Those of you who are familiar with John Steinbeck might have read his book “Travels With Charley”. In it, the author describes a road trip he took in a van with his faithful dog, Charley. Steinbeck was ill with heart disease at the time (he shouldn’t have been a life-long smoker!) but completed the trip and wrote a very famous book about his trip around the USA. Well, this will not be a trip around the USA and we won’t be with our dog. No, our travel buddy for this trip will be our grandson, Charlie. Followers of this blog might recall we took our oldest grandson on trips to Canada and Panama. Now it’s grandson #2’s turn. Charlie was put on this Earth for his grandpa. Unlike any other Reiss, Charlie is a baseball fan just like his grandpa. With that in mind what better trip than to visit some more baseball parks. My current count is 19 down with 11 more to go in order to complete my quest to see a baseball game in every MLB park.
Today we left for Dallas with plans to see the Astros vs. the Rangers on Sunday. Those of you who follow the news are aware that our planning hasn’t been the best. Texas is currently suffering a horrendous heat wave. The expected high in Dallas today is 97 degrees. That’s down from 102 a few days ago.
Our flight here was uneventful as was the trip to the hotel. The hotel is amazing and it happens to be the same hotel where the Astros are staying. Grandma Patrice wanted to hang out in the lobby hoping to see one of the Astro players and get an autograph or two for Charlie. The thought of that made me sweat thinking how embarrassed I would be. I couldn’t let them venture out without me so I took a deep breath and headed downstairs. I was much relieved when I didn’t see any players around. Patrice asked various employees about when the Astros would return from the stadium, how can we find one or two, etc. To say I was uncomfortable is a major understatement. Lucky for me the hotel employees were, hmmmm, how do you say it…………. yes, professional. They wouldn’t even admit the Astros stayed at the hotel which convinced Patrice to give up her search.
With our Astro hunt coming to an end we decided to venture out to look at the town. We first took a trolley but then got off and walked around. Patrice was loving the warm night air while I was thinking about calling for paramedics. Upon returning to the hotel I spotted the Astros manager Dusty Baker. I whispered to Patrice, “I see the Astros manager”. Immediately she went into Grandma-Mode, “Where is he, where is he?”. We had passed the group and I told her “The guy in the flowery shirt is Dusty Baker”. She took Charlie and off they went while I looked for a hole to climb into. I was within earshot and could tell that Dusty was being quite nice to the duo. I grabbed a picture and then approached the group. Patrice introduced me (she and Dusty were pals by then) and she then asked Dusty, “What do you do with the team?” WHERE’S THAT HOLE?
Tomorrow we will see the Astros and their manager, (Good old what’s his name). We will have another celebrity joining us for the game and he will be our chauffeur. You will have to wait until tomorrow to see the celebrity but hopefully, a picture of Dusty will hold you for now. See below.
Hey, do I get some credit for recognizing Dusty?
Robert Reiss Travel Blog and Other Ramblings 