Empire State of Mine: Day Two

As true baseball fans, we knew a summer trip to NYC wouldn’t be complete without catching a Yankee game at the new stadium. We are NOT Yankee fans, but were interested in checking another major league stadium off our list. It’s just un-American not to attend a major league game while visiting another city. It’s a great way to get a pulse on the people and various cultures coming together. Refusing to wear the obligatory Yankees garb, Owen proudly sported his O’Dawg Twin’s shirt. We stuck out like typical tourists, but we didn’t care…it only made the game even more interesting. The New Yankee Stadium isn’t nearly as impressive as many of the small market stadiums we’ve visited. It was a gorgeous sunny Sunday afternoon and seats were empty and fans were quiet; expecting a win.

Although the game was boring, the adventure to the stadium was exciting. Its amazing what one can accomplish in a large city with a 14 year with a smart phone. Owen explained quickly how we catch the train at Grand Central Station and take the North Metro directly to the stadium. Who’da thunk? I’d traveled years for work and never had the luxury of a hand held ‘walking’ GPS. The most difficult part of the trip was finding which train to take once at Grand Central. With my cutest Midwestern charm, I pranced up to the information booth and politely asked the forty-something gentleman in the booth where I could find the train to the Subway. My bright smile didn’t warm this man. “Take a right. Buy yourh ticket in the subway. That’s it!” he snapped at me. I shyly moved away from the booth and looked right at Owen. My son giggled at me, waved his finger and said, “That’s it.” We laughed and laughed on the train ride to the stadium.

Now that we were in full command of the subway system we decided to travel around the city by train. And we traveled!! One word to the wise…it’s not smart to wear an authentic Lebron James Miami heat jersey in NYC. We couldn’t figure out why so many people were staring at us. In my typical hotel snob persona, I thought my cute little outfit must’ve made me look hot. (Yeah right….what was I thinking?) It was the six-footer with the new NBA jersey that caught the attention. A bit too much attention. In fact, it was clear we needed to make a quick stop at the hotel to remove the piece of clothing that was a bit attractive in the NYC hood. No need for a mugging on this special day.

14 year old diet for the day: Breakfast: Misc. Carbo load from the continental breakfast bar; Midmorning Snack: Hot Dog & 18 inch cheese pizza; Lunch: Fried Oreos; Dinner: Family sized plate full of cheese ravioli, salad, chocolate fudge Sunday for two.

Mom enjoyed another evening of free champagne, cheese and crackers.
Later that evening, we found ourselves cruising the streets of Broadway. Miles of walking, laughing and paying far too much money for goofy trinkets.