Aaahh....baseball. A time honored American tradition. This past weekend I went to a Texas Rangers baseball game for the first time. I'm a local now so I've got to check out the local teams. We arrived at Ameriquest Field in Arlington, Texas and got to our seats as they were throwing out the first ball.

Baseball is baseball, right? You go to the stadium, you get a beer, a hot dog, maybe some peanuts and you sit back in your seat and you enjoy a game. This game, this night, I felt homesick for the first time since I'd left Pennsylvania. I was happy enough to spend an evening watching some good baseball but I missed home. I know it's new, I know it's different. I don't mind change. I LIKE change. But this wasn't Citizens Bank Park in Philly nor was it Veterans stadium. There were no cheesesteaks, no Bull's BBQ, there were no shopping cart pretzel vendors, and there was no Philly skyline in the distance.

I had a good time. The people who sat next to us were friendly, talkative people. In Philly about the only time you ever talked to people was if they were in your way or they pissed you off in some manner. The game was pretty eventful. As the players came up to bat, Dave picked out all of the ex-Phillies there were on each team (there were quite a few!) which made me feel more comfortable in my Phillies baseball cap. I don't want to commit to a new pink Rangers hat until I am ready to move on. And right now I'm not ready. Even though the Phillies aren't some great team, they were the team I went to the stadium and cheered on for five years. I can't quite let go of my favorite right fielder, Bobby Abreu or my favorite left fielder, Pat Burrell (the best tush in baseball in my opinion!) and my new love, 2nd baseman Chase Utley. I'm also happy to note after reading the news the past couple of weeks, that my boy #25 JIM THOME is doing well for the White Sox. It's been awesome to read that he's healthier than he's been in a year and that he's knocking those homeruns out left and right. GO JIM!

So goes my induction into the Dallas - Fort Worth sports scene. Even though it wasn't the Phillies, the Rangers put on a good game. We enjoyed our hot dogs and big pretzel just like at home and after the game an impressive display of fireworks as we sat in our seats. I'm sure I will go again and maybe, like Philly, the more I go, the more I'll know the players and I'll start to pick out the ones for which to cheer. And maybe I'll even pick up a new pink Texas Rangers baseball cap...