Gonna Spend the Day...screwing around with photographs

Yesterday was a complete wash-out in Ohio and much of the eastern Great Lakes region....40s for highs with moderate to heavy rain throughout the daylight hours into the early evening.....I didn't get out and walk for the first day in awhile, and just didn't feel like dropping down the treadmill into the "go" position.  I did however lift weights in the basement for about an hour, watched the Bogart Classic "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" in the afternoon, fixed a supper for Patricia and me, and then settled in to watch my Duke Blue Devils defeat hated Michigan in Basketball in Hawaii, and flipped it over to watch the Ohio University Bobcats squeak out a win over the Miami Redhawks{nee' Redskins}.  This morning the rains are gone, replaced by bright sunshine and cool but seasonable conditions, with a high slated to reach 50.

Tomorrow, with Sam, coming from Ohio State, and Anissa joining us, we will pack up bright and early, and drive the 90 minutes or so to Centerville, near Dayton, and Patricia will help fix Thanksgiving Dinner for Hal and Lisa.  This will be the first Thanksgiving for us together since Hal and Lisa were married in February.  We thought perhaps our first Grandchild, name of Kaysn, would be joining us...but the little guy has yet to make his appearance, they thought, given his size, and progress, he would perhaps be born by now...but it appears he will make his appearance closer to or perhaps after his due date of November 28th, another in a long line of December milestones in our family?  Maybe, but I'm sure they, at least Lisa, would like him to come along sometime before then...we shall see.

Today, not much on the schedule...I will get out and walk, do some pushups, and get to the bank...other than that, I think I have some older photographs I need to work on....changing the view and quality, by various means with my various programs...some of the stuff from 35 to 75 years old can be "tinkered" with to make them more viewable and enjoyable, without messing with the original.  Damn for all their faults and time wasting gadgets, computers, along with modern digital cameras and their programs, are something to behold.

That's the plans....no posting tomorrow, so enjoy your Thanksgiving tomorrow, with family and friends.....

back later>>>>>

Photos-Poster and Still, with Bogart, Tim Holt, and Walter Huston, from the classic "Treasure of the Sierra Madre"---Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Another Blast from the Past....Venice Florida 1959-60

The Midwest, at least the farther west Midwest, think Iowa,  got clobbered last night with more strong storms...Jim Olson called from Minot, North Dakota, saying the flood waters there, were still on the rise, and would crest maybe by Wednesday...What a season!  Almost makes you wish for Winter, almost...but not quite. We are waiting on storms today, but for now they appear to be hitting Indiana, and wavering as they approach Western Ohio...so we will see how hard and with how much rain they strike us with.

Sam and I headed south to Sidney, some 50 miles south and east on Saturday morning, and worked a American Legion double header with Madison County.  The first game started at 11am, and we were finished by 3, even with a break for the teams to share in some Pizza between games.  I did the plate in the opener, Sam in the second game, and both lasted no more than an hour and a half.  Pitching ruled as Sidney swept both games, 5-1 and 2-0.  We were home by 4:30....tonight, weather permitting, and tomorrow, I finish up the regular ACME Season, and then the tournaments begin on Thursday....those will take me through most of July, along with our usual work helping out in a couple of Pony League Tournaments, the only time I work less that High School baseball, but a fun way to finish the season.  Seems like it just began.

The rest of the weekend was spent entertaining Hal's dogs, mowing lawns, and sitting on the back steps, cooking on the grill between beers and cigars.  I also watched my favorite western "Lonesome Dove" on AMC.  Funny, I have the entire mini series on DVD, but usually watch it when it comes on TV...go figure?  One thing I did notice, with the beers and sitting, I have gained about 7 pounds back this Sp[ring, and am approaching the 195 pound point on my 5' 11" frame.  Sure, that is down from the 220 during my weight lifting days, but still up from the 183 that I hit last summer, and the 187-188 point that I felt comfortable with over the winter.  Guess I better cut back on those grill delights and that stuff in the bottles.  Cut back mind you, not quit.  Hell that's what Summer is all about...

Venice(Florida) Elementary School 1959-60____

One thing about Facebook, despite all the BS and politics, it is a great way to find old faces and names from your past, or for them to find you.  It has worked for me, even without making a concentrated effort.  Type in a name on the FB search or a place, and with the explosion of that Social Network, someone from out of the past is sure to respond.   It has happened to me on several occasions, whether it be folks that I have known from my Air Force days, early Celina, or even back from 50 and more years ago,  finding people that I knew in Venice.  Several have contacted me, or I have found them, usually quite by accident.

One found happened Friday...I was messing around with naming Venice as my hometown.  I have often named that south Florida town, as well as tiny Scott, Ohio, and Celina as my primary hometowns...because I spent more time in those three during my life than anywhere else.  Anyway I came across several old names from the past...one being Ron Dinero.  Ronnie as he was called then, was in several of my classes, and I always considered him on of my friends, along with Mike Graff, Ted Blackburn, Barry Young, Jackie Dye, Mickey Lawrence, and a handful of others.  So this weekend, I not only found Ron, I also found Barry Young.  Ron has a photo posted on his FB homepage, that I had not seen in over 50 years....

The photo, on the top of todays\'s post, was from our 5th grade class, one of three classes in that future Class of 67 at Venice Elementary....Ron is in the second row on the close up cropped photos, he is on the bottom left), I am the last kid on the right, in the top row, with that smirk, goofy, assed "face" I was making.  I sure when our teacher, Mrs Holmes, just below me, saw that mug, she probably wasn't happy.  She had both my older brother Mike, some 3 years before, and me, in her class.  She told mom that she never knew what Mike was thinking, but you always knew what Pat was thinking...{think Big MO-uth I am sure).  I guess I was always the class smart ass in my days at VE(1955-1961).  This photo brought some of those days flooding back into my memory banks.

Funny thing is I can remember almost ever name of every kid in this photo...a couple slip my mind, but most I remember like it was yesterday, some have passed, like Mike Graff(top row, second from left), but most, like Barry Young(on Mike's left) are still alive and kicking.  Many still live in the Venice area, others have moved away, like me.  But I treasure those memories and people, and will until the day I pass from this world.
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Tonight I head north to Leipsic, if the game is played, and will probably have a few beers and dinner with my horse training buddy Tom, and crash at his place.  Home tomorrow for one more regular game at Lima Central Catholic....and then it is tournament time.

Back Later>>>>>

Photos-Top Left Venice Florida Elementary School Mrs Holmes 5th Grade Class 1959-60...Me and the Grill....I wasn't as unhappy as I looked in this photo from yesterday...the grill cooking was a success as usual, I was enjoying the cooking and my jungle backyard.  And the cropped portion of that class photo.  Ron Dinero is bottom left, I am top right, just above Mrs Holmes...Harvey Godwin is next to me on my left, and Dave Vandawalker is on Harvey's left.

