What do you do on a “Matinee Monday” when you have free movie passes but there’s nothing new to see? You go to something like Suicide Squad! It’s another day of not being in Tahoe, so we’ll somehow make the best of it. Run. Swim. Blog. Word Puzzle. Chiropractor. Movie. My wife is currently at the dog park, getting the full scoop on neighborhood gossip, She’ll then water walk and find out more. We’ll have lunch together so I will know everything she knows and mark my calendar with the plans she’s made.
Retirement can get a bit tedious, as indicative of this blog. Day after day of the same, unable to distinguish one from the other. Today, however, we start fresh on trash, go meatless, and I will call my sister. It’s the start of Monday Night Football, and my son and I can potentially pull out a come-from-behind Fantasy win. Tomorrow, we’ll have clean sheets and our new patio furniture will be delivered after months of waiting. Wednesday my second Ring camera arrives to keep a watchful eye on the back of our house. Thursday I babysit for a few hours with my granddaughter and give blood. Friday we’ll go sightseeing or to the beach because we were too busy to do those things on “Tourist Thursday.” It will be the weekend before we know it.
All my baseball cards got sorted while watching games the past few days. The Sox split while the Cubs lost…IU football won, so did the Ducks, a big win over Ohio State…Da’ Bears were drubbed, as were the Colts. College basketball will start in just a few short weeks, as will the baseball playoffs. The entire family will be in Pittsburg for the last week of the regular season to see the “New” Cubs finish a tough year, after a majority of their lineup was traded away. It’s the only out-of-state travel we have planned yet this year before the house guests start to arrive in October. We’ll be ready with an expanded driveway and patio furniture, along with new lamps, mirrors, and wall hangings. I’ll stop before I keep rambling on!
The last few days I’ve taken a step back sixty years, sitting on my floor sorting baseball cards. I had some unopened packs from 1991 and 1992 to open, including The Babe Ruth Collection. There was a time when I would have left them in their wrappers, hoping they would have more value, but why deny myself the joy of opening them and organizing them into teams. In this case, there was no bubblegum involved. It was fun, until I realized that I was just one card short of completing the Babe Ruth set of 165. Card number 134 was missing, but the next day I found it stuck to another card, just before I was ready to order it on E-Bay. All the Cubs and White Sox players are placed in a special binder while all the others are lumped together in separate books. I can’t bear to throw any of them away regardless of duplicates, knowing that my entire childhood collection disappeared due to good housekeeping.
I’m certain that my now valuable Mickey Mantles were part of that loss, but if everyone had held on to their cards they all would be worthless. #7 Mickey was once my favorite player and his Yankees my team, but they were somehow replaced with #10 Sherm Lollar of the White Sox. I now have a massive collection of Sherm stuff that is only valuable to me. Mickey has made many men rich by simply investing in his memorabilia, or being lucky enough that their mom didn’t toss out their card collections. Right now, I’m even bidding for a Cancer Foundation medallion with the likeness of Sherm on one side and teammate Nellie Fox on the other. Hall of Famers like Fox drive up the value and increase bidding, which makes me think that I will probably not be the winner of this trinket. They both died at young ages due to cancer. The cheek-full of tobacco that became the shortstop’s trademark look probably didn’t help. Most ballplayers were smokers in that era, with little to do in the confines of the dugout.
There is an organization founded by Marv Samuel, a pitcher for the St. Louis Browns in the late 40s and perhaps a Lollar teammate, known as Chicago Baseball Cancer Charities. It is “a 501(c)(3) nonprofit using sports to give back by helping fund cancer research and patient care programs at Chicago-area hospitals, and supporting services to empower kids with cancer.” Billy Pierce, White Sox pitcher and teammate of Fox and Lollar, led the organization after the death of Samuel in 1993 from Leukemia. “Chicago Baseball Cancer Charities has since its founding in 1971 donated more than $11 million to fund cancer patient care, education and research programs at Chicago’s Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Children’s Memorial Hospital.” I’m assuming that the medallion was part of the fundraising elements of this organization.
