Thursday, March 13, 2003
"This will be the last morning I wake up without a chick in my bed." -B
Picture of college girl's basketball team.
We ate breakfast in the lobby of the Amerisuites. There is quite a crowd there, including an unattractive Mercer basketball team. We sit at a table, and next to us sits this family that, well, could use a little help. There were about five kids ranging in age from about 3 to 15. One of the younger boys is playing with the utensils on the table, when the eldest sister says "Don't touch that knife or I'll jack your ass!" The mother than chimes in to the little one with "Am I going to have to hit you today?" Quite a sad statement. Very disturbing.
Mark starts to have issues with the box.
Yeehaw Junction. This seems to be a hotbed of discount tickets to Orlando area tourist attractions. The Florida Turnpike was lined with only signs for Yeehaw Junction, as it was one of the few exits. We got off here and headed east towards Vero Beach. We went through Indian River, which has a lot of citrus trees. This is where the Indian River juice is from.
On the drive to Dodgertown in Vero Beach, there was a woman stopping up traffic. She was walking across this major road to pick up a turtle. We missed that picture opportunity.
There was a large bee's nest at the game. This caused much excitement. Some people had to get new seats. The public address announcer offered some good advice- "If you are allergic to bee stings, then we advise that you avoid this area."
Mark topped out at 59 on the speedpitch at Dodgertown, but it wasn't clear what units the radar gun was using. It certainly wasn't miles per hour.
Mike got a hot dog and Mark got a cheeseburger and a beer. It was one tasty burger. We sat in the grass and watched everyone else win the batting helmets doing the speedpitch.
Albert Pujols, practicing before the game.
Nomo on the hill.
Bucky Jacobsen autograph on Mike's scorecard.
We had seats in the fourth row down the first base line. We initially sat in the third row by mistake, and the woman who came to take our spots didn't believe that it was an honest mistake. The crowd was very quiet. The game featured some good players. Hideo Nomo was on the mound for the Dodgers, and the Cardinals had Scott Rolen, Albert Pujols, and Tino Martinez in the game. The Cardinals also had Bucky Jacobsen, a fan favorite. Bucky was seen walking towards the dugout with a bag full of water bottles. Some fans asked if he was the waterboy. He later got a pinch hit and the crowd erupted into a light roar. When he was walking back from the dugout, Bucky said that he would no longer have to be the waterboy since he had gotten a hit. There were a few homers, including a blast by Pujols.
After the game, we headed to the hotel in Ft. Pierce. It was nice, right on the beach. No hot tub though. Also, our first floor room didn't have a view of the ocean.
MOAS- Mother of all storms. This happened while we were driving from Ft. Pierce to Jupiter. Reports had up to five inches of rain in some locations. There was also quite a bit of hail. The Mets vs. Marlins game that night was canceled. We found a little sub shop and ate while the storm passed. The picture was taken from the car. It took quite a few tries before B actually caught a bolt in action.
When we returned to the hotel, there were many raccoons in and around the trash dumpster.
B and Mark in classic form at the hotel room
We went outside in search of Sharky's, a bar which advertised "$1.50 draft beer all day everyday." We walked across the street, and Sharky's was closed. They close at 9:00 PM. B later changed the advertisement in the hotel room.
"Directions" to the tiki bar.
We then decided to stop in the gas station across from the hotel and ask if there were any bars. The woman working there, Deborah, must have had too many caffeine pills. She was awfully peppy for a quiet night in the gas station. She said that the bar at the Radisson was "a happening place". Yeah, we already had checked that out. Not happening. She also suggested a Tiki bar, which was behind a Tiki bar, and mapped out directions on a paper bag. Then she asked if we wanted the paper bag. We then retreated to the hotel and had some beers while sitting by the pool. It was then that we noticed that this place was a family vacation spot. "Where did you bring us dorp, to a family resort?"