Road Trip to Kansas City last weekend…
Friday
My buddy Wil E. Coyote let me ride shotgun as he had been in St. Louis all week, and can’t stand being alone. I cracked a cold one about halfway, and turned the radio to the Grateful Dead station on XM.
Wil E.’s not much of a Dead Head, but in 45 minutes we heard St. Stephen, Sugaree, Turn On Your Love Light, Ripple and Shakedown Street.
He would probably be a fan of their music today had it not been for the cicada loose in the car. I thought the horny insect would sit still while I nailed the last verse of Ripple – But it flew right into his head.
He pulled the car over, and we jumped out looking like a scene from Tommy Boy.
Later that night we met up with some college buddies, and repeated stories everyone has heard at least a dozen times. Still funny. Oh, and I fell in love with another bartender. Not sure yet, but this could be the one.
Saturday
I spent the day watching Lil’ Bro coach my nephew’s baseball team. He’s been the skipper since tee ball, and I’m always impressed at how the kids’ skills improve every year.
It seems like yesterday when I surprised my nephew by driving up to a game when he was probably 6 or 7 years old. As he rounded third base, I shouted his name. He stopped running – saw me standing there – and smiled and waved.
“Run home!” I shouted.
He gave me an ‘Oh, right’ look, and had to slide into home plate. He was safe because the kid can slide like Ricky Henderson. I just hope he never talks about himself in the third person. That’s a baseball reference.
RT @summerofbenny: “Kid, go play catch while I try to get to 3rd base with your mom.” – Things not to say at a little league baseball tournament.
Sunday
Lil’ Bro didn’t have a game, so he dropped me off at another ballpark where my buddy G-man was coaching in his daughter’s tournament. He was my ride home and their first game was at 9:30 AM.
“If we lose, we’re done and on the road,” he told me.
So I got there around 10:30 thinking I wouldn’t have to wait too long. But those crazy girls kept winning. We finally got on the road around 5:30 that evening.
Note: I haven’t had a beer since Friday, so I’m a little shaky. That’s an alcoholic reference.
Commentary
As a kid, you never realize how much time and money your parents invest in you. For years, my mom spent her Saturdays sitting on metal bleachers watching her boys play baseball. My dad was either the head coach or an assistant coach on most of our teams.
When you factor in the countless practices, and other sports we played, it’s truly amazing what they did for us. My dad has passed, but I think I’m going to tell my mom how much I appreciate them.
But I won’t do it here because if she ever read some of my stories, she would probably have me committed.
Just one thing I ask of you, just one thing for me
Please forget you know my name, my darling Sugaree