Aprl 16th, 2011 | 12:55 am
mood: 
cheerful
I grew up watching baseball. Specifically, the Toronto Blue Jays. My grandfather took me to my first game when I was seven. The Jays played at the old Exhibition Stadium and my Grandpa used to get the cheap tickets that the large chain grocery stores would sell for the break the bank cost of $5 each. The seats were out in never-never land and you had to use binoculars to bring the players into any kind of focus (and even then they still looked like tiny ants running around the field.)
Grandpa would bring this cooler full of goodies (Coke, roasted peanuts in their shells, chocolate bars) and on rare occasions he would spring for an ice-cream or a ballpark dog wrapped in foil. I can still remember the steam rising from those dogs on cold days, sometimes, it was the only thing that would warm your hands.
Gramps would sit there and patiently explain the game to me and I loved it. I didn't have a Dad around so he was the man in my life. In some respects, he didn't do a good job with his own kids, so I often wondered if he strived to make up for that by doing better for me. I had (and still have) a love for sports that I attribute to both his endless teaching and good genes:-)
The Jays were young back then, so they were far from competitive. It really was all about the love of the game, but I also knew that I enjoyed the company. There was something so freeing about sitting up there with a blanket on your knees, thermos of hot chocolate at your feet, and peanut shells piling high in your lap.as you tore open the hard shell to get at the prized peanut.
My favourite days by far, came when it was warm enough to get out those cans of Coke. They were a treat for me and I always felt like I was getting away with something when I drank a whole one down. I still remember the feeling of the ice cold drink sliding smoothly down my throat. It was heaven, even more so when it was accompanied by the sound of a bat making contact with the ball hitting the sweet spot. The ring off the bat was unmistakable going, going, gone...
My grandfather died in 1990. Two years before the Jays would take their first world series title in the confines of the (then) Skydome. I'm sad that he never got to see them win, but I was never sad that he didn't see a live game in the dome. I think he would have hated it. There's nothing "old school" about it. The weather isn't a factor, the field is a modern day engineering feat, and I have yet to smell the dogs like I did back then. It's just too modern for me to really enjoy it.
The team, long past the "glory" days of '92, '93 are once again back to a "building" phase. Some days they are fun to watch, but I have to admit, it's not the same without Gramps explaining the WHIP, or the RBI or clinking our cans of Coke together as another ball flies out of the park. I still watch the games, but there will forever be that missing piece or more accurately, that missing person that completes the puzzle.
In the end, I'm grateful for all that he taught me but most importantly, I'm grateful for the time he spent with me (even if it was a lot of stairs for the kid on crutches--"You can do it" he'd say, in a firm, sure voice) and when I doubt myself all I have to do is listen closely and I'll hear that voice whispering in my ear "You can do it."
Sometimes, a day at the ballpark isn't all about the game. Sometimes, it's about defining moments, marking time, and remembering what matters, as you huddle up in the bleachers watching the little men run the bases in hopes of finding their way home.
I hope that my grandfather found his way "home" and that even if he's not sitting beside me watching the game, he watches over me and knows that I will always carry him with me and hey, I hope he likes my rendition of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" as I sit home alone during the seventh inning stretch and belt it out, Coke in hand.Some traditions are just too good to let go of. :-)
Play Ball!
Grandpa would bring this cooler full of goodies (Coke, roasted peanuts in their shells, chocolate bars) and on rare occasions he would spring for an ice-cream or a ballpark dog wrapped in foil. I can still remember the steam rising from those dogs on cold days, sometimes, it was the only thing that would warm your hands.
Gramps would sit there and patiently explain the game to me and I loved it. I didn't have a Dad around so he was the man in my life. In some respects, he didn't do a good job with his own kids, so I often wondered if he strived to make up for that by doing better for me. I had (and still have) a love for sports that I attribute to both his endless teaching and good genes:-)
The Jays were young back then, so they were far from competitive. It really was all about the love of the game, but I also knew that I enjoyed the company. There was something so freeing about sitting up there with a blanket on your knees, thermos of hot chocolate at your feet, and peanut shells piling high in your lap.as you tore open the hard shell to get at the prized peanut.
My favourite days by far, came when it was warm enough to get out those cans of Coke. They were a treat for me and I always felt like I was getting away with something when I drank a whole one down. I still remember the feeling of the ice cold drink sliding smoothly down my throat. It was heaven, even more so when it was accompanied by the sound of a bat making contact with the ball hitting the sweet spot. The ring off the bat was unmistakable going, going, gone...
My grandfather died in 1990. Two years before the Jays would take their first world series title in the confines of the (then) Skydome. I'm sad that he never got to see them win, but I was never sad that he didn't see a live game in the dome. I think he would have hated it. There's nothing "old school" about it. The weather isn't a factor, the field is a modern day engineering feat, and I have yet to smell the dogs like I did back then. It's just too modern for me to really enjoy it.
The team, long past the "glory" days of '92, '93 are once again back to a "building" phase. Some days they are fun to watch, but I have to admit, it's not the same without Gramps explaining the WHIP, or the RBI or clinking our cans of Coke together as another ball flies out of the park. I still watch the games, but there will forever be that missing piece or more accurately, that missing person that completes the puzzle.
