Baseball crowds are down, but not at every ballpark

The best seats in the house are empty. The cheap seats and all-you-can-eat sections are packed. Big markets are struggling to retain attendance while small markets are enjoying prosperity.Welcome to the topsy-turvy world of Major League Baseball, where teams are battling more than ever to stay ahead of the economic recession.In Cleveland, they are giving away bedroom slippers. In Houston, young professionals are encouraged to watch an Astros game at the tequila bar while looking for Mr. or Mrs. Right. And in South Florida, being unemployed will get you four free Marlins tickets to selected games.Attendance is down 5.2% compared with the same number of home games at each park a year ago, according to Baseball-Reference.com, but not for a lack of effort from teams.TEAMS SEEK SOLUTIONS 5 FACETS"We're seeing things we've never seen before," says Pam Gardner, Astros president of business operations. "It's kind of fun now because there's such a challenge."The New York Yankees have learned that opening a $1.5 billion stadium and spending $440 million on players this offseason doesn't mean folks will pay exorbitant prices to watch them. They cut prices on selected premium seats at the end of April, and attendance remains down 11.9% compared with last year."We're not one of the horror stories you hear around baseball," says Mark Tilson, vice president of sales for the Kansas City Royals, whose attendance is up 15.1% thanks to a refurbished stadium and winning team. No market has plummeted more than Washington, D.C. Nationals attendance is down 35.2%; the team has the National League's worst record."I'm not worried about attendance," Nationals president Stan Kasten said. "Our focus is to fix the product on the field, and when we do, the attendance will be there."Contributing: Mel Antonen, Seth Livingstone ***CLUBS COPING WITH A TOUGHER SELL1 Promotions punched up for fans seeking knockout Executives cannot simply market a team these days. Fans want pizzazz. They want a deal. They want, in the words of Team Shop Premiums, "Sports-tainment."The San Francisco Giants brought in Filipino boxing champion Manny Pacquiao to throw out the first pitch on Filipino-American Heritage Night on April 21 against the San Diego Padres.The Giants, handing out Pacquiao bobbleheads, drew 39,314, which was swelled by a walk-up crowd of 11,000, flooring Giants president Larry Baer."A totally unheard-of response," Baer says.Team Shop Premiums general partners Scott Nash and Bob Nanberg and accountant executive Jason Kubik sit in their Phoenix office each day brainstorming ideas to boost attendance at sporting events.They work with eight teams in Major League Baseball, as well as selected teams in the NFL, NBA and NHL."Teams are asking us all of the time, 'Give us something new. Give us something fresh. And we want to beat everyone else doing it,' " Nanberg says."When you have 6 million people out of work, it's tough to get them to come out and pay money for tickets."The Los Angeles Angels, perhaps baseball's most innovative team, Nanberg says, have offered retro alarm clocks, with plans of handing out of salt and pepper shakers in 2010. The Houston Astros are giving out a crystal replica of their ballpark this month to commemorate its 10th anniversary. And, of course, there is always the bobblehead doll promotion, a guaranteed winner, which costs teams about $2.25 per figurine."The giveaways are old school. Some sort of entertainment to go along with the game experience is new school," Kubik says. "That's where you have sports-tainment. It's the new wave."***2 Corporate cutbacks affect premium seating They may be the best seats in baseball, but some fans are having reservations about sitting there.For the first time since the opening of new ballparks in Seattle and St. Louis, as well as in both new ballparks in New York, premium seats are going unused.Harry Sloan, chairman and chief executive officer of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios (MGM), kept his tickets but declined when offered the opportunity to move behind the plate. He says he prefers staying out of the camera's way. Instead he sits several rows back on the third base side.Joe Strohm, Cardinals vice president of ticket sales, says premium seats left behind in St. Louis are from corporate sponsors looking to save money."Corporations that maybe bought bulk tickets in those areas are definitely trimming back on their spending," Strohm says. "We are marketing those on an individual basis, and we're having some success, but at the end of the day it's still going to be down."What we're seeing is all fans are looking for added value, not only in baseball, but in all of their purchasing."Most teams won't release detailed information on premium seat sales, but they are talking about the losses, which are easy to see when watching a game on TV.The Yankees slashed prices in April on selected premium locations, including cutting some tickets to $1,250 from $2,500. The Mets' prices are cheaper at Citi Field, with their top ticket selling for $595 a game, but David Howard, Mets executive vice president of business operations, concedes about 10% of seats have not been sold.The Mariners, whose overall attendance has declined by 7.1% compared to last year, also have empty seats behind home plate for the first time in the stadium's nine-year history."You just see (empty) pockets," says Mariners president Chuck Armstrong, whose team has finished in last place four out of the past five years. "Hopefully, the economy turns around, but winning helps a lot. If we win, those things will take care of themselves."