Nothing Like Feeling Appreciated

At first we thought the perk was just free tickets to the Canaries game, and we were happy to get that, but LO! we enjoyed far more than that. First, the packet with tickets included free beer coupons, two per ticket, a coupon for a free baseball for each person, and another coupon for a program. That's not all. We also enjoyed free brats, pork sandwiches, and hot dogs and all the fixin's, including chips and drinks. Finally, since it was JB's birthday (close enough), and his daughter informed the Canaries crew, we enjoyed the singing condiments you see pictured here, accompanied by Cagey. We got birthday cake served to us from Cold Stone Creamery. Game recap is here.
It was also "Two Dead Fat Guys" day at the park, commemorating the demise of Babe Ruth and Elvis Presley on this date in history, and many Elvis impersonators were in attendance. The concession stands featured a deep-fried mashed-banana/peanut butter sandwich honoring Elvis. That's a sorry excuse for a Babe impersonator next to Cagey in the photo.
If you've never been to a minor league game, you're missing some of the most fun you can have at a game. The major leagues, college, high-school, children's and even amateur baseball take the game far more seriously than the minors do. The Canaries slogan "Fun is Good" sums up their attitude, and it shows. Antics abound, and activities run through the night. On this night, there were barrel races on bouncy stuffed ponies, dizzy-guy barrel rolling, chase the chicken (a young woman caught him and won two tickets for the Dylan concert), a kid homerun contest (hitting wiffle balls into the stands), trivia contests, and a "catch this chicken in your pants" contest. You had to be there; I've mentioned only a sampling. They played a snippet from an appropriate song for each opposing player ("Brian's Song" for Brian, "Jolly Old St. Nicholas" for Nick). But the big event was giving away a 1995 Dodge Intrepid. A woman came to the game for the fun and drove home in a new (to her) car.
And this is all during the game. It was too bad that the Canaries lost 6-2 to the St. Paul Saints, but we had a good time anyway. Thank you, First Premier Bank, for hosting DSU employees and their guests!