Whistling Past the Graveyard, New Baseball Digs, and The Boar's Nest....

I woke up this morning, grabbed a shower, and put on long dark gray khaki pants, and a long sleeve t-shirt...I was thinking that the weather gerbils would be at least close on the forecast...66 with a chance of rain for today was what it said last night....after the shower and getting dressed, I checked out the "revised" forecast on the Internet Weather Channel...76 for a high, with a 80% chance of storms....looks pretty sunny out there at this hour, with some showers around, but I won't be the back 40 on that prediction either.

Yesterday I headed north, again, toward Blue Creek Township, where Wayne Trace High School is located....I had a 8th grade football game to officiate...it would not be much of a contest.  The young Raiders took on Hicksville(where I will be for a Varsity game, working on Friday evening)...a scored early and often, en route to a 68-12 victory, to remain undefeated.

Before the game I walked over to the new baseball facility being constructed just to the south of the old diamond and parking lot....WT has had a problem with the old field not drying during the spring baseball season, and having to cancel and/or move games to get the season in...this new field, sitting up higher on the windy plains of Blue Creek Township should help with that problem.  Its looks like a vast improvement.  I usually do 2 or 3 varsity baseball games at Wayne Trace a season, as well as under varsity football and basketball contests.

The Scott(Ohio) Cemetery____

I'm not prone to visit graveyards much, unless I am doing Genealogy research....so even though I travel through the Scott and surrounding  area at last a couple dozen times a year, I had not been to the graveyard there since I retired from the Van Wert County Health Department back in 2002.  Last night I stopped by, just for no other purpose than stopping by....Dad, his mom, grandfather, sisters, one brother, cousins, uncles, aunts, are buried there.  In fact most, but not all of the Waldron, Houseworth, and related clans are there...well at least their ashes are.  Graveyards are just that, a place to lay people's bodies...the people are somewhere else, or their souls at least are.   As a Christian, I believe you are either in Heaven, Hell, or in Limbo somewhere in timeless space, waiting for the judgment day.

Anyway, Dad's grave and stone are still there, in good shape, where he has been since late in 1972...he died on Christmas Eve of that year and was buried on a cold December 27th that same year. His family and relations are nearby in that small town burial ground. on the Van Wert-Paulding County Line.  Next to dad is his Uncle Joe Waldron(my great-uncle) and his wife Nellie.  Joe was a year or so older than my Grandmother Wilda Waldron Houseworth, he was born in 1881 and passed away the year I graduated from High School in 1967...Nellie was much younger, being born in 1902 and passing in 1986.  Joe Waldron was a tall lean man, who as I look at his photos, looked much like his dad, my Great-great Grandfather, William H. Waldron...Joe was a great guy, at least to me.  He was also a founding member of the Scott Gun Club, photo from around 1900 is attached, as is a 1927 photo of him and Nellie.

My Great Uncle Joe, a good guy and an excuse to add these old photos....as for me?, I plan on being cremated when I go....but who knows?  I might change my mind...or someone else might make a different decision.

The Boar's Nest_____

Last month at this time I was over in another wind swept field, this one near Kokomo, at the 28th Howard County Vietnam Reunion.  I only got to spend 24 hours or so at the bash, but enjoyed every minute of it...at least the minutes I can remember.

My VSPA buddies Tom McCandless and Sam Lewis were there, along with thousands of other Vietnam Vets, families, and friends....

Tom has a little spot next to the farm fields...he calls "The Boar's Nest"...and "Sweety Pie", the garage sale Boar's Head overlooks the camping area....yesterday Sam sent me a patch from the site and event, I will add it to my collection, and be wearing it next summer when I return to central Indiana for the events....Thanks Sam and Thank You Tom for the hospitality and brotherhood.

Not sure what is in store for me today....no football until tomorrow, perhaps...perhaps...Hell, I'll just take the day as it unfolds.

back later>>>>
Photos-The Scott Gun Club taken in Scott, Ohio about 1900....my Great Uncle Joe Waldron is second from left...his future brother-in-law, Otto Hockenberry, my Great-Uncle by marriage is on his right(3rd from left as we look at them).  Dad's stone in the Scott Cemetery...The new baseball facility takes shape at Wayne Trace High School....Uncle Joe and his wife Nellie's stones, next to dad's grave.  Nellie and Joe in 1927, he was already 46 by this time, Nellie was but 25.  The Boar's Nest Patch....and Sam Lewis, me, and Tom McCandless with "Sweety Pie" the Boar's Head at the campsite....Click to enlarge these photos.

As the World and Worm Turns....Venice, Florida 1958

"Time Flies" is the old saying....and once you reach adulthood that is certainly the case.  Here is it is October, the High School Football regular season is more than half over, and the State OHSAA Basketball Meetings start this week.  The local meeting is at Lima this Thursday, but I'll have to skip that one due to a Football game in Celina...will pick up one in Piqua or somewhere else close-by before the deadline.  Round Ball Scrimmages begin in a month....it seems like just a few weeks ago I was putting on the baseball gear for the season, and heck, that was 7 months ago.  2010 has moved along at warped speed....

The Major League Baseball Playoffs begin tomorrow with a triple header on WTBS....The Reds-Phillies game is the middle contest.  I am lucky enough to have tomorrow and Friday without football so I can catch both games between Cincinnati and Philadelphia.  I should also be home in time on Sunday for the 3rd and possible final game of the best of 5.  On paper and in the sports media, the Reds are huge underdogs, but they play the game on the field, so we will see....

Changing Photos-

At the top you'll find  a couple of photos of me and others...the top one has always been a recent mug shot, and the 2nd usually a old photo of days past in my life....I have changed them on a regular basis over the past few years...but have decided to switch the older shots more often(every week or so)...and will change the top one to go with the season or activities every month or so....Why?  Boredom I guess...like Obama, I believe in change...only mine doesn't screw a nation of people over, unlike the Kenyan Fool, I make my own decisions, I don't rely on a group of hard core Marxists to feed me information.  (Insert daily cheap shot at Barry the Wonder Boy here)

Anyhow, today's photo was taken on my 9th Birthday Party in March of 1958.  We lived on what was then The Venice By-Way.....needless to say that area has change and is hardly recognizable today, some 52 years later.   With me at the party that day, a Saturday, were our neighbors, The Blackburn Boys, and younger sister Marty.   I'm the one with the Catchers Mitt, 3rd from left...on my left was my classmate Teddy Blackburn, the rest are his brothers of various ages...along with Marty on the far right.

