Saturday at the Ballpark

For me, there is no sport greater than baseball. I have been a Chicago Cubs fan since I was 12 years old, and I've had year after year of heartache as a fan, but I come back every year for more. Why? Well, I became a Cubs fan because the first time I met my Grandfather when I was 12, he gave me a Cubs hat. He is from Illinois and is a Cubs fan, and I thought the world of that hat. I lived in New York at the time, but we had WGN, and as with most Cubs fans outside of Chicago, I was able to watch them play nearly everyday in the summer. I also had the option to watch the Yankees and the Mets play. I never did like the Mets, but there was a year or two when Don Mattingly was still playing, that I did watch the Yankees. A lot has changed in baseball over the years, but my love for the sport and for the Cubs hasn't.

This past Saturday I took a road trip to Chicago to watch the Cubs play host to the hated rival, St. Louis Cardinals. I was with two hard core Cardinal fans, and one other Cubs fan, so there was some trash talking going on, even more after the Cubs emerged victorious in a close game. These two shots are of Cardinals first baseman, Albert Pujols and a shot of some good sportsmanship between catcher Yadier Molina and Ryan Theriot, after Theriot hit a foul ball. We had some great seats about 11 rows behind the Cubs on-deck circle, but didn't get a chance to catch a ball. All in all, it was a great day. Two of the friends I was with are military veterans serving in both Iraq and Afghanistan, so on our way back when we spotted a solder walking in full gear with his pack on his back, we were all happy to stop and give him and his girlfriend a ride for the last couple miles of their walk. He had just returned from two weeks of training, and has also serviced in Afghanistan. I don't think we all thanked him enough for his service to our country.