My favorite high school class is Portuguese. I chose it over French, Spanish and Italian. It sounds so exotic and it doesn't hurt the teacher, Ms. Sousa, is young and pretty.
It's kind of cool to talk to somebody in another language. I really like it.
My answers to the first weekly quiz:
Eu gosto de sorvete = I like ice cream
Eu gosto dos meus amigos = I like my friends
domingo = Sunday
segunda-feira = Monday
rio = river
rua = street
uva = grape
ovo = egg
um/uma = one
dois/duas = two
I got 100% on the quiz. Poor Delores flunked. When she saw my score, she gave me a look different from the one she gave me last week. Before we left class today, Delores asked for my help with the homework. I guess I'm not a bug after all.
I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Sunday, July 26, 2020
Sunday, July 19, 2020
Doc Holliday
Dr. John Henry Holliday was born August 14, 1851 in Griffin, Georgia. At age 19, he went to Philadelphia to study dentistry at the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery, now part of my alma mater, the University of Pennsylvania.
After he graduated in 1872, Holliday moved to St. Louis to begin his dental practice. Shortly thereafter, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis, then an incurable disease.
Holliday was advised that living in a drier, warmer climate would slow the deterioration of his health. Following this guidance, he moved to Dallas, where he attempted to practice dentistry. However, his frequent coughing spells made working as such almost impossible.
To earn money, Holliday took up gambling, which was illegal in the State of Texas. To stay out of trouble, he moved to Denver, Colorado where he became a faro dealer.
Holliday subsequently relocated to Cheyenne, Wyoming, Deadwood, South Dakota and Fort Griffin, Texas, all the while plying his trade as a professional gambler. It was in Fort Griffin where he met and befriended the legendary lawman, Wyatt Earp.
On July 19, 1879 (141 years ago today), while living in Las Vegas, New Mexico, Doc Holliday shot and killed a man for the first time, for wrecking his bar. He subsequently proceeded to Dodge City, Kansas where Wyatt Earp was the local Marshal.
On October 26, 1881, Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp plus Earp's two brothers, Morgan and Virgil, participated in the most famous gunfight in the history of the West, at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona. They were opposed by five cowboys, Billy Claiborne, Ike and Billy Clanton in addition to Tom and Frank McLaury.
There are at least six different movies which depict the above gunfight and six different actors who portray Doc Holliday in them.
My Darling Clementine (1946) with Victor Mature.
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957) with Kirk Douglas
Hour of the Gun (1967) with Jason Robards
Doc (1971) with Stacy Keach
Tombstone (1993) with Val Kilmer
Wyatt Earp (1994) with Dennis Quaid
Doc Holliday survived the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, but not his tuberculosis. He died in Glenwood Springs, Colorado on November 8, 1887 at the age of 36, but he is not forgotten.
After he graduated in 1872, Holliday moved to St. Louis to begin his dental practice. Shortly thereafter, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis, then an incurable disease.
Holliday was advised that living in a drier, warmer climate would slow the deterioration of his health. Following this guidance, he moved to Dallas, where he attempted to practice dentistry. However, his frequent coughing spells made working as such almost impossible.
To earn money, Holliday took up gambling, which was illegal in the State of Texas. To stay out of trouble, he moved to Denver, Colorado where he became a faro dealer.
Holliday subsequently relocated to Cheyenne, Wyoming, Deadwood, South Dakota and Fort Griffin, Texas, all the while plying his trade as a professional gambler. It was in Fort Griffin where he met and befriended the legendary lawman, Wyatt Earp.
On July 19, 1879 (141 years ago today), while living in Las Vegas, New Mexico, Doc Holliday shot and killed a man for the first time, for wrecking his bar. He subsequently proceeded to Dodge City, Kansas where Wyatt Earp was the local Marshal.
On October 26, 1881, Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp plus Earp's two brothers, Morgan and Virgil, participated in the most famous gunfight in the history of the West, at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona. They were opposed by five cowboys, Billy Claiborne, Ike and Billy Clanton in addition to Tom and Frank McLaury.
There are at least six different movies which depict the above gunfight and six different actors who portray Doc Holliday in them.
My Darling Clementine (1946) with Victor Mature.
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957) with Kirk Douglas
Hour of the Gun (1967) with Jason Robards
Doc (1971) with Stacy Keach
Tombstone (1993) with Val Kilmer
Wyatt Earp (1994) with Dennis Quaid
Doc Holliday survived the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, but not his tuberculosis. He died in Glenwood Springs, Colorado on November 8, 1887 at the age of 36, but he is not forgotten.
Sunday, July 12, 2020
Detroit
On Monday, May 17, 1967, I reached another milestone in my life. I graduated with a B. S. in Economics degree from the Wharton School of Finance and Commerce of the University of Pennsylvania. (Donald Trump graduated the following year.)
