Learning the Red Sox Alphabet

Fenway Park. Springtime. Yankees are in town. It’s officially Kids Opening Day at Fenway, “America’s Most Beloved Ballpark”, as the Jumbotron reminds you, just in case you’d forgotten.

I am in the company of two eight year olds wearing jerseys of their favorite players: Jacoby Ellsbury and Jason Varitek.

Wally the mascot has two friends in the shape of large red socks. The kids say, “Pappy, Pappy, take their picture!”

Ok. No problem.

Then, the game begins. The Red Sox, ultimately won, 4-3, after a two hour rain delay, but my memory is overhearing one boy query the other as we walked out of America’s Most Beloved Ballpark:

“I heard the “f”word, the “s” word (rhymes with the f word), the b word (rhymes with witch). How many words did you hear?”

Messieurs Lucchino, Werner and Henry have created a championship franchise to be sure and plastered, per square foot, the most commercial field (if not the most beloved) in America. The giant coke bottle is now gone in favor of a new deck of seats with the Coke Cola script logo above it and the size of the script is surely a beacon to aviation more prominent than the Hancock Tower.

Yes, they have done all this. Championship team. Increased real estate value in and around the park. But, in the meantime, they have created a park where you can’t bring your kids unless they are hearing impaired and to be honest, judging by the loudmouth sitting across the aisle from me, I’m not even sure that disability would have insured decency. They have their work cut out for them because those yelling are tolerated by the crowd and, in some instances, rewarded with laughter or similar chanting

This movie is the only G rated clip I have. It is of Alex Rodriquez coming to the plate. And, though G rated, remember while listening: this is the official Kids Opening Day at Fenway Park.  SEE YOUTUBE MOVIE.

If this is truly America’s Most Beloved Ballpark, I wonder what other alphabet lessons are going on in those less “beloved” parks.

©Pat Coakley 2008

Readers: I apologize up front to those readers who have already seen this post.  In changing over to the new Monotone template for photobloggers, I couldn’t automatically change those posts that involved one of my YOUTUBE movies, so my only way of doing it was to repost in new format.  Perhaps, I’m missing something but after many swear words and gestures (see Post called “Testing Monotone”), I decided that reposting was my only option.  There will be several more reposts.  Apologies.