The Blackburn family was one of the founding families of the Venice/Nokomis, Florida, area back in the early part of the 20th Century.  Although an historic local family, these Blackburns were regular folks, just like the Houseworths...and as I recall, they lived a simple life, just like many of us did back in the Eisenhower era.  The house in the background was theirs...and it was surrounded by acres of Orange and Grapefruit Groves which we spent many hours investigating.  Teddy and I spent hours along with friends, Mike Graff, Jackie Dye, and others exploring the bays, creeks,  and wooded areas off the By-Way....and I've told many a story from Wild Boar encounters, chewing and getting sick from Plug Tobacco, finding unexploded World War II shells and ammo.....it was a different and excellent time.  2 TV channels which we seldom watched, no computers, no video games,  no cell phone, no IPODS...no crowds.  For all the things we didn't have, the things we had and adventures we created, more than made up for it.  It was at that point, "The Best Years of Our Lives"....and the photos help rekindle those years past.

Off to Antwerp for a Junior High game tonight....Sam has picked up his first Varsity Football Contest this Friday in Columbus...he's a veteran of Varsity High School Baseball....but now getting his first shot under the lights for a Big City Football Game....I was nervous the first varsity game I did...I expect him to be the same....but he is with a veteran crew, and should do fine working as a Back Judge.

back later>>>>

Photos-Top Left...also from the Spring/Summer of 1958.  Older Brother Mike and me.  We both played for the Venice Elks in 1958.  Mike was with the "big team" and I played catcher for the "minor league" team for the first year.  The Reds open in Philly in tomorrow October 6, 2010.

Switching Seasons....and Scott, Ohio, out of the past!

Unlike the Major League Baseball season, which is in full "race to the wire" mode...college, high school, youth, and minor league baseball has or is coming to an end in the next few days.  The Little League World Series will take place in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, starting next week, and the professional Minor Leagues will end their seasons early next month with the respective playoffs.  I stayed up last night as the Cincinnati Reds began the most important road trip of the season in Arizona.  The Reds came from behind to defeated the D-Backs 6-2, to move 2 full games ahead of St. Louis in the National League Central.  As a Reds fan, it's nice actually having an interest in how the games are going this late in the season.  It's been awhile.

My baseball season as an umpire ended a couple of weekends ago....and I have enjoyed the respite.  Tomorrow I work my first football scrimmage of the season.  I'll head to the wife's school and work a 6 man Junior High Scrimmage at St. Henry.  They will run the 7th grade and 8th grade on opposite ends of the field, and 3 of us will each work one side.  I have to admit I have not worked out much since baseball ended...we will see how this old body stretches out in the 93 degree predicted heat.

Tonight, I will head to Van Wert to take in another Rules Meeting with our Mid West Buckeye Football Association.  This will give me 4 local meetings to go with my State Meeting, which will complete my requirements for keeping my license current and legal.   I will however take in the rest as I have time...the more I can learn, the better off me and the games I officiate are.

Things are admittedly slow...Patricia heads back to school for the year on Monday, Anissa will begin her full sessions at MRS and Cheryl Ann starting Friday, and Sam will be back and forth between here and Columbus.  Working down there at OSU for the Big Ten Network and OSU.com, and up this way doing Junior High and JV Football, and Rec League on Sundays.

Slow or not, with baseball races in full race to the finish, and college and NFL Football around the corner, I have some diversions to keep me interested.

Scott, Ohio, USA____

I was born in Van Wert, Ohio, back in 1949...but the family resided in the small village of Scott, which was located on the Van Wert and Paulding County Line Road.  The town of 300 or so was my home for the first 5 years of my life, until dad picked up stakes and moved south to Venice, Florida, located on the Gulf of Mexico in Sarasota County...there we remained for the next decade, until once again we moved, this time back to Ohio, and settled in the Celina and Mercer County area, that I reside in today.

Scott, Venice, and Celina, I consider my "hometowns", having lived in those 3 places for about 55 of my 61 years...thrown in were also my Air Force days, and a brief time in Wisconsin, upstate New York, Indiana, Kansas, after my Air Force days.

I pulled out some old photographs the other day.  Those from my Grandma Houseworth's collection range from before the 20th century through the 1960s.  Many, if not most, are from Scott, Ohio, in the days before I was born in 1949.  Scott today has less than 250 folks, and there are few businesses...one thing that remains is the Scott Elevator, although the original burnt down long ago, as did the replacement...I believe this is the 3rd building on the site.....anyway Scott now has a Facebook Page that is taken care of by a friend of mine, and "Scott, Ohio, Fans" .  I have posted some old photos there, and am in the process of scanning others that I plan on posting in the next few days and weeks....gives me some work in my extra spare time.  Isn't retirement great?

I guess I could spend my time bitching about Obama or watching the excuse makers for Islamic Terrorism support the building of a Muslim Terrorist Outhouse near ground zero....but why waste the energy?  I long ago gave up trying to change the minds of those cowards and fools that are blind and cannot see the evil at their doorstep.

back later>>>>

Photos-Home in Scott, Ohio,  on Leave 1943, left to right, Marlo Beech, his younger brother Harold, Stan Houseworth(1917-1972) , and my Aunt Eva's dog "Tiny".  Wilda Waldron Houseworth(1883-1975) standing, with co-worker at the Scott Phone Company around 1920.  And the original Scott Elevator and Exchange around 1915.  More photos can be found at "Scott Ohio Fans" on Facebook.

Color Photos of The Great Depression 1939-1944/The Heat Lingers On...

I heard the other day that this Summer is on course to be the hottest in the heartland of the USA since the Great Depression beginnings of 1932.  I have little doubt that it may indeed be.  Of course the so called "Global Warming" crowd is using the prediction as "proof" of Climate Change...I say "Bullshit"!

If the current hot spell is "proof" of Global Warming or man-made Climate Change...what the Hell was last year's record cool Summer proof of?  What is the record cold winter of the southern hemisphere this year proof of?  My advice to these so-called experts and Al Gore is..."Shut the F__K up"!!  We aren't buying your leftist, Chicken Little tactics, so stuff em'

It is indeed hot and humid, just like the summer's of my youth, growing up on the Gulf Coast of Venice, Florida...and the extended forecast does not provide much relief.  A couple of days next week and predicted to be less humid, but for most of the next 2 weeks, there is not much relief in sight.  I'm just hopeful that when the high school football season kicks off in full(August 20th) that things change for the better.

The Great Depression and WW2____

As a student of American History, I have always found the period from 1930 through the end of the 1940s of most interest to me.  I guess maybe that since it was before I was born(March 1949), that I can look at it with such interest...I was not born until the end of those 2 fascinating decades, but the photos, stories, and history of both are foremost in my mind when I think of true American History...that history not corrupted by left wing revisionists and historians. 

Yesterday my Vietnam buddy, like me a former Air Force Sky Cop, and unlike me, a retired State Trooper(Kentucky) sent me a link to some rare color photos taken by historic photographers.  The photographs are in vivid color and can be found here: (may take a few seconds to load)

http://extras.denverpost.com/archive/captured.asp

I've gotta say, despite the starkness of the times, depression, war, polio, poverty, etc...I find the photographs of the era, and the history themselves, to be among my favorites.  Men were men, women were housewives, providers, and took over the factory jobs while the men were at war.  I love that America, and it's people,  from the stories that were passed on from my parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles.  Sadly today we have become a nation of whiners and wimps, led by a sorry son of a bitch, so far radical left, that he puts even FDR to shame.  And make no mistake, FDR was an evil, piss poor Prez who, if not for the Second World War would have done to this country, what Obama is trying to do now.

