retired from what?

So we blows thru the airport in Toronto and grab Alex, then make for Southampton, a town forgotten by time. Mostly. Since we were last here 4 years ago, they have built a big new Rexall drug store and a Tim Hortons. Uncle Mike and Aunt Nikki look well and we walked the business district and still had 55 minutes left to the hour. Ate at the "Chips Ahoy" and did some beach time and went down to applaud the sunset. Note how the piper serenades the sun down. On Thursday evenings, the classic car owners gather for people to gawk and there is a 50/50 raffle for the Saugeen Hospital. Imagine- constant fundraising for the hospital because people care for and support their health care providers. Such a contrast to the states where hospital marketing is big business. But I digress... In fact, both of my children have been patients at that hospital. Miles still has the scars from the last trip. The last night we were there, Uncle Mike decided to give Alex a lesson in knife throwing. Ph...

In the early 70's I visited a friend at Princeton, and I dragged him to 112 Mercer Street where Einstein spent the last years of his life failing to conceive a Unified Field Theory. (Died with notes at his bedside; or so the story goes...) Anyway, he was a hero of mine at the time, and I spent the better part of half an hour assuming various positions on the front porch, making sure that we had shared some spatial coordinates. On our first night in NYC we were out exploring the neighborhood on foot, and I snapped this picture of the old women next to the mosaic street pole. In the course of our week in East Village I walked by and admired that pole a dozen times and went back on my way to get the car out of storage to fully document the tile work. As I’m looking over this thing in my viewfinder (Allman Brothers, Janis, The Fugs…it says Bill Gramm Way on the other side), I’m hit with the Hot-Kiss-at-the-End-of-a-Wet-Fist: I am standing in front of what was the Fillmore East! I ...

There is a glass case with a shirt and a ball and a bat. And over there is a glass case with a shirt and a ball and a base. And over there...You get the idea. What is interesting about baseball is the stories, not the stuff, thus I quickly realized that the HOF would be much more interesting on line. Furthermore, most of the artifacts are from teams within a reasonable drive of the HOF. Trust me, if you root for the D-backs or the Rays or the Astros...hell, there wasn't even much from the Tigers! The plaques. Wow, they are strange. I must research who writes these things. They are a hodge-podge lot, some crammed with factoids and anecdotes, other strangely devoid of any real content. But seriously, did they have to describe Jackie Robinson, in the first sentence, as "colorful?" On the other hand, this just might be the cutest town in America. It is filled with quaint churches and charming Victorian homes with lush flower beds. The main drag has shops and shops dedicated...

That is how they apologize here in Canada. We are sorry to have not posted in so long, but what we are learning is that it is hard to get on line at the homes of friends and relations because they never remember how to get past their security. So it goes. When time allows and I have downloaded enough pictures to tell some tales, I/we will get up to date. Next Post - Baseball Hall of Same.

When I bemoan the Designated Hitter, it is a sign that I have forgotten said rule was instrumental in Al Kaline's 1st ballot induction into Hall of Fame. He would not have gotten 3000 hits...maybe he would't have played the 1974 season if he had to take the field. On the other hand, under the circumstances, Al taking on the DH role spelled the end of the line for Gates Brown. A thought that brings me only sadness. Cooperstown is the epitome of cuteness on a sunny summer afternoon: crowds as thick as a NYC midtown street; just souvenirs, ice cream, and joyful kiddos! The HoF itself was a disappointment, perhaps due to expectations (there is just a small fading photograph to honor Ernie in the Broadcasters Wing). But we got to touch Al's plaque, and then there was the display that consisted of an endless loop video of Abbot & Costello's "Who's on First" routine...

Sitting at a counter eating at the Whole Foods in the Bowery (And I am old enough to remember when the Bowery was The Bowery !) Two pretty women in their 20s, one American, one Italian. They are discussing American TV shows. The Italian woman says, with her chaming accent, "Oh, I like Chelsea. She is always making fun of people with her sar cas ms."

We didn't exactly take Manhattan but we didn't get taken, either. We loved our temporary home above the foot rub neon sign and thought it was a great location. Mark's navigation skills were in top form and we were never lost. We ate well, saw some strange little performances and walked a million miles. Though it was not the plan, it truly was a history tour, from Isis and Osiris to Ellis Island, the Museum of the City of New York, wonderful old buildings, 500 years of musical instruments and a lot more. On to Cooperstown, one day after the induction ceremony for the Baseball Hall of Fame.