I have a love-hate relationship with Taco John’s, which is about three blocks away from my apartment. I love that it’s near my place, and I can get a chicken quesadilla and potato oles whenever I want. I hate that it’s so near to my place that I can grab potato oles and the cheese sauce on the way home. I love that it’s Taco John’s and not McDonald’s or Burger King because then I would be hitting the drive-thru like no tomorrow and gain 50 pounds in the process.
Taco John’s also makes me think about my short-lived softball career when I was in grade school. When I was younger, I played in a recreational softball league. I think it was probably one of the first times I had played softball … and for some reason, I thought I would be great as pitcher. Yeah, no. That dream fell flat after I threw a couple of pitches that went absolutely nowhere … at least I didn’t hit anyone … I think.
The softball coach saw my limited softball skills and figured that behind home plate is where I truly belonged. In my mind, I think I was an awesome catcher … I think I was a fifth- or sixth-grader at the time … so this wasn’t super fast softball or anything. But I geared up with the catcher’s equipment, the chest pad thingy, the face mask, my knee pads, and my mitt.
My memories say I was an awesome catcher, and I really should ask my dad about it because he attended most of my games. At the time, we had a big fat van and he usually tried to park it behind the fence in left field. I think he said he would give me $10 if I was able to break the van’s windshield or a window whenever I was at bat.
My father is a very smart man. He knew I was too weak to hit a softball that hard and that far to break anything. I simply wasn’t strong enough. But he made the bet at every game, and I tried my hardest to hit the ball toward the van. To be honest, I wasn’t a very good batter … I don’t remember being a good batter. I just remember being a good catcher.
I remember catching fly balls like no tomorrow. I remember tagging runners at home plate and the umpire yell, “Out!” I remember smiling when the coach and my teammates said, “Good job, Jenny,” after I caught a very quick and high foul ball. The batter hit the ball, which headed toward over my head and headed toward the umpire, who was in the process of ducking when I jumped up and caught the ball.
I love that memory. At the end of the season, I think my team was really good. Here’s where my memory is a little fuzzy … but I think my team made it to the championship game and faced off against a team that was sponsored by Taco John’s. I don’t remember much specifics of the game except that we lost to Taco John’s and I was really upset. I was so upset that I vowed to never eat at Taco John’s again … not that my parents took us there very much to begin with.
And I think I kept my promise for a couple of years until my mom and I were running some errands around town and she wanted to stop for lunch. She suggested Taco John’s, and I said no. I honestly don’t remember what my mom said to make me break my promise. We ended up having lunch at Taco John’s … and I would like to say that I didn’t enjoy it but I really don’t remember.
I love Taco John’s because it brings back that wonderful memory of playing softball when I was younger. I remember being a good catcher, and that makes me smile. I’m sure I totally didn’t enjoy softball, but for now, I remember the good stuff. Maybe when Krissy reads about my softball memory, maybe she will tell a story about when she was in t-ball. If she doesn’t tell it, I will tell it for her because that story also makes me smile. And I know my parents know which memory I’m talking about.