By I digress, despite my dislike for the policies that Franklin Roosevelt wanted to force down the countries throat, I love reading about, and viewing the history of that 20 year period, when true Americans were at their finest, and America was at it's best.

I will try to figure out how to stay out of the heat for the rest of the day....

back later>>>>

Photos-Top, the first photo in the collection, I'm sure Faro Caudill and his wife Denise of Pie Town, New Mexico, never dreamed that they would live on in history, given their humble lives...but photos of the couple, dwelling, and family are all over the Internet, when you "google" Depression Photos.   The Caudill photo gives a unique color perspective when compared to the classic black and white photo on the right side of the post.

More Rains and Looking Back at Dover AFB 1968-69

The 15th annual Ottawa Run American Legion Baseball Tournament came to an abrupt end last night. My young veteran umpiring partner, Jason, and I were in our second game of the evening session(and his 4th of the day) when the loudspeaker cracked a warning from the press box that heavy rains, wind, hail, and lightning were heading for Ottawa. The announcer advised folks to leave if they wanted, or to take shelter in the block and concert swimming pool building. We finished up the 3rd inning of our game and delayed the contest....a good move, because the storms came, big time.

Another day of heavy rains for the Midwest in general, and our area of Western Ohio, finished off the tournament...diamonds to wet to get back to baseball today, so the rest of the the schedule has been cancelled, and we are finished. In addition to baseball, the adjacent park had a festival going on, and the Ottawa Police had to come and make sure that activity was cleared out as well....Jason, I, and another couple, along with 2 from the Ottawa PD waited out the storm...and I finally headed south towards Celina about 9:45....arriving home as the fast moving storms ended, at about 11pm. The weather before the storms had been hot and very humid, setting the stage for the storms that followed.

Tonight and tomorrow, as well as probably Tuesday look wet and wild...the late Spring from Hell(weather wise) continues unabated.

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Dover AFB, Delaware______

I have written many times about my experience with the Air Force Security Police in Vietnam, first at Nha Trang, then at Saigon(Tan Son Nhut)....but not so much from my days leading up to the Summer Vietnam trip, when I was stationed at Dover, Delaware...or my last 2 years in the AF at Griffiss AFB in Rome, New York. The call from my old roommate, Jack Gates, got me to thinking about some of those days...the photos he and his wife sent me last night helped spark some old memories.

I arrived at Dover after spending the summer of 1968 in Texas. First at Amarillo for Air Force Basic Training, then following that up with a couple of months training to become a Air Force Cop...Air Police that was changed to Security Police sometime in early 1968. I arrived at Dover, green as grass, a 19 year old SP assigned to Security at the MAC Base not far from the Atlantic Ocean, in the home state of my mom, who although born in Pennsylvania, considered Wilmington, Delaware, her home...having grown up there during the Depression and World War II years. Since her brother, my Uncle Bill DeVore, and his family still lived in Wilmington, that would give me a place to visit on my days off, and I took full advantage of that, getting off the base as often as I could, by heading the 5o miles or so north to stay with them.

My time at base security was usually spent guarding the "Mounds" ...a stock pile of Nuclear Weapons surrounded by concussion mounds for protection, which was the job of the 416th SPS to provide security protection...a thankless job spent in the cold and snow of the winter of 1968-69, along with a prick of a Tech Sergent named Jack Adkins, that convinced me to volunteer for Southeast Asia early in 1969.

When I first arrived at Dover, I was assigned a room with a kid from Virginia named Robert W. Little the 3rd...Bob was, or at least maintained, he was a child of privilege. We got along, but his pension for neatness and me being clean but not as much as a neat freak led me to hooking up with the old man of the Squadron, 23 year old Jack Richard Gates...and moving in to the room with him. 2 men to each room was the story with the 436th...and Jack and I remained roomies until I headed back to Lackland for AZR School in Spring and Summer of 1969...next stop Vietnam. I headed over in late June of 69, Jack would follow in September, he was assigned at first to the 366th Combat Security Police Sq. As mentioned in last weeks story on Jack, we would meet up one time in Saigon in the Spring of 1970...that would be our last contact until late last week.

There were other caricatures at Dover....Lippencotte, Walsh, Pritchard, Turcotte, Hochendoner, and a few dozen others...these guys I got along with, others, not so much. There are always cliques in Military Squadrons, and Dover was no exception....Jack Gates and I were pretty much a Clique of 2...although we did hang around with Pritch, Turcotte, and even Bob Little...I believe all of the above mentioned ended up in Vietnam....Walsh near Nha Trang an Hon Tre Island, the rest, other than Gates, I'm not positive....I know not what happened to any of the others beside Steve Walsh who lives in Florida, and Bill Hochendoner, who was murdered nearly 40 years ago near Pittsburgh by his girlfriend's ex-husband....A long story that I found out from some of his friends I met at a Bengals-Steelers football game some 20 years after the fact.

Dover had it's moments.... and I'm glad I found Walsh in Florida, and that Jack Gates contacted me, but when I left Dover for Vietnam, it was probably the highlight of my Air Force days....I hated the base, the duties, and especially a couple of my supervisors...I was glad to get the Hell out. It was the worst assignment of all those I had, despite the good time off duty and the friends I made.

When I left Dover and headed for Nha Trang, my life and me as a person would change forever....I got a dose of reality and a chip on my shoulder, I would no longer be the kid that backed down, that was no longer in my makeup, and still isn't, even today...I thank the days and time spent at Dover for that.

back later>>>>

Photos-Thanking Jack "Richard" Gates and his wife Lisa for the photos, except the one with me guarding the "Mounds" which is from my collection...top left: Robert W. Little III, Howie Prichard, and Jack R Gates...(2)Jack Gates and Pat Houseworth, (3)Pat at the Mounds,(4) Gates and Ron Turcotte,(5) and Jack R. Gates at his gateshack at DaNang AB, RVN in 1969.

Reconnecting from 40 years ago-Jack Richard Gates

I cannot remember a more miserable Spring, rain wise, since 1981....no, it hasn't been cold, but the rain totals, combined with rain at least 5 days out of each 7, have made this one Spring I will be glad to see come to an end. How much rain have we had? Too Much!

