Room With a View?? Part 1

So I have been trying to figure out a way to bring more consistent updates to my loyal blog reader(s) and I have come up with a multi part installment I think may catch on.

I am going to take attempt to take a picture from my room out the window of every hotel we stay in this year.  I will then make comments- whether positive or negative- about the hotel, city, view, and whatever else I can come up with.
My first picture is from the Westin in the Boston cities.
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I suppose you all were thinking you would see Fenway huh?  First, I have no clue where the field is (a) because the streets are all messed up here, and (b) because it’s foggy/rainy/sleety and Second after checking my iPhone map, I realized the field is on the other side of the hotel…
The only remotely interesting thing about this photo is the white tent.  I think it’s a (half torn down) medic tent from the Boston Marathon.
I don’t have much else from Boston as it is not one of my favorite cities.  Tune in next time for an even worse view from Cleveland!!!
Perk

Im back… and Im not announcing my retirement

Hi all, sorry about the (extended) delay in blog entries.  I have been busy working again while also dealing with extremely shoddy internet service.  

First things first, one of my favorite players growing up announced his retirement via blogosphere earlier in the week.
As I said, due to my extremely busy schedule these days, I have been unable to update as much as I would like.  After all, us baseballers are ALWAYS busy while at the field.  See below evidence for visual proof.
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While not busy at the field I have found many things to occupy my time, including but not limited to; mini-golf (Castle Golf, Smuggler’s Cove, Jungle Golf), semi-mini golf (Cross Creek), and real golf (Plantation, Raptor Bay).  Also our latest team fad- shark fishing.
For all you readers, I’m sure that last activity may have piqued your interest.  I will not tell you where or when we catch said sharks, but I will show you pictures and you can draw your own conclusions.  Observe below:
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I am still looking for that one that’ll bite my arm off put up a real fight, but these are still fun.  Special thanks to Tony Leo, Dave Pruemer, and Steve Liddle for showing me the ropes on hunting the shark.  They are the real pros.
That’s all for tonight, I promise I’ll be back soon…
Perk

Who said having kids was hard work??

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For those of you who may not know, I am the proud father of two beautiful little girls.  Most people- especially those without kids- would think that this may sound like a lot of work.  I am here to tell you that it is not.*  Yes I know kids are messy and they only clean up after themselves if you ask repeatedly… until now.  Allow me to introduce my new greatest purchase in a long line of great purchases.  The Baby Mop.

At first glance you may think that this is a joke- I am here to tell you that it is indeed NOT a joke.  Though it has yet to show up at my house, I find myself counting the minutes until my doorbell rings and that package is on the front step.  
I can tell that you think I am still kidding, here is proof of product right here.  That foreign language video does not lie!!!
*- If and only if you have a wife like mine, this product works great probably doesn’t work.

The Secretary

As you may or may not be aware, getting the chance to write my own blog also afforded me the opportunity to hire an employee to help with any questions I may have whilst writing said blog.  Now, this is not just any employee but essentially my very own secretary.

To keep the privacy of my lackey secretary I will not reveal his name, but you certainly can see a picture of him here.
Today I headed into the Metrodome to pay him one last visit before I head off to Spring Training.  When I arrived at his career station something seemed just a tad off.  Unable to initially draw my own conclusion, I moved in for a closer look.  Take a gander for yourself:
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My first thought upon closer inspection was that he may have gotten a haircut.  Then it hit me.  This was not my assistant/secretary/lapdog at all!!! It was an impostor!!!  Who is this man do you ask?  How could I tell?  One thing gave it away- the Full Windsor knot on his tie.  My secretary would never be caught with no-less than the always impressive Shelby Knot.
The next question I would ask myself is why on earth someone would attempt to impersonate my secretary?  Let’s be honest, being a secretary to a fledgling bloggist is not the most glamorous job.  I had to get to the bottom of this mystery and go in for an even closer look.  At this point I am practically on top of his desk peering into his eyes.  Here is what I saw:
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It turns out my secretary was out for the day with a “sore back” so he thought he could trick me with a mannequin.  He should have told his accomplice his tie-knot preference and he would have snuck it right by me!!  Pity the fool who thinks he can fool me!!
-Perk

Sounds like a must read…

I have in my possession a copy of the latest (and maybe greatest) new release, The Yankee Years.

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I am somewhat excited about this book as I, along with everyone else plugged into America, have heard some very controversial and also interesting tidbits from the pages within.
Please allow me 1-2 weeks to read this book and then I will let you all know if it’s worth purchasing.
That is all.
Perk

Its Official…Im On!!!!

