Bueller? Bueller?
Even though I don’t think he’s seen the movie, this afternoon Conner nailed the St Louis sequel to Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. A day that started as a school day for Conner and work day for Brian ended up as an epic Thursday game of hooky for both, with a Cubs game as the featured event for the proceedings.
Everything started when a full day of meetings evaporated and Brian’s boss had to go to NY. We had been promising Conner we would take him to his first ballgame for quite some time, so a day game – with perfect weather – with the Cubs in town -- seemed like a perfect opportunity. So Brian called Laura and asked if she had the flexibility to pick up Conner early from school and bring him downtown, while Brian headed a couple miles north to grab a few cheap seats at Busch Stadium box office. Less than 15 bucks later, day of game promo tickets were in hand, and plan was in motion.
Brian’s last meeting was wrapping up and Conner was on his way downtown when a co-worker said “Hey, you don’t have the flexibility to go to this afternoon’s game as a thank you for your work on this project, do you?... there’s a Budweiser Brewhouse rooftop deck event we’re hosting today.” The Budweiser Brewhouse is a new part of Ballpark Village which opened last year and sits across the street overlooking and looking down into Busch Stadium.
So – after clearing bringing a child with the second ticket was fair game – cheap seats became all inclusive rooftop deck tickets, and away we went to the game.
On the rooftop deck, we had access to all you can eat and drink, and because it was an event for clients and media partners, the spread was better than the typical ballpark fare. Conner was excited about the little thing with lots of sprite in it that the bartender used. We caught a couple innings up there and were having a blast, but Conner soon voiced a complaint. He had been promised nachos at the game… and the rooftop spread of prime rib sandwiches, pasta salad, and deserts that he was eating from a comfy sofa overlooking Busch Stadium simply wasn’t cutting it. He made it clear that’s not what he had been promised.
So – recalling that we also had cheap seats inside the stadium – we headed down the stairs and across the street to the game.
While en route, our neighbor texted me that he was the game, presumably to brag he was watching Cubs-Cards on a 75-degree day, while I was chained to my desk at work. I texted back that we were at the game, too, as Conner and I made an impromptu decision to go to the game. We soon decided we should at least hook up to say hello. We were just walking in the outfield gates and he was in the private Redbird Club, but we would figure it out.
So – fast forward a little bit – you probably see where this is going. A little while later -- there Conner and I were in the Redbird Club – using a couple other people’s tickets – with Conner eating nachos, drinking soda, and looking exactly how you would expect a 4 year-old getting everything he wants to look like. We caught a couple more innings – with Conner of course making friends and hamming it up with our neighbor’s work colleagues, as he was there as part of a recognition event for top performers. Another posh set up, but Conner soon voiced one more concern. Salty was in the bank, but not the case for sweet. He’d been promised (or so he said) ice cream as well. I ignored him at first, but then I remembered seeing they were going to set out Ted Drewes in the 7th inning on the rooftop deck back across the street where we had been earlier.
So – Conner said his goodbye’s to his new BFF’s in the Redbird Club, and we set off to head back across the street. But one fan at the end of the row refused to let Conner leave. She put up an arm bar and told Conner “you can’t get past me until I hear you say Go Cardinals.” I expected Conner to do as he was told, especially with ice cream waiting for him. But he did nothing of the sort. Instead, he shook his head, said “I like the Cubs”, karate chopped the arm bar down, and walked up the aisle without saying another word. I was a little embarrassed – particularly since we were Redbird Club party crashers -- but mostly proud of my Con-man Cubs-fan.
Across the street, Ted Drewes was indeed waiting for him, so there he was back on his personal couch, eating ice cream, while having a bird’s eye view of the end of the game. The final few innings came and went, and then we headed home.
A big success for sure, but of course there was still time for one final complaint. Conner was surprised to discover we were headed home after the game. He said “aren’t we going over to Jesse’s to play the Wii game with the characters.” It took me a minute to figure out where that came from, but then I remembered back in Feb we had gone to a Sundaymatinee Blackhawks-Blues game with a friend of Brian’s and his son, and afterwards we went back to their house to play floor hockey and the Infinity. Conner was bummed to find out that playing sports and video games for a couple hours after a sporting even wasn’t a guaranteed part of the deal. Never enough with this kid!
So I guess for his first major league ballgame, he got his nachos and ice cream, just not the cherry on top. Still. Skipping out on the last part of the school day. Getting tickets to an afternoon game at Busch. Crashing an Anheuser-Busch party on the Budweiser Brewhouse Rooftop Deck. Crashing the neighbor’s company recognition party in the Redbird Club. Getting introduced to the Cubs-Cards rivalry and winning a standoff with a rival fan. Not too shabby for his maiden voyage to Busch Stadium – and something that might make even Ferris Bueller tip his cap.
