The forecast looked ominous this morning – another gray, chilly day in the Sunshine State. But the clouds parted just in time for Yankees-Phillies at Bright House Field in Clearwater, and it turned out to be a great day for baseball. There was just one problem: my husband Michael. Being a male, he refuses to ask for directions when we’re in the car.

“Are you sure you know how to get to Clearwater?” I kept saying as we passed through yet another unfamiliar neighborhood.

“Sure,” he kept answering. “I checked the map.”

The map. Big deal. Who can read maps?

Instead of zipping over to the ballpark in 20 minutes, it took us an hour and a half to get there. I was steaming mad.

But we did get there, and Bright House Field is a really nice place to watch a ball game. Andy Pettitte wasn’t exactly ready for prime time, but Joba looked impressive over his four innings of work. What that means in terms of the #5 starter’s job is anyone’s guess. I was more concerned with Damaso Marte, who couldn’t get anybody out before getting hit in the back by Ryan Howard’s line drive. Don’t the Yankees need another lefty in the pen? I mean, seriously? What we do have is a young pitcher named Amaury Sanit, who came in for the injured Marte and pitched like a Cy Young Award winner. On the offensive side, I guess the oversized batting helmet Cervelli was forced to wear isn’t inhibiting his vision; he had three hits in the game. So yeah, the Yanks lost to the Phillies, but there were Bright Spots at Bright House.

One of them was meeting Sue Mudrick, who blogs about the Phillies here at MLBlogs at Rants, Raves, and Random Thoughts. She and I got together for a She-Fan Cam chat just before game time. We may root for different teams, but Sue’s got a wonderful sense of humor and it was great fun dishing with her about her guys.

We had such a good time that we decided to keep it going; Michael and I had dinner with her and her husband Dan a few hours later at a restaurant in downtown St. Pete. I only wish we weren’t flying back to our respective homes tomorrow. Bummer! Why can’t spring training last forever? I don’t want to leave!