***3 In Detroit, sales down; Phoenix holding steady Detroit's auto industry is in shambles, and the housing market has hit the skids in Phoenix. But the teams in those two cities are getting different results at the ballpark."We anticipated a difficult time, and we're seeing it," says Detroit Tigers President David Dombrowski, whose attendance has declined by 27%, nearly 10,000 fans a game. "Our downturn started last year. We're still not sure exactly where it's all heading."But I still believe that people in tough economies are looking for escapisms."The Arizona Diamondbacks, whose $35,000 per capita income is the lowest among the 26 metropolitan markets that have a major-league team, are holding steady though, averaging 28,205 per game, down 0.6% from last year. Not bad considering the team entered Monday with a 13-19 record and fired its manager last week. "We've got challenges and at times like this," Diamondbacks President Derrick Hall says, "you have to be creative."We're hoping too that with the economy the way it is, maybe families will stay home this summer, and let us entertain them."***4 Phillies, Rays, Brewers defy 2009 trend in stands with help of '08 success on fieldYou can schedule giveaways, throw concerts and have all the player autograph sessions you want, but the best way to get people to the ballpark hasn't changed: winning.The defending World Series champion Philadelphia Phillies have already drawn more than 725,000 fans this season, tops in baseball, and an increase of 10.2% from last season. The Tampa Bay Rays, coming off the American League pennant and their first winning season, have had their attendance soar by 61.6% to 26,413 fans a game, the biggest increase in baseball.But the Milwaukee Brewers are showing it doesn't take a World Series appearance to excite fans the following year. They reached the postseason last year for the first time since 1982, losing to the Phillies in the first round, and this season have sold out half of their home games. They are averaging 36,581 fans a game, an increase of 3.3% from last year."Just winning, getting to the playoffs," says Brewers executive vice president Rick Schlesinger, "was the best marketing tool we had all offseason. We've had a 20% jump in our season-ticket base to about 27,000, an all-time high."We know we're trending against the grain. But this team was down so long, and after people supported it all of these years emotionally and financially they're ready to embrace the team fully. And now that they got a taste of postseason, people want the whole meal."The Rays drew 1.8 million fans last season, despite their incredible last-to-first-place run. Yet, even with a 15-18 start this year, folks are still buying tickets like never before in Tampa Bay's 11-year history. "Hopefully with our success and our World Series appearance, we'll see a significant jump," Rays President Matt Silverman says. ***5 For the frugal fan, it's BYOF: Bring your own foodEvery dollar counts in a recession. Outside the New York Mets' new Citi Field, Patti Lettieri is using an old money-saving trick: bringing her own food and drink to the ballpark."For me, to spend $7 on food and $8 on a beer is ridiculous," says the native New Yorker. "The money I save on food allows me to come to an extra game or two."Nearby, Beth O'Brien from Bay Shore, N.Y., and Claire Schmaeling from Levittown, N.Y., are toting in soft-sided coolers packed with food and water from home. "If you have a family with four kids, you have to do it," O'Brien says.Most teams don't publicize it, but at least 21 of 30 major league clubs allow fans to bring some food and drink items to ballparks, according to a review of team websites. Another eight allows fans to bring their own bottled water. One, the Houston Astros, prohibits all outside food and drink. Some such as the Oakland Athletics, San Francisco Giants and Seattle Mariners are touting their Bring-Your-Own-Food (BYOF) policies on their sections of the "Fan Value Corner" at MLB.com."Obviously, we're in business to promote our products including our food. However, we'd rather folks come to the game than not come at all," says Jim Leahey, the A's vice president of sales and marketing. "If that means bringing their own food, we're certainly OK with that."Brown-bagging rules vary from club to club. Subject to inspection, fans are generally allowed to bring food in see-through bags, single-serve water and juice boxes, baby food and soft-sided coolers. What can't you bring in? Anything hard that can be thrown at players, or each other, such as glass bottles, cans, and hard-sided coolers. All clubs ban outside beer and alcoholic beverages. Budget-conscious fans can always pack their own grub, then splurge for a few "treats," notes Washington Nationals spokeswoman Chartese Burnett. "Maybe you treat your kids to cotton candy. And bring peanut butter and jelly."Despite the economy, there are plenty of fans who consider hot dogs and Cracker Jack part of the ballpark experience, notes Tampa Bay Rays spokesman Rick Vaughn. "It's one of the most endearing things about baseball," he said in an e-mail.Thanks to the popular "Taste of the City" food court, lower prices and better quality, average fan spending on food and drink is up 40% at Citi Field compared to Shea Stadium, says Dave Howard, Mets executive vice president of business operations. "We think we're offering enough quality and value that, even if people bring things in, they'll still be attracted to what we're offering," he said. Contributing: Mike Dodd in Chicago, Seth Livingstone in Kansas City, Mo., Michael McCarthy in New York, Bob Nightengale in Phoenix, Jorge L. Ortiz in San Francisco and Mel Antonen and Paul White in McLean, Va.***Team-by-team attendance

