My good friend Gabby is a diehard Dodgers fan. We tried to get opening day tickets, but we missed out. Still, we've decided that we'll go to many games this spring, summer, and fall.

Gabby tells me that she loves baseball because of her father. I don't know much about him, except that he is no longer alive and her few happy memories of him involve the Dodgers.

Although I can't relate completely, I know that my love for the Dodgers -- just like my love for traditional Mexican music -- is something I inherited from my father.

One summer (sometime around 1986 or 1987) my family took a trip to Lake Tahoe. My dad pulled up to the parking kiosk at the lake with a van full of wife, kids and camping equipment. On his head sat his trusty Dodgers cap. The park ranger asked him, "you a Dodger fan?"

My dad answered, "of course."

I sat in the back of the van slightly confused. I thought a fan was that thing that spun around to keep us cool during the really hot days in August and September. Instead, I asked my dad. He answered, "a fan is someone who really like something or someone. Since I'm a Dodgers fan, that means I like the team."

My dad wasn't much different than any other Mexican man living in LA in the 1980s. Even before the arrival of the short ace from Sonora, Fernando "El Toro" Valenzuela, my dad was a big Dodgers fan. He played stickball in the street with his brothers and friends and attended games when he could.

As soon as Danny (my older brother) was old enough, my parents enrolled him in Little League. A few years later, they signed me up too. I played right field. I frequently struck out. And I was the only girl, or one of two, on my team. I loved it.

Since those days, my love for baseball and the Dodgers has waxed and waned, but I've never lost it. These days, it's high. I'm still feeling the excitement of Steve Finley's grand slam, Jos� Lima's win in the playoffs, Eric Gagn�'s amazing save streak, the Cesar Izturis/Alex Cora deft double plays, and exciting comebacks. (Sadly, 3 of the 5 players I mentioned are no longer Dodgers.)

I'm feeling good about this season. I've been waiting impatiently for it all winter long. I went through withdrawal of geeky baseball statistics, Dodger stadium, singing "Take me out to the ballgame" during the seventh inning stretch, "Welcome to the jungle" in the bottom of the ninth, hotdogs, and overpriced ice cream. Hell, I even missed $10 parking, traffic getting in and out of Dodger stadium, and the occasional obnoxious fan. It was a long winter.

Gabby and I, along with a few other friends, are already picking which games we want to attend. I'm getting antsy... I can't wait to return to Chavez Ravine. Let's see if I can pull my dad away from his work and make one of the games a true-blue family outing. It'll be just like the old days. Well, without Fernando.

Me siento: unsleepy
Escuchando: paper bag - fiona apple

M�s reciente:
Searches - 09.16.05
the big move - 07.29.05
mother and daughter: a comparative analysis - 07.28.05
jardineros y dom�sticas - 07.27.05
tough question - 07.25.05

antes // despu�s