I headed the 55 miles north to Bluffton, Ohio, yesterday afternoon...the radar and forecast had been showing rain, but by the time I pulled into the County Park where the Bluffton was set to face Cory-Rawson the showers had held off....that is until I stepped out of the car. The sky opened up and it rained at a steady, but not hard pace for approximately 20 minutes...stopped in time for us to get the 5pm start underway, then picked back up in the 2nd inning, and rained light, but steady, for the next 2 hours. We got the game in...it took 2 1/2 hours, as Bluffton scored 2 in the 7th to tie it up, and plated a run in the extra 8th inning, to pull out the win 4-3.

Harold, my partner on the bases, and I agreed the conditions, and lighting was getting bad, so the 8th would be the last inning, one way or the other....Bluffton's run put an end to that problem.

I grabbed a coffee on the way out of town, and it continued to rain all the way to Celina...the showers picked up overnight, and as I type this blog page this morning, it continues...I am scheduled to work here in Celina tonight...doesn't look good, but since Celina has artificial turf on the infield, anything is possible.

Jack Gates______

As I was getting ready to head towards Bluffton...my cell phone rang, I looked at the screen, it had no name, just a number with a 270 prefix. No idea? But I answered it, and a voice on the other end asked if this was Pat? "Yep", was my answer..."Do you know who this is"? the voice responded. "No" was my answer, but the voice on the other ended vaguely sounded like my old roommate and Air Force buddy Jack Gates, from Oklahoma. I had been trying for years to see how Jack was, but had failed to ever find him...although I did talk to a Jack R. Gates in Sulfur, Oklahoma, a few years ago...turns out(although I never confirmed it until yesterday) it was his father...but my efforts to locate Jack had failed. But he did located me...that came yesterday. "This is Jack Richard Gates" he said.....I had about 20 minutes before I had to head north, so I filled the time reminiscing with "Richard" Gates, as he is called these days.

Jack R. Gates 1968-70____

I first met Jack Gates in the fall of 1968 when I arrived at Dover AFB, Delaware, as a young, raw, Security Policeman, fresh out of "Cop School" at Lackland AFB, in Texas. After a few weeks rooming with a kid my age from Virginia, Jack and I became roomies...2 guys from as different backgrounds as you could get.

Jack was a full 4 years older than this 19 year old from Ohio. Jack was 23, a real gramps compared to most of the first termers thrown into the Security field at Dover...a chain smoking "Okie" from Central Oklahoma, south of OK City. We did have one thing in common at least...we hated the Air Force, or at least we didn't get along with the authority figures who were in our command....Jack Adkins comes first to mind...out Tech Sargent shift boss, who did his best(worst?) to keep me, Jack Gates, and a few others in line...never did work.

Jack and I roomed together for 8 months or so, before I was shipped back to Lackland for AZR Combat School in June of 1969...I then headed for Vietnam, and Jack followed a few months later. I was sent to Nha Trang, then on to the Capital at Saigon's Tan Son Nhut Air Base. Jack "Richard" Gates was shipped to a Hellhole called Da Nang in the far north of South Vietnam...after 3 or 4 months there he was sent to Bihn Thuy. It was from his stay there that Jack and I met up one last time, 40 years ago this Spring.

Jack was on an in-country R&R from Bihn Thuy when he arrived at the 1300 Barracks that housed the 377th Security Police Squadron at Tan Son Nhut, he woke me from a sound sleep sometime in the early afternoon hours of that cloudy Spring day(funny how sometimes deep seeded long forgotten memories come back clear as a cloudless day). We ended up heading downtown, where I proceeded to show him some of the "hot spots" of Old Saigon...a steak house, a brothel, and a bar....we spent that day exploring Saigon. When that day was done Jack said his farewell, and headed back to his base, to continue his R&R, I headed out to work Charlie Flight... I never saw or heard from Jack Gates again...until yesterday.

"Richard" Gates, now 65 years old, lives in a small town in Western Kentucky, on the Tennessee Border...he sounded good, and like the old Jack Gates I knew, when I was a 19 year old kid who didn't have a clue, and Jack was the "Old Man' of the 436th SPS at Dover...at the ripe old age of 23.

I e-mailed him some information on the Vietnam Security Police Association, and this blog....we will remain in contact, it will be interesting to see how his life and mine have changed from those days, 4 decades ago.

Welcome Home Jack_____I mean Richard Gates!

back later>>>>

Photos-Sorry to say I have no photos that I could find of Jack...sorry to say, many photographs from those days are long gone...but top is a photo Jack Gates took of me, as we worked the "Mounds" aka Nuclear Storage Site at Dover..taken in December of 1968, that me holding both our M-1 Carbine...the second photo is of me at Tan Son Nhut in the Spring of 1970, about the same time as the last time Jack "Richard" Gates and I tipped a beer together...40 years ago.

Heroes and Villains of our Youth

It seems that we wait for an eternity for Winter to end...then we wait out Spring for the weather to turn decent, then we wait some more.....

This Winter in Western Ohio was long, not overly cold, but plenty of snow. The Spring, while warm in April, has been windy, and now 3 weeks into May, we are saddled with more rain than we can use in 2 months. The past few days have went from cold, rainy, and very windy, to downright wet....more rain yesterday, overnight, and this afternoon, once the fog lifts, we are expecting strong storms....especially north and northwest of here.

What this means for me, and the Sectional Baseball Tournaments, remains to be seen....I doubt if most got played last night, this afternoon's games look in danger of postponement as well. I will wait with cell phone in pocket, and see if I get that call, if not, I'll head for Convoy about 3:30 and work the plate for the Sectional Bracket final between Ft. Jennings and Antwerp, 2 teams that I am familiar with. If that gets pushed back, my game at Fort Jennings tomorrow, a Putnam County League game, will be cancelled...as of now, my season, beginning next week, will be down to the Elida 3 game District Tournament in Division 3, then the Regional Final, same place, same division. After than, it's on to Summer Baseball with ACME and American Legion on the agenda for June and July.

In the meantime, I will wait on the rains, and the phone calls.....

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Heroes and Villains____

I was thinking, always dangerous, the other day about what is facing this country...no matter how you turn the key, it's not good......

We have a corrupt President who is out to turn the country into his own personal failed Kingdom, and he is doing so by dividing us by race, religion, age, and political ideology...he is also driving the country's economy towards hardcore Socialism, and economic disaster, and pushing the courts to something the Founding Fathers would be shouting to disband...yes indeed, 2010 is nowhere close to 1775 in America, except that we may be heading for another Revolution. I know which side I will stand with, after all, at 61, not much they can do to me that will have a long term effect.

The thought process got me to thinking about growing up in South Florida...yes, we moved to Ohio in time for my High School years, but I always consider growing up, to be the years before those. I have written about growing up in 1950s Venice in length on this blog...just click on the Venice, Florida, label to find those. Those were the simple years...my life consisted basically of fishing, at the Beach on the Gulf of Mexico, hanging out with friends, playing baseball, catching snakes, toads, and exploring the then unexplored areas of south Sarasota County...Wild Boars, Snakes of every variety, Coon Hounds, and wild crtitters of every variety were part of my life.

