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THE LANGUAGE OF THE ANGLO-SAXONS
My eighth-grade teacher was a plump woman who would have been greatly pleased if someone had mistakenly identified her as an English poet. She wore shoes that went out of style after the First World War and she loved to read from her book of poems by English poets. Beyond that, Miss Maxwell loved the…
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GREED GETS ITS JUST REWARDS
Two or three years ago, the stock market was humming along at somewhere in excess of 13,000. A good many people were working and prosperity was in the air everywhere. It was in this era of prosperity that the New York Mets, the New York Giants, and the local professional football teams in New York…
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CONFESSIONS THAT WILL EXCITE AND ENRICH THE SOUL
It is the standard belief of preachers that confessions are beneficial to the soul. My religious beliefs or lack thereof bar me from knowledge about the soul. However, yesterday, February 17, brought three confessions that must have benefited every soul known to man or cattle. The first was a confession by Alex Rodriguez, the $30…
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A TWOFER
The title to this essay is a phonetic one as spoken by Americans. Its real derivation comes from baseball. If a hitter gets two hits in his four or five at-bats, he will announce that he had a “twofer.” (If he was hitless in his times at bat, he would mournfully say, “I had an…
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GIVING A (Insert Adjective) RAT’S ASS
In 1942, we were at war with the Axis powers of Germany, Italy, and Japan. In the summer of that year, I joined or enlisted in the American Army. During that period dating back to 1940, there was a draft system in place which compelled young men to submit to military discipline in, most likely,…
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O BEAUTIFUL FOR SPACIOUS SKIES
The week ending on October 8 was an eventful week which may have consequences for every American as we travel down the road toward prosperity. Three events took place, one involving a baseball decision and two others having local consequences. But let us deal first with the baseball decision. As you may be aware, the…
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MAYBE LILLIE WAS RIGHT ALL ALONG
The Lillie in the title of this essay is my mother, to whom you have been introduced before. Lillie was born in Pope County, Illinois on the banks of the Ohio River in a community called Lusk. It was not a town at all. It was simply a landing spot for the folks who traversed…
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EIGHTY-FIVE YEARS
[Quick note from Kevin: We’re now officially foraying into 2011. Think I’d start with a piece or two written about one year ago exactly. Enjoy!] As I have reported to you on more than one occasion, my first memory of anything occurred in October of 1926. Prior to that time, the New York Yankees had…
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THE REVERSE LAYAWAY PLAN AND OTHER INDIGNITIES
As I was showering this afternoon, some bizarre thoughts entered my mind. It is fairly clear to me now that as we advance into old age, a role reversal becomes more apparent. Let us take the example of major league baseball players who are performing at a plateau of considerable excellence. When that excellence begins…
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SO ENDETH THE LONG NIGHT
As you know, baseball is played largely in the summertime. The greediness of the owners has extended the baseball season until November arrives. I deplore all of that. But to get to the point of this monumental essay, it has been the better part of four or five months since a Major League Baseball game…