Well it didn't start out with the Mets but the majority of the weekend was spent watching the Mets from either 2 or 400 feet away.
I drove to Virginia Thursday afternoon landing in Falls Church at Donna's around 8ish. Once we got freshened up we headed to the Clarendon Ballroom to see Burnt Sienna. These guys are so fun, and of course they played "Crazy Bitch" - love it! I had a few beers so I was feeling fantastic when we left. Then I slept like a rock until 11 am the next morning. I can't remember the last time I slept that late. The remainder of the day was spent getting ready for Mets vs Nats #1.
The first game of the three-game series was the best mainly because our seats were so freakin' awesome. We sat on the first base side, a few sections down from the Mets dugout, fifth row from the field! Donna got some great pics of the guys warming up. The highlight came at the top of the 4th inning. Julio Franco was up to bat and hit a foul ball that came screaming at us. All I could think was holy shit this thing is heading for my face. I ducked to the left, Donna ducked to the right trying to protect her camera. I turn back toward her just as she is sitting back up and she pulls the ball from her lap! It hit her arm (and luckily not her camera) and landed in her lap. She raised the ball then stood up while receiving great applause from the fans. It happened SO fast and it was SO COOL! A couple minutes later my phone rings and it's my friend, AJ, who was watching the game in Connecticut and saw us on tv! Holy shit those seats were totally worth the money. After the game we headed to Chadwick's for a couple beers then headed home. Saturday was going to be a long day...sort of.
Donna has a reliable source who was able to tell us where the Mets stay when they are playing the Nats. So we headed to Starbucks across the street from hotel around 10 am. We hung out there for a couple hours, sipping screaming, hot coffee and doing crossword puzzles, none of which we finished. I'm dumber than thought. Around noon we headed into the hotel to stroll around, see how nice it is, and maybe run into a member of the team to no avail...yet. We headed back across the street to have lunch at another establishment that does not exist in New York but it should: California Pizza Kitchen - awesome cobb salad. Some guy sitting near us was talking way too loud and since we could hear every word he spoke we realized he was with the Mets. I don't think he was a player but he was involved some how. But he was such a Karen that I couldn't have cared less who he was actually. After lunch we stood outside the hotel entrance. Our first sighting was Rick Peterson, the pitching coach. Then Willie Randolph joined Rick outside followed by Sandy Alomar. All three hopped into a car. Just as they got in Donna made a motion toward them and it actually got their attention. Willie smiled and waved to us, Sandy also smiled, and Rick turned and looked at us as they drove away. Other players that followed throughout our time standing outside were El Duque, Tom Glavine, Billy Wagner (who is hot!), Jose Reyes, Ricky Ledee, John Maine, Steve Trachsel, Darren Oliver, Aaron Heilman, Paul Lo Duca (accompanied by some bleach blond hussie...a little jealousy there...I hate her), Carlos Delgado, Endy Chavez, Lastings Milledge, Michael Tucker, and Carlos Beltran. No David Wright - he probably snuck out early or some other door. That is how we spent the day before heading to the game. That was fun - Mets won. :)
Sunday morning we headed back to the hotel hoping more players were taking the bus to the game. Donna made a sign that read "We Believe." Some suit from the organization saw it and said you don't have to worry about that this year. A fellow fan nearby replied when you're a Mets fan you're always worried. Amen! Look at how they have been playing recently!! Only a couple players took the bus on Sunday: Endy and El Duque, who both signed autographs. Donna was able to get El Duques autograph on the sign, and I snapped a shot of his bald head on my camera phone. It's horrible quality and you can't see his face but I know who it is! That is my souvenir! Sunday's game was good - Mets won again. Phew!
Now we look forward to hopefully seeing the guys at Shea for a World Series game! Leg up!!
