Following Successful Book Drive, PC4DC Launches Warm Clothing Drive

November 30, 2007 at 9:17 pm (Alameda, News & Politics)

weblogo1.gifALAMEDA, Dec. 1, 2007 — The 2007 Children’s Book Drive sponsored by People Care 4 Day Care, Inc. (PC4DC) was a resounding success, according to Executive Director Ralph Zig Tyko, shown here with the organization’s Business Development Director, Yolanda Shimoni, owner of Shear Delight & More in Alameda. Books will be distributed to area licensed day care centers.

“Now that we have seen how people are responding to the needs of our area children,” Tyko said, “we will be holding a warm clothing drive during December. Gently used children’s clothing (suitable for ages 2-6) can be dropped off at Shear Delight & More, 1505 Park Street, in Alameda, any Tuesday through Saturday during the month. PC4DC will deliver the clothing to the Oakland Licensed Day Care Operators Association for distribution to the children who need it the most.”

People Care 4 Day Care, Inc. would like to thank our sponsor, Kevin Patrick’s Books, as well as Julia Park Tracey, Publisher and Executive Editor of the Alameda Sun, and the many anonymous donors who dropped off books.

For more information about People Care 4 Day Care, Inc., contact Ralph Zig Tyko at 510-827-5837 or visit the PC4DC Web site at http://www.pc4dc.org.

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The Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers

November 29, 2007 at 6:21 pm (Baseball)

Someone on the Baseball Fever [a great site] message board asked whether or not Jim Gilliam might have been better qualified to take over managing from Walter Alston, than Tom Lasorda [whose success can’t be questioned]. This was my response:

“Jim Gilliam may or may not have been qualified. He may, or may not, have not gotten the job for all the wrong reasons.
My guess is, were it not for Mr. Rickey, the first black Dodger player would have been Von Joshua… First black manager? We’re still waiting for that to happen. Ask Jerry Royster… or Davey Lopes, or the late Bill Robinson [were that we could], or a myriad of other well qualified candidates. Some of those candidates couldn’t even get interviews.
I’m an old New York Giants fan, and the older I get the more I love the Brooklyn Dodgers and hate Los Angeles “Dodgers.”
With good reason, I might add… and I might subtract. Long division? A possibility.”

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__________________

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CAN YOU READ THIS?

November 27, 2007 at 3:51 pm (Unzipped Thoughts)

fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a sgtrane mnid too. Cna yuo raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe out of 100 can.

i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno’t mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be
in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

Azanmig huh?

Yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! 

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Happy Birthday Stan Musial

November 26, 2007 at 7:01 pm (Baseball)

“The Man” turned 87 this week and I’m reminded of just how great a player he was.

No ones statistical accomplishments have been minimized more by the “Steroidal Era.”

In 55+ years of “fandom,” I’ve never heard or read a negative word about him.

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May yo live as long as you want, Stash.

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The New York Giants And The Polo Grounds… Not Much Left, And That’s Not Right

November 24, 2007 at 6:21 pm (Baseball, Life & Death, New York Giants, New York Mets)

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This is a little ditty written in 1947 by Horace Stoneham, the New York Giants owner. It served as their fight song until 1957, in the days before online betting, when they ceased to be.

“We’re calling all you fans,
all you Giants ball fans.
Come watch the home team
Going places round those bases.

Cheer for your favorites
out at Coogan’s Bluff.
Come watch the Polo Grounders
do their stuff.”

Here is a photo of the top of the staircase, where it meets Edgcombe Avenue. As you can see, the entrance has been blocked off at street level. I wonder how long it has been since anyone walked on those stairs… the last remaining piece of the Polo Grounds.

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Restored stairs, as of September 2013

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(Detail of the plaque by the stairs.)

My granfather, Phil Niss, remembered when John McGraw…

… managed and Mel Ott would slide home.

