Coach Flip Naumburg's Journal

Sunday, December 17, 2006

ROLEY, POLEY HOLY DAYS

As usual it goes something like this:

'Tis the week before Christmas and all through the house,

This creature isn't stirring, not even to get a present for his spouse. 

The stockings are 'hung' on the 'mantle' with care,

In hopes that when it's all over there will still be a little cash to spare.

YOU'RE ONLY 40 ONCE

My wife becomes a full forty years old today.  Everyone should look like her at 40.  I looked older when I was 25 than she does today at 40.  We are having a surprise party for her.  I say that as if I were doing something to help.  Well, actually I am.  My job is to get her out of the house between 1:00 and 3:00.  I can do this without stress or plotting.  I just have to say the magic words to make it happen.  In my wife's case 'the magic word' used is not "Please".  No, the Word up for this is "Mall"!  Works every time.  For George the Word is golf (indoor at mall, under the black lights with balls that glow).  As for Jordan, well, he just likes action, and needs no motivation.  After all, he is currently taking gymnastics, art, and introduction to music on the side these days.  He carries a pretty good load for a first grader.  As for me, I am one of his proud chauffeurs.

Meanwhile we are doing a good job of making Ada's birthday seem more or less just like every other day, save the few extra calls she is getting from friends and relatives.

THE BOY OF SUMMER

Last year over Christmas break I wrote a personal letter to my boyhood hero, Johnny Callison, #6 on your mid-1960's Philadelphia Phillie baseball roster.  He graced the cover of Sports Illustrated once with his magnificent swing at the height of his career in 1964.  He will never be in the Hall of Fame, and only hit .300 once, in that year of 1964. 

As an athlete, and maybe more importantly as a baseball player he inspired me.  It took me days, maybe weeks to put my thoughts into words on paper.  I was almost nervous at first, but then I really got into it.   At any rate of writing I had been composing this particular letter in my head for years. 

I gave it my best literary shot, too.  I vividly remembered things about him and about then that I thought were pretty obscure because I had gone to so many games at 'color'ful Connie Mack Stadium in Philly's downtown ghetto back in the day.  I even saw lots of doubleheaders.  I kept score in the program.  In the correspondence to him I tried to bring one or two of those ancient moments alive again.  I knew Callison was still living and all that.  He continues to live in the town where I was born, Doylestown, which is 'just-a-bit outside' Philadelphia.  I sent the two-page letter to him in care of the Phillies.   They assured me over the phone when I called that THE Johnny Callison of Philadelphia Phillie 'fame' would indeed get the letter. I hope he did get it.  It is now one year later. 

When I decided to do this I had also started to yearn that I would somehow 'push his button' with my 'pen' enough to get a response, but no such luck it would seem.  That would have been true fantasy baseball for me I guess.  Apparently John still gets more mail than he can handle as he pushes 70 and had been out of baseball for almost 40 years.  Needless to say I am more than a little disappointed.  Should I resend or has my window of opportunity come and gone?  Timing is everything in baseball, and I swung and missed on this one.  I'm not going back.

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