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Wishing We could be at Oracle Park

19 Tuesday May 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Oracle Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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When was the last time you sat at Oracle Park to watch the SF Giants play? It seems like it will be a long time before any of us will be allowed to return to watch baseball live at the stadium.

I cannot imagine how it will be to sit in the seats with social distancing. It will not be the same to sit in these seats without brushing elbows with other baseball fans next to us.

We all miss not listening and watching the progress of live games this season for the SF Giants. Entertaining ourselves with past games is nice, but I miss the unpredictability of a live game.

Whenever they open baseball season and allow fans in the stands, I may or may not attend any live games. I would rather stay home where it is safe to watch on the TV. I feel for the baseball industry. There are the loyal fans who will adjust to sit at Oracle Park with social distancing.

I would eventually love to attend a live game when it is safe. It may be this fall or next year. Either way, I will be ready to attend a live game. It will be extra special when they do allow fans in the stands for a game.

Unfortunately, this empty stadium depicts the current status of baseball.

At least, I have this picture to remind me what Oracle Park looks like since I probably will not return for a while.

Photos make us ponder what will be.

Remembering Willie Mays 75th Birthday at AT&T Park

07 Thursday May 2020

Posted by in AT&T Park, Baseball, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants, Willie Mays

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How many of us had the privilege to be at Willie Mays’ 75th birthday celebration at AT&T Park? We are blessed we can celebrate Willie’s 89th birthday on May 6, 2020.

This was a fun time back on his 75th birthday! The 75 on the field was his cake. It was huge! We could witness him speak on his special day.

There was a colorful array of balloons released after Willie Mays spoke!

Willie Mays is my favorite baseball player. Why is he my favorite?

  • He is a 5 tool baseball player – meaning he possessed speed, power, hitting for average, fielding, and arm strength.
  • He is an Army veteran who served our country during the Korean War. He missed most of the season in 1952 and missed all of the 1953 season. Willie played baseball at Fort Eustis in Virginia during most of his service in the Army.
  • Even with all his honors and awards, he is just the “Say Hey” kid.

I admire Willie Mays for his humility even with all his accomplishments and awards. He is a real icon for us to look up to. Often times in our society, we are disappointed with the selfish motives from our country’s leaders or popular celebrities. But Willie Mays is the real thing. He is authentic and real.

I love the story where he charged $100 per an on-air interview. The normal charge was $25 for that era. He charged the $100 so he could split the money 4 ways with the last 4 players on the Giants’ roster.

Willie Mays is an unselfish man to admire in the midst of our self-centered society.

These photos show us a great man – Willie Mays!

 

Candlestick Park Days Past

02 Saturday May 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, Remembering Candlestick Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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Candlestick Park with the Sky Box at the top.

Candlestick Park with the Sky Box at the top.

I shot this Candlestick Park photograph during the 1991 SF Giants baseball season. I am hoping there will be a MLB season for 2020. There are still a few months where this could be a possibility.

It is hard to believe that it has been 5 years since Candlestick Park has been demolished. Some fans commented to me in reality Candlestick Park was an old stadium that was runned down. Yes this is true. The Stick needed to be replaced, and we needed an updated stadium to watch the SF Giants.

I also received comments that my photographs show off the highlights of the Stick. The pictures make Candlestick Park look better than it looked. Thank you for those compliments. To make an object appear at its best is an important goal for a photographer.

I shot Candlestick Park at its best during the various baseball games. I also shot Candlestick Park at its worst during its demolition period. I am so glad I have a large collection of images of the Stick during its life. I even sacrificed my safety and my camera equipment when I was mugged during the demolition.

So I possess a wide range of emotions when I think about Candlestick Park. Even with the bad memories, the good times still warm my heart. I have great memories of my father taking me to Candlestick Park to watch the SF Giants. I had the best times with my friends and family at the Stick.

What are you doing at home since we are sheltering in place? Maybe you can look at old pictures to bring back old memories. You could organize photos into an online or an actual album.

I know my memories molded me into who I am today.

Can you look back at old pictures to see how your past created who you are today?

Photographs are good reminders!

Setting Sun on Candlestick Park

30 Monday Mar 2020

Posted by in 49ers, Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former home of the San Francisco 49'ers, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, Remembering Candlestick Park, San Francisco 49'ers, San Francisco Giants, sf 49'ers, SF Giants

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This is the late afternoon before a game at Candlestick Park. I shot this at the south west portion of the stadium. Notice the souvenir and concession stands on the left.

