my steps... big and small: "i LOVE baseball." (did i just say that??)

i never thought i'd say that i love baseball. for most of my life, i only followed the lakers. i thought basketball was more exciting and more interesting than any other sport. even though football is absolutely exciting, i never felt connected to any specific team. so, it was merely a social sport for me-- which means, i watch it while hanging out with friends.

but when i was kid, i used to spend hours upon hours "playing" with my brother's baseball cards. and when i say play with them, it means organizing about 1000 cards based on teams/positions. or alphabetizing them by team or within divisions. or organizing them based on rbi's. or deciding which player was the cutest (hey~ i'm a girl afterall). that's how i "played" with baseball cards. haha. so, i think i've always had a deep love and appreciation for the game. it just stayed dormant inside for many years.

and now, i'm a full-fledged fan of the game, specifically a fan of the SF Giants. (family, please stop threatening me. i love you even though you are dodger fans. hee hee.) and i absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE going to a live baseball game. it's really on my "top 5 things i love to do in sf" list. since i've only been to 3 stadiums (the giants, the dodgers & the angels) in my life, i'd really love to travel across the US and visit as many stadiums as possible. wrigley, fenway, new york (yankees), pittsburg, and san diego are the top 5 on my list right now. (any other recommendations??) but it's at at&t park where i fell in love with the game. not only is the stadium beautiful, but the food is ahhmazing! even forbes thinks at&t park is the best! (http://www.forbes.com/2009/04/14/best-baseball-stadiums-lifestyle-sports-baseball-stadiums.html)

i won't even start on how invested i am in the players. with shows like "the franchise" and blogs that help me stay connected with the players, it's hard not to feel super connected and to think of them as people i personally know. it's like when you get so invested in a tv show and start talking about the characters as if they were your friends. that's how i feel about the giants.

so, i just wanted to share a few pictures from some of the games i've attended this year. sadly, i've only been to 7 games this season and it's already halfway over. so, if anyone ever wants to go to a game and needs a buddy, let me know! =)

opening night! world champion giants get their rings!!