Category: Whats the latest…

Arrived in Nashville  yesterday. Had to see the famous Broadway area. Its something you should do if you ever make it here. Pretty famous six blocks. Think of the history.  The list is long of the people who got there start there. My favorite place was “The Stage” As good of artists as you will ever see anywhere. I could have stood there all night long and listened. It just gets so crowded that you eventually want to move on. The night air felt good. I like that they have the same sidewalks that were there so many years ago. Old school for sure.  Holding onto history. They do put out barriers to accommodate for the extra people though. You have to. Those little sidewalks can only accommodate so many people.  An interesting side note. Word is Nashville is the biggest place in the country for bachelorette parties (bigger than Las Vegas) Really?  It looked like that could be a possibility last night for sure.

Now its on to Memphis.

-John Kelly

Its a brand new stadium and its fantastic! Nice job Atlanta. I went to the game last night at Sun Trust Park. The best team in Major League Baseball, The Los Angeles Dodgers were in town. A rain delay in the 3rd inning wasn’t enough to stop the game. Dodgers win 7-4.  Before I forget I wanted to mention something that always appeals to me. Most of the Parks-stadiums  have a single store located somewhere on the ground level that sell Game used jerseys or bats or in most cases the actual bases as well from certain games. Pretty cool! The jerseys can go for upwards of $850.00 for a single actual Game worn Jersey(I used to think I would never get tired of looking at that kind of stuff).  Autographed Pictures and a whole lot of “autographed baseballs”. They Jerseys are unwashed and clearly authentic. The dirt and in some cases pine tar still on them. When I was a kid that would have seemed unimaginable at the time. The game has changed so much. Can you imagine having an Authentic Game worn Jersey from Joe DiMaggio?  Me neither. When I was in Pittsburgh I saw a autographed Picture of both Bo Jackson and Dion Sanders stand together. I thought that was probably priceless… Nope… $385.00.   Cincinnati a few games later, same exact picture $375.00.  I guess the market wasn’t as big for that Picture in Cincinnati. LOL.  I kept wondering how many of those pictures did the 2 of them sit down and sign, and what was their “take-$$” .  Some guy has that picture in his law firm office and people are amazed when they see it. If people only knew.  It will be are little secret. Ha Ha Ha.

Back to the New Baseball Park, 12.7 miles from downtown Atlanta. They did everything right(unlike Miami). beautiful restaurants and bars and a whole lot of good stuff.  Maybe even an All-Star Game is in there future in the next 4 or 5 years. That’s how those things work. Best price for a hotdog. Best price for a large Coke.  One more thing, every game I have gone to so far it is a little difficult to get an actual ticket. All those computer generated tickets being sold. Yuck!  Its made it a little less appealing when you just want to have the actual ticket in your hand. Not in Atlanta though.  Every ticket I saw was an actual ticket. Just like in the old days. What a breath of fresh air that was to see.

Until next time.

-John Kelly

P.S. Go to INSTAGRAM if you would like to see all the places the car I’m driving has been. #thats1luckycar

#theultimateyear.com

Arrived in Atlanta and the game between the Atlanta Braves and The Los Angeles Dodgers had just started 10 minutes earlier,  so no interest in trying to make it to that game tonight but knew I would be ready for the game tomorrow(Thursday), starting at 7:35 p.m.  Its always a good thing when you have time to appreciate the city you’ve just driven 460 miles to see. That’s what I did tonight. I walked as much around the city as I could. The CNN Headquarters, Centennial Park, and The Big Beautiful Ferris wheel. The Philips Arena where The Atlanta Hawks play there home games at. Big cities are always impressive. I went into “Teds Montana Grill”.  Id like to say that I had planned that earlier but that just wasn’t the case. Truth is It was right outside my door from the hotel I’m  staying at. No kidding! I walked out, walked 100 yards and there it was. Life’s crazy that way. I walked in and had a beer, looked around and appreciated the open kitchen and the way you could watch the cooks less than 8 feet away preparing the meals and sending them out in a way that had to be precise or it could go bad. They were impressive to watch.

In talking with my dad earlier tonight the conversation (among other things) is always about where I may head next.  Its never definite. Its always a matter of looking at the map and deciding what do I want to see and is it logical and reasonable to think I can get there.  Here’s one example: Do I go to Nashville and then on to Memphis, or Birmingham and then on to Memphis, or Mobile AL. and then on to New Orleans. Its not a bad problem to have.  Most likely it will be Nashville then to Memphis and then New Orleans. I guess . LOL. Then obviously Houston then on to San Antonio and then Dallas. I think.  LOL…. So its decided then. It should be Nashville. 249 miles away. I think. LOL.

