Upstate Downer

The final Hall of Fame Game was being played in Doubleday Field on June 16th and it was sold out; we didn't even know about it before coming up here, but there we were in town, and tickets on the street were not exorbitantly priced. The nice guy who sold us two for an oddly nominal fee ("Ten bucks? For both?") had probably heard the weather report...or looked at the sky. We were optimistic, though; hadn't the sun held sway for the parade? So what was a little rain now? It's just a drizzle. Ignore all those people who are leaving. They're still letting us in, right? They'll get in a couple of innings and we'll get to see a little baseball...but it was not to be. Just before we entered the stands there was an announcement urging those not in the covered grandstands to "seek shelter immediately." Ten or fifteen minutes later, there was hail on top of the now-driving rain. Cooperstown felt a little like Mudville a couple hours later when the last Hall of Fame Game ever, scheduled for 2 p.m., was finally called on account of this:

We were under that tree on the left at first, then Ken spotted a place under this bank portico. Thanks Ken!
The Cubs and the Padres left without playing, and suddenly, everyone who was at last year's game tried to remember a little harder what it was like.
Four hours later, it was clear and calm, and we had dinner at the Lake Front restaurant.