Take Me Out to the Picnic

The Timlins and the Schilling Family during Picnic in the Park 2004

Coming up this weekend, Sunday June 25th is the annual Red Sox wives Picnic in the Park at Fenway. It is a wonderful charity event that the wives work extremely hard to make a success. I believe the first Picnic in the Park was in 2004. That year several of the wives hand painted jean jackets that were autographed by players and then auctioned off at the picnic. The charity chosen in 2004 was the Diabetes Foundation. Mike Cubage was our third base coach that year and he is a diabetic, so I always figured that is how they decided on that charity.

Proceeds from the 2006 Picnic in the Park benefit the team charity, the Red Sox Foundation, and Room to Grow, a non-profit dedicated to enriching the lives of babies born into poverty throughout their first three years of development.

This year they have some wonderful auction items including: A pitching lesson with Curt Schilling, a hunting trip with Mike Timlin and Doug Mirabelli, a chance to play video games at Fenway with Trot Nixon, an opportunity to spend an evening playing Scrabble with Jonathan Papelbon, personalized jewelry custom designed by David Ortiz, a vacation at a Wyoming ranch donated by Mark and Hilary Loretta, and many more one-of-a-kind Sox items.

I look at that list and think, what a hoot to be able to play Scrabble with Jonathan Papelbon. I say that because man learning to pitch with Curt is obviously out since I wouldn’t be able to even throw it to the plate let alone over the plate. Yes, I throw like a girl. I’m a total failure at video games, just ask my son, and I’m assuming any jewelry designed by David Ortiz would probably be a little too large for all of five feet of me.

Which auction item then really has me swooning? Hunting with Mike Timlin and Doug Mirabelli! Do I hunt? Only for my car keys, but give me a gun, a cross bow, heck I’ll use my bare hands if I have to and kill Bambi, to spend a day with Mike and Doug. I can’t wait to see the Camo Country episode that comes out of this adventure and live vicariously through some wealthy guy and his kid as they get to experience what I consider the ultimate thrill. Spending a
day in the country with two absolutely hunkalicious baseball players.

I hope that the third annual Picnic in the Park is a huge success and the weather is fantastic. I have to admit though, I didn’t write this to actually pitch Picnic in the Park, but to ask what the hell were they thinking when someone selected the picture below to advertise the event last year? Not only that but they are using a cropped form of the picture in this years promotions. Check out how the guys in this picture seem to be cold but the woman seems to be a bit too hot. Is it just me?