Jul 07 2003
Pre-game show
I find it remarkable that the two things that came up the most regarding the baseball game were basically:
1. It’s boring
2. It’s uncomfortable
If it’s so boring, how did it get to be our national pastime? Is it the Emperor’s New Clothes of sports, and no-one wants to admit how boring it is? I find this unnerving, since boredom is, as you know, my biggest fear next to death.
And since the makers of ball parks and other arenas know for a fact that you’re going to be sitting on your ass for hours at a time, shouldn’t they make the seats comfortable? Even the airlines don’t do you like that. Maybe the ballpark Powers That Be think that if the seats are really uncomfortable, it will cancel out the boredom and enable the audience to stay awake.
All will be revealed to you on Wednesday, since the game is on Tuesday. I don’t dare to bring my iBook for fear of being perceived to be anti-social, which is the same reason I’m leaving the books and magazines and manicure equipment at home (a helpful friend suggested I use the time to do my nails). I figure I can hide behind my shades and meditate. Zen and the art of baseball.
But I’m bringing the cushion.
6 Responses to “Pre-game show”
Have you ever seen a t-ball game where the average player age is about 4? Take a look at the outfield….almost to a player, they are all on the ground…picking the grass, tossing their mitts, rolling around….baseball is boring and these kids are the proof of it.
What you really want to do is get into cricket
I hear a cricket match can last for days and it’s just as boring as baseball, except you know a baseball is generally over the same day it starts. And good question on why baseball is considered our national pastime. There are actually people out there who thinks it’s interesting, but God only knows why. Take binoculars, that way you can at least look at the players’ cute butts. 😉
I used to watch baseball all the time – but on tv…. while I did other things. So, really I just listened to it and occassionally looked up. Haven’t actually ever been to a game, and it does seem like it would be a bore.
Baseball boring? You must be kidding. And you have that wonderful new ballpark with the great big mitt in the outfield and all those boaters in the bay waiting to catch that ball that sails out of the park. Just like the guys on Waveland Ave. in Chicago outside Wrigley field only they are on cement. Take a radio….everyone listens to the game on their radio but you could listen to music …. or a portable cd player….listen to a book. Eat some great ballpark food, listen to the conversations around you, occasionally listen to the game on your radio to get all the nuances and personalities on the field….take some newspapers….lots of people read those at the ballpark….and root for your hometeam. You won’t die of boredom. Really. I suppose it would be too much to ask that you wear a fan uniform? Maybe with Barry Bonds # on it? Or that you would take your own mitt to catch the errant ball that comes into the stands. Take some binoculors for sure. You can watch the players as well as other fans. Much more colorful than what you would see at the opera, for instance. Beat the shit out of the St. Louis Cardinals!!! They are one of the arch rivals of my team, the Chicago Cubs, and the team of choice of half of my family.
And sometime read one of those New Yorker articles by Roger Angel (son of EB White)!
Baseball rocks!!
Hey Adrian – my Dad was a huge cricket fan. He was a lifelong member of the Surrey County Cricket Club and never missed a chance to go to Lord’s or The Oval. He also left us a very nearly complete set of Wisdens (only missing 3). But I never went to a match with him…
Michel: you were right. It was so fun! I hope you feel we beat the Cardinals sufficiently!And yeah, Roger Angell is a great writer.