Stay tuned. -John Kelly

So its not that I couldn’t have stayed in Key West for another day. It would have been much to easy. My best recommendation (if you ever make it to Key West) is to rent some form of transportation and see The Island that way. For me it was a bike. Excellent idea. Bikes and mopeds everywhere. reasonably priced for sure. Nothing like seeing a 14 story cruise ship from 50 feet away. Something else that I had always wanted to see were original gold and silver coins from lost ships back in the 1700’s and the 1800’s. Very cool! You can actually purchase some or even just one if you like. I thought they were priced fair. A few hundred dollars or $1000’s. For me I just wanted to see and feel what they felt like. The shop was very accommodating. You could tell the person liked there job. Isn’t that life though. People who like what they do for a living seem to be happier.

Tuesday morning it was back on the road again. Many miles to travel.  435 miles later I arrived in Tampa Bay FL. The long drive through “Alligator Alley” pulling over twice for very heavy down pours of rain coupled with winds that made it difficult to stay on a strait line. Sometimes REST AREAS can look so inviting LOL! We were all sitting there for the same reason. No where to run. No where to hide. The storms coming through Florida this time of year are pretty unique. Cars in the ditch more than a few times. They say its coming up on hurricane season here in the next few weeks. I’m sorry I wont be here for that. NOT!!  I would like to experience a hurricane but it would have to be on my terms, not while I was driving 80 miles an hour in blinding rain. I’m just saying.   So its off to Atlanta here in the next few hours I think, (wait while I check my weather APP.) LOL.  First a stop at Tropicana Field (home of the Rays) and then Raymond James Stadium(home of the Buccaneers).  452 miles to Atlanta and a Braves Game either tonight or tomorrow night. they are hosting The Los Angeles Dodgers who are the best team in baseball and have won 9 of their last 10 games. Atlanta on the other hand has gone 1-9 in their last ten games.

That’s all for now.

-John Kelly

After arriving in Key West FL. last night I couldn’t help but think about my experience at the game. Maybe more about what could become of the area surrounding the stadium(therefore bettering the game for everyone). I came up with several things that could be done to improve the experience.  Here’s the thing, It would be a challenge for sure, “but if I had the power”, (and there are people that do). (1) I would buy up every available piece of property surrounding that park .(2) I’d put a sign on every household in that neighborhood saying you were hiring,(I did this when I was trying to build my Landscaping business in Missoula MT. 35 years ago).   The difference is , I was telling people that  I was looking for work and I was giving free estimates, same difference. It worked.  (3)Hire everyone that applied. (4) Start clearing every lot that you just bought,(the tax breaks alone would be monstrous).  (5) Gut all the properties you just bought. Those people living there would be proud of their neighborhood.(which is not to say that they are not already). (6)Take the top floor of that parking garage and build restaurants up there. Its not getting a whole lot of use right now.(7) embrace the community. They deserve it, and in the end it will be a smart business move in more ways than you know.(8)Pay them cash every day on time.(that money will go right back into the hood).(9) Give the kids in the neighborhood free tickets to EVERY home game. All they have to do is show up and walk in. What a concept. (no one is using those seats anyway). That’s how you build a fan base. I did not see one hotel even remotely close to that Facility. What!! Seriously! Major Hotels would be in line to sign up. Your work force is right there waiting. I’ve worked in Hotels and restaurants. I’ve done all kinds of labor jobs before.  Its honest work. Marlins Park could be the envy of The League. Or not.  What they are doing isn’t working very well.

I am a Fan. Thanks for reading.

-John Kelly

Arrived in Key West FL. about 9p.m. on this Sunday evening the 30th day of July. Earlier in the day I was at the Miami Marlins game and thought I would be lucky to get here(in Key West) by tonight. The timing was perfect as far as missing the rain. It really does take nearly three and a half hours to go 165 miles from Miami to get here. It was a nice drive.

Earlier today when I arrived at the baseball game as in the past I’ve just walked up and asked someone if they might have a extra ticket for sale. Today the first person I asked said no, not for sale, but that he would just give me an extra one that he had. I took the ticket and said thanks. Little did I know at the time (because he had not said anything about where it was), but the ticket was the best seat in the house. Row A, Seat 6. Directly behind the Cincinnati Reds dugout. It was just me and the field in front of me. I could not have asked for a better seat. As far as going to a Major League Game, It may never get that good again. I’ve saved all my tickets from all the games but when I look at this ticket again it will make me smile just a little bit more. Cincinnati wins 6-4.

The ballpark was nice. They all are. Every Park is unique in its own way. The issue with Miami is they don’t get that many people to show up for their games. The Marlins are last in the league in attendance. Their estimated payroll is $105 million a year and every year they are dead last in attendance. Just walking around the park before I went in I could see why. Nothing! Nothing to do, no where to go, nothing to see. This is the first ballpark where there was absolutely nothing going on outside the stadium.  Its not inviting. People will never flock to a place like that. Why would they. Oh and one other thing, “they” (The Marlins) are for sale last time I checked.  $1.4 billion as of  Feb. 2017.

