Of Parks and Barks

BACK AT THE BALLPARK: We missed baseball so much during the no-fans pandemic season of last year, we're going early and often to games this year. 

Game number two was on a chilly Wednesday afternoon a couple of days back. It was under 40 degrees, so we bundled up to a point it felt more like we were going to a football game in December.

Before the game, we checked out the new boardwalk section on the southwest corner of the 300 level.

There are built in binoculars offering views of the city and the sound. 

There are spaces to sit and stand around, but many of them are sporting 'closed' signs at the moment, as people are supposed to socially distance and only eat and drink in their seats under COVID-driven protocols.

There are some fun, over-sized postcard murals on the wall that make great photo opps.

The game itself was kind of a weird one. We got to see the Mariners' starting pitcher, Justin Dunn, walk EIGHT batters in 4 2/3 innings. Ugh. The good news is, he only gave up one hit. The bad news is, the other team (the White Sox) wasn't hitting because there weren't strikes to swing at.

The Ms dug themselves a hole, but rallied in the sixth inning, batting around in the order and scoring 7 runs along the way. Fortunately, that was enough to earn a win that afternoon.

FURRY VISITOR: Thursday morning, our plans didn't go as scheduled thanks to a surprise guest. 

This is Cassie. She is a good girl. She was having a big adventure today when she ran away from home. Bold move for an almost-blind dog.

I first saw her out my bedroom window. I yelled at the kids that there was a stray in our yard and grabbed a leash.

We went out to find her, but she was already out of sight. However,

Annabelle Kisky

has ears much better than mine and she said she heard a jangle. We ran to the south and saw her. She barked aggressively at us - but also came toward us. We said hello and petted her and followed her around for a bit. She's aged and arthritic, but was on a mission, walking swiftly. We managed to get our little 10-pound leash on an 80-pound dog. She didn't resist, and seemed happy for friendly company.

We corralled her into our basement, gave her water and treats and worked the phone numbers on her multiple tags while she had a sit. None of those numbers worked, but one dog tag had her last name on it. I ran upstairs to grab our neighborhood watch master list and found a matching last name.

We spend several comical moments trying to wrangle big ol', dear old Cassie into our tiny Honda Fit. First attempt she posted up in the driver's seat and would not budge! Second attempt, Annabelle had to hoist Cassie's sizable hindquarters up into the car as she couldn't manage on her arthritic own.

We drove to where we hoped her home to be. As we approached, two elderly women were standing in the road in front of their house. Honestly, they looked like they were in shock. One of them spied Cassie in our car and a sense of relief set in. Then they told us that Cassie had escaped while they were loading their other elderly, infirm dog into the car to take her to the vet to cross the Rainbow Bridge. My gosh. They thought they had lost both furry friends on the same day.

We were so happy Cassie happened into our yard. She is such a sweetie.