Three-Day Quote Challenge: Frank Bascombe

Susanne Valenti tapped me on the shoulder yesterday for the Three-Day Quote Challenge. She’s a new blogger on the WordPress block, and I liked what what I clicked over and saw. Why yes, and thank you, Susanne. The last time around this quote game, I chose lyrics from a few of my favorite songs. To…

And the valley below

We could not let me dear wife Karen’e five-day Family Reunion in Estes Park go by without heading the rented SUV back up the mountain to that pull-off on Route 36 with the big rock sign and panoramic view. Yet the two times we drove past the majestic point going back down toward the village…

No Vacation from the National Lampoon-style humor

If you lived through the 1980s, you know it. If you sat through the 2000s, you know it. That wink-wink through lasviousness and lewdness paired with physical awkwardnes that made the National Lampoon’s … movies featuring Chevy Chase as patriarch Clark Griswold so darn popular in that first decade. That silly-man, try-too-hard demeanor that made…

Going, going, gone to Coors Field

We gave ourselves an 75 minutes between leaving the Denver Zoo and the start of the game between the Colorado Rockies and Cincinnati Reds on Sunday. After all, GPS told us the trip between the two downtown landmarks was merely a few miles and 15 minutes or so. George Three didn’t fancy the in-city driving,…

A wild time at the Denver Zoo

When my dear wife Karen put a Sunday baseball game on her Family Reunion group page on Facebook, nephew Drew from Alaska quickly indicated that he’d love to join his aunt, the Uncle from Syracuse he’d not yet met, and new cousin Elisabeth and her boyfriend George Three on the excursion to Coors Field to…

Being human is more than good enough in Paper Towns

There’s been a bit of a stir this week around a TV interview on a morning show in Sacramento of Cara Delevingne, who played teen girl enigma Margo in this Paper Town. The co-anchors dissed the actress for her answers and disinterest, and cut the session short. John Green, the novelist from which the plot…

Take a hike, gladly, ride a jeep with the gang

The first day we walked around the town of Estes Park, outside a storefront my wonderful daughter Elisabeth spotted a bunch of people hopping aboard a big jeep. We wondered about the adventure awaiting. The next day, we ducked inside, grabbed a brochure, and talked turkey with the woman behind the counter. Well, elk, actually,…

I’m glad there’s crying in baseball

My Mets lost last night, but even during a pennant race, that wasn’t the big story. Wilmer Flores got tears in his eyes. On the field. During the game. He couldn’t hide it from the TV cameras. There is crying baseball, Tom Hanks’ crusty manager Jimmy Dugan in A League of Their Own. And that…