If You Build It...

And they do come, here in Paris, to a tiny non-descript, South African bar called La Pomme d'Eve. This is where you'll find me and Philippe more than a few nights during the summer and fall because I LOVE baseball. Specifically, I really love the Chicago White Sox - not the Cubs, because I grew up on the Southside of the city. In fact, it's practically a sin to be a Cubs fan south of 35th Street.

I love Ozzie Guillen, the current Sox manager. You might say that he "re-ignited" my love for the game. I saw him the first time at age 15 when he was the Sox's new hot-shot shortstop. It was love at first sight. From that point on, I wanted to go to every Sox game, and my big brothers Tony and Kirk, a shortstop and third baseman respectively, had no qualms about taking me. It was also during that time that I learned everything about the game: what's a sac fly, when do you bunt, how do you steal bases, and if you're stealing home plate why it's great to knock over the catcher!

Philippe goes with me to La Pomme d'Eve for moral support because on the nights that I go, the games usually start around 10 pm. I leave the kids at home with the babysitter. Usually, I am also the only woman in the room, surrounded by players from the Paris Baseball League - all whom appear to be Australian. Stranger still, the game is on behind the bar on a tiny television set while the big screen television is showing MTV! And, it's "polite watching," meaning that there is no yelling at the television and no real discussion about why an error occured, or why no one tagged up on the fly ball, etc. I'm also the only person speaking (or yelling) at the television set in English.

Philippe just doesn't get my fascination with America's favorite past time. It must be a French thing. He says, "It just doesn't have as much excitement as football/soccer." I'm heartened at least to learn that Chloe (my oldest) has already developed an interest in the game.

I'd taken Philippe to the ballpark on many occasions back in Chicago, but he didn't enjoy the games all that much. I think he mentioned something about being a jinx because the Sox would lose every game he attended. Worst news of all, his powers are still strong because the last time I went to see my precious Sox at the La Pomme d'Eve, they lost. Get it together guys, you've got fans 4,000 miles away! We need to see you win the pennant!