I've been to two Sox games in the past week, one a much-awaited 5-0 drubbing of the Tigers on Friday night, and the other a rather lackluster 4-2 loss to the Kansas City Royals (apparently it possible to lose to the Royals). The former I watched from the second row with my Tigers fan friend M., and the latter played out from the upper deck to the soundtrack of a bizarre combination of my baseball teammates and "somebody's church friends" (that's how they were introduced to me).
When did people decide that 'the Cell' (yeah, I bought in) was an extension of their living rooms? People are getting up six and seven times a game for ever more ridiculous kinds of food ("Kid, are you seriously trying to put dippin' dots on an elephant ear right now? I'm calling security."), chatting in the aisles in the middle of an inning when they should be taunting the opposing pitcher, and text messaging friends instead of noticing that 5 2/3 innings of no-hit baseball has come to an end. Even M. spent the top of the second chatting on his phone. I miss the time when your living room and the ballpark really were different.
Additionally, I sat next to a woman who said she'd been going to Sox games since the '60's and apparently ushers used to make you wait until the end of the half-inning to go back to your seat. What happened to that?!? I sure didn't buy tickets to have your butt obstruct my field of vision four times an hour!
A few of my baseball teammates are Cubs fans and came to "cheer against the Sox." Now, I hate hate hate the Cubs and whatever I might say in my living room, I know how to be appropriate at Wrigley Field and I appreciate good baseball for what it is. The Baby Bears don't play too much of it but when they do, I clap. In general, it worked out though, since by "cheer against the sox," they apparently meant drink beer while facing the other way and taking dozens of cell phone pictures.
None of this was helped by the fact that the girl who sang the national anthem said "whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous nights" and no one noticed! Like Krusty the Klown once said, should have taken those cue cards.
I hate to say it, but I think the national pastime has lost the magic. Where's Cal Ripken Jr. when you need him?
2 comments:
On a different, but also socially unacceptable note is another disturbing change in the times: The new phone/exercise duo. If you are going to go to the gym and exercise, please have the courtesy to stay off your phone while on the treadmill. Can anyone really hear you through your huffing and puffing? Do they really want to hear you at that point? Perhaps we can put the "Treadmill Phone Talkers" in a room with the "Ballpark Cell Phone Picture Takers" and see who could come up with the best Budweiser "Real Men of Genius" jingle...
Baseball may well have lost the magic, but, thanks to the cell phone, so have about a million other things. What is with people's inability to turn the damn things off and enjoy the thing at hand, whatever that might be? Is everyone really getting one critical call after another all day long every day? I seriously doubt it.
Post a Comment