Over the past 13 seasons, I have seen about 600 games at Wrigley from Aisle 424. Some of them have been great, like the tie-breaker against the Giants in 1998 or when the Cubs came back from a 6-2 deficit with 2 outs and nobody on in the ninth against Milwaukee in 2008. Many were ice cold slaps in the face like the game against Houston shortly after the 1998 trade deadline when Randy Johnson started for the Astros against either Don Wengert or someone who is even more unmemorable than him. A few were gut-wrenching torture that we don't need to rehash again here since we all talk about those games too much anyway.
So you would think that I would be able to muster more emotion in saying good-bye to the package I have held since the day before Harry Caray collapsed while dancing with Dutchie on Valentine's Day in 1998.
But I'm strangely at peace with the decision.
Maybe it is because the Cubs had a horrible season, have no plans to realistically make it any better, and still managed to raise my ticket package cost from last year.
Maybe it is the new owner's prioritizing revenue streams and amenities over making any change to how the Cubs' baseball operations actually go about their business.
Maybe I've just gotten to the point where spending over 50 days at the ballpark per season is not the best allocation of my time, especially considering there is nothing special to watch at Wrigley these days.
Maybe I am tired of all the Trixies and Chads that have taken over the neighborhood and ballpark.
Maybe I have grown weary of the crap customer service and surly demeanor of stadium personnel.
Maybe my brain has finally won the battle with my heart when thinking about the Cubs and potential post-season glory.
Maybe it is a combination of all of the above.
So today I say goodbye to my status as a Cubs season ticket holder. Aside from what to do about the name of this blog, it really hasn't been as hard a decision as I thought it would be.
Keep the blog name. I like it.
ReplyDeleteHow about the Blog Formerly Known As Aisle 424?
ReplyDeleteSeeing as we still have our summer family in Aisle 424, and we'll still be seeing plenty of games from those seats, I think the name should stay.
ReplyDelete*stunned silence*
ReplyDeletei think you should keep it too, but maybe with a caveat like, as suggested, the blog formerly known as. or you could just be a weird symbol.
ReplyDeleteeither way, tough decision but i can understand it :)
Did you actually send this letter to the Cubs? (dying laughing)
ReplyDeleteThe first step is admitting you have a problem ;-p I'm not there yet but get closer every day. I'll be sure to privately ping you when I'm trying to offload my "seems like they play here every week but we can't beat them anyway" Pirates tickets so you can rekindle the 424, row 7 charm.
ReplyDeleteSeriously, I respect your decision and think you should keep the name (maybe with an FKA tag), but if you do want to change, why not something like "From my couch, which isn't an old plastic seat, with a much better cup-holder, easily seen replay angles and HD to kick-ass" which lately is a much better place to watch this team lose.
Please do continue to blog either way. You're a help to those of us who struggle with admitting WE have a problem too.
After 7 years on the waitlist, I was recently notified by the Cubs that my opportunity has arrived. I will cherish Aisle 424 and continue to carry the torch. Go Cubs!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy. They are great seats. I'll probably still get up there from time to time, but not nearly as often.
ReplyDeleteHey rvh95, what was your latest "waitlist" number if you don't mind me asking? I think it'd be interesting to hear how fast the Cubs are going through the list with people saying NO to them.
ReplyDeletePlus I know someone who is like 41,000-something. (masochist)