We were naive, and now 50 years later, I am glad I was....my heroes were simple, and didn't take a lot of thought...Mickey Mantle was then, and will always be my favorite ball player, I loved the Yankees, the Cleveland Browns, and the Florida Gators. Funny part is, today I cannot stand those teams...leaning more to the Reds, Bengals, and Ohio State, along with Duke in Basketball. My music taste followed Elvis, The Everly Brothers, and Ricky Nelson. I loved Westerns, and Film Noir Mysterys, when I would go to the Venice Theater on Friday Nights.

When it came to politics, I grew up a fan of the Republican Party. Dad and Mom were Republicans, more or less...not sure how often the voted, but they were Republicans..as was Grandma Houseworth, a hard core Pentecostal Conservative of her day. Mom's side on the other hand, the DeVores, and the other Irish American Catholics on that side, were union supporting Democrats, the surviving members of that clan, still are today.

Eisenhower, Nixon, and Goldwater, were my political heroes...the Kennedys, LBJ, and those of that persuasion were on my despise list.....The 1960 Campaign was fun, for an 11 year old, even though my side lost.

Times have changed, Ike, Tricky Dick, Goldwater, and even Mickey Mantle, have been shown to have warts...The Kennedys, LBJ, Jimmy Carter, and those like them remain, in my mind, American Trash, although JFK was much better than the inbred bunch that remain the Kennedy Dynasty today. The current resident in our White House, will in time, do more to destroy America, than even LBJ and Carter did.

Our kids and grand kids, although they might disagree, have no heroes...Pop Culture, Political Correctness, garbage Rap Music, and gadgets of every kind are their heroes/gods...and we as a nation and people are poorer for it.

back later>>>>

Photos-Mickey Mantle remains my favorite sports figure of all time...warts and all, nothing will change that from my childhood. Barry Goldwater was a political favorite, I actually met him at Nha Trang AB in Vietnam, when he was a General in the Air Force Reserve, and visiting...Goldwater's support for Abortion and his later writings took the shine off his star, at least for me. The Kennedy Bunch...JFK turned out to be the best of a sorry lot, Teddy the worst, I'm sure a special place in Hell is reserved for him. And Nixon/Lodge in 1960 seemed pretty good compared to Kennedy/Johnson, but especially when you consider the trash that currently resides in the The White House and Congress.

On the Road to Hilltop, Deshler, and Back....part 2

As I mentioned yesterday, I was "rained out" at Convoy Crestview in a double header, those were the first games cancelled since it soaked us out back on April 7th and 8th....so far for the year we are sitting at 25 games played, 6 cancelled....add that to 3 scrimmages played and 3 rained out, it's been a busy Spring thus far...the remainder of the 15 days of regular season are "iffy" at times, but we all know the forecasters are not hot looking that far into their Chrystal balls.

The Road Home from Deshler____

After stopping out at the stables Friday, visiting Tom and the horses, I said my so long, and headed out of town, towards Celina. This trip would take me by several baseball and basketball facilities that I work in season in the northern part of my umpire and officiating work. I took Ohio 18 and eventually hooked up on Ohio 65, US 224, and then the familiar back roads I knew from my days traveling the out regions of Van Wert County, working as Environmental Health Director/Sanitarian, with the VW County Health Department....

Past Patrick Henry High School, location of the Regional Baseball Tournament I umpired last Spring, through the village of Hamler, onto 65 and south and west towards Lepsic and then Ottawa...I stopped in Ottawa just past Hermiller Gymnasium, where I worked a couple of games last Basketball season, and where I am scheduled to work a Girls game this coming December...I pulled into the local McDonald's Drive Thru to grab another coffee, and decided to blow breakfast on a McBurrito....something I have done seldom since I went on my diet to avoid the pitfalls of Diabetes 2 last September...down 27 pounds since last Summer, and no signs of any relapse, so I figured "What the Hell?"...I was at 186 yesterday morning...just a handful of pounds from my original goal....another 3 should do the trick, especially with the BP and Sugar down to acceptable levels at this stage of the game.

Sipping on my large coffee, I headed out past Kalida and Ottoville, on 224. I am scheduled for a game at Ottoville this week, and at Kalida for a Summer ACME double header with Sam in early June...Kalida has a classic old ballpark that feels like the 1940s Minor League diamonds...Ottoville replaced their diamond with a brand new ball field a couple of years ago, where I had the opportunity to umpire the first home game played there.

Crossing into Van Wert County, I decided to avoid towns along the federal route 224, and headed down south on the Middle Point-Wetzel Road towards Middle Point and the Van Del Drive In Theater(for Van Wert and Delphos, the mid point on old 30). I was listening to WKSD Radio(the last station I worked for a few years ago, doing play-by-play for Basketball and Football)...and the Van Del was advertising the shows for this weekend as a celebration of the aging classics 62nd Birthday..."62 Cents a Person" was the line...62 cents a person to watch the latest Chipmunk and Sandra Bullock Movies...strange combination I thought.

The Van Del and Van Wert Drive In(on the west side of Van Wert on old US 30) were built as twin drive in theaters back in the hey day of the Midwest love affair...before our family moved to Florida in the early 1950s. I remember, even as a 3 year old going to the Drive Ins....The Van Wert facility remained open until it was destroyed by the Killer Tornado of November 2002....the Van Del is one of 3 that still are in operation in the area today...the others being east and south of Celina...the Van Del is in as good of condition as any around these days.

Here is the timeline of the November 2002 Tornado that destroyed the Van Del's sister Drive In and adjacent movie theater:

http://www.crh.noaa.gov/iwx/program_areas/events/2002/11_10_02_tornadoes/timeline.php
I snapped a couple of photos and headed towards Celina and home....I arrived at 9am and waited to see if our game at Marion Local would be played...it was, and I was ready for the weekend, and what it would bring.

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Heading Home from Florida____

Mike and Mom headed up I-75 towards north Georgia yesterday through the storms, the planned on stopping north of Atlanta for the night...I expect them to be pulling in the driveway in the early or mid afternoon today....I had planned on mowing both yards, but the wet grass and more showers on the way, will likely delay that for a day or 2.

back later>>>>

Photos---The Van Del Drive In located between Van Wert and Delphos on old US 30 (Lincoln Highway) is celebrating 62 years in business this weekend. One of the dozen or so 2 and 3 years old Trotters and Pacers that Tom works with at the Stables located outside Deshler....and the morning sun rising across the training track and into the stable area early Friday Morning/

On the Road to Hilltop, Deshler, and Back....part 1

The Athletic Director at Crestview High School in Convoy just called, the double header for this morning has been cancelled due to wet grounds.....heavy rain pushed through Van Wert County last night, down here we got a little less. In reality, we needed the rain. And even though I don't like rain outs, I had gotten 15 straight games in, including 7 over the past 3 Saturdays, with a couple of Triple Headers and a Single Game last weekend. Unlike last season when a full 40% of the scheduled games were washed out, thus far this regular season, I have 22 games in and this was only my 5th and 6th rainouts.....I'm not complaining, plus to be honest, my knee, the right knee "kneeded" a rest....I've been trying a new stance behind home plate to better see around the catchers and pick up the late breaking pitches...and this has put some muscles around that right knee in a bit of discomfort.

