Yep, it’s another edition of Tube Time, or ramblings above 25,000 feet! It’s time to sit back, relax, and enjoy whatever is squirming through my oxygen deprived mind.

Cleveland. It’s the butt of many “city jokes” like, “it could be worse. We could be in Cleveland,” but my day here has somewhat changed my view on “the mistake by the lake.” Actually, that unkind description was tagged to the old Municipal Stadium. The old ball yard had fog, wind and cold issues similar to those in San Francisco’s Candlestick Park except it was in Cleveland. The former home of the Browns, Indians and the inaugural venue of the RnR Hall of Fame is now just a memory, but it’s immortalized, at least in my mind, by the words of ex-Sox hurler “Oil Can” Boyd, who insightfully described the environment after a game was postponed due to fog, “That’s what they get for building a park on the ocean.”

iPod aside: “Impossible Germany” (track 3) from Wilco’s new record is a tour de force. I’m not sure if “tour de force” really fits here, but damn…

After a gridlock-free trip from our office in Independence, OH to Jacobs Field and $10 parking a pitching wedge from the entrance, six of us gathered for a beer at an adjacent beer joint for um, beers. I savored a locally brewed Dortmunder and recommend it for your next trip to Cleveland. It was still north of ninety degrees when we crossed the street to the ballpark. As we sauntered through the warm, dry air a twenty foot statue of Indian’s great Bob Feller passed by my left shoulder. “Wow, that is cool,” I cleverly commented to our host, Tom. “Yeah, too bad he was a lefty,” Tom replied. “Really,” I asked, the hook firmly planted in my cheek. Good one, Tom.

Having flunked my baseball history quiz, I sheepishly entered the cavernous park and soaked it all in… sun, heat, beer, a dog… It was a beautiful night for baseball and a nice 24 hours in Cleveland.