I just ran across a Billy Pierce baseball card last night. He lived to be 88 and was on two World Series runners-up teams, the 1959 White Sox and 1962 San Francisco Giants. It’s amazing what you learn about the good that players do during and after their time in baseball, although Lollar died at age 53 and Fox even younger at 47, so they did not get the opportunity to give as much back. Every card and piece of memorabilia has a story. Collecting is more than just child’s play – it’s part of our history that I enjoy!
September is here and Labor Day has arrived. There was a fun exchange of texts and pictures last night among our group of old college buddies, several extending back to high school and even grade school. We’re all mourning the loss of a spouse that has spurred a string of “Big Chill” gatherings and memories. I filled a couple of pages with dates and places where we got together with her throughout the years and sent a card. I’m feeling bad to be so far away in this time of need. A picture of the two of them appeared on Facebook this morning, bringing even more reality to this stunning loss. I was looking forward to their visit in a few months.
Conditions in Tahoe are still not favorable for travel, so we continue to be undecided on whether or not to go. The resort has only cancelled the first night of our stay with the AQI at 254 – very unhealthy. It was supposed to be a week of family – the two girls and their husbands in Heavenly Valley. The levels are at least down from the 400s that I was seeing earlier this week. Honestly, at this point, I would be perfectly happy staying home and filling out paperwork to claim vacation disruption insurance. Tomorrow will be the last day to cancel airline and car rental plans with penalties.
Our next travel adventure will be Pittsburg at the end of the month with grandkids in tow. We’re off to see the “New Cubs,” who by the way are on a six game winning streak. The new team is without Rizzo, Baez, Bryant, Kimbrel, Tepara, and Schwarber. Names like Wisdom, Duffy, Ortega, Schwindel, and Alcantara will still take some getting used to in the box scores. Cubs baseball has been a family tradition for many years, and my son and his children have visited many stadiums around the country. Two years ago it was Giants’ Stadium in San Francisco, but none of us have been to Wrigley for awhile now. In fact, I think my last trip there was in April of 2019, more than two years ago. I don’t know when I’ll ever go back to Chicago to root, root, root for the Cubbies – Pittsburgh will have to do for now!
For most of my life as an IU Hoosier Football fan, I’ve been plagued with poor results. Yes, every once in a while, there was a glimmer of hope, an upset, or a surprise ending. By the end of every season, I was more than ready for basketball to finally start, with maybe a season saving win over Purdue in the Bucket Game. Most of the time, that was even a disappointment. Now that basketball has sunk to the very bottom of a dark, murky septic pool, only soccer was my annual savior, something to hang my IU hat on with a sense of pride. However, 2021 was beginning to look like the year that football, soccer, basketball, and baseball were all finally coming together. Soccer, in fact, started the season with the #1 ranking, until unheralded Creighton came to town last night. For the first time since 2015, the Hoosiers lost a game at Armstrong Stadium and the unbeaten streak came to a stunning end at 43 matches. In fact, they allowed only six goals during all of last season that ended in a National Championship loss. Last night, they gave up three! Reduced Expectations.
Basketball was also on a new high, with a new coach, Hoosier legend Mike Woodson, and promising exhibition wins over a highly touted Serbian team down in the Bahamas. Unprecedented recruiting is bringing some promising new faces to Bloomington and restoring respect for the recently sinking program. Excitement is building for the upcoming season, but no need to rush into it – there’s actually a football team worth watching. Coach Tom Allen took them to a #10 national ranking and a bowl game last season and has them in the Top 20 to start 2021. The home game against formidable Cincinnati is already an unheard of sell-out This could be the year! Or just further reduced expectations?
We’ll find out this afternoon when the up-trending Cream & Crimson travel to Iowa. A road game against another Top 20 BIG to start the season is beyond bold! The bubble of fan enthusiasm and team confidence could pop quickly or take on new levels. It would be devastating to watch both Football and Soccer fizzle in a matter of two days. All that hype for nothing when we’ve gotten sadly used to mediocrity on the gridiron. Soccer will easily rebound, using the sting of a shut-out loss at home to a non-conference foe as momentum for another drive to the College Cup. However, reduced expectations by the Football team will be a huge setback in a program just starting to show promise. Let’s show them all we’re for real -Go Hoosiers!
