On Leaving with Hint of Nostalgia
Wednesday, June 18, 2025Manchester, CT
Outside the Game:
It was another stupid, stressful day at work before the artificial long weekend. I stopped working at 6:30 PM to pack, pick a hotel two-thirds of the way there, and got ready to go.
I headed out around 7:30 PM, and I had an okay drive out, although construction held me up at various points, and I lost the satellite radio for a stretch. But at least I wasn't on 95.
I pulled into my motel at around 10 PM. One Indian gentleman was sitting around waiting for me and checked me in with a real old-school motel key. I drove to my room and dragged all my stuff inside. I bought a soda and unpacked, prepared for tomorrow, and hit the sack.
The Accommodations:
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| Best Stay Inn, Manchester |
The Best Stay Inn was, as mentioned, and old-school motel. It was clearly a family-run affair, and while frayed at the edges, it was still well-maintained.
The door opened into the main room, with a desk (filled with local attraction brochures), dresser and TV on one side, a little alcove with the wall AC units, and the bed and dressers on the other wall. On the wall to the outside were two over-stuffed chairs and a small table. The bathroom was on the far wall, with a vanity, toilet, and leaky tub shower.
It was very nostalgic, and the only real problem was that there were no outlets anywhere near the bed, leaving my phone to recharge on the desk and make me really face how addicted I had become to that thing.
On Inspiration
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| Campanelli Stadium, 2025 |
Trois-Rivieres Aigles vs. Brockton Rox
Campanelli Stadium
Frontier League
Brockton, MA
7:00 PM
Outside the Game:
I slept poorly, but that was my back's fault and not the hotel's. I was up early and showered and packed up before a nap. Check-out involved dropping my key in the appropriate box by the office and going back to my car. A middle-aged Indian man was doing the housekeeping, which reinforced that it was a family business.
There was a local breakfast place, but it was nearly twenty minutes out of my way, so I went to a McDonald's right by the motel, I was pleasantly surprised when my McMuffins were actually made with the slightest of care. It makes all the difference.
I was on the road by around 10:45 AM, and the last leg of the drive, as was the first, was hampered by nearly constant construction. But at least I wasn't on 95.
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| Topaz Internment Camp |
I stopped in at the Fuller Craft Museum, a local arts museum that was built in this modernist building in the 60s. It was a ton more than what I was expecting. A lot of artsy stuff goes over my head, but I can at least appreciate the skill of construction with craft items. There was one wall hanging called Topaz Internment Camp that hypnotized me. The artists mother had been a teacher at one of the Japanese Internment camps, and she had constructed a map of the facility made from old kimonos, and striped with Kintsugi to symbolize putting their lives together after the camps. I seriously might buy it. I've looked up the artist and everything.
The building is a gem regardless of the art, and I would have enjoyed their stylized patio by the lake a lot more if it wasn't a billion degrees out with 99% humidity. I hit the gift shop on the way out, buying a wood burl bowl and a small piece from artists who makes lacquered bronze.
With some time to kill still before check-in, I headed over to a local antiques store to get that part of the trip out of the way. I wandered around, looking into each overstuffed room. As is tradition, I ended up picking up a lot of little things, including a Field of Dreams baseball and a piece of china made and labelled from Occupied Japan. I talked with the owners for a bit. One of them went to fantasy camp for the Red Sox, so we talked baseball before I left back out into the brutal mid-June weather.
I stopped at a Wendy's for lunch before heading to the hotel at check in. I was greeted by a heavily tatted receptionist who checked me in without no problems. I dragged all my stuff to my room and did a little unpacking before napping like the dead.
I woke up and grabbed my bag and camera for the a short, odd drive to the ballpark. I didn't know where to park, so I parked at an adjacent lot, and there was no one to ask about it anywhere. I walked around and took my pictures and found the statue of Rocky Marciano at the football field next door (Brockton is self-titled the "City of Champions" because it spawned Marciano and Marvin Haggler [who doesn't have a statue for some reason]) before heading back to find a small group of people waiting by the entrance.
Eventually, the team store opened, and I was able to confirm that I was parked legally, as well as get a logo ball, before exiting to find the ticket booth opened with a small line. I bought my ticket, and climbed the mountainous step inside.
The game was over just shy of 10 PM, and it was a short drive back to the hotel, elongated by stopping to fill up my tank. I bought a Gatorade, went up to my room to finish my scorecard, pack up, and hit the sack.
The Stadium & Fans:
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| Home plate to center field, Campanelli Stadium |
Campanelli Stadium was the local team's home stadium when they were a collegiate team, and after that team folded and the erstwhile "Knockouts" took their name and their field.
It is a weird one, at that. The park is set with the standard promenade, but it is at the top of a built-up stand area, and you need to climb a steep flight of stairs (or use the elevator) to get up to it from the entrance. The promenade only runs from outfield to outfield and not around the whole park. The seating bowl runs from third base, around to right field. The left field area is a rentable picnic area. The second level of press and luxury boxes only rises around the periphery of home plate.
