real baseball with the great scott!

He had not even known it was a bobblehead giveaway night until I told him.

Then, when he found out who the bobblehead would be, he was quite excited!

 

But first came the standing in line at SRP Park before 5 PM...

and more standing in line on the concrete plaza...

and, yes, even more standing in line...

in the sun, on a day with a high in the upper 90's...

for over an hour, to make sure to get one...

as soon as the gates opened at 6 PM

for the 7 PM game.

Well, actually, to get two bobbleheads, one for each of us.

(smile!)

 

Thanks to my diligence - 

and to my early arrival for our place in line - 

our quest was fulfilled!

The Spencer Strider head-bobbers were ours!

So, just who is this guy?

He's a 24-year-old pitcher for the Atlanta Braves who made brief showings in their minor leagues - including the Augusta Greenjackets - before becoming known as the strike-out king.

Quite a coup to get this one...

and pure serendipity that I happened to be there!

That will make quite a nice gift for someone! 

I'll just need to determine which of the Braves fans in my life will receive it.

(smile!)

Meanwhile, we were pretty well wilted from all that standing in the sung, and most definitely in need of shade and rehydration.

Good thing we had an hour to just sit on a shady bench and drink ice cold sodas...

oh, yes...

that's better...

and much some salty fries to replenish electrolytes.

(smile!)

Okay, time to mosey over to our seats!

That would be along the third-base line, about three rows up from the field and close enough to maybe get a foul ball, in Section 107.

He had made absolutely sure that we would not be in an "unlucky" section - and this was one of the sections which has not yet been determined to be lucky or unlucky for Scott to see a winning game, as opposed to Section 101 which is dead to him.

(smile!)

Remember, he has a lot of rules about what to eat (got to have pistachios!) and when (hotdog in the 4th inning!), about where to sit and when it was okay to walk around, about how many innings had to be played for a game to count as a "win" to him, regardless of whether they had won by official MLB standards.

(smile!)

For me, having a Polish Boy special and following that up with a Kona "Lucky Ninja" while enjoying a real baseball game, played by real baseball rules, was perfect!

Ah, but into all lives a little rain must fall.

Midway through the fifth inning, a few raindrops fell.

A freshening breeze and darkening sky meant more would follow, and lightning made sure the game was called to a halt as all calmly get under shelter.

Then it rained cats and dogs and parakeets, too, for long enough that quite a few folks left. 

We stayed, hoping for the best...

and stayed, looking at all the water on the tarp...

and stayed, talking about religion and churches while sitting in the elite seats behind home plate...

as the stands emptied and 10 PM went by.

At long last the announcement was made:

play would resume at 10:45 PM.

That was enough for me.

I had a busy day ahead of me and the two-hour break in the action had sapped me.

Hey, I'd stayed and kept my friend company, and we'd both enjoyed our time together, but he understood.

I was compelled to go, and he was compelled to stay.

After all, the game wouldn't count as a win if it didn't go to 9 innings.

(smile!)

 

As for me, my first goal was a cool shower.

Then I pulled up "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" again, loving the corny jokes and puns...

letting the familiar story of a toon in trouble and Bob Hoskins' antics soothe my sun-baked brain...

enjoying the feel of a day well-spent.

Yes, I'm definitely on vacation.

(smile!)

i thank You, God.