The White Sox struggled in the month of August, but still managed to maintain a 10-game Division lead over the Indians. The only real bright spot was claiming five out of six games in this year’s City Series with the Cubs. The highlight of the month was the Field of Dreams victory over the Yankees, who then went on to win the next two in Chicago that started a 13-game winning streak. I then watched the Sox lose badly to the Rays in Tampa that also launched their hot streak of six straight. In my opinion, August has been a bit of a bobble for the Sox.
The Giants are currently the winningest team in baseball with 84 victories, with the Rays close behind at 82. They both seem to be on track for a World Series match-up. However, the second place Dodgers also have 82-victories, as they attempt to claim back-to-back Championships. Milwaukee stands at 79-wins while Houston has reached 77. The Yankees and Boston are a game apart behind the Rays in the AL East. Atlanta sits atop the NL East despite only 70 victories. As always, the race comes down to September. Can the South Siders finish strong?
White Sox pitching has been a disappointment this past month while the offense is feast or famine. Lance Lynn suffered the only loss against the Cubs, giving up seven runs, while Alec Mills shut down the Sox sluggers, who erupted for 17 and 13 runs in the other two Guaranteed Rate Field wins. The Pale Hose are a disconcerting 32-32 on the road and 44-24 at home. However, they are not exactly being challenged in the weak AL Central, so Playoff ball may be the incentive they need. They do have a 5-game road series with the Indians that could possibly derail their comfortable ride into October, especially if the A’s take the series in Oakland and the Red Sox and Angels get hot in Chicago. I’m concerned about a September Sox bobble.
I drove to Tampa with my son to watch the White Sox play the Rays yesterday afternoon. Along the way, I reunited with a fellow Sox fan, who last went to a game with me at then named Verizon Wireless Stadium fourteen years ago. We hadn’t seen each other since. The Cubs beat the Sox that May day in 2007 11-6 and proceeded to be blown out by the Rays 9-0 in yesterday’s encore. I’m suddenly not sure if we’ve ever seen them win together, but we’ll probably keep trying now that we only live an hour apart.
In 1962-1965 the White Sox were the home town Florida favorites, known as the Sarasota Sox, long before the Rays and Marlins became the Sunshine teams to support. White Sox Spring Training has moved to the West Coast and the Cactus League, so it’s mostly old timers like me that are White Sox fans in this area. My love of the White Sox began in 1959 with a catcher named Sherm Lollar. I was 8 years old when the Sox played the Dodgers in the televised World Series and #10 became my favorite jersey number. I wore it yesterday in honor of Sherm, even though it has belonged to a worthy Yoan Moncada for the last five years, as well as Pete Appleton in 1940 and Red Wilson 1952 before Sherm joined the team. Lollar has worn it the longest, eleven years, from 1953-1963. Since that time, it’s changed hands many times, including J.C. Martin (2), Tommy Davis, Chuck Brinkman (2), Jay Johnstone (2), Sam Ewine, Ron Santo, Jack Brohamer (2), Ron Blomberg, Joe Gates, Steve Lyons, Fred Manrique (2), Shawn Jeter, Mike LaValliere (3), Dave Steib, Darren Lewis (2), Chris Snopek, Mark Johnson (2), Royce Clayton (2), Shingo Takatsu (2), Bob Makowiak (2), Alexei Ramirez (8), and Austin Jackson. I proudly display in my personal collection, Sherm Lollar’s 1955 game worn jersey #10.
The number 10 should have probably been retired by the White Sox, along with Nellie Fox #2, Harold Baines #3, Luke Appling #4, Minnie Minoso #9, Luis Aparicio #11, Paul Konerko #14, Ted Lyons #16, Billy Pierce #19, Frank Thomas #35, Mark Buehrle #56, and Carlton Fisk #72. The White Sox once had a team Hall of Fame but put it in mothballs in favor of an expanded gift shop. He is a member of the Chicago White Sox All-Century Team. At this point, he’s probably too far down the Cooperstown list to ever be included, despite his stellar 18-year .992 fielding percentage. However, I continue to collect his memorabilia, the latest being a vintage 1959 Rawlings baseball bearing his likeness that is still in the box.
