A Dream Day in the Life of Jimmy

Okay, so after more than 10 years of this foreign service gig, Jimmy had his dream day on the job yesterday. Did you know there's such a thing as "Baseball Diplomacy"? Even if you didn't know that, you should've known that if there were such a thing, Jimmy Story would find about it.

Apparently there's a big baseball training facility here in Brazil, just outside of Sao Paulo, and yesterday, Jimmy got to go there. Cue the sunbeams radiating from the skies and some sort of angelic music.

So here's the whole scoop. This facility is state-of-the-art and houses some 50-60 Brazilian boys who are handpicked as the best and brightest of Brazil's future in baseball (I guess in the US, Japan and wherever else they play baseball). I'm sure I don't have all the details right, but the facility is supported by a private Japanese company and is intended to do nothing but develop these young players. The boys pay R$700 per month for all their needs and the rest is subsidized by this company. They play baseball for something like 6 hours a day and then they go to a private school at the facility. Their moms come in every so often to take turns cooking the meals for them.

So here's where the Baseball Diplomany comes in (and yes, I do smile every time I write that. Have you ever heard such a silly expression as "Baseball Diplomacy"?) A higher-up from the State Department along with a lot of Major League Baseball former players and coaches have come down to check out this facility and play with the boys and get them excited about Major League Baseball. And of course, Jimmy volunteered for this visit. He would've scratched and clawed to get the visit, I'm sure, but as he was giving out the assignments, he claimed this one as his own.

Jimmy said this facility is his "field of dreams": beautiful flat, level grassy fields (something like 5 fields, I think he said), good clay, and I'm willing to bet there were white bases and a few bats laying around as well. Plus he got to hang out with these baseball players from the US and today -- HOLD YOUR BREATH -- they're going to let him hit and catch some balls!!!!!! It was a strange sight to see him leave this morning with a suit and tie on, his briefcase in one hand, and his baseball glove in the other. But he's never been happier, so who am I to complain if I have to explain to the drycleaner tomorrow why we have to get the clay out of the knees of his suit pants? I just told him not to complain to me if he gets dinged by a fastball going 100 mph. I will have no sympathy.

Turns out there's a tournament at the facility next weekend that, not surprisingly, we're now going to attend. I will let you know if it really is the field of all dreams or just Jimmy's ...