… he remembered seeing Christy Mathewson pitch…

… and “Mugsy” manage the likes of  Travis Jackson, pictured bellow:

I remember the “ol’ gal,” as she was in 1951, when the Scotsman [Bobby Thomson] did his thang

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Here’s Leo and Willie, taken the day the than, soon to be great Mays was called up from the Minneapolis Millers:

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… and in 1952 when these heroes of mine made up the every day lineup of [with apologies to Russ Hodges] My Giants.

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L-R Whitey Lockman, Davey Williams, Hank Thompson, Alvin Dark, Don Mueller, Willie Mays, Monte Irvin, and Wes Westrum…

… and in ’54, when they reached the top…

… and when Casey Stengel held court in the early Metropolitan days.

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Here are some of my favorite pictures:

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This was the last Willie Mays Baseball Card as a New York Giant [Topps 1957]

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This was taken before the last game the Giants played in the Polo Grounds:

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Here’s my least favorites, taken 1964:

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Robert Zimmerman said it best. “I was so much older then, I’m younger then that now.”


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Baseball’s Drafted Long-Shots

November 20, 2007 at 8:58 pm (Baseball)

Baseball’s most successful long-shot, Mike Piazza, was drafted by theDodgers as a favor to his father. He’s pictured below.

DODGERS REDS

Here’s a list of players who made the majors, in spite of being drafted [and signed that year] higher than 999. Who ‘da thunk?

1,000 Sadler, Carl
1,002 Hart, Bo
1,006 Ibañez, Raúl
1,007 Mathews, T.J.
1,009 Dingman, Craig
1,009 Frederick, Kevin
1,009 Gaudin, Chad
1,015 Morman, Alvin
1,017 Scott, Tony
1,024 Wheeler, Dan
1,026 Cowens, Al
1,026 Claussen, Brandon
1,027 Hollins, Jessie
1,029 Fletcher, Paul
1,029 Fasano, Sal
1,030 Barker, Richie
1,038 Heflin, Bronson
1,046 Peters, Chris
1,056 Howard, Chris
1,058 Clapp, Stubby
1,063 James, Mike
1,063 Raabe, Brian
1,074 Lindsey, Rod
1,078 Franklin, Wayne
1,079 Berg, Dave
1,079 Foster, Kris
1,084 Snyder, Earl
1,085 Spivey, Junior
1,093 Mahoney, Mike
1,098 Mohler, Mike
1,100 Tremie, Chris
1,102 Sutko, Glenn
1,103 Cintrón, Álex
1,118 Porter, Bo
1,120 Young, Eric
1,135 Schmidt, Curt
1,135 Tankersley, Dennis
1,136 Jones, Terry
1,137 Shields, Scot
1,138 Figga, Mike
1,138 Kubenka, Jeff
1,139 Buehrle, Mark
1,140 Jones, Bobby
1,143 Ingram, Garey
1,148 Jackson, Damian
1,151 Ausmus, Brad
1,151 Cather, Mike
1,155 Curtis, Chad
1,155 Otero, Ricky
1,157 Isringhausen, Jason
1,157 Baptist, Travis
1,169 Glauber, Keith
1,193 Lugo, Julio
1,197 Patterson, Danny
1,197 Spencer, Sean
1,198 Miller, Paul
1,212 Perry, Chan
1,225 Conine, Jeff
1,226 Wilson, Vance
1,230 Nelson, Bry
1,246 Spurling, Chris
1,252 Pelaez, Alex
1,252 Jones, Greg
1,260 Crawford, Carlos
1,261 Menechino, Frank
1,261 Sabel, Erik
1,278 Turang, Brian
1,280 Hudson, Orlando
1,286 Nieves, Wilbert
1,290 Farnsworth, Kyle
1,293 May, Darrell
1,300 Ferrari, Anthony
1,311 Hocking, Denny
1,314 Williams, Todd
1,323 Wilkins, Marc
1,326 Miadich, Bart
1,328 Shiell, Jason
1,333 Valdez, Mario
1,348 Voyles, Brad
1,350 Penn, Shannon
1,351 Brown, Adrian
1,353 Patterson, Jeff
1,354 Grundt, Ken
1,359 Garcia, Mike
1,360 Bowles, Brian
1,363 Guzmán, Edwards
1,390 Piazza, Mike
1,391 Bernard, Marvin
1,392 Chavez, Anthony
1,437 Woodward, Chris
1,438 Politte, Cliff
1,451 Speier, Justin
1,454 Young, Danny
1,468 Mann, Jim
1,487 Kapler, Gabe
1,493 Gipson, Charles
1,498 Mackowiak, Rob
1,511 Giles, Marcus
1,559 Riske, David
1,560 Koonce, Graham
1,587 Villafuerte, Brandon
1,627 Santiago, José
1,664 Maxwell, Jason
1,716 Seabol, Scott
1,719 Phelps, Travis

