Ball field Accoutrements

One of the bleacher moms told me yesterday before the electrical storm and ensuing downpour that I should post a list of everything I bring to the ball field so that my player and his cheering entourage can enjoy the game.
1. An umbrella, which inevitably gets left in the car.
2. A cooler with pre-frozen Gatorade and water bottles (you not only keep the cooler cooler, but the player gets the frozen drink in the dug-out and it stays colder longer OR he enjoys a slushie); a baggie with moistened wash cloths; bug spray (refreshing when you spray on chilled bug spray!); 45 sunscreen (ditto); drinks for the child's cheering section; sliced fruit; and ice in a baggie for injuries. I take a bigger cooler if we are enjoying a double-header in the oven.
3. Lots of napkins and paper towels
4. A stadium chair
5. At least 1 baseball for little brother's entertainment
6. A bag in addition to my purse. Mental note: need to condense this into one item. In the bag are snacks, chips - basically energy junk food that won't melt in the heat, little brother's glove, my glove (little brother has a rocket for an arm), tons of napkins, wet ones (usually gets left in the car), eye black stuff, face stick of sunscreen (I swear by that stuff with sweaty boys), and anything else I can't carry.

The Main Dish does a lovely pack mule imitation. Glamour abounds at the ball field. But, of course, I wear a floppy hat so as to ensure the diva-look.

Feel free to use these tips at your picnic or other outdoor activity in the oven.
Stay cool!

The Indy 500

Do you think I had a good time at the 500 or what? I'm telling you, there's never a dull moment around me. I can get myself into pretty much anything.

There's just nothing quite like being in a really fast, really red race car plastered with sponsors. Hugging curves never felt so extraordinary. The engineers, though, leave out the comfort factor in these puppies. I can't imagine driving in that capsule for hours on end for 500 miles. Serious fanny fatigue has GOT to ensue.

The part about the race experience that made me laugh the hardest? People kept telling me that "Indy Car Racing is so much more high-brow than Nascar". The only thing I could imagine that people were talking about on this subject was that in addition to your soda and beer choices, Indy 500 fans can select margaritas at food and beverage stands in the stadium. Please tell me when tequila and triple sec started to qualify as "high brow". Not that I was expecting tails and Kir Royales to abound at the race course, but I'm starting to wonder about some of my racing sources and their lucidity.

One thing people kept telling me before the race is that Indy cars go faster than other race cars (hence, them thinking this race format is superior to the other types of racing; I can't judge as I've only been to a grand total of one race now). All I can say is you need to not blink because you'll totally miss a car going by. You can only detect a blur of color when the car passes you. Sometimes, I just counted the nee-yaa sounds whipping past.

A moment to talk about the spectacular seats we had. Diva Janet, you are a sporting arena goddess!!! The seats were AWESOME. We were about 12 rows from the track, across from the pagoda and stage where EVERYTHING happened. I could plainly watch Kristi Yamaguchi climb the ladder to get on the platform to wave the flag (her jeans, I SWEAR, looked like they were Jordache brand from the 80's!!!). I saw Danica throw down her gloves after she was hit and taken out of the race to try to settle the score. I watched Scott Dixon turn the bottle of milk on himself. The pagentry at that event is pretty cool ... and I could see the scheduled and unscheduled stuff without much aid from the jumbo-tron. Impressive.

The factoid I found most interesting: it didn't smell at all. The cars run on ethanol. Bet you divas didn't know that one. There's always something to learn, Kitten.

What's a Party Girl to do?