Have you ever noticed the shadows of objects as the sun sets? The shadows of objects become elongated. See the man with the orange jacket walking away from me with a long shadow. It can give an eerie feel to a picture.

Shadows can add an interesting dimension to a photograph. The contrast of the light and dark make shadows interesting.

The sun’s rays are radiating out in the upper portion and provide a nice contrast in this photo.

Showing the contrast with light and dark shades are a nice effect in a photograph.

In life, we need to understand the balance of light and dark in our perspective. We need the light to recognize and understand things in the dark.

We are faced with a critical crisis in our world today. We receive constant updates of this deadly COVID-19 Virus infecting many individuals. We are to remain inside to stay safe. These are dark times with many infected people. Those in the front lines of this battle are working with tremendous difficulties and challenges. We thank all of these people very much who work in the Medical Field, First Responders, Police and Fire Personnel, Grocery and Shop Clerks, Mail and Delivery People, Restaurants Providing Take out orders, and the many other essential people who are working and sacrificing their health and safety. 

We appreciate those who are seeking to find the solutions in the proper “light” to bring about healing.

My wife and I are praying for God’s light to reveal the answers to stop this dark virus and it’s spreading. Just as there is this darkness, there is light to provide hope.

Jesus Christ said in John 12:46 – I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.

Photos Teach!

Cool Afternoon before a Night Game at Candlestick Park

04 Wednesday Mar 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former home of the San Francisco 49'ers, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, niners, San Francisco 49'ers, San Francisco Giants, sf 49'ers, SF Giants

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I took some pictures down at the Field Level Box seats near Home Plate at batting practice before a night SF Giants game. This was a typical cool evening at “The Stick”. The night games in the summer were a good way to test out your cold winter jackets or parkas.

It is pretty amusing to see Bay Area folks wearing a ski cap and a heavy jacket in the middle of our summer. San Franciscans typically can wear a thick warm jacket all year round.  Candlestick Park was also quite cold being near the water. It was usually foggy and damp during a typical evening game.

I love the San Francisco foggy weather, since I am naturally warm. So I never feel too hot with our natural fog air conditioning.  I mostly wear short sleeves, since I would be too warm with long sleeves.

It is funny when we see tourists visiting expecting the myth of California sunshine. They are dressed in their summer shorts with no jacket and are freezing during their vacation in San Francisco.

A True San Franciscan needs to own a down jacket to survive the fog. In the photograph, you can see how these SF Giants fans are prepared for a cold evening as they watch the baseball game.

A good photograph reminds us about the details of that moment. We remember the good times shared even though we were freezing sitting at Candlestick Park. Oracle Park was built to be warmer to improve the fans’ night time experiences watching the SF Giants. Our love for the SF Giants allowed us to endure the cold of Candlestick Park.

What are we willing to endure for “LOVE”? Enduring the cold damp weather at Candlestick Park, because many of us loved to watch the SF Giants, was a willing sacrifice.

Are you willing to sacrifice time and effort to pursue a dream? Facing a risk and the challenge of working to achieve a goal is scary. It takes dedication to pursue a dream!

Are you willing to sacrifice time and effort to care for a loved one? It’s amazing how some move away from home and neglect the parents they left. It is easy to be caught up in your own life and be oblivious about the condition of an aging parent.

Are you willing to sacrifice time and effort to help someone you do not know? This is something we all are challenged with.

It is easy to sacrifice to do something fun – i.e. attend a SF Giants game in the cold. But it is harder to sacrifice when it involves hard work and lots of time.

Hard Work and Sacrifice results in future blessings. So consider what you should sacrifice for someone else or for a worthy goal.

Photos Teach!

Flood Light Bulbs Made up Candlestick Park Scoreboard

28 Friday Feb 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former home of the San Francisco 49'ers, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, San Francisco 49'ers, San Francisco Giants, sf 49'ers, SF Giants

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I enjoyed looking at the old scoreboard at Candlestick Park. It is old technology compared to the new fancy scoreboard at Oracle Park today. But the old scoreboard still has a unique look. It is fascinating to look close up and see the individual round floodlights which together project the words and images. The photographs were taken during the SF Giants’ 1988 season.

