ANTHONY WATKINS – Tallahassee, FL, USA

I grew up in the center of football country, between Montgomery and Auburn, Alabama. I played high school football one year, made varsity on both offense and defense, so I guess I was pretty good, played pick up sandlot football from age 5 until I left college and realized I was accumulating too many concussions.

For some reason, I never got the desire to watch other people play football. I went to a few Auburn games, but soon realized I was just bored in the stands. But for some reason, and as far as I know, my father never watched or listened to and certainly never attended a baseball game at any level, but I fell in love with the game, even though I was not competitive, even at a high school level, I was too slow of a base runner, a pretty fair hitter, but not a homerun guy and never better than a single. They made me a pitcher because I was left handed, and maybe pretty good at it, but in sandlot, nobody had lefty gloves, so I never learned to catch with my right hand. In high school, standing on the mound with no glove was kinda dangerous, I gave it up about mid season.

Still I love to watch a good game. We lived in south Florida for 35 years, I went to the first Marlins home game and over the years I went back a few times, but mostly I enjoyed the slow sleepy late summer minor leagues in St Lucie, Jupiter, and West Palm Beach. Teams I didn’t know the names of, players I had never heard of, but the tickets were cheap and I always had a little one who enjoyed trying to catch a foul ball and running around the half empty stands.

These days, we live in Tallahassee. We could watch the FSU or FAMU teams, tickets are under $10, parking is free. There are even both a mens baseball and a womens softball team where my daughter goes, TCC. We will probably start at TCC, my wife and I, as my daughter has no interest these days. I guess she is too big to play tag in the bleachers.

I got to looking around to see where the nearest pro teams are. Jacksonville is 162 miles away and have the Jumbo Shrimp. Montgomery, Alabama is a little further with the biscuits (isn’t that just too cute?). I don’t know if I will catch a game in either city, though I am fond of both towns. But right now I am craving a warm buttered biscuit with a couple of jumbo shrimp in it for a great breakfast sandwich!

I cant eat biscuits anymore due to my type 2 diabetes, but I might drop by the local seafood store this Saturday, pick up a lb of headless deveined and shelled 14-20 count shrimp and bake up a batch of homemade biscuits and have a hella cheat day….