Afterwards, I returned to Oswego and my parent's home to await my status from the local draft board. My student deferment had ended. My gastroenterologist had forwarded his diagnosis of my ulcerative colitis to the draft board. I was hoping it would quickly review the diagnosis and free me from worrying about being drafted by the Army and sent to Vietnam.
A week or two later, I got impatient to start the rest of my life which included getting a job, finding an apartment, buying a car and meeting women. I decided Detroit would be a good place to go as my brother Ted lived there with his wife Joy, a native of the area.
Eventually, I received a 1Y designation from the draft board. I would be eligible to be called up if the USA were invaded. Not likely!
I found a job as an auditor with the CPA firm Ernst & Ernst at their office on West Fort Street in downtown Detroit. Unfortunately for me, I had zero training in this area of accounting. However, I learned much as I was assigned to several different audit managers who needed me to work with several different clients.
With the help of my sister-in-law, I had dates with a number of women, but none appealed to me until I met Bonnie Sobol on the night of July 5, 1967. I remember because that was the day I was supposed to report for duty at Lackland Air Force Base outside of San Antonio, Texas as an Officer Candidate (cancelled because of my colitis). I liked her enough to begin dating regularly.
Going out with Bonnie (who years later decided to go by her real name of Bonita) was a little problematic. She worked as a waitress at Carl's Chop House, a popular and premier restaurant located on Grand River (street) in Detroit. I picked her up late at night at Carl's when her shift ended.
Eighteen days after I met Bonnie (about 53 years ago), on early Sunday morning, July 23, a race riot broke out in Detroit. "The precipitating event was a police raid of an unlicensed, after-hours bar then known as a blind pig, on the city's Near West Side. It exploded into one of the deadliest and most destructive riots in American history, lasting five days and surpassing the violence and property destruction of Detroit's 1943 race riot 24 years earlier."
"Governor George W. Romney ordered the Michigan Army National Guard into Detroit to help end the disturbance. Later, at the request of the Governor, President Lyndon B. Johnson sent in the United States Army's 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions. The result was 43 dead, 1,189 injured, over 7,200 arrests, and more than 2,000 buildings destroyed."
I remember calling Bonnie later that Sunday to see if she was alright since she was working while the rioting was ongoing. She told me rioters had entered the restaurant and, in the melee, one of her legs was broken. After my initial shock, Bonnie told me it was a joke. Very funny!
I recall that week walking in downtown Detroit to my office, passing heavily armed federal troops. I hope I never again see them patrolling a US city.
Afterwards, I returned to Oswego and my parent's home to await my status from the local draft board. My student deferment had ended. My gastroenterologist had forwarded his diagnosis of my ulcerative colitis to the draft board. I was hoping it would quickly review the diagnosis and free me from worrying about being drafted by the Army and sent to Vietnam.
A week or two later, I got impatient to start the rest of my life which included getting a job, finding an apartment, buying a car and meeting women. I decided Detroit would be a good place to go as my brother Ted lived there with his wife Joy, a native of the area.
Eventually, I received a 1Y designation from the draft board. I would be eligible to be called up if the USA were invaded. Not likely!
I found a job as an auditor with the CPA firm Ernst & Ernst at their office on West Fort Street in downtown Detroit. Unfortunately for me, I had zero training in this area of accounting. However, I learned much as I was assigned to several different audit managers who needed me to work with several different clients.
With the help of my sister-in-law, I had dates with a number of women, but none appealed to me until I met Bonnie Sobol on the night of July 5, 1967. I remember because that was the day I was supposed to report for duty at Lackland Air Force Base outside of San Antonio, Texas as an Officer Candidate (cancelled because of my colitis). I liked her enough to begin dating regularly.
Going out with Bonnie (who years later decided to go by her real name of Bonita) was a little problematic. She worked as a waitress at Carl's Chop House, a popular and premier restaurant located on Grand River (street) in Detroit. I picked her up late at night at Carl's when her shift ended.
Eighteen days after I met Bonnie (about 53 years ago), on early Sunday morning, July 23, a race riot broke out in Detroit. "The precipitating event was a police raid of an unlicensed, after-hours bar then known as a blind pig, on the city's Near West Side. It exploded into one of the deadliest and most destructive riots in American history, lasting five days and surpassing the violence and property destruction of Detroit's 1943 race riot 24 years earlier."
"Governor George W. Romney ordered the Michigan Army National Guard into Detroit to help end the disturbance. Later, at the request of the Governor, President Lyndon B. Johnson sent in the United States Army's 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions. The result was 43 dead, 1,189 injured, over 7,200 arrests, and more than 2,000 buildings destroyed."
I remember calling Bonnie later that Sunday to see if she was alright since she was working while the rioting was ongoing. She told me rioters had entered the restaurant and, in the melee, one of her legs was broken. After my initial shock, Bonnie told me it was a joke. Very funny!
