opening day 2015

it's opening day!  that yearly event that denotes the official start of spring.  the reds opened against pittsburgh, and johnny cueto was throwing darts through the pirates lineup.  the bullpen blew his lead in the top of the 8th in a matter of minutes, but it was all for not.  in the bottom of the 8th, todd frazier hit a ball so hard i think it almost knocked down the 2nd deck at GABP. then chapman came on to throw 100mph fastballs for people to whiff at.  game over.  reds win.  now if only the rest of the season can reflect the 1st game.  go reds. it's spring, and in the baseball world hope springs eternal.

mindy and i didn't go to this game, but we'll be at the ballpark on thursday for game 3.  hold the rain, please.  there's nothing like baseball from the stands, and i can't wait to settle in with a beer and a dog and cheer on the team i've followed since i was a kid yelling for eric davis to sign my hat.  nostalgia still exists in the real world.  it's called baseball.

before the game mindy and i made an impromptu visit to shades state park (another of my spring rituals).  it was pretty vacant, save for a few old people walking around with cameras.  it is so nice to see the little bits of green beginning to rise from the forest floor and hear the birds and squirrels dashing around foraging for food.  the breeze, the creek, the mud.  it was lovely, even if the sun was hiding behind the clouds.