At 7:50am on Tuesday July 21, 2015, I was headed for a baseball field. It wasn’t just any baseball field; that particular field was the ball diamond where the movie Field of Dreams was filmed. I thought for sure that I would be left behind in the motel room, mainly because we weren’t going to be seeing any Presidential sites on that day, but my photographer grabbed me at the last moment and put me in the camera case. Vicki stayed back at the room where she took her time getting ready for the day’s photoshoot with Tracy and her twin daughters Megan and Madison.
When we arrived at the Field of Dreams, which was located nearly four miles northeast of downtown Dyersville, there was only one vehicle in the parking lot and no one was on the ball field. After my photographer captured an image of the entire movie site from the entrance, we headed for the diamond for more pictures.
Altogether, my photographer and I stayed at the movie site for nearly an hour. His first mission was to get as many photos as possible of the baseball field without other tourists there. Timing was everything because as soon as Tom finished his photos of the field and the house, people began to trickle onto the site. That was okay because Tom was finished with his photos and it gave him someone to play ball with. I sure couldn’t have a catch with him; not with two broken legs. Tom came prepared – he brought a Comiskey Park inaugural season baseball, an old 1930’s baseball mitt, and a wooden bat. My cameraman was ready for action. He set the camera case, with me in it, on the first row of bleachers. Within a few minutes, he began to play catch with a guy who lived in New York and said he had flown to Chicago for a work assignment. The guy also mentioned to my photographer that he loved the movie and he made the pilgrimage to Iowa just to play ball on the field. Although it was obvious that the two of them hit it off immediately, I was miffed that Tom never mentioned me once to his new friend.
From my case, I was able to watch my photographer stand on pitcher’s mound as he played catch with the Yankee fan. It was cool because that was the same mound from where Ray Kinsella first pitched to Shoeless Joe Jackson in the movie. After their ten-minute catch, and with more people congregated on the field, they each took a turn swinging the bat. I laughed to myself as I watched my cameraman groan with each mighty swing as he tried hard to hit the horsehide sphere into the corn. He barely hit it the ball out of the infield. Tom may have thought he was Shoeless Joe Jackson, but he hit the ball like Bra-less Janet Jackson.
The Field of Dreams was amazing. Not only did the field and the house look the same as it did in the movie, but the atmosphere on that diamond was also peaceful and tranquil. People from all around the country had come there to experience the magic and relive their childhoods. “This field, this game, it’s a part of our past Ray. lt reminds us of all that once was good, and it could be again. Oh, people will come, Ray. People will most definitely come.”
We arrived back at the hotel to pick up Vicki at 9:30am; which was perfect timing as my photographer was scheduled to meet Tracy Habel and her kids at 10:00am. For the remainder of Tuesday, we went around the Dyersville area in search of scenic backdrops for the senior pictures; we even went back to the Field of Dreams for a few shots. I remained hidden away in the camera case as Tom didn’t want me to be a distraction. When we were finished shooting for the day, we had dinner at a place in town called The Palace Saloon; which was owned and operated by Tracy’s step-mother Darlene. If you ever go to Dyersville to visit the famous movie site, stop by The Palace Saloon for some good food and a cold drink. As Terence Mann once said, it’ll be like you “dipped yourself in magic waters”.
Following dinner, we went back to the motel where my photographer checked out the photos he had taken during the day. Here are a few of the ones that he and I liked.
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A road trip was slated for Wednesday July 22, 2015 as the senior picture photo session was going to begin in Galena, Illinois. I was excited as that road trip meant I was finally going to get my interior tour of Grant’s home. It also meant that Tracy and her girls would get to meet me as well.
We arrived at the Grant house around 9:30am and Tom took the girls to a few places that he thought looked good for their photo session. When they were finished, it was time for my tour of the home. As my photographer removed me from my case, Tracy said: “So that’s the famous bobble head I’ve heard so much about. It looks like his legs are broken. How did that happen?” I was shocked and disappointed. Tracy never once mentioned how handsome I was; she only focused on my fractured and chipped legs. Once my photographer told her that it happened in Iowa earlier in the month, she didn’t mention my legs again. Did Tracy have inside information on the ‘Children of the Corn’?
The interior of Grant’s historic house was spectacular as we went from room to room. I posed for photos in every room, but the one area that was significant to me was the parlor. There was an single green chair that was situated near the fireplace; it appeared soft and very comfortable. Our tour guide mentioned that Ulysses Grant brought that chair from Galena to the White House when he was elected President because it was his favorite. Then out of nowhere, the tour guide asked if I wanted to stand on Grant’s chair for a photo. The elderly woman gently took me from Tom’s hand and placed me on the green chair; it was as soft as it looked. As I stood on the cushion, I envisioned Grant sitting there as he smoked his cigar next to the fireplace.
After we had finished our interior tour of the house, which was amazing because the Grant’s owned 90 percent of the furniture that was there, I was carried back outside where I posed for a few more photos of the exterior. Tom did his best to keep others from being in the pictures, but it was hard as the place was crawling with tourists.
Tom finished the morning taking the senior photos of Megan and Madison in downtown Galena. By early afternoon, we had made our way to Dubuque for a few more picturesque sites that my cameraman used as backdrops. We ended our day back in Dyersville for one last set of pictures. Although the twins were good sports, I had to believe that two full days of smiling and posing had taken its toll on the girl’s patience. Here are some of the shots from July 22nd that my photographer and I thought were keepers.
For me, Thursday July 23, 2015 was a day of rest. I remained in the camera case for the entire day as my photographer viewed all the shots with Tracy and her girls. Later that afternoon, Tom and Vicki enjoyed a cookout at Tracy’s house; which ended in a photo session with Tracy’s family and her fiancé Russ Pirc’s family. The hospitality that the three of us encountered with Tracy, Russ and their families was second to none; they made us feel at home. Their genuine warmth made me ask myself: “Is this Iowa? No, it’s heaven!”
We returned to our motel around 8:00pm where once again I was placed in my usual spot next to the TV. I was excited to hit the road again, even though there weren’t any Presidential sites slated for the remainder of the trip. The reason for my enthusiasm was I had heard our first stop in the morning had something to do with surf on a clear lake. I smiled and thought to myself: “Oh boy, it’s not everyday that a bobble head gets to surf. That’ll be the day when I die.”