In the end, I'm grateful for all that he taught me but most importantly, I'm grateful for the time he spent with me (even if it was a lot of stairs for the kid on crutches--"You can do it" he'd say, in a firm, sure voice) and when I doubt myself all I have to do is listen closely and I'll hear that voice whispering in my ear "You can do it."
Sometimes, a day at the ballpark isn't all about the game. Sometimes, it's about defining moments, marking time, and remembering what matters, as you huddle up in the bleachers watching the little men run the bases in hopes of finding their way home.
I hope that my grandfather found his way "home" and that even if he's not sitting beside me watching the game, he watches over me and knows that I will always carry him with me and hey, I hope he likes my rendition of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" as I sit home alone during the seventh inning stretch and belt it out, Coke in hand.Some traditions are just too good to let go of. :-)
Play Ball!
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Election Disconnection
Apr. 16th, 2011 | 11:57 pm
mood: 
annoyed
So Canada is having a federal election in May, just two years after the last one. Two opposing parties took it upon themselves to "join forces" and topple our current government on a "non-confidence" vote so, down they tumbled like a house of cards and Canadians are left to pick up the deck and straighten them out. Millions of dollars are going to be spent on an election that 62% of the population opposes. How's that for "listening to the voices of the people?" .
These guys just don't get it. Soaring hydro costs, spiking food prices, gas that nobody can afford, a health care system that is woefully inadequate, and they want to waste resources on an election. We had a minority government running things, (in other words nobody wanted to give them a majority because we didn't trust them to govern with a fair hand) and that wasn't good enough for the "old boys club." so here we are.
The one woman in the equation (Elizabeth May) is head of the Green Party and they wouldn't even give her a seat at the debate. Don't get me wrong, I'm far from being a tree-hugger but I absolutely support democracy and keeping her away from the debates was unnecessary. She didn't ask to be included, she asked to BE THERE. The leaders of the three major parties (liberal, conservative, democrat) all claimed that there was a scheduling "conflict" and they couldn't honour her request. Imagine the newspaper stories that ran when all three men agreed to change the french debate night because the Montreal Canadians were in a play-off game. They KNEW no one would watch the "fighting" unless it took place in an ice rink.
I've had volunteers from each of the three campaign offices, call to ask how I am voting (interesting that they never seem to ask for my opinion on any of the current issues) It's clear that it's going to be a dog fight.
Me? I'd love to see a consumer board voted in for each of our important issues. My guess? Three housewives used to managing a household on limited funds, could balance a hospital budget with a little ingenuity and a lot of imput from staff. In fact, I'll put my money on a consumer watch-dog committee any day of the week. Some objectivity could go a long way.
This "election" is all ego. I'll vote because it is my responsibility and privilege to do so, but I believe it to be completely futile. These pampered, rich men have no idea what REAL Canadians want or need, they have no clue what really matters to any of us, no clue what it's like to go without. I'd love to say "let's see how they relate when they are out of a job" but if that happens we'll just give them a hefty pension and send them on their way, so really, how does it hurt them?
In the end it's Canadians that will pay the price for all of this upheaval. Literally. Millions upon millions to settle a squabble betwwen boys. My prediction ANOTHER minority government. Nothing will change. We should have left them on the playground, it would have been a heck of a lot cheaper.
Just the voice of one Canadian feeling the "election disconnection."
These guys just don't get it. Soaring hydro costs, spiking food prices, gas that nobody can afford, a health care system that is woefully inadequate, and they want to waste resources on an election. We had a minority government running things, (in other words nobody wanted to give them a majority because we didn't trust them to govern with a fair hand) and that wasn't good enough for the "old boys club." so here we are.
The one woman in the equation (Elizabeth May) is head of the Green Party and they wouldn't even give her a seat at the debate. Don't get me wrong, I'm far from being a tree-hugger but I absolutely support democracy and keeping her away from the debates was unnecessary. She didn't ask to be included, she asked to BE THERE. The leaders of the three major parties (liberal, conservative, democrat) all claimed that there was a scheduling "conflict" and they couldn't honour her request. Imagine the newspaper stories that ran when all three men agreed to change the french debate night because the Montreal Canadians were in a play-off game. They KNEW no one would watch the "fighting" unless it took place in an ice rink.
I've had volunteers from each of the three campaign offices, call to ask how I am voting (interesting that they never seem to ask for my opinion on any of the current issues) It's clear that it's going to be a dog fight.
Me? I'd love to see a consumer board voted in for each of our important issues. My guess? Three housewives used to managing a household on limited funds, could balance a hospital budget with a little ingenuity and a lot of imput from staff. In fact, I'll put my money on a consumer watch-dog committee any day of the week. Some objectivity could go a long way.
This "election" is all ego. I'll vote because it is my responsibility and privilege to do so, but I believe it to be completely futile. These pampered, rich men have no idea what REAL Canadians want or need, they have no clue what really matters to any of us, no clue what it's like to go without. I'd love to say "let's see how they relate when they are out of a job" but if that happens we'll just give them a hefty pension and send them on their way, so really, how does it hurt them?
In the end it's Canadians that will pay the price for all of this upheaval. Literally. Millions upon millions to settle a squabble betwwen boys. My prediction ANOTHER minority government. Nothing will change. We should have left them on the playground, it would have been a heck of a lot cheaper.
Just the voice of one Canadian feeling the "election disconnection."
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