"March Madness: What Went Wrong"
April 14, 2010
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The games are over. The money is all paid off. And I'm still
trying to figure out where I went wrong. This is the first time I put
money on "the bracket." March Madness. The NCAA Championships. I did
my homework. I worked the numbers. And by round two I was out of it.
How could I have been so wrong? What the hell happened? I decided to
look at the results and try to figure out how I could have done better.
It made no sense. Then, like a bolt of lightening, it hit me. It
wasn't about which team was better. It wasn't about the defense or the
offense or the shooting percentages. What it all came down to is one
simple thing. Here's the secret: IN A FIGHT... WHO WOULD BEAT WHO?
It's just that simple. Let's look at some of the upsets in Round One
and you'll see what I mean. Ohio, the 14 seed, beats Georgetown, number
3. On paper it looked to be all Georgetown. But in a fight, who would
beat who? The Ohio team is "The Bobcats." Georgetown is "The Hoyas."
I'm not sure what a "Hoya" is... but I'm pretty sure a bobcat could
beat the hell out of it. Advantage Ohio and you just picked your first
upset. Murray State Racers (number 13 seed) v. Vanderbilt Commodores
(number 4 seed). I have to give the advantage to the Racers against the
Commodores. That's upset number two. And it goes on and on. Here are
the upsets in Round One:
Cornell (12) upsets Temple (5) - That's A Bear beating An Owl
Washington (11) upsets Marquertte (6) - Here we have a Husky
beating an Eagle
Old Dominion (11) upsets Notre Dame (6) - A Monarch taking out an
Fighting Irish
St. Mary's (10) upsets Richmond (7) - A Gael stepping on a Spider
Northern Iowa (9) upsets UNLV (8) - A Panther mauls a Rebel
Georgia Tech (10) upsets Oklahoma St. (7) - A deadly sting from a
Yellow Jacket to a Cowboy
Wake Forest (9) upsets Texas (8) - A Demonic Deacon slaying a
Longhorn
Then there was the case of Missouri (11) upsetting Clemson (7) Both teams are The Tigers. I checked out their logos. Missouri's Tiger Logo shows a tiger's teeth. Clemson's shows a tiger's paw. Clearly, advantage Missouri.
It continues in Round Two:
The Panthers (9) upset The Jayhawks (1)
The Musketeers (6) upset The Panthers (3)... The Musketeers have guns.
The Big Red Bears (12) upset The Badgers
The Huskies (11) upset The Lobos (3)
The Gaels (10) upset The Wildcats (2)... Man v. Beast... Man wins
The Spartans (5) upset The Terrapins (4)
Round Three/Sweet Sixteen:
Volunteers (6) upset Buckeyes (2)
Bulldogs (5) upset The Orange (1)
Round Four/Elite Eight:
Mountaineers (2) upset Wildcats (1)
Bulldogs (5) upset Wildcats (2)... Dogs beat Cats
It all seems so clear, now that I look at it this way. With this new system, is it any wonder that the Duke Blue Devils took it all? I mean, come on, who can beat the Devil? Actually there was one team that could have beaten the Devils, but they were knocked out in the first round. I think I will go with them next year, though.
Next year: I'm going all the way with Sienna. GO SAINTS!
Steve Rudnick
4/14/2010
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"A Case For My Father"
July 8, 2009
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| My Dad.... Jack Rudnick |
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In light of the recent events leading up to the Memorial for pop icon Michael Jackson, I'd like to take this time to make a case for my father. But first, I'd like to go on record to say that I felt really bad for little Paris Jackson. I lost my
dad a few years ago and I know the pain the loss of a parent can
cause. And to get up in front of a billion people and speak at his
Memorial was a very brave thing for a ten-year-old to do. I spoke at
my father's funeral (the crowd a bit under a billion) and at fifty-five
I found it to be a daunting task. In her moving tribute to her dad, Paris Jackson said, "He was the best father you could ever imagine." Well, I can imagine a better father. My father was a pretty great guy.
Sure, he never shared his bed with any of my friends when I was eight-years old and yes, I'll admit it, he died with the same nose he was born with, but those things notwithstanding, he was still a good man. He didn't squander away millions and millions of dollars on bric-a-brac, but he did buy me a pretty nice mitt when I was in Little League. He never built a theme park in our back yard, but he did make sure I had a nice Schwinn. He did wear one glove, but it wasn't so much a fashion statement. In the cold winter mornings in the Chicago suburb of Skokie, he'd be out scraping the ice off his windshield, wearing just one glove. His un-gloved hand held his ever-present cigarette.
Jack Rudnick served in the Army during World War II. He worked a 9-5 job all his life (though most days he left at 7:30 and didn't get home until 6). He volunteered working for years to raise money for mentally handicapped children. He coached my brother and I in Little League. He doted on my sister, she was his Princess. He bowled every Wednesday night. He loved playing Pinnochle with his friends. He took up golf late in his life and managed to eke out a hole-in-one. He was married to my Mom for fifty-four years and had three children with her (no surrogates for them... Mom had to do all the work herself). And although he probably never made more than eighty thousand dollars his best year, when he died his estate was valued at just over a million dollars. Way to go, Dad!