The smallish by modern standards scoreboard and video board are in left-center field. There are two retired numbers in dead center. There was a second entrance by the first-base side that was closed off. It led over to the high school, where I'm told the main parking lot is for bigger games, but not a Thursday night game in June.
The boxing kangaroo mascot KO was around for most of the game, schmoozing with fans and probably greatly enjoying the hot, humid weather in the giant felt suit. The between-inning events were minor-league standards except for the "Brockton Bread Race," a mascot race of various bread products. The sparse crowd was at least paying attention to the game.
At the Game with Oogie:
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| Cafeteria vibes |
I entered the gates with a small group, and was soon quickly done with my tasks of taking photos in the small park. Having hit the team store outside, I made my way to the concession stand to grab a cheap Powerade and hot dog. Not quite full and wanting to finally get the fad over with, I went to the "walking taco" stand and purchased a Tostitos one. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I was still disappointed. It was... okay, I guess. It would have been a way bigger hit with me when I was twelve.
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| A taco while walking. Science has gone too far. |
I saw the guitars who played all the national anthems practicing as I came in and was walking around. The grounds crew were goofing around when they saw me taking pictures, and kept mugging for the camera until I took a shot of them.
I purchased another Powerade and a pretzel and went to my seat to find I was in a row that didn't exist. A little more exploring found they took my desire to be in the shade quite seriously and put me in the handicapped row on the promenade, but I just sat in the last row behind home plate, still very much in the shade.
There was a sparse crowd, but no one immediately near me. The guys behind me in the handicapped row were bitching about work most of the game.
The Game:
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| First pitch, Aigles vs. Rox |
The Trois-Rivieres Aigles and the Brockton Rox faced off in this bi-country contests, and our friends from up north had it handily.
The Aigles went in order in the first, however, while Brockton stranded a one-out double. Trois-Rivieres got going in the second, getting two runs off a double and two singles for an early 2-1 lead. The Rox answered with a solo homer in their half to close it to 2-1. In the top of the third, the Aigles kept going with a bloop and a blast to extend their lead to 4-1, while Brockton stranded a single.
Trois-Rivieres got back on the bike in the fourth, with a hit batsman and a blast, and then a walk and a double bringing home three more, for a 7-1 lead. The Rox got a single to third and home with a sacrifice fly to close it to 7-2 in their half. The Aigles went in order for a second time in the fifth, while Brockton stranded a double. Trois-Rivieres got two lighting-assisted runs with a walk, a "single," and a "double" (see below) that made it 9-2. The Rox went in order.
In the top of the seventh, the Aigles could only manage a single, while Brockton stranded two singles. Trois-Rivieres went in order again in the eighth, while the Rox got two back on a walk, a double, and a "single" lost in the lights, closing the gap to 9-4. The Agiles tacked on two more in the ninth, with a single, error, and hit batsman starting the inning, and a couple of fielder’s choices bringing in the runs. Brockton tried to rally with two outs and a double and a walk, but a dribbler to the pitcher ended it up at 12-4 loss.
The Scorecard:
I was back to the BBWAA Scorebook and the erasable pens due to the lack of a home scorecard.
There was tons noteworthy, mostly because of the inadequate lights that led to three misplays (two by the home team) in the later innings. In the top of the sixth, when the lights just turned on, there were back-to-back plays where a single and double were just due to the outfielders not being able to find the ball in the lights, which were only pointed down and seemed to help the ball get lost when it rose above them. The same happened in the bottom of the eighth to the visitors.
In the top of the ninth, there was a vicious single that bounced off the pitcher (who was okay). And the McDonald's strike out batter finally got got in the top of the seventh.
The Accommodations:
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| Country Inn & Suites, Brockton |
The Country Inn & Suites in Brockton was a contentious choice. There were several over-priced boutique hotels on an area of town, but for the just above average hotels, there was a great deal of review wars going on, and I eventually couldn't be bothered and booked this place.
The room was exactly what I expected. It had a slightly above-its-aspirations bathroom and a "contemporary" bedroom, with a king bed and night tables on one side and a dresser, TV, desk, and refrigerator on the other.
It was pretty much what I was looking for, and reviews aside, there was no dope smoking or racist front desk people that I ran into.
On Driving
Friday, June 20, 2025Clifton, NJ
Outside the Game:
I was up early and down at breakfast just as the buffet was opening. It was quite a nice spread as hotel breakfasts go, and the woman in charge clearly took pride in the proceedings, hovering nearby and always asking if you needed anything.
I ate and went back to the room for a traditional nap before getting up and finishing my packing. I was out on the road a little after 10 AM, and as soon as I got on the highway, the lens fell out of my glasses.
Driving with one eye closed, I made it out to the turnpike and pulled off at a rest area, finding that the screw was gone from the glasses, so I retrieved my game glasses from the trunk and completed the drive with them.
There were a lot of construction issues that slowed me down, but at least I wasn't on 95. It took about 4.5 hours to get home, and I neglected to stop for the duration. I pulled into my garage, grabbed all my stuff, and I had a late afternoon of laundry, re-arranging my china cabinet, and fixing my glasses.
The Accommodations:
Clifton, sweet Clifton
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