It is also cool to see the shadow effect in the 3rd photograph of each of the floodlights.

Besides the actual game, the scoreboard is the “centerpiece” of a ballpark. We constantly look at it for scores, stats, commercials, information, and entertainment.

The first photograph of the Scoreboard reminds us of the “ASK THE GIANTS” event. How exciting to be able to “talk directly to your favorite Giants player”.

I wonder how did the Candlestick Park maintenance team replace these floodlights. I assume they would have to test to see if any lights went out before a game to replace any burned out lights. The scoreboard would not look good if any of the light were dark. There could be a “black hole” on the scoreboard.

It was relatively easy to replace a floodlight at Candlestick Park – I would guess.

In real life, it is not as easy to keep our “brain” light bright. I am noticing people I know who in their younger years were quite sharp. Now due to age and changes in lifestyle are unaware and out of touch on some things. These individuals are under retirement age, but are not in their twenties.

It is a challenge to keep physically and mentally alert. It is a good thing for me to learn the new technology for my photography. Learning slowly about blogging has been an interesting journey. Fumbling and being successful with my own home network system has been rewarding.

How can we keep bright?

  • Be Involved in different people’s lives in addition to your own family. Being interested in other people outside of your family teaches other perspectives in life. It will help us to understand other people’s reality. Also it will teach us the world does not revolve around “ME”.
  • Be Challenged to learn new things. Try to improve in a skill you think you are not good at. My wife has been writing blogs. She never thought of herself as a writer, but is surprised she is learning to love it.
  • Do projects to test your creativity. I have a garden project where I hope to create my oasis for shooting pictures. More details to come later.
  • Do not be afraid of failure. Just keep pursuing and learn. It’s like running a race to get to the finish line. If you give up, you will never know the possible outcomes. Believe in the impossible.

My goal is to continue not to dwell on the times I get frustrated with my learning efforts, but to be determined to keep my brain light bright!

Photos Teach!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Full House at Candlestick Park during SF Giants Game

25 Tuesday Feb 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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The SF Giants played the NY Mets on this warm sunny day on Saturday, May 14, 1988 at Candlestick Park. It was a popular promotion day, Fuji Photo Day, which allowed fans to go on the field before the game started.

I loved going to the Fuji Photo Days at Candlestick Park. It was one of my favorite promotions, since fans were allowed to walk on the well groomed field before the game began. I love the feeling of walking on the grass. It is a different sensation for me to walk on the baseball field compared to walking on ordinary grass.

This also was a rare day to attend a game with sunshine at the Stick. Normally, it was cold and foggy whenever I attended a SF Giants game. But this day was a warm and bright day.

It is wonderful that the stadium is filled with fans. Seeing a stadium with every seat occupied creates great energy and excitement.

One reason why I enjoyed going to Candlestick Park a couple of hours before a game is to have the freedom to shoot pictures without the huge crowds of people. I do not enjoy crowds. Crowds make me feel uncomfortable. I end up giving the right of way to people who are cutting in front of me as they are walking to their destinations. My wife can easily and quickly weave her way thru a crowd. She will stop to look back to see where I am behind her as I allow others to go in front of me.

Seeing all fans seated and excited about watching the game is the best scenario of a crowd for me. But of course, the time will come when everyone has to get up and go home. That event is what makes me uneasy.

As I reflect about my feelings whenever I am in a crowd, I realize my yielding to people in a crowd is ok as long as I can control my emotions. I do not need to be on any particular time schedule.  I do not have to be ahead of everyone.

Yielding to other people in life is a good thing.

Do I have to be the first in everything? Am I putting unnecessary stress by striving with other people.

Is it really that important for me to have everything my own way?

Burger King had an old commercial with their song “Have It Your Way”. Do you remember this old song? Refresh your memory by clicking on the below link.

Being in a “Full House” teaches us we do not always need to “Have It Our Way” Learn to yield and let others “Have it Their Way”.

Photos Teach!

Burger King – YouTube – Have It Your Way

NLCS SF Giants game at Candlestick Park

20 Thursday Feb 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former home of the San Francisco 49'ers, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, Remembering Candlestick Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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My baseball roots go back to SF Giants game at Candlestick Park when my Dad used to take me to games as a young child. I remember one of my first memories of Candlestick was when he took me there was in the 1970’s and I remember seeing the upper deck in right field was under construction. They were expanding the overall capacity of the ballpark when the 49ers moved to Candlestick Park from Kezar Stadium.

