Word: ballparks
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 2000-2009
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...down Twin Rivers Road beneath the bellies of incoming planes, where the billboards all urged yanjing and the air reeked of roasted barley. In Dublin, Guinness anchors a working neighborhood; Milwaukee's Miller shoulders freeways and a ballpark; and in Beijing I expected industriousness to spill from Yanjing's kegs into the streets. Our cab would follow ant lines of tricycles, one rolling in empty, one clinking out full, past packed restaurants; and there would be Germans, lots of jolly Germans, licking foam from facial hair and shouting for another round. But the empty boulevard carried us in efficient quietness...
Glance around any ballpark these days, and you're likely to see a number of gray-haired ushers, ticket takers and gate attendants. Many ballparks--particularly those in Sun Belt states--are discovering the benefits of cultivating an older labor force, and they are implementing new measures to keep older workers happily employed. "They're personable, dependable and trustworthy, and they take pride in their jobs," says Kurt Kleinknecht, manager of guest services and guest relations at the Arizona Diamondbacks' Bank One stadium...
...course, working at a ballpark can be physically demanding, and teams don't push those who can't handle it. Retired policeman Dave Gustafson, 55, and his wife Joanne, 53, walk three to four miles daily on the job at Bank One ballpark. Ellis DeLay, 77, on the other hand, stands in an area between two sections of the upper concourse of the ballpark and monitors activity there. When seniors need an accommodation, says Kleinknecht, "we try to put them in areas where it's not too strenuous or where they don't have to go up stairs...
...compensation, there's not much: new employees at Bank One ballpark start at $7 or $8 an hour. But few seem to mind. "Just having fun" is the common refrain heard among these boys and girls of summer. "I tell everyone, when they ask me how I'm doing, that every day's a holiday," says Remlinger. Gustafson agrees: "How hard can it be when you're at a ball game...
Fenway Park is located at 4 Yawkey Way, between Van Ness and Lansdowne Streets. Call (617) 267-1700 for tickets. Call (617) 267-8661 for information about tours of the ballpark. T stop: Kenmore...