>Baseball! The weather was nice, it was Saturday night, so we decided to take in a minor league baseball game.

So did a few thousand other fans. I couldn’t get tickets in the “good seats” that we like best. I couldn’t get three, so I tried two, and the web site still told me “No, try fewer tickets or another section.” I gave in and bought bleacher seats on the third base side toward the outfield. Amigo was okay with that, as it meant there would be a good crowd.
He wasn’t kidding; the park was packed, and it was great. Watching people watching baseball is a lot of fun, too.
In front of us, the young mom made friends with Amigo as he sang along with each and every song on the PA system. She called him “Mr. Jukebox.” We knew that; he has an amazing memory. If only he’d use it to do better in school…but I digress.
Off to the right and a few rows ahead we noticed a family that must have been at their first game ever. Everything was new and exciting. The husband excitedly filled the memory card on his camera with game shots, pictures of the young boy behind him stuffing his face with a soft pretzel dipped in cheese, and Fang, the mascot, dancing on top of the dugout. They joined in doing the wave, smiled at the crowd singing “Take me out to the ballgame,” and in general, seemed to enjoy immersing themselves in this piece of Americana.
To our left was a large group of teenagers talking, laughing, and cheering loudly, seemingly in constant motion. The young man next to me kept apologizing for bumping into me, and made me laugh as he and his friends pushed the rest of the teens in his row into the smallest space possible. When I teased him about avoiding me because I’m a teacher, a younger one (his brother, perhaps?) begged me to give out detentions! This crew was most fun when the PA system played a song that none of the adults knew, but caused every teen in the park (including Amigo) to jump up and dance. Cha-cha, slide, jump, and what else? If anyone at the game was grumpy, they couldn’t be after that. Contagious energy, near-spontaneous fun!
A foul ball sped into the crowd behind us hitting a spectator’s hand so hard she couldn’t hold it, causing at least one nearby fan to spill his beer. No serious injuries, fortunately, and the stadium staff was on the scene immediately.
Husband and I shared a funnel cake (ah, how romantic), and fought off the cool wind by sitting close together. It was a cool, cool night for August!

After a week that included a trek to a Milwaukee clinic, too much time spent gathering lab samples, an endodontist appointment, the Favre saga, and more, this was the perfect ending to a stressful week.

Take me out to the ball game anytime!

By the way, the home team won, 2-1, in the eleventh inning.