The rain and storms look to be around at least through Monday, so we will see what happens to the schedule for the upcoming week....

Mom and Mike leave Florida this morning, and should arrive home sometime tomorrow afternoon....I see big rains and some heavy storms are hanging throughout Georgia on I-75, so that could slow their progress as well.

The Trip North to West Unity_____

Thursday I may my longest trip of the season up US 127 towards the Michigan State Line...almost 80 miles from my house to the ballpark at West Unity, where Hilltop High School plays it's Varsity games. It was in the low 70s with plenty of sunshine, and the cruise up 127 took me past the old family haunts of Scott and Blue Creek Township on the way north.

I left early, and stopped along the way to take a few photos...but even that didn't prevent me from arriving a full hour+ before the game...pleny of time to relax and take in the park. When my young partner arrived, he wanted me to do the plate, so I obliged...the game went without incident, and the homestanding Hilltop club defeated the young Fayette Team(in their first year back to a Varsity Schedule) in 5 innings by a 12-2 score(run rule is 10 after 5 at bats)...and I was out of town and on my way to Tom's place at Deshler before 7PM.

I arrived at his place around 8, changed clothes, and we headed up to the Corn City Bar/Pub to grab a bite to eat and down some beers....I started out with a Blue Moon, but at $3 a pop, I looked for something easier on my wallet...and spied a rack of Pabst Blue Ribbon long necks....Bingo! PBR was my beer of choice back in High School, until I left for the Air Force in 1968...my father-in-law, who may drink a beer a week, still swears by Pabst, on the rare occasion that he downs a beer.

We watched NFL Draft without interest, and the Cleveland Cavs vs Bulls NBA Playoff Game, again without interest....we downed about a 6 pack each...and headed back to his place where I crashed....Tom was up by 6 to work and feed the horses, and clean the stables...I showered and was out by 7am...headed to the Shell Station to grab a 20 oz Coffee, then head out to the Ivan's Stables on Ohio 18, to see the horses that they are working with for the coming racing season....mostly Pacers with a few Trotters in the mix of 2 and 3 year olds....

Snapped some pictures, said our good byes, and I headed back through "Corn City", past the Patrick Henry High School Baseball Diamond, where I umpired a Northwest Regional Game last May, and picked my way through the backs roads the remaining 70 miles to Celina.....Garry and I were slated to umpire a Midwest Athletic Game between Delphos St. Johns and Marion Local at Maria Stein...the rain held off and we got the game in within an hour and 40 minutes. We expected a close contest, both teams were evenly matched in our minds, but DSJ jumped on top early and pulled away with a 16-4 run rule contest...a pleasant treat to say the least.

We headed for the Chickasaw Tavern after the game where we met up with Garry's wife and some friends....I downed a couple and headed home....a busy week completed, and actually I'm not disappointed in the day off today, and the usual Sunday break from Baseball.....

Enjoy the Weekend....I'll be back later, Part 2 next time

Photos-The Courthouse in Paulding, Ohio, where I started with much of my Family Genealogy research:

http://www.israelhouseworth.blogspot.com/

My Great-Grandparents moved to Paulding County after the Civil War and settled in Blue Creek Township. A back view of the Scott Elevator in my old home town as it looked this past Thursday, and as it looked some 100 years ago about 1910...it has burned down on several occasions only to be rebuilt anew...the last being in 1960. The Cary Grubaugh Farm on 127 just south of Scott...this is where the Outlaw Marvin Kuhns met his demise in June of 1907...That's old Marvin on his death bed in Van Wert, and the .38 Smith and Wesson that put Marvin Kuhns in his grave...still in excellent condition today.

And a PBR Long Neck....I downed a few Thursday in Deshler, Ohio.....the first time in years I have tried Pabst...my favorite beer as a teenager in the late 1960s.

Nostalgia, Early Wynn and 55 Years of Baseball Memories

Last night I travel the 23 miles, taking the back roads, to the town of my birth, Van Wert, Ohio, to do another baseball game. I was the voice of the Van Wert Cougars for some 15 years back in the 1980s through the mid 90s. For that reason I avoided doing sports officiating for the Cougars for many years, especially Varsity High School Sports...much the same reason I stayed away from doing Celina Varsity Sports. I never wanted to get into a situation that I could be accused of being a "homer" for either of those schools....not that I ever did or would as an official or umpire, but I just didn't need anybody thinking I could or would, so I avoided working sports in Van Wert.

The VW Athletic Director finally approached me last year about doing some work, and I figured...15 years away from the cable broadcast booth doing Cougar games was long enough, and I could officiate at the school without any lingering memories. Anyway, I took a girls basketball game this past season, and contracted 5 dates for baseball this spring, 4 Varsity and the JV 3 team triple header that I umpired this past Saturday...things have went about "normal", catching my share of grief, while sticking with my "If I make a mistake, tough luck, I'm sticking with the call" attitude...

Last night I worked a Varsity game between Van Wert and Sherwood Fairview, with another Veteran umpire, Chuck Etzler. Chuck is originally from Convoy, and has lived in Fort Recovery for many years...at 63 he is still one of the best around, and one of the good guys. Between the 2 of us, that's 124 years old, and probably one of the oldest "tandems" you will see doing a Varsity Baseball Game. Like me, Chuck got back into umpire work later in life...I think he was probably 48 or so, and I was 50...both of us had been coaches inbetween umpire stints.

Last night started off more like a football score...Fairview put a 10 spot up in the first inning, Van Wert countered with 6...and we had 16 runs in 1 inning that lasted 40 minutes...it looked like a long night. Fortunately things settled down, pitching wise, and the game was done in a semi long 2 hours 20 minutes, with The Apaches holding off the Cougars by a final of 17-12. Chuck was pretty much flawless behind the plate, while I got myself out of position at 3rd base in the first inning, he had my back however, and we got the call right. Later on I made a early "out" call on a steal, only to see the ball kicked out of the 2nd baseman's glove as the runner slide in...I overruled myself quickly, and the rest of the evening was pretty much mistake free...sometimes you have good games, bad games, and half assed games, as an umpire. Chuck had a good game in my opinion, I had a half assed game....Chuck and I will work again in a Northwest Conference Game between Crestview at Spencerville, with me behind the plate, meanwhile I work with one of my basketball partners, Dan Minnich, tonight at St. Marys in a WBL contest with Elida...tomorrow I'm at Lima Central Catholic for a game with Sidney Lehman Catholic...the weather looks excellent for those games, in the 70s with plenty of sunshine.

