Every morning at 11 and eveing at 5, a group (gaggle?) of ducks make their way back and forth from a penthouse at the Peabody Hotel (in Memphis) to the lobby. It's quite the scene!

 

Seems this Peabody guy (not the dog from the cartoon) brought a group of mallards back from a hunting trip in the ‘30s and they have been a fixture at this grand Memphis hotel ever since. Note all the St. Louis Cardinals fans in the lobby; as my producer pointed out, they are hungry for baseball after a long winter. The Cards play their AAA Memphis farm team tonight and the Indians tomorrow in the Civil Rights Game

Welcome to Memphis. It’s hot, humid and the smell of barbecue is in the air.

 

We’re here for the first ever Civil Rights Baseball Game (Cardinals vs. Indians) on Saturday, but we’ll be soaking up the scene til gametime: music, food, Graceland, Stax Records Civil Right Museum and even the Peabody ducks.

 

 

 

What better way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day than at a Chicago Cubs Spring Training game. There were lots of green, lots of beer and lots of sun. Check out the guys in the kilts.

Podsafe music is “Drunk Tonight” by the Bloody Irish Boys.

It's been close to 20 years since I saw Rick The Peanut Vendor (Kaminski) toss peanuts to hungry fans at the cavernous Kingdome. In this clip, Rick, who now plies his trade at Safeco Field, uses Spring Training to get in form for the Seattle Mariners 2007 campaign. Rick didn't get a lot of action at this Cactus League game as the Padres (who share Peoria Sports Complex with the M's) were the home team. San Diego fans are more the sushi sorts than peanut afficienados.

Now I've seen it all: here's a look at the ostrich races at the Chandler (AZ) Ostrich Festival. They might not be the smartest animals in the world, but they sure are entertaining.

Cubs fans will recognize their unofficial mascot, Ronnie "Woo Woo." Ronnie made the trip from Mesa, the Cactus League home of the Chicago Cubs, to Phoenix Muni to cheer on the Cubs as they played the Oakland A's. The game ended in a rare 5-5 tie after 10 innings. The players may need to tune up, but Ronnie "Woo Woo" is in mid-season shape.