I recall that week walking in downtown Detroit to my office, passing heavily armed federal troops. I hope I never again see them patrolling a US city.
Sunday, July 5, 2020
Hoosiers
The term Hoosiers has for almost 200 years referred to anyone born in or resident of the State of Indiana. Its derivation is not clear.
In 1986, Hoosiers became the title of what I consider the best sports movie ever. It was written by Angelo Pizzo, directed by David Anspaugh and stars Gene Hackman, Dennis Hopper, Sheb Wooley and Barbara Hershey.
15 years earlier, Hackman portrayed Popeye Doyle in the marvelous police drama The French Connection (see 12/19 post), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor.
27 years earlier, Hopper received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay (co-written with Peter Fonda and Terry Southern) for the film Easy Rider (award won by William Goldman for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid). Hopper and Fonda also starred in the film.
34 years earlier, Wooley played Ben Miller, one of four gunmen determined to kill Marshal Will Kane (Gary Cooper) in the great western High Noon (winner of four Academy Awards - see 3/15 post). The brother of Frank Miller (Ian MacDonald), the leader of the gang, Ben was the first to be killed on the streets of Hadleyville.
In the same year (1986), Hershey portrayed Lee, one of three sisters in Woody Allen's Hannah and Her Sisters (see June post).
Hoosiers is based on the true story of the 1954 Indiana state high school boys basketball champions, Milan High School. With only an enrollment of 161 students, their basketball team defeated Muncie Central, a much larger school, in the championship game.
In the film Hoosiers, Norman Dale (Hackman) is hired by the principal (Wooley) to coach the Hickory (Indiana) High School boys basketball team. He then hires the town drunk and father of one of his players to be his assistant (Hopper). Dale develops a romantic relationship with a teacher at the school (Hershey).
Hoosiers follows the team's ups and downs through their very successful basketball season (1951-1952), culminating in the Indiana state championship.
Before the semi-final game, Coach Dale gives an incredible motivational speech to his team. To me, it speaks volumes about what athletic competition should be about.
"There's a tradition in tournament play not to talk about the next step until you've climbed the one in front of you. I'm sure going to the state finals is beyond your wildest dreams. So, let's keep it right there."
"Forget about the crowd, the size of the school, their fancy uniforms and remember what got you here. Focus on the fundamentals that we've gone over time and time again. And most important, don't get caught up thinking about winning or losing this game. If you put your effort and concentration into playing to your potential, to be the best that you can be, I don't care what the scoreboard says at the end of the game. In my book, we're gonna be winners."
In 1986, Hoosiers became the title of what I consider the best sports movie ever. It was written by Angelo Pizzo, directed by David Anspaugh and stars Gene Hackman, Dennis Hopper, Sheb Wooley and Barbara Hershey.
15 years earlier, Hackman portrayed Popeye Doyle in the marvelous police drama The French Connection (see 12/19 post), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor.
27 years earlier, Hopper received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay (co-written with Peter Fonda and Terry Southern) for the film Easy Rider (award won by William Goldman for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid). Hopper and Fonda also starred in the film.
34 years earlier, Wooley played Ben Miller, one of four gunmen determined to kill Marshal Will Kane (Gary Cooper) in the great western High Noon (winner of four Academy Awards - see 3/15 post). The brother of Frank Miller (Ian MacDonald), the leader of the gang, Ben was the first to be killed on the streets of Hadleyville.
In the same year (1986), Hershey portrayed Lee, one of three sisters in Woody Allen's Hannah and Her Sisters (see June post).
Hoosiers is based on the true story of the 1954 Indiana state high school boys basketball champions, Milan High School. With only an enrollment of 161 students, their basketball team defeated Muncie Central, a much larger school, in the championship game.
In the film Hoosiers, Norman Dale (Hackman) is hired by the principal (Wooley) to coach the Hickory (Indiana) High School boys basketball team. He then hires the town drunk and father of one of his players to be his assistant (Hopper). Dale develops a romantic relationship with a teacher at the school (Hershey).
Hoosiers follows the team's ups and downs through their very successful basketball season (1951-1952), culminating in the Indiana state championship.
Before the semi-final game, Coach Dale gives an incredible motivational speech to his team. To me, it speaks volumes about what athletic competition should be about.
"There's a tradition in tournament play not to talk about the next step until you've climbed the one in front of you. I'm sure going to the state finals is beyond your wildest dreams. So, let's keep it right there."
"Forget about the crowd, the size of the school, their fancy uniforms and remember what got you here. Focus on the fundamentals that we've gone over time and time again. And most important, don't get caught up thinking about winning or losing this game. If you put your effort and concentration into playing to your potential, to be the best that you can be, I don't care what the scoreboard says at the end of the game. In my book, we're gonna be winners."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)