Date: Tue, 20 Jan 2009 13:29:06 -0800 (PST) From: T H Subject: SUMMER BASEBALL (TOURNEY 4, PART 3) SUMMER BASEBALL 4.3 ------------------------------------- LOVE IS IN THE AIR ---------------------------- Monday thankfully flew by. Tuesday is looking very hectic as well. I called Pete this morning to say hello and hear his voice. He's feeling better, and he's moving around the house with Lois at his heels. By phone or by email, have been in almost constant contact with Margie. I swears I hear her voice even though we're not directly speaking. A comforting voice, with Pete's own voice echoing in the background. Wednesday arrives. Another hectic day. I prepare for the 3 hour trip to see tournament central and the other baseball gods. All umpires confirmed. Mark, Steven, and Andy all on board as helpers. A contingency plan of sorts for the Blues in case of weather problems. At 7:30 and not a second later, the meeting starts. Finance...done. Umpires...done. Teams confirmed...done. Grounds and weather. We got the latest weather report. Still not good. Poor Carl. His grounds staff may literally be flooded this weekend. He's been in contact with all the host facilities. He has lined up extra helpers just in case. I let Carl know that Mark, Andy, and Steven can also help. That I can use a rake and will help. Marcus came up at this point. The committee diverted from topic for a few minutes. We re-confirmed our commitment to Steven's safety, and now to Marcus' safety as well. Through Steven, I had asked Marcus if he would like to come to the games, watch his big bro umpire, and perhaps help out. The two brothers talked about it, and we got a very enthusiastic YES. Of course their so-called parents wouldn't give a rat's ass where he was or what he was doing. Or even if he came home. So we briefly reviewed any legal or liability concerns about having a 12 yo kid helping. I asked whether we would be willing to pay Marcus, given his and Steven's financial status. The tournaments have always been strictly volunteer, except for the umpires, and the consensus was NO as to paying him DIRECTLY. However, unknown to me and to Steven, there has been a trust fund set up for Steven should he decide to go to college. Funded of course by one of our generous sponsors. With a nice sum to be contributed by our own bank account. A motion to approve said contribution was unanimously approved. We agreed that we would make the hotel open to both Steven and Marcus, that all their meals at any of the parks or at the hotel, would be paid for by the committee. Ray was to bounce these plans off Ozzy, the hotel owner. The concession stands at the ballparks are staffed by people from the hosts. The hosts keep all money earned from their concessions. We pay the hosts for all drinks and food consumed by our workers and umpires. Our people merely choose what they want to eat or drink, the hosts keep a running tab, and submit it at tournament's end. Ray cuts them a check immediately. We agreed having Marcus help would be a good thing. Carl and I will coordinate his supervision. Back to the topic on the table...grounds and crappy weather: Umpires...will be welcome at the hotel should their games be postponed or suspended. Ozzy has already reserved some rooms for that exact purpose. Should umpires not be available for re-scheduled games, they will be paid for any games they miss. Though I have not scheduled myself to umpire, I will be available. I will bring my gear and uniform just in case. I can count on several Blues to make themselves available for any re-scheduling. Especially Joel and Steven. Site Directors (SD's)...are surprisingly flexible, given all the duties they have. They know the routine as many have worked with us for years. At each ballpark, we have devices which detect lightning (even though not seen and the thunder not heard) that will be constantly monitored. Bulldog will stay connected to the national weather service as the weekend unfolds, and will coordinate information with the SD's. Grounds...Although we play on many different diamonds, we have them prioritized as to which can handle rain the best and which can be made ready at a moments notice. We will re-schedule games and facilities as a last resort. We have 2 or 3 parks with lights standing by should we need to play more night games. Damn, that was intense. But looking around the table, I see crusty veterans who have all been there and done that. Probably nothing that could happen would faze these people. Before we adjourned, we of course heard an update on both Pete and Steven. Pete is recovering well and Lois reports we can have him back any time. Ray transported Steven to the hospital earlier today for the first of his routine followups. He is recovering nicely, and the bruises and cuts are healing. (Steven was concerned about his appearance when he and I talked yesterday, but I told him not to worry. Those who are important in his life will not care in the least. Besides, any residual marks will give him a grizzled veteran look. We had a good laugh about that.) ********* It's now Friday. Steven and Andy both cannot wait for the games to begin. The baseball too, LOL. They