Father's Day at Citi Field

Just one more post today. About the Mets versus Rays game I watched yesterday with TCH at the new Mets Stadium. The $850 million Citi Field is a beautiful structure, fronted by the Jackie Robinson rotunda. The steel girders rise above the brick walls in an impressive show of strength and aspiration. Inside, the passageways are bright and airy, lit and refreshed by the openness of the steel frame.

It was Father's Day at the stadium. The big screen showed interviews of the players talking about their dads. The expected treacly stuff. The starting pitch was thrown by a kid, whose dad stood proudly by him. Fathers-and-sons won prizes sponsored by one company or another. The American genius for packing sports, entertainment and commerce into one enticing package. The whole Father's Day a-do affected TCH, who attended the game to distract himself from thinking he was not with his children on this day. We were supporting the Rays, the team his parents in Florida support. 

At one point the stadium cameras zoomed in on couples, and they appeared on the big screen, framed by a heart. Needless to say, the couples, though diverse in age and ethnicity, were all straight. It was a routine affirmation of hetero-normality. I realized afresh I cheer for a different team, a team not playing at home in the spanking new stadium. I was happy that the Rays beat the home team 10-6. 

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