The Rangers Last Game, Garagiola, Mountains, Prescott

Day 227 on the road.

The Rangers and MLB ended Spring Training this week, officially on Thursday. A new record attendance of 1.3 million fans made it to the Cactus League this year. The reason: severe winter weather in the north and east made it easy for many to head south for some baseball this year. An estimated 60 percent of the fans are from out of state.

I attended the last two Rangers home games, one was a night game on Tuesday night. The weather was perfect. The last game was yesterday. It began at Noon so the players could get out of town early.

Joe Garagiola was at the game autographing his new book, "Just Play Ball."

Below is a video clip from yesterday's last game of the 2008 season.

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I met a Rangers Bat Boy at a game when he took the seat next to mine while his mother remained on the lawn in the outfield. I was shooting a video clip when he convinced a player to toss him a ball. I promised him I would post the clip of him on YouTube, so here it is. He was back to work on the bench yesterday with the Rangers, shagging balls and bats.




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After the game I drove through the mountains to Prescott, Arizona. I'm there now. I'm posting this update from a Starbucks north of downtown. What a beautiful town, sitting on the slopes of the mountains and in the Prescott National Forest.


The trip from Surprise was easy enough. I just took Hwy. 69 north to a little town called Wickenburg. From there I took Hwy. 89 north which takes you directly through a mountain range.
Be prepared to take your time if you drive this scenic route to Prescott. The roads curve severely and you must reduce your speed in most cases to 20-25 miles an hour. But the views are breathtaking.











Once you arrive in Prescott, you find a nice sized town built among the slopes of the mountains that surround the town. I've not seen one street that isn't sloped or elevated. The new mall is built in what looks like a hill that was cut out for that purpose.

Downtown has a monumental country courthouse and plaza that is heavily treed and beautiful. I read that this historic town was the first capital of the new Arizona territory under President Lincoln.

When I visited the Westgate City Center in Glendale last Friday before the Rangers game I took some video. It's an amazing place to go shopping or have a nice lunch. When the Super Bowl was in town in February (the game was played next door at the University of Phoenix Stadium), the place was wall-to-wall people. I went back last week to see the place under more normal circumstances. Let me know what you think of my great camera skills...(thanks to Joe Cocker for providing the sound track).

Day 224 on the road.

Tonight I'll attend another Rangers game in Surprise. The last game before Spring Training breaks for the season is on Thursday at noon, and that will bring my month in the Phoenician valley to an end for a while. On Friday I'm attending the Tempe Festival of the Arts in the Mill Ave. shopping district near Arizona State University before I leave town on Saturday.

I've enjoyed my stay here, but I'm getting the itch to move on West. My first stop will be in Prescott, then probably head north toward the Grand Canyon. I'm watching the weather up north--it still looks a little cold in the upper elevations of northern Arizona. But as long as I don't run into any snow I'll be fine.

I will spend some time in Red Rock Country in Sedona, which proclaims to have been "voted the most beautiful place in America."

Westgate, Baseball, Fountain Hills, Art, and the Mountains

It's Easter Sunday and all is well. Another Holiday spent on the road. Starbucks is open, and quiet. I've set up my "office" to get caught up on a few things.

I attended the Fountain Hills Art and Wine Affaire yesterday. Fountain Hills is a few minutes from Scottsdale as you go east toward the mountains. Fountain Hills is actually on the eastern slope of McDowell Mountain. After the festival I drove further east and north to see the McDowell Regional Park. I took a hike (doing what people usually tell me to do when I'm at Starbucks--"...take a hike, buddy,...I want your table."). The camp was full of RVs and tents for Easter weekend, so I was unable to stay the night.

I made a video and posted it on YouTube, below, of my trip there.

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On Friday, I went back to the site of the Super Bowl in Glendale: Westgate City Center. What a great place to hang out. I had lunch on the patio at the Fox Sports Grill. (See my video clip here.)

Notice the "Before" and "After" photos below. I took the first photo during a Super Bowl party when the plaza was packed with football fans.

"Before" during the Super Bowl:

"After" when I was there Friday:

Westgate City Center, the lower level plaza.

The photo below was taken by a L.A. Angels fan at the Rangers game Friday night.

Fountain Hills Art and Wine Affaire, Fountain Hills, Arizona

McDowell Mountain Regional Park, north of Fountain Hills

Day 221 on the road.

The Starbucks I’m at this morning is in the Casa Paloma Shopping Center in Chandler, just east of Interstate 10. For the second morning in a row I’ve walked the few blocks across the shopping center to the AJ’s Fine Foods grocery store, an upscale and chic “Whole Foods-like” place that features an outdoor patio, deli, and some of the freshest fruits and vegetables I’ve seen.

The deli at AJ’s was busy with soccer moms, bike riders, and young professionals wearing golf gear on their way to the local country club. I had to take a number and wait my turn. It’s one of the rare deli’s I’ve seen that had one of those numbering machines like you see at the Department of Transportation. I impatiently waited for my number to be flashed on the neon sign above the espresso machine so I could buy a muffin.

I counted ten people hanging around the counter area. A very attractive soccer mom was wheeling around a Gucci-designed baby carriage with sleeping child oblivious to the commotion she was causing by bumping and grinding her way to the front of the counter to view the selection of donuts, rolls, croissants, and other delicacies. When my number was called—I had number seven--she lied about her number and cut me off by telling the lady behind the counter, “I’m number six!.”

As I was contemplating this behavior, an elderly woman pushed her shopping cart past me and ran over my foot. Finally I was able to limp my way to the counter and purchase my pumpkin nut muffin. I survived the onslaught at AJ’s deli and returned to Starbucks and had breakfast in peace.

I’m on my way in a few a minutes to Fountain Hills, on the slope of the McDowell Mountains, to attend an art festival. Then I’ll do some writing later this afternoon and post some photos from my trip yesterday to the Westgate City Center. I also watched the Texas Rangers beat the Los Angeles Angels last night in Surprise. By tomorrow I’ll have some new photos and video posted, so check back.

Day 220 on the road.

It's getting warmer, today's high to reach the mid-80s. On Easter Sunday the forecast is 89 degrees, sunshine.

I made it to Starbucks this morning and decided to walk to the grocery store for some breakfast food. I was thinking how great the weather was and saw numerous people walking their dogs and enjoying the cool morning. In a few weeks as the heat arrives, these cool days will be gone. I've been told, however, the nights and mornings are still cool during the summer months...even though the afternoon heat will top 100 degrees.

I'll be attending another Rangers game today. It's one of the few night games, so I expect it to be cool...if not downright cold. I'm going to revisit downtown Glendale and the Westgate City Center on my way to Surprise. My first visit to these hotspots was during Super Bowl weekend when thousands of football fans from all over the country were in town. I'm going back today for a quieter and less crowded visit.

I read in this mornings Arizona Republic newspaper about a local business owner from Tempe who donated a few professionally built poker tables to the troops in Iraq. The man owns a company that sells poker and gambling supplies and was approached by the military about donating some new tables. The troops like to play poker to keep their minds active while off duty and enjoy playing poker tournaments during their downtime (poker has always been a popular game among the troops, even during the Civil War when poker was just starting to make the rounds up and down the Mississippi River). Of course, when I play poker, I sometimes feel as if I'm in a battle, fighting my way through a mindfield. Go figure. I guess it's all a matter of perspective.