Take Me Out To The Ball Game

After last night’s excellent turkey dinner, I had no problems sleeping whatsoever. That’s not to say that I’ve had any problems sleeping because I haven’t. However, I think the the post-turkey bliss guided my way into an especially peaceful slumber.

Today’s big activity was actually tonight’s big activity which meant that my day was pretty much open to do whatever. The big activity in question was a minor league baseball game at Nat Bailey Stadium at 7:05, featuring the Vancouver Canadians and the Tri-City Dust Devils. When I perused the Canadians’ schedule, I was hoping there might be an afternoon game (aka. a “Nooner at the Nat”) but I was just happy to see that there was a home game to which I could go.

As mentioned earlier, the 7:05 start time for the ballgame left me with time for other things. The first other thing was a bike ride along the Seymour Valley Trailway with Jan and her friend Anna. The ride in question was a 24 km roundtrip out to Seymour Falls dam and back again. And it was a beautiful ride. The Seymour Valley Trailway is a wide, paved trail that winds its way through forests and up and down some nice hills – nothing crazy steep.

We ended up taking a slightly alternate route back to the beginning of the trail and in doing so came across a full TV crew setting up for the next shot. The show in question was The Man in the High Castle which apparently is a new show, due out in the Fall of 2015. In other words, soon.

With our morning excursion finished, we loaded the bikes back onto the car and started to head back to the house. We STARTED out for the house but somehow ended up at MEC. MEC is funny that way. The goal at MEC was to get new pedals and a new lid/spout for my Klean Kanteen water bottle. I was confident the former would be available. I was less confident about the latter. Turns out, I need more confidence. Shortly after entering the store I was standing in the checkout line with both items. I love MEC.

After MEC, there was a quick stop at the Real Canadian Superstore to pick up some of my favourite trail mix (officially it’s “No Name Celebration Mix) for the road. Yes, that would imply that at some point I’ll be leaving this wonderful place. No, I don’t know why. Anyway, I went in for Celebration Mix but also came out with bagels, some chocolate eclair candies, and M&Ms.

With the major tasks for the day accomplished, Jan and I headed back to the house for some lunch which consisted of leftover turkey sandwiches. Does it get any better? Remarkably, it does.

With the day rapidly slipping into late afternoon, Jan and I once again found ourselves on our bikes. This time towards downtown. However, this ride was pretty easy as we only had a short trip to get to the Seabus which took us across Vancouver Harbour. From there we boarded the Canada Line (Vancouver’s fully automated rapid transit) down to Queen Elizabeth Park and Nat Bailey Stadium.

By 5:00 we had arrived at the stadium and purchased our tickets. With game time still about two hours away, we went for a very nice ride around Queen Elizabeth Park. The views were beautiful. Then again, that always seems to be the case. Thanks to Jan’s tourism pass, we made a quick stop at the Bloedel Floral Observatory where, in addition to the vast collection of over 500 plants, is also home to over 200 exotic birds.

The next (and final) act of the day was the baseball game. After 18 years I once again returned to Nat Bailey Stadium. It didn’t disappoint. They’re have been some renovations including adding some bleachers out in left field but it is still a great place to watch a ball game. And clearly I’m not the only one who thinks so as there was a big crowd of over 6,000 baseball fans in attendance.

My usual purchase of 50/50 tickets did not net the results I wanted but the same can’t be said for the hot dog and beer I purchased. They both hit the spot. The beer was Bear Paw Lager and the hot dog was actually a footlong. They also had a 2-footlong dog available for almost $15. That seemed a bit excessive. Then again, I once sat in the All You Can Eat section at a baseball game and ate the equivalent of four feet of hot dogs so I probably shouldn’t talk about what’s excessive. Although, that certainly was!

There was no Cracker Jack on this night but we root root rooted for the home team and they responded accordingly as they brushed away the visiting Tri-City Dust Devils with ease. It was a great ending to another great day in Vancouver.

I had texted my “Dog and a Beer” photo to a friend back in Ontario and, near the end of the game, I received a reply which read, “You’re not coming home, are you?” As I reflect back on the past couple of days, one thought comes to mind. I AM home.

Today’s totals:
Distance travelled: 38.73 km
Ride time: 3:02:34
Average speed: 12.72 km/h
Maximum speed: 43.74 km/h