The Demise of Racing

The bugler blew taps at the Suffolk Downs Race Track last Saturday to mark the end of racing forever at this historic oval opened in 1935. There was a mist in the air and a muddy track to mark the occasion. The great SEABISCUIT had run there in 1937 and the Beatles performed there in the 1960s. Horseplayers come from all walks of life and many are loners. When I lived in Phladelphia I visited a friend in New York and together we went out to Aqueduct Race Course in Queens. In a crowd of 40,000 improvers of the breed I spotted my neighbor from Philadelphia. When I related this coincidence to my friend's father who was a police lieutenant in the NYPD, he asked if said neighbor was a banker. I replied "Yes, how did you know?" He said bankers never visit the track in their hometown. Ah, the policeman's mind at work!
tjs

Stranger Than Fiction

An eyebrow raiser this week was reading that Ben Bernanke, the former Chairman of the Federal Reserve, was having trouble refinancing his mortgage. This person of stature was certainly not a deadbeat. His only sin was that he had recently changed jobs. Many of us can empathize with his situation as we all have felt the frustration of dealing with mortgage companies and banks and the red tape associated with such exercises. It is hoped that Mr. Bernanke can furnish suitable references and collateral to satisfy his tormenters.
tjs

The Buck Stops Here II

At the end of September 1951 the New York Giants and the Brooklyn Dodgers were tied for the National League pennant resulting in a one game playoff at the New York Polo Grounds. In the bottom of the ninth inning with Brooklyn holding a slim lead, the Giants put on a rally. The Dodger manager at the time was Charlie Dressen and he called to his bullpen coach, Clyde Sukeforth, and Ralph Branca was selected to relieve the pitcher on that fateful day. The Giants' Bobby Thomson proceeded to hit Branca's pitch for the Home Run "heard around the world." When interviewed, Dressen could only say "Sukey said he was ready" - presumably laying the blame on his bullpen coach. Dressen's managerial reign in Brooklyn was brief - lasting only three years. His boss was Walter O'Malley whose practice was to grant only one year contracts. This grated Dressen's wife who nagged her husband to complain which probably hastened his departure for greener pastures.
tjs

The Buck Stops Here

This is the time of year when we baseball fans can sit in the grandstand and second guess the managers. Last Saturday night, with the S.F. Giants playing the Washington Nationals, the Nats pitcher was working on a shut-out with two outs in the ninth inning when he walked the next batter. The manager immediately replaced him with his "closer" with disastrous results. When questioned he said that this had been his instinct and routine thru out the regular season. But as a seasoned professional he should know that October is different from the regular season as unsung heroes can appear in the playoffs from unexpected sources. BTW, the Baltimore Orioles manager's name is "Buck" and after winning three games in a row it does not appear that he is ready to stop anywhere.
tjs

Something in the Air

Al Capp was the cartoonist who created Li'l Abner and the Yokum family of Dogpatch, Kentucky. At times he mentioned a hamlet called Skunk Hollow which was a suburb of Dogpatch. The name came to mind as I read of the proliferation of skunks in Cape May, N.J. just as we are planning a visit there next week. I'm sure the Chamber of Commerce is not happy. The natives indicate that this is the normal fall forage for food and shelter to prepare for the winter. But this year's crop seem to be more aggressive  - chasing dog walkers and staring down residents - and if they spray your pet you are in for a long cleaning session. I have been stared at by brazen raccoons but I don't wish to tangle with the fellow with the white stripe. Caveat emptor! or "let the pedestrian beware!
tjs

Hard Hat Humor

This is a variation on an old story. Felix was a construction worker who just signed on to a new job. While his references were sketchy, the foreman liked his punctuality and regular attendance. The employer had recently suffered a spate of thefts of tools and equipment so had tightened security. Since Felix was a new face he underwent scrutiny at the exit gate so when the four o'clock whistle blew he piled his personal items - hard hat, gloves, safety vest and lunch pail with the empty thermos - into a wheel barrow and proceeded to the security gate where they checked him out. After a week of the same routine they began to wave him thru. About a month later the alarm bells went off - an inventory check revealed a shortage of thirty wheelbarrows.
tjs

The Moralist

Apropos of nothing more than a flip of the monthly calendar recalls the following from long ago:
-One evening in October - when I was far from sober - and lugging home a load with manly pride - my feet began to stutter so I sat down in the gutter and a pig came up and sat down by my side. I remarked that it's fair weather when good fellows get together - til a lady passing by was heard to say "You can tell a man who boozes by the playmates that he chooses"- and the pig got up and slowly walked away.
I was never clear whether this was animal cruelty or a vote for abstinence - or none of the above.
tjs