Great thread, sorry this is long. My Nadir was on what was still one of the coolest things I’ve ever done: a spontaneous trip to Tokyo late in 2003.
Mrs sezwho and I were literally planning to go to Floria but saw an AA super saver for 299 direct (yes!) Kennedy to Narita and couldn’t pass it up. We stayed 3 nights instead of the week in Florida and it was pretty much the same $. I remember when I was fun.
Anyway, I’m jet lagged the morning we land at like 5am in Tokyo and my bleary mind remembers the Sox are playing ALCS game 7…nowish?
What I learned was, due to Matsui-fever, the game was being broadcast live basically everywhere. So, I sat stoically at a bar (planet Hollywood? Hard Rock Cafe) in Ueno Station drinking beer and getting ever more hammered at 7am while everything went to shit.
Literally the whole station stops moving and crowds around the outside bar TV to see Matsui ABs, and a couple early birds are there with me along with my Yankees fan wife, who never gloated once.
I remember an old woman on the other side of the bar (it’s maybe 9am now?) saying something to the effect ‘why is he not out?’ pointing to Pedro as he labored and labored. I could only stare at the TV and believe in my heart that the curse had followed me around the world and would pass from my 3rd generation on to the fourth, should I be so fortunate.
You can imagine why 2004 was beyond explanation.