Just for starters- observe…

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Thursday night I had the privilege to go to the Minnesota Gophers Basketball Game.  I have (not so) closely followed them since I left campus in 2004.  We all know how well they have been playing this year so I decided to check them out.
They played Illinois who they had failed to beat in any of their previous twenty attempts.  My expectations were low as I am used to being let down by certain Minnesota sports (ahem- Vikings/Gopher Football, etc.) but they handled the Illini from the first tip.  
To make a long story short I made the rather simple decision, along with many other fans I’m sure, to jump on the Men’s Basketball bandwagon.
I am fully aware that this may draw some criticism from a certain scribe who attended U of I but that doesn’t concern me in the least.
Thank You for taking the time to read my useless post and I’ll see you on the bandwagon.
Perk
p.s. Go Gophs!!!

TwinsFest 09

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(Nice Shirt!!)
Twins Fest 2009 came and went and again it was a fabulous time.  It’s always nice to see the guys and coaches again.  It seems like we never miss a beat.  The jokes start right up and the whole weekend is a blast.

I think this year was by far my busiest Twins Fest yet.  It started on Friday with me leaving my house at 6 a.m!  I did the Dunker’s breakfast which was very cool.  From there it was the media luncheon and then radio time, Q&A, and autographs until 9:30.  I think I set a record for the length of time wearing the same shirt when I took it off at 3 a.m. Saturday morning.  21 hours ain’t bad!!

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(it just needs a little dry-clean)

Saturday started early with our team physicals.  Blood work, pee-test, EKG, glaucoma, etc.  They go over us with a fine tooth comb.  I did more radio interviews, a photo session with some kids for KS95, and also more autographs.  It was a long but also fun day.  It ended with  me falling asleep at 9 o’clock.  Saturdays are always the most exhausting day.

Sunday was the easiest day with just a radio interview I did with Baker and an autograph session with Slowey and Crain.

Special thanks to Dustin Morse and Mike Herman for staying on top of us irresponsible players and always making sure we were in the right place.  Way to go guys.

That’s just a little rundown of my Twins fest.  Most importantly 31,000+ showed up to support the Twins Community Fund and altogether the event raised a bunch of money to help a bunch of great causes.

Thanks for tuning in.  See you next time!

Perk

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Target Field Tour

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Welcome everyone to my blog on twinsbaseball.com.  I couldn’t be more excited to be starting this.  I’ll try to mix in a little bit of everything here to keep you entertained.  I hope you all enjoy what I have to say.  Bear with me on the grammar and whatnot due to my lack of an English degree.  Here goes nothing.

I figured the best way to kick off my new blog/writing career would be to share with you my tour of our brand new ballpark, Target Field.  
I stopped in to Kevin Smith’s office today and talked him into giving me a tour.  I met him over at the field at 12:30 – but not before getting lost on the way.  Before you say anything- yes I am from Minnesota- it was a little confusing to find the construction offices.  I ended up circling the block and then found the right spot.  
The first thing on the tour was the Mortenson Construction office where I saw the new seats (not blue).  There are five different seat styles going in the stadium.  Some have wood backs and some have plastic backs.  The seats behind home plate have like a 5″ cushion.  I asked if they were putting those in the dugout but got nowhere with that.
From the building we went across the player’s parking lot into the stadium area/clubhouse.  I was surprised to find that it is mostly all heated in there (It was still probably quite cold last week anyway).  There are a ton of workers who all seemed to have something fairly pressing to be doing so there was no chatting with them.
We made our way through the clubhouse and out onto the field.  We saw the dugouts and also the pitchers mound and home plate.  My initial impression when I got on the field was how HUGE this place is!  It definitely does not seem small in any way.
We walked across(t) the field and up into the left field bleachers.  From there we made our way around the double wide concourse – from which you can see the field the entire way – to the first base sides where some of the suites are.  
The suites are pretty cool.  I thought the lack of bathrooms was interesting but apparently studies show that people are more comfortable using the restroom in a different location.  It looked to me that about every two suites would share a bathroom so it probably shouldn’t matter.  We made our way from the suites to the press box and then to the restaurant in the right field corner.  All these places looked amazing.  I am looking forward to watching the progress of Target Field throughout the summer and also continuing to bring you all updates.
Thanks for tuning in.  See you next time!!!
Perk