The Battle Of The Bay, and Tailgating!

The annual "Battle Of The Bay" contest between the two bay area baseball teams, the San Francisco Giants & the Oakland Athletics, took place in a 3-game series last weekend at the Oakland Coliseum. 
It was a postcard-perfect California day, as the blue skies and mild sun made put the perfect vibe for all.
Our friend Leonard Ybarra had organized a group tailgate for everyone at the finale game on Sunday. He set up a big tailgate spread of food, grilled right there on the spot! Lots of side dish fixings to go alonside the beef kabobs, chicken, three different types of sausages (the Pineapple Links were out of this world!), and PLENTY of adult beverages to pair with that wonderful food. 

And what is a tailgate without MUSIC! Leonard is a professional Event Performance Planner who provides music, lighting, and stage sets for special events all across California.

Leonard Ybarra, the nice guy who did all this!

His work has been seen on big parade floats,  corporate award shows, you name it. He had  this tailgate rockin' to the beat with one of  his many DJ rigs...music to set the mood  for consuming mass quantities!

I brought along a 7UP Cake from Oakland's  renowned, "It's All Good Bakery", along  with a Lemon Ice Box Pie...it's kinda like a  key lime pie but with much more of a "grandmother's love" baked in. 😋

Eating and talking, laughing and dancing, and eating even more. That was how our day got to a great start!

7UP Cake, Lemon Ice Box Pie, & Big Cookies!

...but, alas, then there was the game.

Now, if you are a SF Giants fan, that game was fairly typical: the Giants are outplayed for most the game, looking up at the other team from behind.
 But then the Giants decided to make sure that...The FIREWORKS HAPPEN!

The Oakland Athletics had taken the lead and just needed a few outs to seal the victory. The Giants weren't looking good all game, but they managed to get a runner on base. And with a mighty swing, the next batter sailed the ball over the left field fence for a 2-run go-ahead homer. And that was that.

For the non-Giants fans, this was a crushing end to the game. The Athletics got a runner on second base in the bottom of the 9th inning, but they could not bring him home for the tying score as their last batter struck out to end the game.

Some heroic A's fans that Leonard recruited.

Leonard's tailgate spread.

So, as we gazed upon the field and looked at the final score in the lights, we still could say that the day was awesome! I hadn't been tailgating anywhere since the year 2017, and it was good to be out on the blacktop with familiar sights & sounds, and making new friends. We even kept up our former tailgating culture by giving plates of food to the hardworking stadium security staff. Just like old times!

I am grateful to everyone for making this "let's get back to normal" effort such a success. It's good to socialize with like-minded people, and we *definitely* gotta do this again! Thanks, everyone!

Giants and A's fans together on a wonderful day.