Diamond Notes

Brother Sean,

Just saw you on YouTube.  Way to keep score!  In all seriousness, Pudge must feel pretty bad going down on a called third strike that had his knees buckling.

In response to your previous post, I am truly sorry you never got into Yankee Stadium.  Though not quite the same, I can’t believe I never made it to Camden Yards while I lived in Northern Virginia.

We have been in the throes of baseball fever since Day 1.  The Braves have basically been heartbreakers all seasons, though some of that has been out of their hands, what with losing 3/5 of their opening day pitching rotation.  AMA is learning the hard lesson of how God uses baseball in our sanctification.

Maybe one day we can catch another game together (just no Captain Dynamite).

Jon

The Wall Between Us Is No More

Brother Sean,

I know it has really not been a wall between us but, regardless, it is no more.  I have finished reading The Lord of the Rings trilogy.  My question for you is “Why did I wait so long?”  I could have been enjoying this for so many years.  Only downside (if you can call it that) is that my enjoyment of the movies will be greatly diminished.

Thankful for going there and back again,

Jon

A Sad Story

Hey Jon–

It’s been quite some time since I’ve posted anything here.  Lame, I know.  One of the things that’s been going on this summer is that my love for the grand old game has been entirely and completely rekindled.  You and I followed the Braves a little bit and watched quite a bit of postseason ball when we were in school, but my interest in the game hasn’t risen to this level since that fateful day almost 18 years ago when Coach Clark at KSU delivered the devastating news that my baseball career was over.  Anyway, there are all kinds of reasons why baseball is back on the radar at the level it is, and I’ll write about those later. Today I want to tell you a story that I may not have told you before. If I have, please bear with me.

When I was 16 my grandparents (my Mother’s parents) took me on summer trip, just me and them.  They planned the trip around things they knew I would love to do.  So my 16th summer was spent in New York City and then upstate in Cooperstown, home of the Baseball Hall of Fame.  It was a wonderful time.  The Hall of Fame was incredible.  It was a baseball lover’s dream to be there.  There I was, 16 years old, having breathed, eaten, drank, and slept baseball since before I could remember, and I was looking at all these exhibits and artifacts I had read about many times.  It was so cool. 

In the city I saw all the traditional sights–the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and so on.  I stood on top of the towers of the World Trade Center.  But the highlight of that part of the trip was supposed to be a game between the Yankees and Rangers at Yankee Stadium, complete with dinner in the Clubhouse Restaurant at the Stadium.  But while we were eating, we got word that the game had been rained out, and rescheduled for a time that we would not be in the city.  I was in Yankee Stadium, but I was not going to be able to see a game there.  I asked–no, begged–to be allowed just to walk out onto the concourse and see the ballpark.  But to no avail.  They wouldn’t let me in.

Now, you know that I am no fan of the New York Yankees.  My hatred for the Yankees goes back at least to October 14, 1976 (“Chris Chambliss” is still a dirty word between my father and me).  But as a student of the game I know that Yankee Stadium is a big deal.  It’s the house that Ruth built.  So many big things have happened there.  So many great players have played there.  Many folks have referred to it as a “cathedral” of baseball, particularly this year at the All-Star Game and all the hype surrounding it, since this is the last year baseball will be played there.  And that’s the sad story.  I got so close, and there’ll never be another opportunity to see the game played on the field graced by Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Berra, Mantle, and all the rest.  Alas.

Sean

Not A Slacker

Brother Jon,

Forget about it.  The bottom line is, we need to live closer together.  I imagine that will happen someday. If not, we’ll just have to do the best we can.

Now, about the Red Wings: Woohoo!  That was an exciting final.  Took me right back to seminary.  Do you remember the time we listened to the game between the Wings and the Flyers on the radio because they wouldn’t show it on TV in Jackson? 

You’ve inspired a hockey post.  I don’t think I can manage a top-ten list, but here are some reasons that hockey is a great sport:

1. Whereas basketball players cry and get carried off in wheelchairs when they’re not even really hurt, hockey players don’t cry when they get their faces smashed in, and keep playing.  Why?  Because they’re hockey players.

2. Are there any better all-around athletes than hockey players?  Speed, endurance, agility, amazing hand-eye coordination, and incredible toughness. Every skater has all of these things in high measure.

