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Tuesday, September 5, 2017

Driving, baseball, and more driving

Between buying a house and planning a wedding, Sean and I didn't have a lot of money for a big summer vacation. Our work schedules also throw a wrench into things. But we really wanted a bit of an escape, so we settled for a day trip for one of our favorite shared interests -- baseball.

Last Thursday, we got up before dawn and hit the road by 6:30 a.m. We stopped for breakfast and coffee and continued north. On the way, we listened to our favorite sports talk radio and then opted for regular music. We arrived in Minneapolis a little after 10 and got parked at Target Field around 10:30 a.m.


We headed into the ballpark immediately. Sean's team (the White Sox) were the visiting team so he was hopeful about seeing them take batting practice. It was a getaway game, so there was no BP, however there were some players out stretching and warming up. He scored autographs from two of the guys -- Dylan Covey and Lucas Giolito.

Once we were sure they were done signing, we took a walk around the concourse of the ballpark. It was Sean's first visit to the Twins' home, so we wanted to take it all in. We also located some lunch -- two 60/40 sliders (60 percent beef, 40 percent bacon) and some chips -- and some local beers. We spent more on the beers than the food. And I don't see anything wrong with that.  Ha ha.


Then we went to get settled in our seats for the game. Since it was our one game and our vacation, we splurged a little and bought tickets for 9th row right next to the White Sox dugout. It was a great view, and I have no regrets about that splurge. Also, about 20 minutes before first pitch, Sean saw another player signing -- Avisail Garcia. So he scurried down and got another autograph. He was pretty happy. (Below is a photo I took of our view without any zoom.)



It was a gorgeous day. Cool, sunny, and clear. It warmed up as the day went on, but never became unbearable. Unfortunately Sean's beloved White Sox lost the game. On a walk-off hit-by-pitch, no less. So that part wasn't very fun for him, but otherwise it was a great experience at the park.




We contemplated checking out one of the nearby breweries, but I was kind of eager to get out of downtown Minneapolis before traffic got crazy. I'm just not a fan of city driving. It makes me nervous. So we hit the road instead and stopped for dinner about an hour south of the city. We also went to a liquor store and loaded up with two whole coolers of Minnesota beer to bring back.

Driving back felt really long. Radio didn't interest us much and we were both tired. I was so happy to pull into the driveway at about 10:15 p.m.

It was a long day of driving, but I'd do it again. And we probably will next summer.  Maybe for my team next time.


1 comment:

  1. Chris and I went to Phoenix last week for his birthday. We were excited because we were going to go see the Diamondbacks play the Rockies. The only home teams I've ever seen are the Angels and the Dodgers. Sadly, we didn't get to town until 3 and it was a noon start. Whomp whomp.

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