Crumpled Notebook

I have plenty to blog about, but I’ll do it when I get home and can put everything together. Right now though, I’m in Pittsburgh. I went to visit my brother today and will most likely be going back over there tomorrow night after the baseball game for another quick visit. It’s raining here. Supposed to rain tomorrow too, which doesn’t make for a great sight-seeing and baseball game day, but oh well.

Chicago was great. Jeff was a good tour guide too. Anyone want to guess what my favorite part so far has been, outside of the baseball and seeing my brother?

Chicago Tribune Building. Yep. It wasn’t even on my list of things to see, just a “if I get around to it.” It was amazing. I’ll probably blog more about that later, but I was like a little kid there. The plaza area by it was hands down my favorite place in the city other than Wrigley.

Tonight my plan is to head into Pittsburgh and go to a bar or something to get dinner and watch the Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia Stanley Cups Playoffs game (hockey for those who don’t know what the Stanley Cup is). Can’t get tickets, but being around crazy sports fans always makes me happy.

I’m heading out in the morning for Chicago. I think I leave San Jose around 1:30pm PST. I’m excited although I’ve planned nothing yet. I’m just excited about the mere fact of baseball. I don’t really have much else to say tonight. I got a lot to do that I haven’t done yet, like pack and pretty much everything else. In lieu of that, here’s a treat for you.

And my poor poor Pirates:

So, my trip to Chicago and Pittsburgh is less than a week away. I’m super excited. I was also talking to my friend Josh tonight who was telling me that apparently the stadium in Pittsburgh, PNC Park, was picked the best park in the country a couple of years ago by ESPN. Being able to watch my favorite baseball team ever in the best ballpark in America is just about heaven for me. Sure, being at Wrigley and seeing the Cubs will be amazing too, but Pittsburgh is the place I’m most looking forward to going for baseball.

On another note, I know I really haven’t blogged this week, or put up my postings from last week. I just haven’t been motivated to do it yet and I’ve had a semi-busy week. I’ve just been having a thinking week I think.

I like baseball. No secret there. In less than a month I’m starting my baseball journey for this year. If all goes as planned I will be visiting both Chicago ballparks, Pittsburgh, then later on in the year, Boston, both New York, San Diego, Los Angeles, Anaheim (I refused to call them the LA Angels), Oakland and of course San Francisco. That looks to be 11 ballparks this year–10 of which I’ve never visited.

So, I need some help. People have suggested that I have to either buy something from each ball park to collect, like preferably the same type of thing–a pennant, a bobblehead, something like that–or I need to come up with something to take a picture with in front of the parks. I suppose I could do both. I hadn’t planned to do either, other than pictures from each park. Anyway, if you have any suggestions, I’d love to hear them

Yeah, that was corny, I know. But when I think of Indiana, I think of fields, and when I think of fields, I think of corn and other crops.

Anyway, Tom Crean to Indiana? Who saw that one coming? Not me. The other night I was talking trash about him. I was probably bitter they beat Kentucky (again). I actually have nothing personally against him. I learned a few things about him tonight I didn’t know. Like for instance, he was an assistant coach at WKU. I did know he was married to former WKU football coach Jack Harbaugh’s daughter. Harbaugh incidentally is an associate athletic director at Marquette currently.

Anyway, I’m a fan of Indiana basketball. Well, I was for a long time. Maybe Tom Crean can bring back that love for me. I promise to even get over whatever I held against him that was unfounded.