Adventures with the Cholo A's Fan

Mighty Mariners

My Seat
Surrounded by A's Fans

Now that Pam is having more good days than bad, we are able to get out of the house a bit more.  This past weekend, we went to Seattle to visit son Ben and Andrea.  I haven't had a chance to watch my beloved Mighty Mariners at Safeco this year, so I took the opportunity to go to the game Friday evening.  Pam wasn't up to sitting through the game, so I decided to splurge a bit and get a good seat. Scored a seat in the first row on the third base line.

We left PDX about 2 PM in horrible weather, checked into our room about 6 PM, and I immediately hopped back in the car to go to the stadium.  My seat happened to be in the middle of a bunch of rabid Oakland A's fans who had flown in for the game.  I decided to make the best of it, and started chatting with a guy from Oakland sitting next to me.  It turns out his name was Nary and he is the largest pony-tailed Cholo dude I have ever seen. He was bedecked in every conceivable article of Oakland A's gear... hat, jersey, badges, foam finger .. everything.  I believe he may have been wearing undies autographed by Bartolo Colon, but I didn't ask.

Since the Mighty Mariners proceeded to get their collective butts whipped by the A's right away, the

Twitter Exchange After I Tweeted
a Picture from my Seat

outcome of the game wasn't really in doubt by the 4th inning, I had plenty of time to get acquainted with Nary.  Between innings, I went up to get a beer, and he followed me to the concourse and insisted on buying. By the end of the game, we were old buddies and he wanted to exchange hats and have our picture taken together. That is one of the things I love about baseball.  It is a social game.

Kids are Exhausting

Son Ben and Andrea are continuing to do well, all considered.  He is working hard at his graveyard shift job doing maintenance at McDonald's. Andrea is working at a day care center, and their kids are both enrolled there.

Haile the Hambone

Normally, Haile is very shy, especially around me, so it was a huge surprise when we met Ben and Andrea:  Haile jumped out of the car, ran to me as fast as she could, gave me a big hug, and said "Hi Grampa!"  I couldn't believe it!  Then, when Ben came walking up, she said "Daddy, I talked to him!"  Very cute.

Ben and Andrea are struggling with a lot of challenges, but I couldn't be more proud of them and their kids are clearly their number one priority. Pam and I took them to dinner Saturday night.  It was a lot of fun, and also a little exhausting.  I tried to take some pictures, but no one would sit still. 

Andrea, Ben and Aubrey Skye

The Great Outdoorsman

Ben has taken up fishing, which I am really glad to see.  Here is a
picture of him on the Skykomish River.

Back to Our Hero

Pam is continuing to do as well as could be expected.  Progress is slow, but undeniable. There are far more good days than bad. Her hair is growing in thick, dark, and curly.  I joke that she must have gotten some Nigerian Stem Cells.

My Hero

Good signs:  She has more energy. For example, she is beginning to cook more. (I know that you were all worried about that because of my obvious signs of malnutrition.) She is also fussing about the laundry, and dawdling with makeup and such before we leave the condo to go anywhere.

I am really beginning to believe that the worst of this is behind her.