The Dodgers are not playing anywhere near the midwest this month, but I still want to visit new stadiums. I went to Wrigley Field for a Dodgers vs Cubs game at the end of our Route 66 road trip in 2019. It's time to visit the southside team.
It was my first solo outing using public transportation. I detest the 126 bus. It's always late. I wish I had taken the Green line for two reasons: convenience and I would have gotten in my last swipe before 2:50pm when my Ventra 7-day pass expired. When my card scanned, I thought there was a 5-minute grace period on the pass. Instead, the pass was in a negative balance, and I had to refill it as if I paid the fare. Annoyingly, you can only load your card for cash fare in $5 increments.
The bus ride had a man who was talking loud about whatever he was talking about. The train had this guy playing songs on youtube on his phone and acting as if it were a boombox. For two train stops, I watched him groove to the music and stare at his reflection in the door as he did so.
I wanted to buy my ticket at the box office, so I could ask for a section where I could catch a foul ball. He suggested a $41 ticket, and I was like nah. He sold me a $29 ticket. I think that's the cheapest for that level. I took it even though I was eying $12 tickets all week. I figured the extra dough was worth it to be on the lower level. I think that proved true.
But before I talk about the stadium, let's talk about the bag policy. I should have checked this beforehand, but bags bigger than 9x5 are not allowed. I brought my purse, which was twice as big. There was no throwing away anything because the big contents were my Anker battery and my water bottle. At two gates, there each was a gentleman holding a 9x5 piece of wood painted red and telling people they couldn't bring in their bags. They directed me to a trailer in the parking lot that could store my bag for a fee. Honestly, screw that. I debated throwing away my purse, but I still had stuff.
Instead, I put all my purse contents into the main chamber. Then, I folded in the sides of the bag. Now, the bag was smaller. Maybe it could pass for 9x5, but it was quite obvious I folded the bag. All my stuff was sticking out because I folded in the zipper to close it.
I found a gate without a red brick police person and handed in my bag and water bottle. The dude didn't say anything. He didn't care that it was open. He didn't care that there were other zippers. He did a quick check and handed me the bag. I was relieved to get away with it, she said with an evil laugh. I definitely won't make that mistake on Wednesday.
@jmeprcn Reply to @jmeprcn My other options were: toss the bag or pay to store it ##vlog ##bendingrules ##bagpolicy
♬ original sound - Jamie P
I took a lap around the concourse to sink in the land. I popped into a couple of shops and they had a few hats with the vintage Sox logo Dan Roy was looking for. I sent him pictures and learned he doesn't like "dad hats." I ate a caprese grilled cheese sandwich and finished a jack and coke as I completed another lap. On my third lap, I got garlic parmesan fries, another jack and coke, and a first visit certificate and button. Then, I made my way to my section.
Someone was siting in my seat, so I grabbed an empty one a few rows back. There were plenty of seats, so it was no big deal. The Sox scored a home run. Their mega screen has smaller, round screens at the top in the shape of candy. Each circle looked like those peppermint swirls you get at restaurants or use on gingerbread houses, but there were different colors, red, yellow, green and blue.
After the home run was hit, the candies twirled, and then turned into letters spelling out "HOMERUN." Fireworks shot out of the scoreboard. Dodgers should do something cool like that.
@jmeprcn ##vlog Guaranteed Rate Field ##chicagowhitesox ##mlbstadiums
♬ Hardball (LP Version) - Lil Bow Wow, Lil' Wayne, Lil' Zane & Sammie & Bow Wow & Lil Wayne & Lil Zane & Sammie
After a few innings, I started to get cold. My section was shaded. I made my way across where the sun still hit and found a place to stand. I still had half a bowl of the garlic parmesan fries, and I wasn't ready to give up and throw them out. I wish I had brought a plastic bag.
I saw a bunch of people with a lemonade cup. The cup was plastic AND had a lid. I could use a non-alcoholic drink. My plan was to drink some, pour the rest into my empty water bottle, and then transfer the fries to the cup.
The lemonade stand was very cute. The first person in the assembly line put a lemon into a cup along with a scoop of a powered mix. The next person squeezed the lemons. The last person added water, ice, and if ordered, vodka. They shook the final lemonade mix and handed to the customer. It was just enough flare to make the $9 price tag worth it. It felt fresh-squeezed, but I imbibed clumps of the powder mix.
When I settled into a standing table, I noticed the guys next to me were wearing LA hats. They were Dodgers fans that lived in Chicago. One was born in LA but has lived in Chicago for a while. I guess we can call him guy #3? We chatted some about sports and Chicago neighborhoods. He told me he was a truck driver.
"Do they have," I started to ask. I stopped myself because I could hear how weird the question might be.
"Do they have sleepers?" He finished my question for me.
I'm genuinely curious about that! However, I think this means I made the first move. It sounds like I asked to hook up in his truck. At least, that's the story I'm telling myself.
He and his friends weren't staying for the second game. Before he left, I asked for a selfie. He was more than happy to pose, and he gave me his number. Told me to let him know if I wanted to "get up" later.
Is that new slang? I've never heard "get up." But also, am I old. Again, am I old?
I still wasn't down, so I didn't text him back, but it was nice to bring the story back to Christina.
No comments:
Post a Comment