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“Combine Work And Fun, Son”…

November 17, 2007 at 7:03 pm (Family & Friends, Unzipped Thoughts)

… are words me boy, Phillip, grew up hearing from his old [but young in body, mind, and spirit] man.

Phillip got his first after school part time job last week at a video game store, where fun is their raison d’etre. He’s thrilled, I’m thrilled for him.

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Anti-Clinton Propaganda…

November 14, 2007 at 12:34 am (News & Politics, Unzipped Thoughts)

… has been running rampant and we’ve only just begun. I found this crap on an inane conservative [redundancy] website, imploring us to be aware that, among other tripe, Hillary has a temper.

Here are some bullet points from their crapola:

“1. Every Clinton scandal of the 1990s had a precedent in the Clinton governorship of the 1980s in Arkansas.

2. For years, the Clintons have bullied the press, political opponents, prosecutors and those women who caught Bill’s eye.

3. Rumors of Sen. John McCain’s temper have haunted his campaign. Hillary’s temper is even more widely documented, by disaffected Secret Service agents, military aides, Arkansas state troopers and others.

4. Hillary is given to what the historian Richard Hofstadter termed “The Paranoid Style in American Politics.”

5. The Clintons have, to use the words of President Harry Truman — who, while president, scrupulously insulated the White House from fundraising and, in retirement, refused speaker’s fees — “commercialized the presidency.”

6. Very little of this has escaped the notice of journalists and of Democratic leaders. Yet after every scandal, they forget their public denunciations of the Clintons.

7. The media have been lax in reporting the Clintons’ unprecedented record of ethical failings and outright corruption.”

Sure, if she’s elected there’s a high probability of an abundance of yack showing up on young porker’s dresses in the White House.

I’m willing to risk it for eight more years of peace and prosperity.

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A Short American History Lesson

November 13, 2007 at 8:57 pm (Unzipped Thoughts)

I received this in today’s email. It made me smile.

Have you ever wondered where the phrase, “You gotta be shittin’ me!” came from? Well, it just so happens to have originated through the Father of our Country way back when George Washington was crossing the Delaware River with his troops.

There were 33 [remember this number] in Washington’s boat. it was extremely dark and storming furiously and the water was tossing them about. Finally, Washington grabbed Corporal Peters [remember this name] and stationed him at the front of the boat with a lantern. He ordered him to keep swinging it, so they could see where they were heading. Corporal Peters, through driving rain and cold, continued swinging the lantern back and forth, back and forth. Then a big gust of wind and a wave hit and threw Corporal Peters and his lantern into the Delaware . Washington and his troops searched for nearly an hour trying to find Corporal Peters, but to no avail. All of them felt terrible, for the Corporal had been one of their favorites.

Sometime later, Washington and his troops landed on the other side, wet and totally exhausted. He rallied the troops and told them that they must go on. Another hour later, one of his men said, “General, I see lights ahead.” They trudged toward the lights and came upon a huge house. What they didn’t know, was that this was a house of ill repute hidden in the forest to serve all who came.

General Washington pounded on the door, his men crowding around him. The door swung open, and much to his surprise stood a beautiful woman. A huge smile came across her face, to see so many men standing there.

Washington was the first to speak, “Madam, I am General George Washington and these are my men. We are tired, wet, exhausted, and desperately need warmth and comfort! .”