when is the next long wkend?

I would say this LOOONNNNGGG wkend was well-spent.Fully packed with activities to keep me on my toes.Dear offered to help colleague for some wedding shoot and I thought the final effects were marvellous! I, being the KPO kia, tagged along as well, providing inputs for their poses (well, credit goes to those wedding magazines I've been browsing lately).Of course my cam can't take a pic as nice as their's. But at least I thought this angle was great! =)The 2 masters at work.As the time goes by, owning a DSLR is becoming so common for all. As long as you're familiar with your camera settings and you have some eye for beauty, wa la....everyone can take beautiful photos!!Was a 'stood in' model while awaiting for the newly wed's arrival. The guys were testing their lenses against the bright morning skies of Sentosa.Haha...was trying to do a 'Harry Potter' shot.The day ended at Botanical gardens..... all sweaty and tired... It's an interesting experience for all. Marcus & dear for their first serious photography, XG for her first serious make-up customer, and the couple even gotten a 'chauffer' and finally myself as the assistant for the 1st photographer... hahah..For a girl who loves taking photo & to be taken, I should be quite excited for my wedding shots in future. (But i must first shed at least 3kg....haha)Saturday was spent meeting the squash gals at some peranakan restaurant along Tanjong Pagar.Interesting cuisine. At least something different from what we always have. Will bring my family there someday....After which was meeting up with my JC senior plus close neighbour. The self-proclaimed 阳光宅男 was still as chatty as ever.Caught 'Tropic Thunder' together and he was laughing like really loudly beside me. Quite a good watch!Well, i think smiling is really contagious. When you're with someone who's always smiling, you can't help but to mirror that as well. =) Knew him for nearly 7 yrs now... *gaspFinally, spent my Monday with my dearest darling. Thought I haven't been shopping for a really long time already.Regretted not getting this cap though....shucks...Quite happy buying a top+shoes..but with my jobscope, really quite difficult to doll up and wear my nice clothings leh...Always thought that if I don't doll up now, when can I do that? Definitely nt when I'm an old hag......Fancy bumping into Janet & her bf at Far East...and she was 'forced' to take this shot with us... haha....Looking forward to Xmas sales....hur hur hur.... anyway guys, is it really boring to shop with girls? My dear was much more of a shopper than I am...but now.....he's a little 'sian-sian' already... is age really catching up or what? But I'm still thankful for his company today! Thanks dear! *hugsArgh...no mood for work tmr.... happy times end fast.

Ask the Organizers: Storage Baskets for Cubbies

Want to put baskets or bins in your shelving with cubes/cubbies? On the last Twitter #askorg session, someone asked about baskets for 13" by 13" cubbies: something between IKEA and Gracious Home - with quality, but not too pricey. Well, I've been able to find a few square storage containers that would fit. Pottery Barn has some nice 12" by 12" baskets, in dark and light shades.This basket from the U.K. is a 12" cube - maybe too pricey, but I couldn't pass up this photo.Tomo Tala in the U.K. has cube baskets, too, measuring 30 cm (11.8").And I'm totally taken by the raffia baskets sold by TakaTomo.de, in three different color options. These measure 30 x 30 x 20 cm. You can also see them at the Rice web site.Not quite square - the larger size measures 12 x 11 x 10.25"h - are these baskets from Land of Nod, "featuring sturdy, hand-woven paper rope construction."And if the storage doesn't have to be a basket, you could consider canvas options. The one above comes from World Market; there are a number of different patterns, plus some solid colors. These are collapsible, and they measure 12" by 12".

Should I give up my car?

