All Things Bubba

Yesterday, it was 40F. Today, we got a blizzard.

Well, not really, but what was supposed to be a "wintry mix" of snow, rain, and ice came down as mostly snow. The biggest snowflakes I've ever seen. I tried to take a photo from my office window, but it didn't come out that great. (It was the cheap little camera I carry with me all the time, not my good camera. Plus, the window is right outside my boss' office, so I couldn't fool around too long. ;-)

February is the worst month of the year. Snow has long lost its appeal, but we still get a lot of it. Football season is over, baseball season has not yet started. The holidays are over, but the holiday bills are still rolling in. Cabin fever makes people thin-skinned and grumpy. It's one of the worst months for Internet flamewars.

I'm ready to get away from it all. I have eight days of vacation time that I have to use or lose by the end of March. And I'm thinking of going to Arizona for spring training.

I regretted not going to spring training in Sarasota last year. I thought there would be lots of time to see Bubba play - plenty of "real" games to see. Didn't work out that way.

Unfortunately, I'm really terrible at making decisions. A decision made is a door closed, and people hate seeing doors close. And I'm even worse than most.

I'm leaning toward going, but I'm also wondering if I should really be spending the money.

At least I don't have to decide "drive or fly?" as I would if I were going to Florida spring training. Arizona is too far away from New York to drive. (Well, I could - I have - but I don't want to this time.)

Then there's the question of when to go. I suppose it should be March 15 or later, since the minor league spring training games don't start until then. Leaving on March 19 would fit my work schedule. I'd probably stay about a week.

Then I have to pick a hotel. I found this guide to spring training. It's four years out of date, but might still be useful. There's a hotel listing here. It says the major league players stay at the Four Point Sheraton. (I wonder if that's still true; the rates are fairly low, probably because it's relatively far from Peoria.)

The minor leaguers reportedly stay at the Hampton Inn in Peoria - closer to the ballpark and more expensive.

The Comfort Suites Peoria Sports Complex is probably the closest; only a block away.

However, it might be cheaper to stay elsewhere in Phoenix, rent a car, and drive to the ballpark. I'd probably want to rent a car anyway, so I could tour some of the other sights. (I've already seen the Grand Canyon, but Sedona is supposed to have some very nice scenery. And I'd like to visit the Phoenix zoo, which is in a large urban park that's supposed to be quite beautiful.)

Decisions, decisions. Hotwire has a "build your package" thing, where you can get hotel, car rental, and airfare in one package. The only problem is you don't know what hotel and what airline until after you buy. I'm not too picky, though. All I want in a hotel is a room that's clean, and has Internet access. Preferably free, high speed, wireless Internet access.

And if I do decide to go, should I make my reservations now, or wait until the last minute and hope for a deal? I've gotten some very good rates by waiting until the last minute.

Maybe I should just flip a coin. Or ask the Magic 8 Ball.