Never Thought I'd See This
Waking up on Thursday to the sound of rain drops on our window and the rolling thunder clouds above didn't make our second outing to Wrigley Field seem very promising. With the same sad tone he used to tell me he didn't think we'd won on the morning after our last Presidential election, Jason rose and said, "I guess no Cubs today." I pulled the comforter closer pretending I didn't hear, because I didn't want to hear.
I checked weather.com and watched every local newscast I could find, and both hinted that thunderstorms were only predicted for the morning. Our 1:20 game was firmly scheduled in the afternoon I reassured myself. And surely, I hadn't taken the day off of work just to finally have time to clean the cat's litterbox. (Sad.)
Sure enough, the clouds went on their angry way out to Lake Michigan and the sun shone on Chicago again. We were off to the game, grabbing last-minute sunglasses no less!
At the game, things seemed to get impossibly better: the Cubs were playing well. Hit after hit soared into the left field bleachers. By the 7th inning the Cubs were into a double-digit score, while Philadelphia lagged with just two measly runs.
Sensing that the rain might return, and that the game's conclusion was predictable, I was nudged by my companions to consider leaving the game early. And miss the growing staccato of hands clapping across the stadium as the Cubs pitched for the third out? The exuberant cheer that went up when the scoreboard flashed "CUBS WIN"?? (A light show that I'm guessing doesn't happen very often.)
No sir, I stayed. Leaving early is chintzy and for those whose pragmatism values getting out of the parking lot more than the emotionally satisfying finale of event they came to see. (I'm the person that insists on seeing the final scenes of a movie, even if it's just the panning out over the water, much to Jason's chagrined impatience to hit rewind. It could be worse though, at least I don't sit through all the credits to honor the contribution of the Key Grip.)
Final score of Thursday's game: 11-2 CUBS. Remarkable, and only in my first year in Chicago.
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