was still with them (he jumped ship to the Florida Marlins within a couple of years thereafter).  It was a great experience except that we had to leave after the 8th-inning and the Cubs ended up rallying in the bottom of the 9th for the win.  I was bummed, but it is what it is.

Since then, I've just loved going to professional baseball games.  There's something about the feel of the ballpark that just fills me with joy.  I love the game of baseball in and of itself, which is definitely a bonus.  There's so much history in the game...so much history that shows many correlations with the development American culture through the years.  It is really an amazing game in many ways.  Now, I try not to think about the money involved with the atheletes because it nauseates me to no end.  I just focus on the game...the atmosphere, the embience, the friendly banter between the home team crowd and the visiting team crowd the come to see their teams in the opposing stadiums.  For me, its just one of those things that makes my life a bit more enjoyable, (sans the HGH years, which I totally write off as a travesty and refuse to recognize any achievement that occurred during that time), a bit more....grand, if you will. 

This game was particularly fun for me. To start off, I got the ticket for free because my wife's cousin had 2 extra tickets so, knowing that they were playing the Cubs, he asked if I wanted to go. Saying no was completely out of the question. The seats were amazing...right field just to the outside of the bullpen. I also had the opportunity to rock my throwback Ryne Sandberg t-shirt (which I rationalized by telling some folks who questioned me that I was also representing the Phillies because Sandberg came up with the Phillies and is now managing their Triple-A squad...it seemed to work). The best part, though, was an older gentleman, a long-time Cubs fan, who was about 3 rows behind me who was up on his feet the whole game cheering on the boys in blue...without a care in the world...donned in a white Cubs t-shirt he bought during a trip to Jerusalem. He was a lot of fun...and I plan on going to a baseball game every chance I get in every town I have the opportunity.  Mostly though, I can't wait to be able to take Christopher and Matthew to games with me and share the wonderful experience with them...which is what it's all about.