Today is a great day.

After spending the last few weeks watching President Obama and Congress buying everyone in America tickets for the Socialist bullet train coming to America, I have been a little bit down. I don’t like seeing my country do things that not only have been proven not to work, but in the long run make things worse off than they should be. (Sorry folks, FDR’s New Deal did not work. It failed. Just like the stimulus package will fail. The spending Japan tried in the 90’s when they were in a deep recession didn’t make the grade either. And just look at Venezuela…there is a place I want to live!!)

But today I am on a high. And because of what transpired yesterday I will have this feeling throughout spring and into the summertime. Sure, a lot of things are still wrong in America. But one wrong was made right yesterday. Ken Griffey Jr. came back to the Seattle Mariners.

Now for those of you who aren’t Mariners fans, this might not seem to be that big of a deal. But for those of you who have been there through the good times and the bad (mostly bad) you know what a big deal this is. If not for Griffey, the Mariners wouldn’t have had that magical run back in 1995 when they came from 13 games down in the standings to overtake the California Angels to claim the AL West crown. If not for Griffey, they wouldn’t have beaten the Yankees in game 5 that year of the ALDS when Edgar Martinez hit “The double”, a hit that still sends chills down the spines of Mariners fans everywhere. But most importantly, if not for Griffey, there would not be a baseball team in Seattle.

Simply put, the man is a legend here in the northwest. From 1989-1999, every kid in the state of Washington from Aberdeen to Zillah would claim that they were Ken Griffey Jr. when out playing baseball with their friends. Ken Griffey baseball cards were like currency, worth their weight in gold. I remember when we would play our pick up baseball games in the old neighborhood that I would try to stand and swing like “The Kid” did. And no one roamed the outfield and go after baseballs with reckless abandon the way “Junior” would. It didn’t matter if the outfield wall was going to cripple him; he was going to get that ball. He was the epitome of coolness.

Not only that, but he did not have to rely on steroids like many superstar baseball players did. He has hit 611 home runs in his career to this point, and the only drug he could be accused of taking was one that caused hard work and determination, and the willingness to sacrifice his body for the team and the sport he loved. Jim Rome once coined him “Nintendo Griffey” for his ability to make plays in the outfield that was only thought possible on a video game. And to top it all off he had that smile. A smile that said to you, “Don’t worry about anything. I’ve got in under control,” and you would believe him no matter what.

So ladies and gents, he might be in the twilight of his career and only have 2-3 more seasons in him. And he is probably not capable of hitting 40-50 home runs in a year anymore. But I don’t care. My boyhood hero is back in the town where it all started. And even if it is just for one season, at least I can sit back and enjoy watching the man they call “The Natural” play for the team that I have been a fan of all my life.

I would just like to say thank you Ken Griffey Jr. for coming back to play in the stadium that was built because of what you accomplished. Not only does it mean a lot to me, but it means a lot to Mariners fans all over the place. The kid is coming home!