A Pirate looks at forty - STRIKEOUTS! HA!

Back in the early-to-mid 80s, during the summer, I would go to Pittsburgh, PA to visit my Aunt Phyllis for a few weeks.  I loved going up there to "the big city", and just getting away from southwest Missouri in general.  I've always been a city person, no matter that I grew up in a town roughly the size of Busch Stadium (population 298 - SA-LUTE!).  I was just exposed to so many things up there that I would never have been able to experience in a small town.  It was in Pittsburgh that I first experienced museums - I got to see a full sized Tyrannasaurus Rex skeleton!  Wow, was that cool!  

I got to ride on a bus across town by myself to go to summer camp at  the planetarium - I don't believe I'd ever even heard of a planetarium before that!  Actually, now that I think of it, I probably shouldn't have been riding mass transit by myself at 10 or 11 years of age in a strange city with absolutely no clue as to how cities work, and how dangerous it could have been!

Anyway, back in 1988 I was up there and I was really into my metal phase, and I wanted to go see a concert - I'd never been to one.  Aerosmith were touring in support of their album "Permanent Vacation", and their opening act was Guns and Roses, who were rapidly becoming the biggest name in metal at the time.  I really wanted to see that show!  Phyllis did do her best to try to get tickets through people she knew, etc, but couldn't come up with any.  What added more salt to the wound was the fact that at the time she lived right across the street from the Civic Center, where the concert was being held - so I could kind of make out some of the songs, but I couldn't be there!  GAH!

We did, however, get to go to a Pirates game at the old Three Rivers Stadium (this was way before every single building anywhere was named after a friggin' corporation!).  Phyllis was friends with the president of Pittsburgh National Bank at the time, and he had seats right behind the visitor's dugout, down the 3rd base line.  My cousins and I spent the whole time razzing the visiting team, the San Diego Padres!  We had a blast!  I thought the coolest thing was that I got to see Andy Vanslyke play in person.  Andy had been a Cardinal, and he is also the cousin of my high school art teacher.  I've still got a press clipping from the sports page of the paper the next day which had a huge picture of Andy in mid air making an amazing catch. 

Well, fast forward 22 years, almost to the day, and I'm going to see the Pirates play again, against my beloved Cardinals.  And, once again, thanks to a buddy with some good connections, we're sitting right behind the visitor's dugout again.  Guess I'll be razzing the Pirates this time! :-)

Today's stroke features Cardinal Red overpowering the Pirate Yellow, of course (oh, and a little bit of, um, how about "Baseball White" thrown in there, too).  In the mean time, we'll talk to you tomorrow, and, as always: GO CARDS!