Summertime and the Livin' is Easy

Last Saturday the spousal unit and I drove down to Newbury MA to watch our son Adam play in a Vintage Base Ball Game. (http://www.vbba.org/ if you are interested) To be honest it was a mixture of unrealistic expectations or bait & switch, as we expected to see our grandchildren but were trumped by Princess and Superhero Camps.

The game was held on an historic farm and played in a field with corn and vegetable plantings marking the center field and right field borders. The players wore authentic 1860's uniforms and play by 1860's rules. The woolen uniforms were particularly cozy as temperatures and humidity flirted with the triple digit marks. Rules prohibit eye protection but not sunscreen. This was a "beer" game in that one of the sponsors for the event was the "Ipswich Brewery". Parked near the field was a vintage 1948 Dodge Route Truck, fully restored to its glory and fitted with about a dozen taps on the drivers side side panel. Beer was free but there was a tip jar accepting modern 2011 currency.

After the game, which the Newtown Sandyhooks succomed to the local Essex team 11-8, there was a Barbecue celebrating the 20th anniversary of the brewery and the restoration of a historic barn. This barn was built in 1775, a year before the declaration of independence. A grant was recently obtained for the restoration and evidently this event was the first one since completion. From my perspective the restoration was quite authentic including the green head flies that bite and the 1775 air conditioning system, consisting of perspiration running down the small of your back with not even a whisper of a breeze.

The food was quite good. Five courses of barbecue including smoked wings, pulled pork, KC Ribs and fixings. Each course had a different brew to taste. (Note taste. If the revelers had drank full flagons of each brew, we would still be at the farm!) From lagers to ales to an oatmeal stout with desert. Adam even managed to get the window open behind him, much to his mother's delight.

There are pleasures in life that catch you by surprise and leave with you a memory worth sharing. Our Newbury Saturday was one such. Thank you Adam for inviting us to share a hot, sweaty delightful summer outing. Maybe someday you too can have a beer truck of your own.