Today’s Throw-Back is a Take-Back submitted by Michael C. Thanks for sharing Michael!
Where did you say that you were from?
Michael C.
Turner Field
I have been a huge fan of the Atlanta Braves for years. Going to games is one of my favorite things to do. Way back in my college days I went to an afternoon game with a few of my friends. We took MARTA (Atlanta public transportation) to the stadium since traffic and parking can be dicey. I also admittedly have not been blessed with the best sense of direction.
That day we departed from the train station to what I thought was towards the stadium. A couple of blocks into our walk I realized that we were walking further away from the Ted. We turned around made our way back towards the stadium. Out of the blue, a family heading toward the stadium invited us in for a ride.
Looking back years later, I am not sure who showed the worst lack of judgment, the family for inviting a bunch of strangers who were wondering around in Atlanta into their car, or us for hopping into a strange SUV. Before we got in, we agreed that we were going to say that we weren’t from Georgia in order to save face. We had to make a quick decision, so before we hopped in one of my friends said “Arkansas”.
Now, none of us had even set foot in Arkansas. The most any of us knew about the state was the last “s” is silent. Of course the topic came up and we didn’t have more time to get our stories straight. When asked what part of the state we were from, two of us mumbled differing cities. That resulted in a few confused looks. Finally we agreed on one unfortunate spokesperson to create our biographies and got to mumble facts like we went to the University of Arkansas and we were on Spring Break.
The trip broke down to a series of uncomfortable smiles and answers. The good news is that we all made it to the stadium safely and that we didn’t have to sit with our new friends during the game. I don’t remember who won the game, but I do remember that my friends and I are not expert storytellers. Somewhere out there I am sure there is a family that is still very nice but probably pass on giving rides to strangers.
