1. Snow arrived today. I am lousy at measuring snowfall by sight, but I think we got a few inches -- enough to shovel. I'm a frequent shoveler. Being an old man with an iffy back, it's best for me to shovel small amounts frequently rather than let wait for a break in the snowfall and shovel once or twice. I think I shoveled three times today (but who's counting?). The best part of it, even beyond keeping the sidewalks clear, was the exercise.
2. Debbie was out for coffee and ran an errand or two this morning. I finished shoveling for the first time and returned to the slate.com podcast, One Year: 1977. I loved going back to the wild 1977 baseball season of the Chicago White Sox and remembering being home in Kellogg on occasion and watching that team on cable television. To everyone's surprise, The South Chicago Hitmen, as they came to be called, powered their way into first place in their division late in the summer with exciting come from behind wins and unexpected power at the plate from such players as Chet Lemon, Richie Zisk, Oscar Gamble, and Eric Soderholm. Even though they won 90 games, they faded late in the season and finished in third place.
The podcast episode focused on a first. In 1977, the White Sox hired Mary Shane as one of their announcers. She worked the microphone sometimes as a play by play announcer and other times as a color analyst. She didn't work every game of the season, but she was the first woman ever to be hired as a legitimate announcer for a major league team.
She faced many difficulties and obstacles. The podcast explores them. It also explores Mary Shane's life after the White Sox let her go and tells a story that is at once inspiring and very sad. I won't give away details in case you decide to take a listen.
3. Debbie prepared chicken enchiladas and Spanish rice for family dinner tonight and Carol brought a tasty corn salad and Molly made guacamole to go with the corn chips Paul provided. Christy brought two bottles of white wine, one of them a delicious favorite of hers that she purchased on her getaway to Walla Walla. I mixed margaritas to start and hot buttered rums as an after dinner drink.
We hadn't all been together for at least a couple of weeks and we settled into an evening of stories, catching up, and some raucous laughter. Some of it was raunchy, having to do with a certain trivia category at Radio Brewing Wednesday night -- "Is it a cocktail or a sex position?" -- but some things said at family dinner stay at family dinner. Well, we did learn that a golden shower is a cocktail -- I'll say that much.
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