Tools of ignorance

Who uses it: Baseball players
What it means: A catcher's equipment: mask, chestplate, shin guards, and mitt
How you can use it: When you're equipping yourself to do something foolish.

The Lechners and I watched the Portland Seadogs play the New Hampshire Fisher Cats yesterday afternoon, our first baseball outing of the year. The day's promotion was "Christmas in June;" Slugger, the Seadogs' mascot, danced around in a Santa cap, and the PA system played Christmas carols between innings. (The day's sponsor was, of course, Santa's Village, a seasonal theme park in New Hampshire.)

We sat in the bleachers behind home plate, slightly to the third base side. In all my years of going to baseball games, I've never even come close to a foul ball. Yesterday, three came directly to our section. One large man in a Red Sox t-shirt caught two of them, and handed them off to little boys behind and in front of him. Steve had his glove on one for Grace, but gallantly ceded it to a more agile kid who crawled under the bench to get it. Grace was disappointed, but she's only five. We tried to explain that getting a foul ball now would set unrealistic expectations for the rest of her baseball-going life, but she didn't think much of this argument.

The rain held off, at least, and the Seadogs played a few good innings before giving up four runs to the Fisher Cats. It was the first time all season that the Fisher Cats had beaten the Seadogs, which I think must be small comfort for having a team named after large weasels.

Last night I met up with some old friends from CSBS, in Portland for a training program, and we had dinner in the Old Port. This morning I am mildly sunburned and already a little tired, and it's a long week ahead.