after Lowell's hr
a recap of Lowell's hr shown later in the game
just before Papelbon's last pitch. I was shouting something like here we go Cinco Ocho!
[there's a party happening down the street here, and Dont Stop Believing is now being followed by Sweet Caroline.]
So, pretty sweet huh? There was a bench clearing brawl and we won in the end. After the game Mani gave me a ball. Also pretty sweet. We dont really know each other but I think we are on friendly enough terms. I sit right there whenever I'm at a game, which was quiiiiiiite a bit last year. We've talked a few times. Nice enough fellow. All in all the game was a success and then some.
I got to spend some quality time with the McClellan side of my family. First family reunion!! Very fun. I love them all. Great getting to catch up with my cousins and actually getting to know their kids too. A beautiful smiley bunch of kiddos. I wish I had been able to stay longer, but such is life, and that's OK. I'm blessed to have loving family on all sides of me. Got to speak with my Grandma today and that woman blesses me with every card she sends and ever anecdote she tells. I dont know what I'd do without her, I love her so much.
Work is still such a good thing. Still enjoying the people there, still getting things done, still learning. Starting to think about what happens come September. My friend Jeff, who was picked up by the Rox in mid-July, got released yesterday after a pretty strong showcasing of himself over the past few weeks. Unfortunately he wasnt getting playing time everyday, but when he did he generally made the most of it. We were fast friends, pretty much from when we met while working at a baseball camp clinic at the stadium, and I felt the sting of how abruptly things can shift in this business. Everything happened so fast yesterday... he wanted his walkup music changed and texted me to meet him so he could give me a file of the song... and by the time I got to him a handful of minutes later, he had been released. By the time another hour and a half had gone by I had helped him pack all of his belongings into his Jeep, and by the time gates opened at the park he was headed out of state. My head was spinning just a little bit, but the show must go on, and I spent that night- our busiest night of the season to date- monitoring a prize wheel game and wearing a smile that hurt my jaw. No rest for the weary, though, because 5 of us were staying overnight at Campanelli to chaperon Boy Scout Sleep Over night. 600 people. "UP!" was shown on the video board, and I got a very restless few hours of sleep on the floor of a suite. Sort of a traumatic day, not a lot of time for emotion or processing. Something that has helped me deal with the relationships I've been a part of this summer is the realization that they are potentially extremely fleeting. It's counter-intuitive to a personality like mine to think this way, and it doesnt mean that I dont still strive to treat everyone I come into contact with with respect, but it helps me to keep from excessive people-pleasing. I probably wont see Jeff again, even if he does come back to Brockton to play next year, because there's a great chance that I wont be with the Rox. I will take a baseball gig but have no idea which gig - or where - that will be. It's similar with the people I work with- I always want everyone to like me, but in the end, my lifestyle is a lot different. And that's ok, even if people think I'm lame or no fun because of it. (Though I feel like we all accept each other pretty well, for the most part. )
Anyhow, as it always is, I felt a lot less angsty when I woke up this morning. For one thing, I awoke (albeit at 5:50am) to a text from Ally telling me that Layla Mae was born that evening (she's in NZ, evening for her)!!! Also Ally's birthday. Big day!! That's child number two for her. So the AM started off with some joy. After getting all the scouts out of the park, we dispersed and I headed to Cambridge to get a little bit of sleep. Rest was short-lived, as I had things to do and places to be... Mehdi's wedding was this afternoon at the Vineyard! Lovely ceremony, and I got to spend it with lovely Jayne. Unfortunately the reception was moved from 5pm to 6:30pm, which I only discovered when I got to the wedding ceremony, and as I had committed to work later that evening... well, at least I got to be there to see him get married, even if I couldn't party with them afterwards. The game went so quickly... after a couple of key conversations with Linc and Maxine (Reyes' great great aunt... will get to that in a bit) it was pretty much over. After a little bit of implosion on our starter's part, we won it 6-4 (vs Pittsfield).
Jumping back in time, I'll mention another person who has been a fun part of my summer. His name is Reyes and he's 11- came to visit his great great aunt Maxine for a month all the way from Colorado. At first, it was basic recognition, seeing him every day at the game. Then, we interacted during a between-innings competition, and from that point on he was my little buddy. What a kindhearted kid. He would sneak me little pieces of fried dough (despite many many protests on how illegal that kind of thing is for me... no eating on the job!), he came to one of the baseball camps that I helped with (i love those camps. working with the Rox's base coach Dan is a joy, he is one of the great encouragers that I've encountered this summer; he and Jack in particular feed energy and encouragement into me; hanging with the kids and getting to play baseball all morning with the kids and some Rox players is just as much of a perk), and a couple days ago he sent me a birthday card even though he had already left to go back to CO. Sweet kid. I still have Maxine around who is another amazing soul, and who made sure my birthday got announced during the game on the 2nd (i missed the announcement and the slide on the video board! but totally the thought that counts in this case).
Cant wait for the team's series in Worcester this week. I better get some time off! But even if I dont, I could get to the games after work is through for the day... just a lot of driving on a deadline. Tomorrow I'm going with Dom to see Jean, who runs chapel time for the players, speak at his church. Should be awesome. Jean gets going when he only has 10-15 min.. cant wait to see what he does with a primetime slot :)
I've gotta end this here... need some sleep. Right now, I'm content. I've got everyone I love actively in my life, even if some of you are farther away than others (Old Town... Raymond... Yarmouth... Virginia... New Zealand). I look forward to getting to Brockton every morning, and hate when the team is away because I miss the guys and I miss the fans. My friends from before this summer still love me and are hangin in there till I can get some sort of rhythm to my daily schedule (yeah, I've got some great friends). God is good, and that one never changes. Cant wait to see what's coming in the next two months.
