May Day 1

 

The alarm was set for 6 a.m.

I had scheduled a podcast for nine so I wanted time to pull myself together and wake up. Also, I needed a script for the podcast.

The recording session was scheduled early because I originally anticipated a different feel to the beginning of this week. But things happen, people get busy, and you pivot. OK, no big deal.

But, in fact, I was up before five. I can't even blame the cat. So I stayed up for a bit to assess the day and felt that I could, indeed, catch a little extra sleep.

I set an alarm and...

And...I sort of slept, until my phone buzzed with multiple messages.

So now I was up. I soon spied an email related to the podcast. There was some confusion (on my end, at least) about the status of the recording session so I reached to see if a script would be coming.

It would not, I was told. There would be no recording session. As is the right of the people who request to be a part of the podcast, some ask for a pre-recording meeting. Often, they ask for it to be with me. Except I'd literally bring nothing to that except to explain how the recording will go. Keep in mind I do that when we actually connect for the recording.

So the meeting would happen without me and I was free to go about my day.

I chose to do laundry, given it was too late to power over to a nearby car shop for the alignment/tires stress. Besides, I need to be mentally ready for that.

To be quite clear, I do not trust anyone. I've been burned too many times. So I'm open to suggestions here. I think I need two tires and an alignment but I know how that conversation is going to play out.

So, laundry it was, along with other cleaning items of the day. This, in some ways, was my Sunday, since my weekend was spent sloshing through the wilds up to Newtown and back.

Sean expressed interest in going out to get a screen protector for his phone, so I thought that would be a welcome thing. We'd go to Five Below and take care of that. Heck, we'll grab lunch also.

Well, we got lunch.

Five Below was a bust. They had nothing for his phone, as he growled at me for owning an iPhone. Five Below had everything for us Apple scruffs (it's a Beatles/George Harrison reference).

OK, so that trip turned out to be blech.

In the meantime, I was trying to rev myself up to call softball at Greenwich High School. Now, of course, I love doing games but there is the issue of when you are doing the game on your own dime.

The Greenwich broadcasts were supposed to be airing on WGCH and, well, they're not. But as I'd provided a schedule, I decided I'd stick to it as best as I could.

With the weather having improved, why not get out and give the team the attention that they deserve?

I climbed into the car (my own car, thank you very much) and went to Greenwich High.

I found a good parking spot near the softball field and noticed a pitcher and catcher warming up. Several other players practiced not far away. Standard warmups, I thought, but no opposing team.

OK, well, this is Fairfield County and I-95 always looms. Granted, this would be going against the beginning of rush hour traffic but you never know. Construction, accidents, or whatever can slow things up.

I sat for a bit in the car and played Solitaire on my phone. No need to set up yet since the opposition -- Darien -- hadn't arrived.

It was now 4:15 -- meaning I had passed on hosting "Doubleheader" -- and the game was scheduled for 4:30. My setup takes little time and I can easily pull the lineups together. I felt comfortable.

But then I noticed the very players I'd been watching practice weren't wearing uniforms. There were no signs of any uniforms either.

I grabbed my phone and looked up the Cardinals' schedule. Sure enough, the game had been moved to Bruce Park, which serves as a backup softball field when the facilities at Greenwich High School flood.

I had no idea.

At that point, no matter how hard I work and how committed I get to calling games, I simply couldn't broadcast this game. My instinct felt that I'd have to rush to the other field, find space (no pressbox) setup like a tornado, and make it sound good. I just felt I couldn't do that appropriately.

It was also a reminder to take care of me, mentally and physically. In this case, I did.

I drove past the field and went back home.

Of course, I looked online, and Greenwich -- scuffling this season -- picked up a 6-3 over the Blue Wave. It's their first FCIAC win of the season.

So it's onto an Aaron Judge-less Yankees (he's now on the injured list and the Bombers are, frankly, awful) as they host the Indian...oops....Guardians and Game 7 of the Rangers/Devils series.

Time to laugh off this day.