Again, the Madam looked at all the men standing there, and with a broad smile on her face, said, “Well, General, you have come to the right place. We can surely give you warmth and comfort. How many men do you have?”

Washington replied, “Well, madam, there are 32 of us without Peters.”

And the Madam said, “You gotta be shittin’ me”.

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Coincidinks [a Zig Woid]? Unlikely.

November 11, 2007 at 10:53 am (News & Politics)

[From a friend’s, friend’s friend]

I recently came across some information regarding Amerikan-Israeli relations
that I thought was worth sharing. I am not exactly sure what it all means,
but I have learned enough in my life to know that there is no such thing as
coincidences [coincidinks].

The following is just a sampling, with the real kicker at the end.

October 30, 1991:
President Bush (1st one) opened the Madrid Conference, the intended purpose
of which was to strip Israel of its land in exchange for peace with the
Palestinian Arabs.
On that very day, an extremely rare storm formed on the coast of Nova
Scotia, a storm later named “The Perfect Storm” (which the book and movie
were about), and record-setting waves pounded the New England coast causing heavy damage to the President’s home in Kennebunkport, Maine.

August 23, 1992:
The Madrid Conference moved to Washington, D.C. with the same agenda of
attempting to wrest land from a sovereign country. That, of course, would
create a state of homelessness for thousands of Jews.
On that very day, Hurricane Andrews produced an estimated $30 billion in
damage, leaving 180,000 Floridians homeless. It was the worst natural
disaster to ever hit America, at least up to that time.

January 16, 1994:
President Clinton meets with the Syrian President in order to develop a
strategy that would force Israel to give up the Golan Heights.
Less than 24 hours later, a powerful 6.9 earthquake rocks southern
California, leaving countless Americans homeless.

March 1, 1997:
Arafat begins a one-month tour of Amerika and President Clinton publicly
rebukes Israel for not surrendering land for peace.
On the very day that Arafat lands in Amerika, powerful tornadoes devastate
huge sections of the country while ripping across Texas, Arkansas,
Mississippi, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Days later, as Arafat is still
touring, storms hit the Dakotas, causing the worst flooding of the century.
Weeks of storms rage throughout the Midwest until Arafat completes his tour.
The day he leaves the U.S., the storms suddenly begin to settle down, and
end within a few days.

January 21, 1998:
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu meets with Clinton and is coldly received
as President Clinton and Secretary of State Madeline Albright refuse to
lunch with him.
On that ery day, just hours later, the Monica Lewinski scandal erupts and
will consume the major portion of Clinton’s time for the remainder of his
tenure.

Others include:

The World Trade Center Bombing of 1993, on the day that Secretary Albright
leaves on a trip to visit 8 Arab/Muslim countries to develop a strategy
against Israel.

The Northridge Earthquake in 1994, on the day that President Clinton and
Syrian President Assad demand that Israel turn the Golan Heights over to
Syria.

Ravaging tornadoes hit the Mid-West on the day in 2002 that Bush negotiates
Arafat’s release from Israeli capture.

Hurricane Lili hitting the U.S. the same time in 2002 that Bush refuses to
move the Amerikan Embassy to Jerusalem and refuses to recognize Jerusalem as
the Capital.

But here, gentle and/or gentile readers.

August of 2005 was the month when Sharon expelled the Jews of Gaza from
their homes. Just about 10,000 Jews were made homeless, in accordance with
the demands of the Amerikan President and his Secretary of State. The
operation was being concluded on August 29.
That very day, Amerika was hit by THE WORST natural disaster to have ever
occurred in America. Hurricane Katrina hit the New Orleans area and just
about 500,000 people were made homeless.
10,000 Jews out of a population of 6 million is a percentage of .00167.
500,00 0 Amerikans out of a population of 300 million is a percentage of
.00167.

Like I said, I don’t believe in coincidences. All I can say is that the next
time this government comes down hard on our brethren over there, we all
might want to duck for cover.

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