2011 MLB Season: Opening Day Arrives

For as long as I can remember I have been petitioning for this day to be a holiday. I mean if we can celebrate the weather prognosticating of a rodent or commemorate a guy who leaves Spain in a boat and gets lost on the way to China then just about anything can be called a holiday.

But I’m not asking for something silly like a baby with wings armed with a bow and arrow. No, I’m talking about something truly deserving of a day off. I’m talking of course about MLB Opening Day.

This is a day that everyone looks forward to. It symbolizes all that is right in the world; a new beginning, a fresh start. Like the changing of the seasons from the cold darkness of winter to the rebirth of Spring; Opening Day brings us hope.

It’s the one day each year that your team is tied for first place. It is that day where you just know this is the year. Despite everyone suggesting your team doesn’t stand a chance of competing, for at least one day you can make yourself believe that the planets will align and that light hitting second baseman will become the league MVP.

For the first time in a very long time Opening Day doesn’t start on the traditional Sunday or Monday. Instead it’s on a Thursday. Yes, you read that right Thursday; the ugly stepsister of Friday. The day you normally just try to survive to get closer to the weekend.

Maybe this is baseball’s way of taking the homely girl to the prom. I didn’t think anything could make me enthusiastic about a Thursday, but I actually leapt out of bed this morning whistling “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” and that’s not normal on any level.

So rather than being apathetic about Thursday, embrace it. If you can do that, this truly is a holiday deserving of having the day off.