Like water off a Duck?
Napa, California:
It is appropriate for the Ducks that today is the Day of the Dead, because they
played like a bunch of zombies left over from a really bad Halloween party.
It rained all night. And I don't mean sprinkles... I mean torrential downpours
that wake you up with all the noise on the roof. We all piled into the rented
mini-van at 9 am and drove one hour to Berkeley, found a place to park and
attended the University of Oregon Alumni Association "tailgate" party. As usual,
it was a fine function, with plenty of food and optimistic Ducks. The
cheerleaders stopped by, the fight song was played several times and after all
the cheerful camaraderie, we all walked up to the ancient stadium on the UC
Berkeley campus. (All games must be played during the day as the stadium does
not have lights.)
It was still pouring. We were covered in rain gear and ponchos, but the assault
from the sky was even worse than the assault from the Cal offense. Soon we were
soaked.
Pregame show - the stadium was basically empty due to the rain (photo by MJB)
Lovely couple! (photo by MJB)
I was a bad fan and only made it through the first quarter. My
pants were soaked - this was worse than the soaking I received on Splash
Mountain in Disneyland Tuesday. (Gee whiz, was it only a few days ago that we
were hot and wearing shorts?) I waited under the concourse - so old I swear it
was built by the ancient Romans - until half time. I then sent a text message
and received the reply that my friends (and husband) were going to stay in their
seats for the remainder of the game. I was finished, cold, and not enjoying
myself. I headed for the car park and found a lively hangout to wait-out the
remainder of the game. I literally had to forge rivers of water flowing through
the flooded streets. In the end, Berkeley received nearly one inch of rain this
afternoon (and it is still raining!).
A lake formed on the field in the fourth quarter (photo by MJB)
The Ducks lost. They didn't play well. The field was sloppy wet.
Lots of excuses, but the final score was 26-16. Not a happy day for our
traveling group.
Right after the game, the soaking five returned to the car and we drove back to
our campground in Napa, dried off, changed clothes and went out for Mexican
food. After dinner, everyone gathered here to watch the Beaver game on
television (and to use our clothes dryer!).
Here is where I would normally write something positive and up-lifting about our
next adventure... except tomorrow our adventure is - wait for it - a football
game! Yes folks, tomorrow we are heading to Oakland to watch a Raider-Falcon
game.
And it is still raining.
Until my next update, I remain your soggy correspondent.
RV Park: Skyline
Wilderness Park - Country camping just outside of Napa. Some full hook-ups;
most sites are water & electric only. Dump station, gravel pull-throughs and
back-ins. Big Rig friendly. Security gate, free wifi, bathhouse, hiking trails.