have texted, emailed, and/or phoned almost daily. Andy of course is traveling with the older lovers and is staying the whole weekend. I have both Joel and Steven leading off for Blue. Ozzy hesitated on liability grounds about having a room occupied by teenagers with no adults. Off the record, he had absolutely no problem with having additional teens in his hotel. Boy teens especially. So, I requested a double and offered to be that adult. I do believe all parties will be quite happy with this arrangement! I haven't met Marcus. He wasn't at home last Sunday as I delivered Steven. If he anywhere closely resembles his big brother, the kid will be drop dead beautiful. I wonder if he has Steven's creamy colored skin? The penetrating and lovely eyes? The sensuous mouth with succulent lips? I had called Steven yesterday letting him know he and Marcus would be staying at the hotel all weekend. I emailed big bro today reminding them to pack extra clothes, jackets, and swimwear. Mark has volunteered to transport the brothers as the rest of us will probably be quite busy. Of course it was Andy who volunteered his older brother to do this. I re-worked the umpire schedule so that Joel and Steven could work the same games together. The other Blues had no problems adjusting their schedules to accommodate me. Obviously then, Mark can see his man work and have Andy nearby. Andy of course can watch his new love umpire. Better not distract him, youngin' ROFL. And Marcus can either hang with these guys or stay in my hip pocket as I tour around. He knows already his brother is gay. No way to hide things now. It has rained off and on since yesterday. I drive through squalls of rain on my way to the tournament. Call Bulldog to let her know my ETA. Her latest weather report is that it will clear up later this afternoon and that we have a window to get our preliminary games played tonight. Carl reports all the diamonds are holding up, and that the hosts and his work gangs are busily getting them playable. For those teams playing tonight who are traveling longer distances, the point of no return has already passed. They had to leave by a certain time in order to arrive on time. Bulldog's welcome table is already busy with teams checking in. As is the norm, they'll now scatter to their hotels. We have volunteers at each that the teams are to coordinate with in case of weather problems. These volunteers coordinate in turn through Bulldog. I arrived at the hotel and checked in with Margie. Then I went to the front desk and got 4 room keys. ************* Mark has already dropped Joel at the hotel and was on his way with Andy to pick up Steven and Marcus. He told me later he was within a heartbeat of dumping his younger brother somewhere en route. They were all to come here and then they could go with Joel to the ballpark. Marcus was very excited about getting away from his hell hole for the weekend. As was Steven. Steven, however, even though he loves his little brother, wasn't totally hip to the hotel arrangements. Oh well, he sighed, Marcus and I have shared the same bed many cold and lonely nights. I met them as they walked in. Steven's face is still scarred, but is he nonetheless breathtakingly handsome. He looked so confident and proud as he strolled in, with Marcus on one arm and Andy the other. Poor Mark got stuck carrying all the luggage. And the little bro...God in heaven is he cute. Yes his skin is the same creamy color. Yes he has Steven's deep and penetrating eyes. And once he got past his shyness, he displayed the same fabulous smile. He stands about 5' and weighs perhaps 110 lbs. Soft little dark hairs on his forearms. Nice long fingers. And he does pack the front of his jeans nicely for a 12yo. Steven is to report to tournament central as is SOP and then come up to the room. I gave him his key. Andy went with him and Marcus came with me. Andy all too late recognized Bulldog and her large breasts. Margie warmly welcomed Steven and then scowled at Andy, giving him his 2nd eyebrow treatment for added theatrical effect. They left her table as quickly as they could. The room Ozzy gave us is damn near a suite. Two very large beds centered in a very spacious room with a large flat screen TV mounted on the wall. Lots of direct and diffused lighting. Mirrors everywhere it seems. It has a mini-refrigerator crammed full of edibles and drinkables. The bathroom is absolutely huge with a monstrous shower/bathtub with a clear plexiglas side wall and door. Several extra large fluffy towels are stockpiled along with additional shampoo, soap, and other toiletries. I didn't think a room as large as ours could even fit inside the hotel walls. What we didn't see, however, were the Ozzy cams ingeniously hidden and strategically placed. The room for Joel, Mark, and Andy is just a few doors away and is more standard sized, but is a double as well. It too has a mini-frig stocked full and delivered especially for them Lots of large Ozzy towels and a larger than usual bathroom. Mirrors everywhere. And yes...the room is similarly wired. Everyone knows their own and the others' room numbers and has their own passkey. Now it's time to play ball!