Thankful To Be Home

Rocky Mount did everything possible to play a vital Big East Conference baseball game today by moving the game up from 7pm to 4 but that didn't work either.  By the time the game reached one out in the bottom of the second rain started and Rod Ramsey the home plate umpire wary of off in the distance rumbling of thunder the Firebirds managed to get the Gryphons out.  Ramsey put a halt to play and within ten minutes the game is postponed even though the rain wasn't a down pour we all knew it was coming.

The weather forecast is for the same tomorrow and possible even Thursday.  A game at Northern on Friday.  There is a baseball tournament at Rocky Mount high this weekend as well as Legion Field.  The game will be resumed at 5pm Monday.

Last night Hunt beat Southern Nash 10-0 so as of this writing Northern stands at 6-2. Fike and Hunt are 5-3 and Rocky Mount and Nash Central are 4-4.

Walked in the door at home just about 5pm and wife Pat is on the phone with daughter Morgan on the way home from Campbell as she had her final exam today at 3pm. She is driving up I-95 and runs up on that storm that hit Kenly.  It rained so hard she stopped twice the first at the rest stop at Selma.  Once the sun came out she starts up 95 and runs into the backside of that same storm and pulls off at Kenly at about the time the tornado hits just a mile back down 95.  In a panic I advised her to get to the nearest business which turns out to be McDonalds and watch the weather and if she sees a funnel cloud head to bathroom. Don't worry mom and dad are on the way. The manager when he heard a tornado had hit close by he put all his employees in the bathrooms along with one scared customer.



Here we go Pat and I listening to the radio, they are talking the storm is heading right down 95 so we decide to take 301. Just about Halifax Road and 301 it starts pouring rain and by the time we went by Firestone part of the road is cover with water.  There was talk that hail was falling north of Wilson so we decided to park under an over pass just in case the ice would not damage the car.  About 15 minutes  we move forward and at times rain was heavy on top of what had already fallen.

Once we get into Wilson traffic is heavy because there are many areas at corners of streets are under water and any low spots were covered.  We made it up to near what use to be the Purina grain bins where the railroad underpass is located and of course that under pass is down in a valley.  Looking ahead a car was under the underpass and the top of the car was all you could see. It is time for a detour.

It took about and hour treading many intersections under water to get over on highway 42.  We had decided by this time we need to make our way to 95.  By this time the rain is sporadic and once we cleared the hospital traffic there was a flow out to 95.  By now the sun is shining but looking down 95 is the blackest cloud we had seen all Day and it is near Kenly

Finally just as we arrive at the McDonalds it starts raining again but by now a panicked child is smothered with hugs from a happy mother glad to see her baby.  The ride home was rather simple but you talk about a tired dog  papa was glad to be home from an hour forty five minute trip to Kenly and a thirty minute ride home.

The Weather Will Be A Factor

The Rocky Mount High baseball and softball games have been moved up to 4pm trying to beat the oncoming rains and severe weather. Northern Nash's games have been also mvoed up. The entire high school basketball season was dotted with snow and ice and by the time the last week of the season arrived teams just didn't have enough days to get in a full schedule.  The conference champions The Hunt Warriors missed out out by one game getting all their conference games in.

Fast forward three months and baseball enters the last  week of the season in much better shape than basketball as the only Hunt and Southern Nash gamed rainout Last Friday being only game on the schedule being behind, but then there is the weather forecast.  I haven't seen at this time the results of the Warrior-Firebird Monday night.

Both Tuesday's games and any make  up game lost on Tuesday due to the weather that would be played on Wednesday just might be in jeopardy because the forecast 90 per cent chance of rain both days which could push the Tuesday games all the way to Thursday and set up a Thursday/Friday back to back days this week to finish the season.

I don't want to even comment on the comments supposedly spoken by the LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling.  I see there is only one answer for the NBA.  A league that has 70 per cent of their players are black has to somehow or other force him to sell the team.   Here is the problem.  How can you punish a 82 year old man that when he bought the team for 20 million and make him sell the team when the team is worth 600 million?

Are you going to force him just turn over the team to us (NBA) for nothing?  Should the players just boycott the next game.  The Clippers were one of the favorites to win the west division and for the players to just lose on purpose takes playoff money out of their pocket.

Last night was the last game ever by the Charlotte Bobcats.  Today is the first day of the return of the Hornets.  Bring out all of that teal you have in your closet.