3. I imagine soccer is the only game that has more international participation.  Pretty fun to listen to a game filled with names like “Datsyuk”, “Zetterberg”, “Malkin”, and “Dupuis”.

4. There is no other sport that will make Kiersten scream at the television like hockey will. Not even K-State basketball or football.

5. And last but not least: the beards, brother. The beards.

 

 

 

Such a slacker

Brother Sean,

Well, once again, I find myself apologizing for my failure to hold up my end of the bargain.  I could lay it all on being the father of a newborn but it simply won’t do.  How many books have we planned to read and comment on together and I never get pass the purchase of the book?  I hope to do better.  By the way, any book you want to work through together?

Lazily,

Brother Jon

PS.  Great hockey game last night.  Thought our Wings had the deal sealed.  Three OT hockey is always good, even when your team doesn’t win.

A New Friend

Brother Jon,

I thought I’d tell you about a new friend I made.  Her name is Stella.  We met at Old Chicago, although I understand that she also can be found at Finn’s in Old Town.

I’m not enough of a beer snob to be able to use all the words like “nose” and “finish” and so on.  But I will say these words: “Belgian Trippel” and “Me likey”.

Gladheartedly,

Sean

Of Marianne and Elinor

Brother Jon,

I finally picked up Austen’s Sense and Sensibility last week after watching the new BBC version of it with Kiersten on PBS.  I really liked the film, and I liked the other film (the one with Emma Thompson) as well, so I figured it was time to read the book, knowing that the book would be better than either.

I’m almost through, and of course I’m loving it.  Miss Austen presents such wonderful characters, good and bad.  Who could help but admire Elinor Dashwood?  And so I find myself thankful once again for Jane Austen, because I know that the excellence of my own wife has less to do with my own leadership and more to do with her sincere desire to be more like Elinor and less like Marianne (or Fanny, or Mrs. Jennings, or any of the other silly women who make the heroines of Austen’s books shine all the more brightly.)

You’ve got an Elinor, too, and neither one of us deserve them. 

Anyway, I was thinking about how I have encountered many more Mariannes than Elinors in the young women I have known…and then I was also thinking that just because a man is snubbed by a “Marianne” doesn’t mean that he is a “Colonel Brandon”, either.  I expect you get my point.

I remember feeling so disappointed when my Ethics students complained about reading Pride and Prejudice a few years ago. I remain convinced that one does not criticize Austen as much as one is criticized by Austen.

So, climb into your barouche and have your footman accompany you to your local library to get this book!  Da-da-da!

Sensibly,

Sean

Congratulations

My dear brother,

Our warmest congratulations on the birth of your son.  We are thrilled for you and Rachel, and we are giving thanks for God’s graciously answering all our prayers for her and his safety.  I am anxious to learn his name, and more anxious to get to meet him!

Gratefully,

Sean

Once Again

Brother Sean,

As I sit here on the night before the birth of my sixth child, I can’t help but remember back to the 1st.  You and your wife were so gracious to take us out to Outback for dinner.  Though I was pretty much in a fog given the work schedule I had, it was an enjoyable way to pass the evening, so Rachel and I didn’t sit around the townhouse and pace.

By this time tomorrow, No Name Anderson will be here.  Hopefully, I can get my wife to post a picture.  Thanks for the prayers.  I can’t wait to introduce No Name to his Uncle Bear and Aunt K.

Grace and peace,

Jon

PS.  For those who don’t know us, Sean is the one with the facial hair in the previous post’s picture.  Jon is not the baby, so you can guess which one he is.

Just Like the Girls

Hey Jon–

I think we should do a cooperative blog just like the girls are doing.  We could call it “Do It Right the First Time”–after the time Kiersten was having to completely redo some sewing or smocking project she was working on and when you heard her muttering under her breath you said “You should have done it right the first time”.  Brilliant, and very brave.

I have a whole bunch of stuff I can write about, and why limit it to e-mails when there are probably two or three other prople in the world who might enjoy listening in on what we’re talking about?

I don’t think I can keep up with the girls’ “picture of the day” thing, but here’s one that I really like:

Your friend,

Sean