In an article written by Brett Kiser twelve years ago, he mentioned that the great Ted Williams claimed the Pale Hose never would have made it to the 1959 World Series without Lollar. Kiser also pointed to his three Gold Glove Awards and the fact that he was named to seven All-Star squads (playing in nine games). Despite the loss to the Dodgers in 1959, he earned two World Series rings as a player with the Yankees 1947 and as a bullpen coach for the Baltimore Orioles 1966. I have made my case for his Hall of Fame induction. (See Post #5)
I honor Sherm Lollar today on what would have been his 97th birthday. He died in 1977 at the age of 53. Although I never met the man, I somehow feel compelled to collect articles, press photos, cards, merchandise, and gear related to his career. He lives on in my office, along with his Hall of Fame teammates that certainly believed that he belonged beside them in the Hall, as the field general in their 1959 title quest. I was disappointed with the effort of yesterday’s White Sox in Tampa and noted that the 2005 World Series patch on my #10 jersey was now 16-years old. As a lifelong Sox fan, it’s been too long of a wait again for that elusive title.
Elements of our overhead lighting will be installed this afternoon, including kitchen counter canisters and the dining room chandelier that we brought with us from Portland. It actually turned out to be our 20th wedding anniversary gift, as part of the move to Florida. Yesterday, we made good use of our new location with a trip to the beach about 20 minutes away. Tally had to stay home this time with the temperatures still in the nineties. The heat is a constant drain on my energy, but the Gulf breezes are revitalizing. As I sit in the sun, it’s as if my cells are recharging.
Tonight is the stadium concert, Majesty of Rock, taking us back to our 70s musical roots. They will perform the songs of Styx and Journey while we sing along. Hopefully, it won’t storm like it has most evenings this week. It’s part of the countdown to my 70th birthday in just six days, culminating with a night in Tampa with Santana and Earth, Wind, Fire. Thankfully, the funeral for my ex-step-mother-in-law has been cancelled. One of the family members has tested positive for Covid, so I’m glad that my son doesn’t have to make the long drive back to Indiana. He’ll be able to join me now for the Fantasy Football draft that he got me involved in doing. At least, it’s a visit to Buffalo Wild Wings, a place I used to call home. I will once again enjoy their wings and a beer.
Tomorrow morning, my son and I will make the drive to Tampa for the White Sox vs. Rays game. I’m also reuniting with a friend from my WMEE radio days back in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. We haven’t been to a Sox game together since May of 2007, fourteen years ago. We also were joint season ticket holders for IU football for many years, but that ended over 20 years ago. He moved to Tampa several years ago when the opportunity presented itself to do his radio production work from home. It will be good to see him again, reminiscing about radio, softball, and sports, while spending the day with my son. The Countdown to 70 continues…..
The Cubs finally broke their 12-game losing streak last night with a victory over the Reds. Happ made it happen with a 2-run home as Hendricks earned his league leading 14th victory of the season. The White Sox won their 70th game by beating the A’s. I’m headed to Tampa on Sunday to watch them play the Rays. However, my son may not join me due to a death in the family. We got together last night at Donato’s for dinner to discuss his plans to drive back to Indiana.
It’s difficult after a divorce to decide what is right. I haven’t gotten together with my ex-wife’s family for nearly 23 years. Her father remarried a woman affectionately known as Margie that was always a joy to be around. She had a son of her own but quickly became a step-mother to five daughters and somehow managed to win them all over. She was also very gracious to her husband’s first wife, the girls’ mother, often spending vacation time and holidays with all of them together. Margie made us all feel comfortable. Even though I haven’t seen her in several years, I will continue to miss her, just as I miss my ex-wife’s mother who is still alive.
The fact that the funeral is so far away makes it easy to avoid. I will probably buy a tree in her honor and have it planted in remembrance. I feel bad that our good relationship ended because of a messy divorce. I haven’t been part of their family for over 23-years but still have many fond memories. The only thing I still don’t understand was why my son, their eldest grandson, was not part of their lives when they lived so close together here in Florida at least half of the year. I doubt that this was Margie’s doing.
When you divorce your wife you also divorce her family and friends. Sadly, I now live in Florida near the area where we all used to get together every year. None of them came this year, while I watched the Fourth of July fireworks on the beach. They will all now be at a funeral that I will not be attending. This is my choice but I still wish I could see them all. Margie had the last few years of her life taken away by poor health. Rest in Peace. When I last saw her she was still filled with energy. This is the way I prefer to remember her. I’m sorry, dear Margie, you had to leave us so soon and I never got to say good-bye.
