Double Your Pleasure

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of going out to hunt and later to visit PNC Park. The day started at four a.m. when I finally decided to get out of bed. All night long I was afraid that I’d sleep in and woke to check the time every two hours. At five a.m. my brother called and said he’d made a mistake. He changed the time to meet at his house by six fifteen. So I wrote my BlogSpot post, put my postcard on Facebook, ate breakfast, and got dressed with plenty of time to spare.

I made it to my tree stand by six forty-five, was settled in, and waited in the predawn light. When my eyes adjusted, I could see glowing in the moonlight some slender bare tree trunks looking every bit like skeletal remains rising from the darkness. Patches of lichen flickered blue-green. As the daylight grew, the titmice around me began their single note serenade, soon to be joined by the chickadees. The strength of the wind made the thick poplar at my back begin to sway, pressing against me like a lover seeking to cuddle and get warm. It was a bit disconcerting to feel the seat beneath me move as well.

Watching the area for movement, I could see the circular green briar leaves beneath me shaking and nearby pines swaying. Several branches near me began to make music like the bow of one branch drawing across the strings of another. Silently, two does strolled into view, partially concealed by tall weeds and partly camouflaged by their coloration. Because it was buck season, I allowed them to disappear into the thick brush.

I was constrained by time and left early to go home, shower, and get dressed to visit PNC Park with some friends. I dressed in my Col. Sanders attire and we made it in time. We were early and some of us walked around the outside until it was time for the tour. A lovely woman named Holly and her tall handsome male counterpart named Brice met us. They greeted us and took us through many of the behind the scene parts of the stadium: the service level, suite level, and club levels. Two parts of the tour that really impressed me and that I enjoyed were sitting in the Pirates bullpen and standing in the press box area looking out over the field. The views of Pittsburgh were tremendous from both areas. That is why the Pirates bullpen is on the third base line and not the first base side like the home teams in other parks. It was an impressive tour, ending up in the spacious and splendid club house of the park. Outdoor seats surrounded balconies where attendees could eat and watch the games from these lofty aeries

Our two tour guides were knowledgeable and courteous, although my one friend who is an avid Pirate’s fan did hit them with a few unexpected questions and one question for which they didn’t have an answer.

Once the tour was finished, we decided to stop to eat. We hadn’t eaten. On the return trip we stopped to eat at the Cracker Barrel. It was almost five thirty by the time I settled back into my house. It had been a long day. I was glad to be home after a long and wonderfully enjoyable day.