From the Buzz to the Nationals

Adventure of the day (Friday night): Washington Nationals Major League baseball game

I grew up going to Buzz games as a little girl. They were always such exciting events. We’d buy candy bars and sunflower seeds and hide them in our purses so the gate guards wouldn’t find them. I would always take my blue baseball mitt in the hopes of catching a fly ball. We’d go up with my mom on a perfect summer evening and watch the game and enjoy each other’s company. Sometimes we’d splurge and buy nachos or a hotdog or a snow cone. My favorite was eating Butterfingers. I thought it was exciting when the guy up to bat would hit the ball and I’d try to follow it in the air and see where it was going to land and if anyone was going to catch it. We’d do the wave and would sing Take Me Out to the Ball Game during the 7^th inning stretch. I never knew all the rules, nor did I really care about knowing them, I just loved being with my family. Buzz games (and eventually Bees games) became a special summer tradition. Those were the best of times.

Two years ago when we were with my dad in Newport we decided to go to a LA Angels game. It was my first major league baseball game and it was pretty sweet, although it didn’t have quite the allure of the smaller, more personal Buzz games. Nonetheless, I loved the huge field, the lights, the thousands of people, the smells of pizza and nachos, and just being there.

On Friday night I went to my second major league game, this time to see the Washington Nationals, or the Nats as they’re lovingly referred to here. The field was just as big and I remembered how much I love the vibrancy and the life, the lights and the sensations of being in a major league stadium. I love being in those kinds of places on a Friday night. I feel alive.

We got our tickets and tried to sneak down into the better and lower seats but almost the second our rears touched the metal seats two guards approached us and asked to look at our tickets. Busted. We had to move higher into the seats we’d paid for. Oh well. Our seats ended up being perfectly fine (at least for me the amateur-doesn’t really care about seeing the goatee of every player up close-here for the social aspect of it person) and I thoroughly enjoyed looking at the signs and the humongous jumbotron television.

It ended up being a pretty good game too. There were lots of hits, some really exciting moments and innings, and surprisingly even some suspense. By the end of the 9^th the score was tied 5-5 and so we went into extra innings, finally ending in the 11^th when the Marlins scored and we couldn’t return. We shuffled out of the stadium with all the rest of the loyalists who’d stayed the extra innings and headed to the car. It was an awesome experience and I’m glad to check one more thing off my list.

Maybe actually two things. We didn’t go home. We went to IHOP at midnight and my pancakes never tasted so good. :)