Hi all, I've been following this forum for a while. Want to explain my situation and get some advice from the "experts." To start, I've been commuting by bike in some way or the other since 1996. Currently, I have an old '85 Subaru wagon that serves as my back-up should I need to haul something extremely heavy or if I'm feeling under the weather. To tell you how little I drive this car, I've owned it for 14 years now and there are only 19,000 more miles on it from when I acquired it :-) I really want to go TOTALLY car-free. I don't feel I need a car for the following reasons: 1. I rely on bicycle transportation for 99% of my commuting. Last month (april) I put a total of 7 miles on the Subaru and just a little more than 400 miles on my bikes. 2. I live in an apartment within a 5 miles of everything I need: work, family (my parents, brother's family), groceries, big-box retailers which I try to stay away from but still use from time to time), entertainment, g/f...everything is within a 10-15 minute bike commute. 3. Even though my old Subaru is reliable and paid for, I added up the cost of ownership: with insurance, taxes, repair (with a 25 year old car, something always needs replacing), gas, etc., I'm spending close to $1000/year to have a car mostly sit and driven under 2K miles a year. That right there is a NEW bike a year!! 4. I have a stable of bikes: a 2001 Trek 520 I use for heavy hauling/grocery shopping (+ a 90's B.O.B. YAK trailer), a 2000 Specialized Crossroads (when they were still steel framed) for monsoon weather commuting, a 2008 Redline 925 set up FIXED with one brake that I use as my daily commuter, and a 2008 Kona Honky Tonk that I use for riding with buddies on the road. With this reliable fleet, I always have a backup bike or two in case something goes wrong, and I have the know-how and tools to fix just about anything that can go wrong. 5. I'm strong and healthy. Only get a cold once a year, but can usually bike through it. I ride a FIXED gear bike daily and go weeks without using the one brake on it...that takes strength. Reasons I don't want to give up my car: 1. It's paid for! I have a title! 2. In the grand scheme of things, it doesn't cost me too much. 3. Even though it has the eccentries of a 25 year old car, it always cranks on the first try and is generally reliable. So what do I do? The past couple years, I've become more and more anti-car. I can't stand how the car is a status symbol. I feel like folks are enslaved to car images and payments associated with automobiles. PLEASE GIVE ME SOME ADVICE. Another question: I'll be 36 in a couple months. How long could I sustain a car-free lifestyle? I feel fairly bomb-proof right now, can any of you middle-aged car-free folks speak up (late 30s, 40s, beyond)? Sorry for the long thread, but I know this group is honest, and I'm sure I'll get lots of good advice. Cheers!

