You may recall Jordan, a.k.a. "the Lion," as one of our visitors during Ian's internship in Philadelphia, who joined us for an excursion to New York City.
For Jordan's first Boston adventure, he made his way from the airport to Sasaki without directions or a map, just because he can. He's one of the UCLA ROTC's best and brightest and a newly minted lieutenant.
Arriving two hours earlier than we expected, he left flowers and a photo at the front desk, raising some concerns from my coworkers. "Do you know this guy? ... Does he know you're married?" Yes, and yes: he was a groomsman in our wedding.
During the week, we enjoyed lovely evenings catching up and wandering around Boston together. And of course Jordan also made two side trips. He's a true Wilderness Explorer. The first was a drive around New England, where he spent a night camping to wake up to a beautiful sunrise in Maine. Or New Hampshire. Something like that. The second was a Megabus ride to take advantage of $5 Yankees tickets procured by friends visiting NYC. Even though he hates the Yankees. It must be a boy thing. Neither trip was planned out before he arrived in Boston. His motto is "fly by the seat of your pants."
Jordan returned in time to spend Fourth of July weekend with us. We spent Saturday afternoon exploring Harvard and the Esplanade with Fox, and indulging in J.P. Licks. We also visited the spot where George Washington took command of the Continental Army exactly 235 years to the day after the fact. Very momentous, given Jordan was commissioned just a month or two ago.
We then jumped on the T and headed to Fenway for Jordan's (and my) first Red Sox home game.
We found our seats, picked up some snacks, and settled in for the game. We've recently been watching Burn Notice, seasons on loan from Dane and Micki. To our surprise, Michael Westen walked out on the field to throw the first pitch.
Fenway was an incredible baseball experience. The park has so much character and history. I loved overhearing a kid behind us asking his grandpa how old Fenway is and about the red chair. And while "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" is still a must during the 7th inning stretch, Fenway has added another tradition. At the middle of the 8th, everyone sings along to "Sweet Caroline."
We had great seats in the outfield and laughed at the strange guy in front of us who snuck in a McDonald's double cheeseburger in his back pocket, only to forget it was there and sit on it. He may or may not have had some chemicals in his system, which also made him and his friend noisy. Thankfully, just when they started getting annoying, the actual ticket holders for the seats showed up and the guys had to go bother someone else.
It was a beautiful evening, and to top it all off the Sox beat the Orioles 9-3. I think I might be a Sox fan for life now.
For more photos of the game, click here.
Stay tuned for Boston's Fourth of July celebration!