Oh My! The Cubs lost their 10th straight and the Damn Yankees got even with the White Sox. Da Bears and Justin Fields started what hopefully will become a winning tradition. IU Hoops showed some promise in the Bahamas. All in all, a big day in sports. I even watched a little Cornhole on TV where a woman historically took the title. The Little League World Series is underway and today is the Brickyard – now 200 miles instead of 400 and on a road course rather than oval, while some things in sports never change like the Yankee uniforms.
This morning’s run was ocean front with a stiff wind coming off the Atlantic. I’m sitting on my balcony watching the waves roll in as I write this. It looks like Florida dodged Fred but hurricane Grace is now tracking in our direction. There’s one more Sox-Yankees clash this afternoon and more of IU Basketball, though not televised. I’ll have to get the wrap-up on Inside The Hall because even Twitter updates were hard to find on Friday evening.
The Yankees are having their way with the supposedly unstoppable Sox closers, Kimbrel and Hendriks. This is not a favorable sign of things to come for the SOX despite their huge Division lead. They will certainly make the Playoffs but have struggled against the other top tier teams. They were decisively swept by the Yanks in NY so winning the Field of Dreams game in dramatic fashion was encouraging. Last night, the Pinstripes won in the 10th shutting down Tim Anderson with the bases loaded and avoiding déjà vu. I’ll be anxious to see how The Pale Hose fare against the defending AL Champ Rays next weekend – in person. IU on the other hand, may have rudely awakened the Serbians for today’s rematch. Go Hoosiers, Sox, and Bears… Oh My!
I’ll guess I’ll be taking a retirement vacation this weekend – the only real change being a break from writing for a few days. It’s about a three-hour drive over to Singer Island and Riviera Beach where we’ll be spending the weekend under the care of Mother Marriott in a luxury condominium overlooking the Atlantic beaches. It will certainly be a change in routine with no dog or home chores to deal with – just friends to meet and sunshine to absorb. I’m looking forward to the change of scenery, unless Tropical Depression Fred changes course and crashes the party. It’s the second storm we’ve had to contend with since moving to Florida.
I sunk the chairs in the pool and removed potential flying objects from the lanai. Hopefully, it will not turn into a hurricane and lose intensity or better yet change course. All the preparations are a hassle but at least we installed high impact glass, so putting up shutters and plywood will not be necessary. Heavy rain is still likely, as seems to be the case most afternoons. Right now it’s the calm before the storm and should stay pleasant for our cross-Florida drive. We’ll have dinner tonight with my wife’s long lost Butler sorority sister and have another of her old friends stay in the second bedroom tomorrow night. My wife has done a great job of rekindling friendships since we’ve moved here. She’s also been good at finding new acquaintances through all her resort activities.
As I pointed out in yesterday’s post, my wife views our new living arrangements as a camp. Some days she’s even the counselor, arranging field trips for me. I was forced to leave the air conditioned comfort of our home to go to Selby Gardens and Spanish Point yesterday afternoon. She’s recently initiated “Tourist Thursdays” that include lunch and a visit to a historical site. The homestead and gardens we went to dates back almost 4,500 years and was permanently settled in the 1800s along Little Sarasota Bay. It was beastly hot and humid as we wandered along dirt paths and through restored cottages. It reminded me of a camp and I couldn’t wait to get back in our air-conditioned car. We also had to wear masks for the first time in awhile. I could see why the South was so opposed to wearing them in this suffocating heat.
My wife has another “tourist” plan for next Thursday, but I prefer to remain in the dark. At least she gets me out of the house where I spend too many hours in front of the TV. We were home in time for me to watch the Field of Dreams game where my White Sox knocked off the evil Yankees in the bottom of the 9th, despite a ferocious comeback. It made my day! Today, IU basketball starts up again with an untelevised exhibition game in The Bahamas. It also marks the day my wife’s mother would have turned 100, having passed three years ago. In two weeks I’ll turn 70 at a Santana concert, so this steamy month of August is filled with many memories and celebrations.