New York Is Not the Only Place for a Restaurant

I blog by day and wait tables in a New York City restaurant by night. I'm excited to bring you Served, dispatches from the front of the house. Enjoy!
On Friday, I got up early, sat in front of my computer, and banged out the conclusion to my last college paper ever. I handed it in with a big smile on my face.
Feeling triumphant, I took a shower and went to work. “Are you going out to celebrate tonight?’ a customer asked when I shared the news: I was officially finished with college.
“Maybe,” I said, stifling a yawn.
After my shift, I hailed a cab, dragged myself up four flights of stairs to my place, and crawled right into bed. I did not pass go. I slept blissfully.
Paradise on the Delaware
Almost two years ago, my parents bought a house on the Delaware River in Frenchtown, New Jersey. It looks a little like Noah’s Ark, a neighbor joked, and they’re right. It sits on high stilts so that a flood won’t disturb the big wood house. The front is all glass, so from the inside it looks like the walls are made of river. The draws: a hot tub, a pool, the canal path which stretches for many miles in either direction, a town that is ridiculously charming, and, well, the river. So much green and quiet is totally exotic for any city girl.
In the morning, I sat on the fire escape with friends from school. Our view was an ugly/beautiful mélange of garbage, barbed wire, broken glass, and other fire escapes. I loved it. After chatting and sharing a pineapple, I ventured back to my room to start packing up books.
My dad arrived to do a preliminary move-out load. We filled his car with three years of books. Lacan, Levi-Strauss, Saint Augustine, Brecht, Camus, McCluhan, Friedan, Marx.
My friend and neighbor Matt walked into my room and saw an empty bookshelf. “What is going on?” he asked, alarmed. “This is so unsettling.”
I, too, was deeply unsettled. Unsettled as the books went one by one into bags, and again as I unpacked them onto empty Frenchtown bookshelves.
Who’s Who in Frenchtown
I got up in Frenchtown on Sunday, Mother’s Day, and went for a run on the path outside. “There’s some people who want to meet you,” my mom said upon my return.
Our first stop was The Frenchtown Inn. It’s not an inn at all, but a restaurant. The bar is the most hopping place in the tiny town. My parents can be found there on Friday nights drinking martinis and chatting with the regulars.
Coleen owns the place with her husband, who runs the kitchen. They live upstairs, above the restaurant. Coleen’s sister tends bar; her two kids pitch in, too. “We’ve heard so much about you!” Coleen said, and shook my hand. They had two hundred on the books for Mother’s Day and the place would open any minute, and yet she took some time to show me around and tell me her story.
“I’m lucky,” she said, “I found a cook who wanted to have a family. Most chefs—well, you know.”
“Yes,” I agreed, “I know very well.”
“It’s hard work,” she went on, “but don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t do it or shouldn’t do it. We don’t have off for holidays or weddings, but everyone ends up here anyway. It’s so rewarding.”
And then she showed me another room, and handed one of her employees a reservation list, and yelled something about bringing more chairs down from the attic. She seemed enormously happy.
“I have to go,” she said, “But call me.” She handed me a card. Maybe I will.
At the Bridge Café, my mom introduced me to Ken, the owner. I looked at the beautiful pastries in the case by the door. There were donuts with wrinkly skins and big muffins that glistened with sugar.
“Ken’s wife makes those,” my mom explained.
Ken was understaffed for Mother’s Day, he explained, but he came to say hi anyway. “You’re the foodie!” he exclaimed as we shook hands. That’s me.
Ken went to the CIA, and then to cook in a resort in Bermuda where he made a lot of money and met his wife, Lisa. They came to Frenchtown, where they’ve run the Bridge Café since 1987 (the year I was born). Twenty-one years later, they still love doing it.
I can’t wait to go home to New York. I need traffic noise to sleep properly. But meeting these people who have done their own thing and followed their hearts is pretty damn inspiring.

Taking one for the team

In times of global financial crunching, aka negative growth (why they can't say shrink is beyond me), it is up to those who are financially capable of doing so doing something for the economy at large.I've made much (well, some) of having a shitheap of a car. We've always had shitheaps. Well, that's not true. Some have been shitheaps. Others have been reasonable 2nd hand cars that lasted a while. In fact we had a delightful 2nd hand mazda that alas we wrote off when we rear ended an older car with a fuck off large towbar. Anyway, of late we've had a 20+ year old Mazda that was on its last legs - despite a replacement engine. Pipes need changing, the aircon fan rattles, the thermostat is unreliable and the car actually leaks during rain - with water dripping on the driver. We'd had enough. TheWife put on her calculating pants and did some investigating. It turned out having a leased new car was financially more sensible than the ad hoc repair of Mr Shitty. So ... area couple have a new car. The old one will be sold off (with issues made known) at a low, low price. I'm sure it will get bought since it has some rego on it. I think that's how it works at any rate.It's the first new big ticket item we've bought in a while. And I have to say ... it is awesome having a new car. It has mod cons in it like controls on the steering wheel for the stereo (instead of that blind man feeling the face of a new friend fumble at the controls method in the old effort), and cruise control that is simple and easy to use. It even has a doodad for the MP3 player to hook into the stereo. The glove box can hold more than just three maps, the manual and (presumably) gloves. The foot well for a short arse like me means I can stretch out. And we don't have to pray the car will make it up a hill without overheating like the last effort.In short ... awesome. Don't bother thanking me leading economists for taking one for the Australian economy. I'm just happy we were able to do our part in stimulating things by buying an imported car and ... oh ...Imported ... Nothing to see here, move along.On a side note we had the car less than a week when we backed it into a pole. Needless to say we were somewhat upset...

Interior, Web & Style Design Freebies

Image courtesy of Design ShrineThis is a pretty interesting website that I stumbled upon last night. While most of us run freebies websites and blogs, Design Shrine on the other hand, is sharing web freebie resources via RSS feed style. I find it different but one thing you can be sure of, there's nothing but freebies here.What you can expect to find here are free software, free font, free screensavers, free desktop wallpapers, free web templates, free ebooks, free graphics, free icons, free patterns, etc. Well, you get my drift!I can say that of the many stuff that have been featured here on Design Shrine now, there are quite a few that I myself have not come across yet so there's plenty of free web stuff to look forward to on Design Shrine all the time.