Softball: The Circle Game
Dear People,
In one of those wondrous displays of see-sawing competitive excellence, my team barely staved off Allan Brill’s, 8-7. Both Jed and the Brillo Pad performed flawlessly on the mound, and in the end, it’s clear that the Jedmeister’s triumph was nothing more than the random dénouement of an epic game-long struggle between two equally deserving stallions—hot, sweaty and utterly nude before the Lord.
Well, at least that’s how I saw it, though quite a few on Allan’s side would claim that our razor-thin edge was also due to the optically curious umping of our cherished catcher—Deb “I call’em as I see’em” Charych. Perhaps, and yet if there’s one rule that we’ll never waiver on in this community, it’s that there’s simply no arguing with the good-faith officiating of the opposing catcher.
So sure, I understand that at least eight separate witnesses saw the Debster call a puzzling series of strikes when the ball landed at least fifteen feet from the green strike-zone carpet. But the point is if she saw frayed verdant microfibers where those balls hit the ground, then those pitches were obviously strikes in every sense of the word. Nevertheless, I will heed Darryl’s advice and gently nudge her into visiting her local community BALBA (Bosco’s Academy of Legally Blind Athletes—“At Bosco’s, We See what You only Think You do.”)
The point is I’m delighted to report that Ehud and Jen are the proud parents of a beautiful new daughter, Yael Laila Isacoff. A few days ago I had the pleasure of hanging out with them at Alta Bates hospital, where the Yaelster was taking in the views while cooing, babbling and shrieking in that soothingly frisky baby style. The fact is she seemed alert, focused and more forward-thinking than any 12-hour toddler that I’d ever spoken to, and sure enough, as I stared deep into her drowsy yet gorgeous Hebraic-American eyes, she looked right back, smiled with joy, and then won my heart forever; “Shortstop” she softly but clearly cooed, and if that isn’t an ironclad promise for her community debut on November 19, 2022, then I don’t know what is. Yeah, some things are just destined to be, and therefore there will be a game at Grove this Sunday at 11, IF I get enough commits by this Friday morning. . .Ray
PS: Happy post-partum turkeys to you and yours. . .
11/25/09
Softball: The Post-Turkey Rush
Dear People,
There will be a game at Grove this Sunday at 11, and as of now, it is already full. As always, please let me know ASAP if you committed and need to cancel, and feel free to contact me later for news of reopened slots.
This week’s field fee is just $4, and that includes a chilled post-game carafe of Cabernet Sauvignon, lovingly laced with pure organic tryptophan….Ray 845-7552
PS: Apologies to those who I have not yet responded to (I will do so by this afternoon). I’m a bit swamped at work, and while softball is obviously 1,000 times more important than some two-bit attorney’s desire for the legislative history of the California probate code, duty calls.