Take me out to the ball game

Well, not so much as a spectator but as a volunteer at hot dog stand P144 for the high school Band Booster Club. My son is heading to high school in the fall, and he plays trombone in the band. His school boasts that their band fees are very low compared to other schools because of the fundraising efforts of the Band Booster Club. Selling hot dogs and beer at The Ballpark is a major contributor to those said funds, and every family is asked to work at 6-8 games. So, last night was my first go at this. Who knew what I was getting myself into!
Let me just interject a word or two about fundraising: I understand the need for it, but in my opinion it is a necessary evil! I strongly dislike having to do it. I don't mind the magazine subscriptions so much or even the individual candy bars, but peddling all of the overpriced gift wrap, boxes of chocolates & candles, etc. drives me bonkers. I'd rather give the organization a $10 donation than spend the $10 on a $2 box of chocolates and have the school only get $4. I'll get off of that little soap box. Back to the main story...

Another parent stopped by my house to drop off a badge and directions about parking and where to go and when I arrived. Cool so far.

I was told by the parent who provided the information that business has been a little slow since this is a 10-game home stand (probably botched that up-sorry, folks, I know relatively nothing about sports lingo) and I'd probably be assigned the menial task of "wrapping hot dogs." Okay, I can deal with that. What I was not told was that it was "Dollar Dog" night and hot dogs were only a buck, which compared to $4.50 for a 20-oz bottled Coke or $3.oo for a 16.9 oz bottled water was a steal. Then, there were already 640 hot dogs warmed and wrapped and waiting for the eager customers, so no further wrapping was required for the time being. So, wanna take a guess as to what task the "new kid on the block" was assigned? How about cooking! There were three other adults and 2 student volunteers and nobody wanted to cook, so I said I'd do it. Volunteering is volunteering, right? I donned my hat and apron and set out to grill onions & warm "fully cooked" sausages on sticks & bratwursts on the grill as well as grilled countless boxes of dollar dogs. And to think I thought I'd just be wrapping/selling hot dogs! Beer was sold from a different location by volunteers with their Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) licenses, but in addition to the above mentioned fare, we had nachos, prebagged peanuts in the shells and assorted drinks. I had my handy meat thermometer to ensure the dogs and sausages reached an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees, which took longer than I ever thought it would. How about an industrial sized George Foreman grill, folks? That would be handy.

All in all it wasn't a bad night, just busy, which in my opinion makes time pass a lot faster than when business is slow. They need help tonight and tomorrow as well, so I'd better get myself in gear so I'll be available for one or the other. Thanks for stopping by. Until next time...