Thanks for reading,

-John Kelly

P.S. Thanks again for the ticket Bob H.

After spending last night in New Smyrna Beach FL. (Great conversations with relatives over a good meal and more than one beer).  It was on to Miami.  30 miles from my destination I went through the worst rain storm that I’ve ever experienced before. “THUNDER” (louder than people screamed when O.J. was acquitted). Traffic stopped on the interstate in a matter of seconds because of no visibility . Then Noah’s Ark appeared…(I was just trying to explain how much rain came down). LOL! It was a lot!!  But seriously it was something that I hadn’t experienced before. Thank god.(it ended) No pun intended. I hope I’m never in a car again when something like that happens. LOL!!  A person can see funny things when there life is about to pass in front of them.( I thought I saw a big boat with a lot of animals on it). I was just trying to see the car in front of me, it had no break lights apparently. To the side of the road I limped and got under a overpass with every car that could manage to squeeze under there. Truly frightening. So close and yet so far away from my intended destination. Then off to my left I saw it… blue sky!!. I new I would see the sun come up tomorrow. How quickly thankful I became.

Thanks for reading.

-John Kelly

Arrived in Florida an hour ago. If you ever want to buy a car this might be the place to do it. Listening to the radio after awhile can be a little monotonous. You tend to pick up on little things. In this case the never ending ads to try and sell you a car. “If you have a pulse” the commercial says “we can get you into a brand new car”. “If you can fog up a mirror, we can get you into a brand new car”. In other words, your qualified! The U.S. has an influx of brand new cars and Florida is looking to sell you one. I remember when I was a young adult. There was now way I would have been able to get a brand new car. Times change. Another thing, don’t speed in Georgia. I lost count of the highway patrol cars I saw pulling people over. Crazy! Also they still like the song “driving my Life away” by Eddie Rabbit. I heard the song 3 times in an hour and a half. Granted I was radio surfing quite a bit. Or maybe they were just trying to tell me something.  6100 miles I’ve driven since leaving Missoula Mt. twenty-four days ago.

Eleven games at 10 stadiums in 24 days.  I’m trying to keep my hotdog intake down, but there’s always pizza at the games and it always seems to taste good!(I’m smiling).

Just a side note, In the conversations I’ve had with people who work in concessions at the games I would have thought(being a kid from Montana)that they would have loved there jobs, being able to go and see a Major League baseball game for free and work at the same time in that environment. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Most of them just want to get done as fast as they can and go home. When I was younger going to a big league game for me was a big deal. So much so that I remember it so well. So many great memories. That however is not the case in this day and age. Players rarely have much loyalty to cities and teams. Owners see the players as commodities to be bought and sold. Think back thirty years. How times have changed. For me the goal is still the same. To be able to see as many ballparks at the Major League level as I can. The last 10 games have also shown me that loyalty from the fans to the players is stronger than the owners to the fans or the players. Watch the movie “A Bronx Tale” sometime. Some lessons about life can be learned.

I’m learning everyday.

Thanks, John Kelly

Left Washington D.C. this morning at about 10:30am.  490 miles later I arrived in Columbia S.C.  In 1984 I went to basic training and AIT Schooling here. I always wanted to come back if only for a day to see what had become of Ft. Jackson. Tomorrow I’ll drive onto the base and look around at the piece of land that gave me such nightmares years later when in dreams I thought I had mistakenly re-enlisted. Oh its funny now!! LOL!

The next baseball stadium I hope to see is in Miami FL. on either Friday or Saturday most likely.  635 miles away. One day at a time. The Atlanta Braves are not playing at home until Tuesday August 1st.  The Tampa Bay Rays are not at home until Friday August 4th.  It would be nice to see both of those ballparks.

Thanks for reading,   – John Kelly

After seeing a small part of Washington D.C. the past two days its back to baseball tonight. The Nationals are home taking on the Brewers from Milwaukee. Game time 7:05 p.m.

I’d like to think I saw a lot of D.C., but the truth is there is so much to see. A brief summary, The White house and The Pentagon were smaller than I thought they would be. The U.S. Capitol is pretty much what I had figured.  The Lincoln Memorial and The Washington Memorial were spot on. The Watergate Buildings and The Jefferson Memorial  just happen to be there when we were  driving by and the UBER driver  pointed them out. Sometimes life works out that way. The Supreme Court Building is intimidating looking. My guess is, that’s what was intended.

Tomorrow maybe I’ll keep going south. Right now I’m heading to the game.

Till next time….