Take me out to the ballgame ...

Today, being our last full day in Phoenix, we went off to a ballgame. We are definitely not sports fans, and don't usually attend professional baseball games. If truth be told, the last (and only) other one I went to one was about 30 years ago, so it's been a while. However, it was a case of When in Rome, do as the Romans do, and almost everyone here follows baseball.

But how many miles from Niagara?

Before I came to Phoenix, I don't think I even knew that sports was a major reason why many people visit Phoenix. For me, Phoenix's attraction was its weather. However, apparently many spring training camps are held here for major league baseball teams. Yep, you can tell I don't know much about this, so I'll stop right there.

The game today was "Rockies at White Sox" at Camelback Ranch stadium, which of course meant nothing to me. So how did I choose this one? Well, it was a Groupon offer, and I picked a weekday that appeared to have the best available seats. Then I googled the team names to see where they were from. Well, given that our homeowners were vacationing in Colorado, and our close friend lives in Chicago, I thought it was kismet!

I have to admit I really enjoyed myself. Our seats were right behind the home plate, and we were surrounded by men who were monitoring the pitchers' performance. Scouts maybe? No, a worker told us that the teams closely monitor the performance of their own players. Many were making detailed notes,

while others were using radar equipment to log a pitcher's speed. That was as interesting to me as the game itself.

After the game Greg asked if I wanted to go for a drink. A few seconds later I saw this sign, and the thought of a drink must have been fresh in my mind. For a second, I wondered what kind of shots this place was serving ...

Yet another difference in the medical coverage between the U.S. and Canada. With public health coverage in Canada, our medical shots are usually done at a doctor's office, and are not advertised in a store parking lot. If you want the other type of shots, you can find those in a bar, in both countries.