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Seven, Eleven
St. Louis loves the Cardinals the way Knoxville loves the Vols. I was similarly wowed by an area’s devotion to a team when I first moved to the Washington suburbs and saw the love for the Redskins.
During my most recent trip to St. Louis, the Cardinals were struggling. They were 10½ games out in the National League Wild Card Race, yet I still saw fans decked in red making their way to the ballpark on a Sunday afternoon. It was great to see them win the World Series last night.
I admit that I didn’t pay much attention to baseball this year. The Mets had another bad season and two of their rivals, the Phillies and the Braves, were doing well. When the regular season ended with the Braves’ collapse and the Cardinals making the playoffs, my interest was piqued. Things got better when the Cardinals eliminated the Phillies.
When my wife and I got home from a movie screening on Thursday night, the Cardinals were on the verge of losing the Series. Friends on Facebook were writing things like “I hear the fat lady warming up.” I turned off the TV and carried my computer upstairs. I would read a few more posts before going to sleep. All of a sudden, the news about the Cardinals tying the game hit Twitter. Since there’s no TV in our bedroom, I turned on my WiFi clock radio, intending to find the ESPN Radio broadcast. To my surprise, KMOX.com was streaming their coverage of the extra innings. Earlier in the evening, I noticed that they were rerunning a talk show on their Internet feed. It’s common for sports broadcasts to be pre-empted online.
The experience of hearing rather than watching the end of Game Six reminded me of 1986. I was working late and listening to the radio when Mookie Wilson propelled Bill Buckner to a life of infamy, as recently parodied on “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” This year’s Game Six will go down in history as one of the greatest games ever. Thanks to the Internet, we can watch the unbelievable finish online.
What Have You Done for Philately?
Knoxville is full of streets named after living people. There are several roads named after athletes on the University of Tennessee campus. Many of those athletes are younger than me. I believe that the University will never regret their decision to name a street Peyton Manning Pass. Manning has continued to lead an exemplary life in Indianapolis while maintaining ties in Knoxville.
When I first moved here from California, I wondered what would have happened if USC had named a street after Heisman Trophy winner O.J. Simpson. It would have seemed like a good idea at the time. In 2003, St. Mary’s Parish in Oak Ridge removed Bishop Anthony O’Connell’s name from a building after he admitted to sexual misconduct in the 1970s.
The U.S. Postal Service used to have a rule that only people who have been dead for ten years could be on a stamp. Former presidents got a stamp within a year of their death. A few years back, the postal service shortened the time to five years. They have now decided to drop the waiting period and honor living people on stamps.
So who will be the first living person on a stamp? Fans of 25-year-old Lady Gaga have flocked to Twitter to nominate her. I’ve also seen suggestions for 80-year-old Regis Philbin and 89-year-old Betty White. The stamp should be thought of as a lifetime achievement award. Gaga is still too young for the honor. Regis and Betty are safe bets at this point.
I’ve been asked to do whatever I can to help get a stamp for 83-year-old Dr. Bill Bass. He is a living legend in the fields of forensics and osteology. As one of the comments on Facebook put it: “The world is a safer place because of Dr. Bill Bass. He is a national treasure!” I’ve known Dr. Bass for nine years and can wholeheartedly endorse his character. The praise bestowed upon him at the dedication ceremony for the building named after him made it all the more obvious that he is deserving of a stamp too.
The postal service says the public can suggest potential honorees by several methods. I’ve already started via Facebook and Twitter. Perhaps I could make more of an impact by sending a message in a manner that most others won’t: first-class mail.
Model T
Greg Huff and I were asked to represent Einstein Simplified in a fashion show on Saturday night at Club LeConte. The show was organized by the Women’s Council of Realtors as a benefit for the Volunteer Ministry Center. Many of the models were realtors. There were a few local politicians strutting their stuff too.
Sherry Ailor did a great job as emcee. She had to find each of us backstage and get a few biographical bullet points to go with the scripted information about the clothes we wore.
I wore three outfits from Jos. A. Bank. My favorite was an orange blazer that got applause from the Vols fans in attendance. Catholic blogger Frank Weathers commented on a Facebook photo of me wearing the blazer. He wrote, “Orange is so wrong on you Frank! ; )” I had to laugh because I know that orange is to Irish Protestants as green is to Irish Catholics. Two of the other models, former Lady Vol Daedra Charles-Furlow and former Vols quarterback Sterling Henton said they loved the blazer.
Whitney Kent and Jamie Lynn Drohan were models, as was Ella Nolan from “The Bachelor.” Although I met Ella last year when she was on “Star 102.1’s Dancing with the Knoxville Stars,” it took me a moment to recognize her voluptuous new look.