55 years of Baseball_____

Driving home, after that not so great, on my part, game....I got to thinking about just how long I have been involved in baseball and what a large part of my life it has been. Sure, I like Hockey, Football, Basketball, and even Soccer, Tennis, and on occasion Golf, but those sports have never been the stuff of my life, like baseball has.

Perhaps it was growing up in the 1950s in South Florida, following the Yankees? Perhaps it was surrounded by friends like Mike Graff, Jackie Dye, Mickey Lawrence, Barry Young, Terry Haskins, my brother Mike, cousin Gary, and others in Venice, Florida, playing sandlot baseball on the dusty playgrounds fields of the Edgewood Section of town, when we weren't over by the Venice Airport learning the game for the Little League coaches, on the main diamonds...it was something else. Baseball was, and always will be my favorite sport, and despite a bad or so-so game now and then, I still enjoy umpiring the contests, even when confronted verbally by clueless fans and coaches on occasion.

Baseball Nostalgia____

In the days of my youth in Venice, then later as a broadcaster, I have had a chance to meet many Hall of Fame ballplayers, some with egos bigger than their batting averages or ERA, some just down to earth guys. Joe Nuxhall and Tom "Perferct Game" Browning come to mind as the later.

While growing up in Venice, Dad had a gas station in South Venice, just down the road from the City of Venice. Across the street, there was a Bowling Alley owned by furture 300 game winner and future Hall of Famer, Early Wynn. He toiled in the Major Leagues from 1939 through 1963, with the Senators, Indiana, White Sox, and back with the Indians in Cleveland, where he won his 300th and last game in 1963, just after we had moved back to Ohio.

I learned to bowl at Early Wynn Lanes...and got to meet Early on several occasions.....Early was always free with an autograph and a "Hello" during the off season when he was home. After his Hall of Fame career, Early went on to the White Sox broadcast booth, before he passed away about a decade ago. In the meantime I still have an autograph baseball and about a dozen post cards with Early's Autograph...the ball is well worn, but the card autographs are in excellent shape. The prize Early Wynn gift to us however, was brother Mike's baseball, which is autographed by the entire 1959 American League Champion Chicago White Sox...it is locked away in a safe deposit box, but the last I saw it, it was still in pristine condition.

Al Lopez, Nellie Fox, Louis Aparicio, Minnie Minoso, Jungle Jim Rivera, Pete Ward, are among the famous names, along with Early Wynn, on that baseball from over a half century ago....Where has the time went? Blink and it and the people are gone....

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We moved to South Venice from Ohio in 1954....and I fell in love with baseball soon thereafter, playing softball in the shaded acres of Alston's Cottages and Court those first 3 years....I still remember watching my first baseball game on the tube...the 1955 All Star Game from Milwaukee.

Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Stan "The Man" Musial, and even Early Wynn(who tossed 3 shutout innings) were in the line up....I don't remember much of the game, although the NL came from behind, I read, to win in the 12th inning. But that game, nearly 56 years ago, started my love for baseball...and I have spent most of those years, playing(even though not great), coaching(same), and umpiring(maybe the best of the 3, maybe) the game....and all of those years being a fan.

back later, time for some more baseball>>>>

Photos-Mike Houseworth/Pat Houseworth with the Venice Elks LL Team in 1958...the well worn Early Wynn baseball from 1959, and an autograph Early Wynn postcard from the same time, with Early standing at the Bar of his Bowling Alley in South Venice, Florida.

Out Like a Lamb/Lions in Winter

It appears that this March will indeed go out "Like a Lamb"...70 or so with sunshine is forecast for today, and things will top out by Friday, Good Friday, at around 80 degrees...things will moderate over Easter Weekend, before the rain is scheduled to return early next week.


My game was cancelled again yesterday due to the wet grounds at New Knoxville...today I had no game scheduled until late last night when Eric, the varsity assignor, called from the southwest portion of my area, and asked me to do a game at Benjamin Logan High School. Ben Logan is just east of Bellfountaine on State Route 47, and is a good 60 miles from Celina. A long drive, but I don't mind it....meanwhile oldest son Sam will be passing me on the way to Indian Lake High School, just south and east of Bellfountaine...he will be driving 70 or so miles each way from Columbus, and passing me on the way probably on US Rt. 33.

Tomorrow I am scheduled to go north some 40 miles to Fort Jennings, for a game on the skin infield. Lots of gas to burn, but you do what you do.

Lions in Winter______

With the fog in the morning, Patricia's school and most of the rest ended up be cancelled....the sun came out shortly after those cancellations, and I headed to Coldwater to drop off the Lawn Boy mower for spring service...running late as usual, but we have backups to take care of the early season mowing chores, at home, Anissa's place, and over at Mom's.

With most, but not quite all, of the Spring cleanup work done, I fired up a cigar, drank too many Miller Lites, and got nothing else done for the day. Thinking about nothing in particular I watched the aging Airedale, Reagan, as she chased the ball for awhile, then settled down in the shade, while I smoked Torpedoes and consumed brews.

Looking at Reagan I realized that she will probably be my last Airedale, and most likely my last dog....it's been a fun and interesting time, these past 36 years or so. Patricia and I purchased our first Airedale back in 1974, a couple of years before we married...Molly Mop Rag or "Rags" as we called her, was the first and of course among the favorites...the next year we purchased House's Black Max or "Max" as we called him. Max and Rags both lived long lives as far as Airedales. Max made it to 12 years and 8 months, while Reagan passed away after living just a month short of her 12 birthday. They were our constant companions before the kids came along. Camping, fishing, swimming, and even on occasion to Wisconsin on family visits, looking back I'm sure we were nuts and probably drove those we visited nuts as well. Those were good times....over the years "Max" sired well over 150 pups..."Rags" had one litter of 9, and those sold quickly. We have shared our homes with at least 1 Airedale, usually more, and a few mutts, for the past 36 summers.

Reagan is the daughter of our last male Airedale, Jack Drambuie. "Jack" and my college roommate Mick Szabo's dog "Ivy" mated...producing 8 pups which Mick and I each kept 1 female...that one for us was Reagan. She has been a clean, well trained dog, and a good companion. Reagan's only drawbacks have been her allergies, which have cost us a small fortune, and her penchant to bark at anybody that walks by....her way of greeting them I suppose. If she makes it until July 6th, she will reach 12, and that is indeed a long life for the breed.

She will be our last....time, retirement, and the pain of losing them is more than we want to bear one more time. You never know, we could change our minds, but at this point it is not likely. We will grow old as she has, hopefully with grace.

Out to enjoy the sun and warmth....back later>>>>

Photos-Reagan and me, a couple of "Lions in Winter" enjoying the sunshine and warmth of late March yesterday. "Black Max" as a pup in 1976....and Me and "Rags" camping in Michigan back in the summer of 1975.