GUEST BLOG: Tank and Jenks Do the US Open-Mets Double (By Jenks)
Frank and I hit a double-header today. First, we went to Frank’s first-ever US Open at Arthur Ashe Stadium and then walked across the street to Citi Field for the feeble Mets.
We decided to go with nosebleed seats for the US Open, literally the very top row of the stadium. We focused on experiencing the culture from a bird’s eye view for Frank’s first dabble into the tennis world.
We didn’t even know who was playing when we got the tickets; we just went with Saturday at noon to ensure the doubleheader day. We climbed to our seats, sat down, and realized we were about to watch #1 seed Carlos Alcaraz. The first thing that stood out was the discipline of the crowd. The silence between points and immaculate behavior in the stands was the opposite of the Hot Dog tour bus lunacy a week ago. Alcaraz was a dominant and incredible specimen to behold, much like Frank, just different. He’s a graceful block of muscle that covers the whole court and has all the shots. At 20 years old, he’s got the poise of a seasoned champion. I think he’ll win 30 grand slam tournaments before it’s over.
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Frank Raw Dogged in the middle of the match. I am almost certain people were weirded out but too scared to look or confront us. Especially when Frank yelled “fault” during the review at a silent moment in the stadium. Frank decided we should cheer for the opponent Daniel Evans because he shares British citizenship with me, my father. Evans battled hard, particularly in the third set, which he won.
We spent most of the third set discussing world politics starting with Ronald Reagan, and Frank worked his way back to Czar Nicholas and how he took Russia into World War 1. This led to breaking down the Czar’s connection to Rasputin, who had sex with the Czar’s wife. Apparently, Rasputin was then poisoned, beaten, shot, hanged, and stabbed but wouldn’t die; until he was finally murdered by being bound and thrown into a river to drown. Source: Frank Facts
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Alcaraz won in four sets. Frank and I then watched some of the Elina Svitolina and Jessica Pegula (whose father owns the Sabers and Bills) match. Unreal Pegula was born extremely rich and is still disciplined enough to be a professional tennis. If I was born that rich, I’d probably be dead. We only saw a few points before heading to Citi. Frank and I enjoyed the US Open experience. Our view was epic, perfect weather day, and we watched the best in the world. In total, Frank took 19 pictures with tennis fans.
As we headed to Citi, negativity consumed Frank like a rabid virus until he randomly received two surprise tickets for the Mets game from a legendary fan named “Baron Von Fancy.” Suddenly, we had field seats. We hit the Delta Lounge, ate, Frank took a nap, and we headed to our new seats. We were Row A - on the field, adjacent to the Mets bench. I was nervous that Frank was far too close to the players, like someone starting a bonfire at a gas station with a lit cig.
The Mets are so damn deflating that their slow start elicited minimal rants from Frank. He quietly muttered and sang his curses, and there was little turbulence through 7 innings. Only the song Mr. Brightside really set him off. Then the Mets stormed back from a four-run defect to tie the game. Teasing but never pleasing. Vogelbach got thrown out at second in an incredible display of athletic futility to blow the game, and the standard pain, suffering, and misery settled back in as we headed home. It was anudder adventure for the books.