Commitment

Today was fan appreciation day at Angel Stadium! Now for those of you who might not have as deep an appreciation for baseball as my family, fan appreciation day is like walking down the red carpet right beside your favorite movie star at the Oscars. It is the one day of the year that you get to see your favorite players and some of them even pose for pictures with you. The other great part of being so close to the players is seeing the excitement my son 'n' law shows when he sees them coming. As the players come onto the field, he giggles like a little girl and gives the play by play of which player is getting closer. He truly reminds me of Doug Heffernen from King of Queens. He's nervous, exited and giddy and as they get closer he gives a nod, winks and says "Hey bro, how ya doin?" As soon as the players pass by, he turns to his brother and says, "Dude! Did you see that? He said Hi to me!".

But I digress! The theme of this blog is "Commitment", and I learned today just what commitment is all about. As we all sat up in the nose bleed section,cheering on the Angels and praying for a win, things were not going so well down on the field. By the 6th inning, the Twins had 3 runs against only 1 run for the Angels. Those of little faith, started leaving so they would not have to witness the impending loss. By the 7th inning stretch, we too decided that things didn't look very good for the Angels. Although the Angels managed to get one more run, we all made a decision to leave at the end of the 7th inning. As true blue Angel fans, the thought of watching them loose from the stands is unberrable!

As we all left the stadium in a state of denial, we tuned into the game on the car radio. Unbelievably, Big Daddy Vladdy hits a three bagger in the 8th right after we left I might ad, to tie up the score. Then the clencher. Gary Matthews Jr. hits a 3 run RBI to win the game! And we all screemed with excitement from a crowded SUV on the freeway home.

So what is the lesson? Commitment is sticking with something or someone through good and bad. Applauding their successes and being there for them through their losses. The Angels came through with their commitment even when many lost their faith. But many of us fans did not do our part. There is a price you pay if you are the driver. Regardless of who's idea it is to leave, everyone blames the driver when they miss the comeback of the day!!!

To summarize:

Cost of an Angel ticket in the nose bleed section - $12.00
Cost for a cold Panda Bowl and soda at the game - $15.00
Cost of watching my son 'n' law act like a star struck fan - Priceless!