“…o’er the la-and of the freeeeeee…”

Oh, the national anthem. Typically unremarkable, sometimes awesome, and occasionally worth blogging about.

The Cincinnati Reds game was a mixed bag overall, but the singing of the national anthem had to be the worst I’ve ever heard in person. It was a church choir, and bless their hearts they tried, but whew, that is one church where the “joyful” noise must not be an “enjoyable” noise. People were audibly cracking up during it. Many people started singing, I think trying to cover up the awfulness. When it was finally, mercifully over, most of us just sort of stared at each other, bemused.
Backing up a bit, Saturday was an especially long drive (we lost an hour going into the Eastern time zone, too, so we had to leave extra-early), but we finished Harry Potter, listened to some music, and it went pretty quickly. Our hotel was right downtown in Cincinnati, as is the stadium, so we took up our bags and headed over. We got to the stadium well before the game, got our free giveaway pennant (which we collect, so the freebie was a bonus), and that was when I discovered… bleacher seats.
Now, I should take this opportunity to point out that Dustin did the hotel/game planning for this trip, and for the most part, he did an exceptional job. Other than the one sketchy hotel (which, really, looked fine online!), our accommodations have been good, and the seats so far have been great without breaking the bank. Most of you are probably aware that Dustin’s pretty fantastic, but I should publically acknowledge it anyway.

See, I had been forewarned that we are sitting in the bleachers for this coming weekend’s games (Cubs and Cardinals – both day games, by the way… imagine the heat, in the bleachers… sigh). This, however, was unexpected. It seems that Dustin’s love of the bleachers at Wrigley moved him to get seats in the bleachers at several other stadiums, too. It was very hot and muggy, the bleachers were in full sun, we had zero view of the jumbotron, and I was not an especially happy camper (side note: Dustin has informed me that “jumbotron” is a specific brand, so perhaps I should switch to “video screen” or something? He said everyone probably knows what I mean, like calling all tissues “Kleenex,” but still…). Ok, so back to not-happy-camper-but-trying-to-be-pleasant Skye sitting on the radiating-heat, metal bleachers, unable to see the lineup info. to fill out her scorecard. Just as the game started, it got even better: the guy two rows back spilled his beer, splashing me impressively across the right side of my back. Great.
Lest you be worried that the evening was ruined, fear not. I bring you tidings of chili-cheese dogs and FUNNEL CAKE FRIES! Indeed, by about 8:30, the sun had dipped behind the stadium, I had found tasty food, a breeze was rolling off the water… and the game was again good, as the Reds came from behind to beat the Indians. The crowd wasn’t as good as the crowd in Kansas City, but the game was pretty full and entertaining. The stadium itself had a few weird elements – a “riverboat” thing that only large groups could use, a strange gap in the left-field corner, and it seemed very large and spaced out. Dustin gives it a “B,” which seems about right (the skyline view is pretty, though). Our streak of home team wins is still unbroken, too.
Game 5: A slow start, but ultimately… Success!!!