At the 'Net- Old Haunts

At the 'Net
Originally uploaded by jmharper.

My last day of this trip to California was "Old Haunts Day" in the East Bay. I started out in the west end of Alameda, my home for four years. I took a walk along San Francisco Bay, my old commute route, and drove around the now closed Naval Air Station. I checked out the old apartments, and a nice breakfast joint on Webster Street. I made a quick trip to Berkeley to wander around the UC campus, and finally on BART to the Coliseum for an evening game between the A's and Red Sox.

For four and a half seasons, I had the pleasure of watching one of the most interesting and exciting baseball teams of the past 50 years- the A's of the late '80's. I saw Canseco and McGwire in their rookie years, as well as Weiss and Steinbach. Carney Lansford at third, Welch and Stewart on the mound, and Eckersley out of the bullpen. It certainly was fun at the ballpark!

The Coliseum was a pretty nice ballpark for what it was- a round multi-purpose stadium. The outfield was open, with a view of the Oakland hills above the bleachers. The seats were a little far from the foul lines, and it was very cookie-cutterish, but it was ten times better than that abomination across the bay called Candlestick.

Then I moved away, and Oakland's obsession with the Raiders ruined a nice park.