We had a good sized group and it was great to see everybody. In addition to Rich and Lora, we were joined by brother Steve and his girlfriend Deena as well as niece Paula and her two adorable daughters. (Unfortunately, Matt couldn't make it.) On the way to Nationals Park, we picked up my brother-in-law Brian in Woodbridge and said hi to Laurey and the girls - Megan was still in Finals, so Laurey had to hold down the fort and unfortunately couldn't join us. Then at the ballpark, nephew Sam and his girlfriend Molina joined us.
The drive from Hillsborough was uneventful - is there any stretch of road more boring than the 57 miles between South Hill and Petersburg on I-85? - and I rolled in around 1:30 or so, just right after Paula, Deena, and the girls had arrived from Carlisle. Ample time before we left at 5:00 PM to visit and partake of some brews from Rich's home bar (recently upgraded to a beautiful 2 tap tower).
There was lots of traffic on I-395 heading to the ballpark - traffic in DC, I kid you not - but Rich handled it expertly (with plenty of navigation support from Lora and Brian) and kept contact with Paula (driving behind us with Steve, Deena, and the girls). We parked in the same lot on M Street that we used last year ($10.00). It is actually not a bad deal and makes for a pleasant walk to the park.
I again was very impressed with Nationals Park. It was a beautiful and surprisingly comfortable evening with a nice breeze blowing and a good pace to the game.
The next time I take in a game there, I'd like to maybe do the Red Loft Bar in center field. (Sam remarked that while buying rounds at an earlier game in the Red Loft Bar, one of his friends had bought a round of $12 margaritas. Must have been one hell of a margarita.) I also was meaning to get to Ben's Chili Bowl inside the ballpark.
No sense dwelling on the actual game. Another Pirate loss. Loss 5 of what would be a 12 game tailspin, part of a stretch of 5-22 from May 26 through June 26. Sandwiched between the historic Steven Strassburg debut two night earlier and what might be the saddest week in the franchise's storied history.
I won't bum everyone out and go into the gory details here. If you are really into the masochism deal, just read Bob Smizek's excellent daily blog at the the PG. As Lester Bangs told budding rock journalist William Miller in Almost Famous, "Be honest and unmerciful." Smizek has the unmerciful part down. My friend Bob reminded me of the time Smizek commented on the trade of Marvel Wynne in the mid 80s by remarking "If ever there was a case of addition by subtraction....".
Fortunately I was able to take my mind off of the Pirates woes and enjoy my niece Paula's beautiful daughters, Megan and Emma. Even though they had taken a long car trip from home and were in unfamiliar surroundings, they were so pleasant and well-behaved.
They kept close by Paula, Steve, and Deena during the game, so after the game I decided to make my move. Shamelessly, I am not above name dropping to get an inside edge. As we gathered on the concourse waiting for some folks to complete their bathroom duties, I gathered the girls together. As they warily sized me up, I confided in them: "You know Grandpap? He is my brother."
That was all it took. I had instant credibility and was now in the club. I asked the girls to pose for a couple of shots. Check this awesome one out:
Both girls' expressions reveal the look of contentment and happiness that comes from a realization that they have loving, caring, and patient parents and the world's best grandfather (I understand the latter is a subjective judgement and I am a bit biased.) In Emma's case, I am also struck by this air of quiet confidence that says "I may be the younger one, but underestimate me at your own risk!".
As we started walking back, still on the concourse, Megan, unsolicited, grabbed my hand for the entire walk back to the parking lot. About a third of the way there, Rich grabbed the other hand and Megan decided to get in some long jump practice. This was a process where she would lift both feet off the ground, suspended by me and Rich, dragging her along for longer and longer distances. Let's just say that Bob Beamon had nothing on Megan''s takeoff form. While this was going on, Emma was riding close by on Steve's shoulders, dodging low hanging branches and keeping an eye on her older sister. Highlight of my trip.
The next morning, Rich and Lora fed us an awesome breakfast. Emma was a little down in the dumps as she lost out to her older sister in the sweepstakes for a particular mini-box of cereal that both girls coveted. But again, Steve came to the rescue. Propping Emma on his lap and feeding her eggs, bacon, and killer strawberries, Steve made everything OK again in Emma's world. Something tells me that this is a pretty regular occurrence.
