We went with David, Tracy and Rosa to see the Braves play yesterday afternoon. It started out a little cloudy and felt fallish, but the sun came out by game time, making me wish I had stuck my hat in my bag rather than my tiny umbrella.
Going to the game reminded me of the first time we went with Rosa to a ball game. I know she was barely 2, because she didn't quite have a firm hold on the whole pronoun situation yet. She loved every minute of the game. How could she not when the Cubs were playing? Anyhow, when we got back to their house, she began to give her replay of the game. "Them baseball men throw ball. Them baseball men hit ball. Them baseball men run. Everybody Yea!! Then she jumpd up and down and clapped and looked at us as though she expected us to do the same. Of course we did.
The next day, the two of us were coloring in her Wiggles color book when she said, "Me like Wiggles." Being the good Mema speech therapist, I modeled the correct production. "I (with emphasis on I) like the Wiggles."
The little sweetie looked up at me and said, "You do, too?" So much for my subtle technique.
Amazingly, when we went to a minor league game at the beach that summer, she kept saying "Me see Cubs guy." We didn't understand what she was talking about until Del or David noticed a man in a Montreal uniform. He was there to check out the farm team, I guess, and the uniforms are quite similar. Now who would have thought she would remember what the Cubs uniform looked like?
The game did not go so well for the Braves yesterday, but we had a great time. Rosa still seems to enjoy the game. Me too. It's a sport I really enjoy watching because I can daydream and still mostly keep up with the action.
We started the baseball afternoon with a trip to the Varsity, a fast food joint like no other I have ever seen. According to their website, it is the world's largest drive in with room for 600 cars right down there in downtown Atlanta and seats for 800 inside. They say that on a home game day for Georgia Tech they serve at least 30,000 people. I can't imagine it. Being there last year at the same time as bus loads of kids on their way home from a field trip boggled my mind. On a regular day they only serve up 2 miles of hotdogs, 2,000 lb. onions, 2,500 lb. potatoes, 300 gallons chili and 5,000 fried pies, and they make everything from scratch.
When you approach the counter, you hear "What'll ya have? What'll ya have? What'll ya have?", and they really like it if you know what you want when you get there so you won't hold up the line. Many people can order by number, but not me. It's their own fault. They have a number for chili dogs and one for slaw dogs, but somehow they neglected to combine the two. I also ask for onions, which they serve wrapped in a little twist of wax paper. Whether you choose fries or onion rings to go with those great dogs, you are in for a treat, but you won't be wanting any snacks at the ball field, I can tell you right now.
In case you want to make your own chili slaw dogs, here's how. I don't want you to have to struggle with it as Mother and I did.
Even the best cooks have a thing or two that isn't their best dish. For Mother, it was cole slaw. She made it just about once a week because we ate so much fish from the creek, but she would be the first to say it really tasted more like cabbage and stuff. For the first 30 some years, mine was equally underwhelming. I used to say I was going to get myself a job at Kings Barbecue on Crater Road in Petersburg so I could learn their secret, but I kept fiddling and about 5 years ago something clicked and it's actually good. I think it's the finely grated onion.
Recipe:
2 cups grated cabbage
scant 1/4 cup light mayonaise
1/4 cup milk
1T onion, grated so finely it's almost juice
1T white vinegar
1/2 tsp. yellow mustard
1-2 packets Splenda, depending upon whether you want sweeter slaw
salt and pepper to taste
Mix all sauce ingredients and pour over cabbage. Mix well. Serves at least 4 as a side dish, more as a hotdog topping.
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