This photograph was taken during the 1989 NLCS when the Giants played the Cubs. It was a late afternoon game in the Fall and the weather was warm and comfortable with not much wind. The baseball postseason at Candlestick usually guaranteed a full house which was extra exciting. There were not too many sellout games during the baseball season for the Giants.

Looking back at old photographs can remind us of old good times in our lives. Candlestick Park was not the “perfect” looking stadium. I have received comments about my Candlestick Park photographs – saying the Stick looks better in my pictures than what they remembered. Many of us still have fond memories being with friends and family watching either baseball or football.

Candlestick Park is more than an old sports stadium to us. It represents a simpler time where we remember spending quality time together. It was not as stressful going to these games for some reason compared to when I go now to an SF Giants game. Perhaps the personality of today’s crowds are different than in the past.

People comment to me how much they love their memories at the Stick.

If you have a good memory from Candlestick Park, please share it. We would love to hear from you!

Photos help us recall great times!

Old Oracle Park Centerfield Area Before Renovations

17 Monday Feb 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Oracle Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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I took this picture last year on 5/24/2019 with the original outfield dimensions and with the bullpens on the field. I am looking forward to going out to Oracle park to see the new layout with the bullpens beyond the Center field fence.

The bullpens are now located in the Center field area to be safer. The area is rearranged in the Giants Garden and in the seating area to make room for the bullpens. It is safer for the bullpens not to be so close to the action and to prevent any accidents. It was an error in the design of this ballpark in placing the bullpens on the field.

Designing a space can be fun. Yes mistakes and errors can happen. Most of us deem remodeling a house as a daunting task. Depending on the scope of a job, it can be a nightmare. But creating a space into a place of comfort and pleasure is worth the work.

I had a project to remodel a flat. The kitchen and bathrooms had to be redone. The wood floors were refinished. A new heater was installed. I replaced a few light fixtures. I prefer to be hands-on when it comes to managing and purchasing the different objects for the project. It is essential finding the right contractor for the job. The finished flat was worth the work. I even received a compliment on the job and design from an interior designer.

Most of us do not need to do complete change of our space. But a change for safety as in the old Oracle Park or just a change of scenery is a good thing to help us feel comfortable in our office, bedroom, apartment, or office. Our space should reflect our identity.

So if you are a SF Giants fan like me, how about adding a photograph of the old Oracle Park to your scenery to remember the good times watching baseball?

Photos can change our space!

 

 

Alone at Candlestick Park

24 Friday Jan 2020

Posted by in Baseball, Candlestick Park, Former home of the San Francisco 49'ers, Former Home of the San Francisco Giants, Lost Ballpark, Remembering Candlestick Park, San Francisco Giants, SF Giants

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I enjoyed my solitude at Candlestick Park. I arrived a couple of hours before the SF Giants would play ball and go exploring. I probably explored every nook and cranny at the Stick. There is not a single person in this photograph.

Solitude allowed me to examine the architecture and design of this great sports stadium. I would walk up and down each row. I would climb to the top and make my way down. It’s too bad digital cameras did not exist at this time. If I had a digital camera, I would have shot even more pictures.

We all need some time to examine without distractions. I would roam around the stadium searching for interesting shots. I found my creativity and love for stadium art. I applied my lessons from art college about photography as I was shooting. This was my time of discovery to find out my identity as a photographer.

In these quiet moments, I concentrated to shoot Candlestick Park with a different perspective than an ordinary sports arena. It was my goal to present Candlestick Park from all angles and to “show it off”. My photography marked my beginnings as a photographer. I was in my “happy place” when I was shooting photos at the Stick.

When I shot photos at Candlestick Park, I never thought one day it would be gone. I’m so glad I have these photographs which represent my beginning passions as a photographer.  These photos allow to remember the person I was to compare with the person I am today. It is a reminder of where I was and how I hopefully progressed.

My Lessons learned –

  • Seek your place for solitude to grow and reflect
  • Who am I today versus who was I once upon a time – Look at your old pictures to remind yourself who you were. Hope you can be proud of who you are today.

Photos are good reminders!