DAILY DIRT: Never underestimate April — it has a lot going for it

From baseball season to the time when Ford unveiled the first Mustang … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 919 of The Daily Dirt.

1. There are those who would contend April is the best month of the year.

After all, that’s when baseball season normally begins, although this year the first pitches were actually thrown in late March.

There are also those who feel April is the worst month of the year, due to those tax deadlines.

Me? I kind of lean toward the former. Without question, baseball season is my favorite time of the year, but there are other strong points that boost April’s standing among the 12 months.

Consider:

• Quite a few famous people were born this month, including Leonardo da Vinci, Shakespeare and Charlie Chaplin.
• George Washington was inaugurated as the nation’s first president in 1789.
• The Titanic sank in April 1912, but that tragedy eventually led to a great movie in 1997.
• In April 1970, Apollo 13 was launched and ran into difficulties about two days later. It was then that the famous line “Houston, we’ve had a problem here” was said, and is today usually misquoted.
• April is always a great month for race fans. That’s when dirt-track racing season normally begins. (For those wondering, Adams County Speedway opens April 28.)
• The first Olympics of the modern era took place in April 1896 in Athens.
• The smaller animals that hibernate for the winter in the Northern Hemisphere usually start coming out of their burrows in April. Kind of like baseball fans.
• Ford unveiled its first Mustang in April 1964, costing $2,368.

April might best be summed up by the following observations:

“No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn. April is a promise that May is bound to keep, and we know it.” – journalist Hal Borland.

“Spring will come and so will happiness. Hold on. Life will get warmer.” – writer Anita Krizzan.

“April is a moment of joy for those who have survived the winter.” ― English author Samuel Johnson.

2. The next time you and friends attend an MLB game in St. Louis, you’ll likely chow down on a hot or two, correct?

Well, when you do you’ll be eating the most popular brand — Nathan’s — among MLB fans. Nathan’s, which is also the official wiener of The Daily Dirt, is sold at more big-league stadiums than any other brand.

The following five MLB stadiums serve Nathan’s:

• St. Louis (After years of St. Louis’ own Hunter hot dogs being served)
• New York (Yankees)
• New York (Mets)
• Miami
• Tampa Bay

Runner-up goes to Hebrew National and Vienna Beef, with four apiece.

Serving Hebrew Nationals are the following parks:

• Colorado
• Washington
• San Francisco
• San Diego

Serving Vienna Beef are stadiums in:

• Milwaukee
• Kansas City
• Chicago (White Sox)
• Chicago (Cubs)

No other brand is served at more than two MLB stadiums.

3. The Green Bay Packers will play the Philadelphia Eagles when the NFL holds its first regular-season game in Brazil.

The Sept. 6 matchup in Sao Paulo will mark the first time since 1970 that the NFL has played a Friday night game on the season’s opening weekend. The last time the NFL had a Friday night game on its opening weekend was in September 1970, when the Los Angeles Rams hosted the St Louis Cardinals.

For those wondering, the game will be played 1,739 miles from the Amazon rain forest.

Steve Thought O’ The Day — Why do I think that Philadelphia-Green Bay game in Brazil might have a few problems?

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. Now I want a ball park hot dog.