Can you believe all the social things out there right now? Who was it who said that the Christmas season is the busiest? Lordy. I can't catch my breath, but that's another story entirely. Here's a brief run-down in quasi-order:
~ Thursday marks the Western start to the Chinese New Year. It's the year of the Rat and will be year 4076, in case you were wondering where in the hell we were now. Ok, the Year of the Rat embodies hard work, lots of activity, and renewal. The Chinese insist it is a great year to begin a new job, get married, launch a product, or make a fresh start. If your calendar won't allow you a Thursday night Chinese soiree, not to worry, my little Peking Dumpling! It's sort of like Kwanzaa ... er ... kinda' ... in that it goes on for many days (15 to be exact); it's called the Lantern Festival and each night has a theme - and we do love a good theme, n'est pas?! The food you eat each night has significance. Some nights you're supposed to be with extended family; other nights, you get a break. Anyway, red's the color to wear for this fete. Decorate your doorway, give away lucky coins, and hang lanterns should the spirit move you.

~ Sunday, of course, is the superbowl. Eat lots of salty, unhealthy food and you're in like Flynn. If you barbeque something, more power to you. For you divas who aren't into sports, here are the basics to understand before leaving for that "football party thingy": The New York Giants are playing the New England Patriots. Of course, the game is held this year in Arizona. Bonus points, Cookie, if you can talk at length about the stadium, its purpose, AND the regional nature of this particular match-up with supposedly the largest TV viewing audience potential impact despite the game not being played anywhere near either team's hometowns. Wear whatever you want, though red, white, and blue will pretty much cover either team. Drink loads of beer. Go to work Monday morning still drunk. Visit www.espn.com before talking to any Dude prior to, during, or after the game if you haven't been following this season, the Brett Favre heartbreak, the Little Brother going to the Big Game and Big Brother staying home (so to speak) -- just to name a few of my favorite topics of conversation. GIRL TALK BREAK-DOWN of the SUPERBOWL: Tom Brady is that hunky quarterback that broke up with Bridgett Monihan (sp?) right before the baby info was known in order to date the supermodel, but is making attempts, despite a demanding football career and schedule to be an on-the-scene dad. He plays for New England. Eli Manning is the Giants' quarterback. He played football for Ole Miss (as did his dad, I believe - hey, it was before my time, so gimme a break!). His brother, Peyton, is the QB for the Indianapolis Colts - but forget him for right now; they lost a heartbreaker a few weeks ago. Peyton played for Tennessee undergrad. Anyway, the Manning family men have strange looking noses, which does not seem to interfere with their football ability whatsoever. OK. Moving along ....

~ Mardi Gras is in full "rouller". I will have to do a post just on this. I'm sensing non-sports-minded-potential-diva-overwhelm at this juncture. I'll be gentle, Precious Princess, and let you digest this before moving on to the party that requires two languages, beer goggles, floats, and insane amounts of accessories - er, or not.

XOXO!

RED SOX SWEEP!! SWEET!!

Off to celebrate. Back soon. XOXOXO

For Boston, For Boston!!!

(The title is the first line of the Boston College Song. Click here to hear the melodious refrain http://graphics.fansonly.com/schools/bc/multimedia/bc-for-boston.mp3)

I'm beyond ecstatic over my Red Sox winning the Pennant AND GOING TO THE WORLD SERIES as well as BC RANKED #2 in both BCS and AP polls (they didn't play this week and moved up a notch - LOVE THAT!).

Being a baseball and football fan, though I remain eagerly yet cautiously optimistic as both teams have a reputation for heartbreak - and curses. Of course, the Bo Sox broke The Curse when they spanked the Yankees in the World Series a few years ago (still happy about that). I am wondering if Ohio hasn't broken the apparent curse this season for impending doom-like upsets for #1 and #2 ranked teams. Here's hoping!!!

All of a sudden I'm less concerned about the weird kicking strategy Auburn employed Saturday evening and the totally incredible LSU coaching decision what with the Boston sports situation. Now, I'm really considering going to the BC-Clemson game in a few weeks - being the most geographically convenient, but my schedule is a disaster. What do you think, Poodle?

More later.

SHRIEK!!!

Boston College is ranked #3 in the BCS and AP!!! I just fainted!

Better go to http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/rankingsindex for the whole list, Pumpkin. I'm off for a celebratory toddy!