On a recent trip to visit my parents in Klamath Falls, I swung by the old little league fields I played on as a kid and was a little shocked to find them in complete disrepair, having been abandoned since 2007. Let's be honest, the fields were never great. Even when I played on them 20+ years ago, every ground ball carried a significant risk of a wicked hop and a busted nose. But to see them like this - rickety stands covered in goose shit, dugouts sprayed with graffiti and riddled with bullet holes(!), outfields covered with waist high weeds - was actually pretty depressing. Maybe it makes me feel old. It doesn't feel that long ago, but it looks like nobody's played there in a lifetime. Or maybe it's just another symbol of the declining popularity of baseball in America, the only game I really care about as an adult (screw you football! You don't belong in the summer, you jerk!). Either way, I stood at approximately first base and the memories of playing there were vivid. Partly because the weather there in early spring was terrible so we played a lot of games in 34 degree sideways sleet. But mostly because I loved playing baseball. I could almost hear the overzealous dads yelling at their kid who just dropped a fly ball. Almost taste the post-game Capri Suns. Almost smell the hot dogs from now-boarded up concession stand. Ahh, I still miss it sometimes.