Bridge the Gap
Since the first Boomsday in 1987, Pyro Shows has sent fireworks flying and cascading from the Henley Street bridge. The bridge is currently dismantled, causing them to move tonight’s show several yards downstream to the railroad bridge. A few clues about the 25th annual Boomsday celebration are included in an article in Friday’s News Sentinel:
Here’s how the show will work. The fireworks will be set up on 90-foot-long flatbed railroad cars. About five cars will be used for fireworks of a 10- to 12-car train, said Pyro Shows Vice President of Operations Mike Walden. No other trains that regularly use the bridge are scheduled for Sunday traffic, Walden says.
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So instead of using the five-lane, 800-foot long Henley Bridge, Pyro Shows’ epicenter will be a narrower as well as shorter — about 400-feet — work space. And since the railroad bridge is lower than the Henley Bridge, fireworks will launch 50 to 75 feet lower than they have in past years. Walden predicts the average Boomsday fan won’t really notice the difference.
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But viewers are likely to get a more comprehensive view of the display. “The really cool thing is there is no handrail and no sidewalk (on the bridge) so you literally will be able to see what happens from the time the fireworks are lit.
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“If you have always watched Boomsday from Volunteer Landing you are still going to see a great show from Volunteer Landing,” says Walden. Because of the bridge location he says the usually good view of fireworks from the Thompson-Boling area of Neyland will be better than in past years.
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Each year Pyro, based in LaFollette, promises surprises for the East Tennessee show in which it takes great pride. This year that surprise may just be that waterfall of fireworks. “I think that is where everyone is going to be very, very surprised,” says Walden. “Hopefully it will look the same. But we are doing it in a completely different way.
“Rhapsody in Blue,” the tune normally associated with the waterfall effect will come earlier in the show than usual. Much earlier. The theme from “Jaws” comes near the end of the show. The synchronized soundtrack on Star 102.1 includes current songs you’d expect like Katy Perry’s “Firework” and Ke$ha’s “Blow.”
I think it’s safe to predict that there will be an emotional reaction when the crowd hears the voice of Lady Vols basketball coach Pat Summitt introducing the “Tennessee Waltz.” It is followed by football coach Derek Dooley introducing “Rocky Top.”
Mallow Martial
Yet another Frank Murphy has caught my attention on the Internet. This one is known as Master Frank Murphy , because he is a 7th Degree Black Belt in Taekwondo. He also has a great Irish accent, which makes sense because he’s in County Cork. This week he started uploading training videos to YouTube.
Corn Cobb
Armed with a stack of magazines from our friend Stacey Handel, my wife and I crossed the border into Iowa, my 47th state, her 42nd. We were driving from Fort Madison to Dyersville when I discovered a small ad in the back of an “Our Iowa” magazine that led us to one of Western Iowa’s gems four days later.
Admission to the Field of Dreams Movie Site is free. They make their money off the sales of licensed souvenirs, hats and t-shirts. My wife and I did the touristy thing by standing among the cornstalks and walking onto the field, like the characters in the film. Organized games are not allowed. We saw a group of people taking turns batting and fielding on the well-maintained grass.
Dyersville has another interesting site besides the Field of Dreams. It is home to St. Francis Xavier Basilica, one of only 68 basilicas in the United States.
Let the Spectacle Astound You
Competitive ballroom dancing is a sport in which the participants strive to look as good when they finish as they did when they started. The dancers retain their poise and grace while trying to hide their sweat and exhaustion. Professional instructors Prageeth Hettiarachchi and Debora Zaglul of Kentucky DanceSport proved my point as they danced near my table on Saturday night. I suppose that figure skating is the only other sport that requires costumes and makeup.
Academy Ballroom owners Emily Loyless and Jeremy Norris invited my wife and me to watch the final session of the third annual Rocky Top Dance Challenge at the Knoxville Marriott Downtown. I had a good time last year and happily accepted their invitation. After the pro-am events, we saw pro couples compete in four heats.
When we arrived, Emily gave us cowbells and a plastic megaphone. The organizers want the audience to make noise after each performance and as the award winners are announced. We sat at a table that had been cleared, except for a package of GU Energy Gel. It took me a moment to realize that it is something the performers eat, not something they rub on their sore muscles.
The capper for the evening was a performance by the Atlanta Ballroom Dance Theater and featured pro teams. They performed in a dramatically lit ballroom while wearing masquerade masks. Emily introduced me to one of the dancers whose day job is on the radio. Wendy Adams is a member of The Bert Show, which is based in Atlanta. The costume for her chair dance explains why she asked her Twitter followers, “Anyone know where I can get some black hot pants?”
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