Back north

We're back home after a long drive. I was very surprised when we did not stop for a prolonged tour in DC. Washington traffic is notorious for long delays and construction. Every time I am stuck on I 95 between Baltimore and Richmond, I never see anyone working on the road, yet the lanes are closed. I have a theory....the government ran out of money for the DC construction project. The little funds that they have pay for one man with a shovel. He works 4 hours a day trying to finish the project. At this rate, he will finish the job around 2025. So, expect construction delays.

Yesterday was a very interesting day. My reasons for being in NC were twofold. First, Buddy was playing a nationally ranked team and the chance of him entering the game was pretty good. The second reason was to connect with family and friends. We stayed with Blue Devil in her amazing home. Never once did I worry about bedbugs. BD has a great house and was a super hostess even though she had a cold and had to leave for a business trip. Chill and The Hunter were there too. TH can fix anything, perhaps BP should let him tinker with the busted oil pipe in the Gulf and try to fix it permanently. On the other hand, Chill has definitely earned her nickname. As we sat at the game yesterday, she was frozen solid. She never complained and patiently waited for Buddy to enter the game.

On to the game....the first game began at 1 pm with a chilly wind in the forecast. Our team lost the first game as the pitcher walked a run in and loaded the bases. The team never had a chance to catch up. The second game started at 4:10 pm and our team was quick to score and scored often. During the 6th inning, the coach began to play with the bullpen. I could feel it...he's going to pitch...it's going to happen! Well, the 6th inning came and went, so did the 7th and 8th....It was the 9th inning, he's going to close (I told myself). We sat in a very chilly stadium and waited for the big kid to enter the game....he never got in...not even to take a gatorade break in the dugout.....never came in, even though he should have (a mother's perspective). So, Chill (chilled to the bone), a sniffling BD, The Hunter (wishing for a bee-yah (beer in Boston)), Einstein, Einstein II, Tink, Wolfpack Man and I sat and sat and sat and waited and froze. Sadly, the only glimpse of Buddy was looking through my telephoto camera lens as he leaned against the fence in sheer boredom.

The second game ended too late for our group to have dinner together, so people said their good-byes and left the stadium. Tink and I went to the team's hotel and got a room for the night. After we checked in, I got a text from Buddy..."furious"....that says it all...he was a bit miffed. As he came to the room, I let him vent as he went on and on...."gonna transfer...not fair....unbelievable..." and so on. As he finished, I asked if he felt better...What do you think his answer was? If you answered the question 'no', you are correct. It was 8 o'clock and we needed to find a place to eat. Sadly, the only restaurant that would take a reservation was a fondue place. I thought that sounded intriguing....wrong, again. After dinner, famished Buddy ordered a pizza and bread sticks to be delivered to his room.

It was getting late, so Buddy said good night and went back to his room, pizza and senior room mates. We made plans to go to early mass before the bus took the team to Virginia and Tink and I headed home. After showers, we fell soundly asleep....that is until 3 am when there was a pounding on our door....who is it? Three guesses....the first two guesses don't count....yep...there he was...tee shirt, sweat pants, sneakers and cell phone....Problems? I asked.....then the growling started....

"They are having a party...spilling beer on my bed...15 people in the room...won't leave...I'm exhausted...can I stay here?"...Sure, I handed him a blanket and pillow and he settled in on the love seat. The love seat is about 4.5 feet in length. Buddy is around 6'4" and pretty broad. I figured he would curl up on it. When we got out of bed at 6:30, I looked at him. His legs were hanging over the end of the sofa and his right arm on the floor...quite a sight. His mood had not changed and he was quite 'salty'. We made it to mass. Buddy wore the same outfit that he slept in, did not comb his hair or brush his teeth. His attitude was equally as bad. After church, I dropped him and his friend off at the lobby where they had breakfast and got ready for the bus. He had some revenge plans in store for his room mates. At this moment, I am not sure what the plans were, but he was going to make a lot of noise this morning....yep, that will teach them not to party on his bed....

So, now we are home. The weekend was fun, Buddy did not play, yet all is not lost. He decided that he would work even harder to show the coaches how good he really is....(that was very positive). We also came up with a plan to place a mini camera on his baseball cap...call it "Buddy-cam"...he can take pictures of the dugout, field and team mates....perhaps we can market this to campuses around America.

Before I sign out, I did not realize how big baseball is in NC. Kids were hanging around the dugouts, bullpens and gates asking the players for their autographs...even Buddy was asked. It was pretty cute watching these little boys who are dreaming of becoming big league players talking with these bigger kids who just happened to be in college. After all, aren't all baseball players really big kids who are living a dream? Didn't this dream begin when they were 8 years old with their dads pitching to them in the driveways?