Gimme a Hibiki, Baby

Los Angeles, California

By the time you read this, we will perhaps know whether the Dodgers progressed through the post season. What is known is that the regular season is over, so our last 2026 game at Dodgers Stadium is behind us. We don't attend postseason games. They're too important to watch amidst all of the distractions at the stadium, so we watch from home or from our place at the bar in the local restaurant where we often go to watch games.

I got to know the bartender at the Executive Club, which is where we sit at Dodgers Stadium. The seating is only four rows deep and shares the restrooms with the adjacent suites. If you have attended games at Dodgers Stadium you will appreciate this attribute of the Executive Club/Suites restrooms: They are air conditioned! They are also empty, which means no lines. Also no lines to contend with at concessions. We are served in our seats. I do, however, prefer to go to the bar to get my Ride On IPA from Bradley.

It was our last game and for the first time at the games we attended this season, we were losing, so I decided to have a nightcap. Since Ohtani has come to play for the Dodgers, the Executive Club stocks Hibiki scotch. I discovered Hibiki when I was refugeed out to Todd and Christopher's home during the January 2025 fires. That first night driving there, I was beyond stressed, so once I arrived they kindly offered me a whiskey. Once the threat was over and I returned home, I purchased a bottle of it at Costco. It is a very lovely scotch.

So on that last Dodgers game for us, I decided to treat myself to a Hibiki when we hit the seventh inning. As I was not quite sure of Bradley's age and knowledge of classic films, instead of just saying it, I explained what I wanted to say to him: Give me a whiskey, baby. And don't be stingy. I told him that I wasn't sure he would get the reference. He laughed. I get it. Greta Garbo, right? Right!

The Dodgers did lose that night. It was our sixth game during the season and the only one of the six they lost. I used to go to Dodgers games with a friend who had season tickets. When we would walk in for the first game of the season she attended, she would stop, take stock of the atmosphere of the stadium and sigh. She was back to a place she loved. I don't exactly love the stadium, but I do love attending the games there with Joel. So my farewell to the stadium for 2026 was capped by Bradley giving me a whiskey. And he wasn't stingy, baby.