Saturday, July 19, 2008

Literary Baseball



I went to a Dodger game. I would have never gone if the tickets weren't a gift from a friend. The last time I went was well over 25 years ago when I was twelve. I saw Fernando Valenzuela hit a home run.

My basebll story would have ended there...until now! I was there for all of 3 minutes when I got into the spirit of the game. I was cheering, hootin' and hollerin'! I couldn't believe how much fun I had! I got caught up in the culture of the stadium, standing up to participate in The Wave, singing "Take me out to the baseball"--I knew all the words--and hoping the Dodger would win (they lost to the Marlins).

On the giant TV, I was shot back to my childhood when they showed that Fernando Valenzuela was in the stadium watching the game also. Whoa.

I kept kicking myself because baseball is such the American past time and The Dodgers are such an icon of Los Angeles. I consider myself a Los Angeles writer (above other labels like gay writer or Asian American writer) that I couldn't believe that I allowed myself to be deprived of such a Los Angeles cultural event. Hmmmm. I wonder if I can get Laker tickets.

2 comments:

Prince Gomolvilas said...

You are SO butch.

Cheryl said...

I just listened to a radio play version of Culture Clash's Chavez Ravine, which opens with Fernando Valenzuela seeing the ghosts of Chavez Ravine residents when he's at bat in Dodger Stadium. (And that's probably as much baseball as I'll take in this season.)