You didn't need to win a lottery to attend my dad's funeral. Anyone and everyone was welcome to be there. But there were no faceless fans, holding signs and shedding crocodile tears. Everyone who was there knew and loved my dad. They all felt the pain of his loss on a very personal level, not because the world would never hear his music again. They knew him intimately, as a father and a husband and an uncle and a friend. The world would never feel the loss of this man, but those dozens of loved ones in attendance would feel their loss deeply.
My dad's passing didn't upset the new cycle for the better part of a week. Nor did his passing cause thousands of cops to sit around and sip coffee, while collecting overtime to control estimated crowds that never showed up. No famous people sang at my father's funeral. No famous basketball players spoke. Al Sharpton was nowhere to be seen. Brooke Sheilds was a no-show. But Frank the Barber, the man who cut my father's hair for over thirty years, took the day off and was there. Nobody sold tee-shirts. There were no vendors.
So, Paris, I send you my condolences. It must be very hard to lose your father, especially at your age. I'd like to tell you that the pain will eventually go away, but it's been over two years since I lost my dad, and the pain is still with me... every day. And Paris, I forgive you for saying that your father was the best father anyone can imagine. You never had the honor of knowing my dad.
Jack Rudnick was an ordinary man who had an extraordinary effect on everyone who knew and loved him. He wasn't the King of Pop. He was just a good, decent man who was the King of my World.
Steve Rudnick
7/8/09
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"How the Chicago Cubs Can Win the World Series"
April 17, 2009
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As we start the second century of the Chicago Cubs' quest for a World Series Championship a new and exciting plan occurred to me. It happened when I was talking to my friend Josh, a die-hard Cubs fan. Now I have to tell you that I was born and raised in Chicago. I've been a White Sox fan for as long as I can remember. But I was never one of those White Sox fans who openly rooted against the Cubs. In fact I probably spent more time at Wrigley Field than I did at Comiskey Park. My friends and I used to love to go to Wrigley and would make a special effort to get there when the Cubs were playing the San Francisco Giants to see the two Willies... Mays and McCovey and if you were lucky, high-kicking Juan Marichal would be pitching. We also liked to see the Pirates and Roberto Clemente. And truth be told, there's nothing like a day at The Friendly Confines. Anyway, I digress.
So I was talking to Josh about how many sports pundits are touting the Cubs as the team to beat this year. As a Cubs' fan I knew he must hate to hear talk like this. Anyone who ever rooted for the Cubs knows that the last thing you want to hear is that their team has a chance to go all the way. If there's someone more superstitious than a Cubs' fan, well I've never met him. If you've never been a Cubbie fan this is hard to explain. Maybe this will help.
You're at Wrigley Field in early September and the Cubs are in first place by a game and a half. They're playing the last place team. They're winning 8 - 2 as we go into the bottom of the eighth inning. I can assure you that every fan there is hoping that the Cubs score an extra two or three insurance runs. But they don't. They go down one-two-three and take their six run lead to the top of the ninth. They bring in their ace reliever to face the bottom of the order. Twenty minutes later the score is tied. The Cubs come to the plate with the meat of the order and they go down one-two-three. To cut a long story short, the last place team will win it in the eleventh or twelfth inning, usually on an error, a walked-in run, a passed ball, a balk... you get the picture. In three days the Cubs will be two games out of first place.
Or how about this scenario? It's early September and the Cubs are twenty games ahead of the rest of the division with twenty-one games to play. Their magic number is one. After their twenty game losing streak, they come to the last game of the season, needing the win and blow a nine run lead when a fan sneezes during a potential game ending double play. The first baseman drops the perfect throw from the short stop. The sneezing fan is forced to leave Chicago in shame and the Cubs hope for a better outcome next year.
Now with all this in mind, here's my plan to insure a World Series victory. Spoiler alert... it's radical. It's never been done in any sport. But I firmly believe it's the only way. As I mentioned earlier, Cubs fans don't like it when outsiders talk about how their team might have a chance. It doesn't matter if it's Opening Day, or if the Cubs are five outs away from making it to the Series. Don't say anything. Better yet, don't even look at them. And this leads me to my radical plan. It might not play well with Cubs ownership and it will definitely have a negative impact on the Cubs revenue stream. But here it is. Nobody should be allowed into Wrigley Field when the Cubs are playing. There should be no reporting on the score. Their ranking should never be publicly recorded. If anyone sees a Cubbie on the street, don't talk to him. Don't root for them. Don't want them to win. And I know this will be hard to do, but don't even think about the Cubs. You do all this and I can all but guarantee that your Cubbies will play in the October Classic... albeit you won't know about it because if you want them to win, you'll have to continue with the above mandates. When, and only when, they win will you be able to celebrate. And what a sweet celebration it will be. It will be like a High School reunion because you wouldn't have seen any of the players for the last five months. Sounds like it might be hard to accomplish, you might be thinking. Harder than watching them be also-rans for the last one hundred years? Look, you Cubs' fans have tried everything. Why not give this a try? It will work. I know deep in my bones that it will. And if it doesn't...
Well, there's always next year.
Steve Rudnick
4/17/09
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"Warning: Your Identity is in Danger"January 25, 2009
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A recent
email I received alerted me to a new Identity Scam on the Internet and
as a Public Service, I'm passing the warning on to you.
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This
has been verified by the FBI, so please pass this on to everyone you
know. It is spreading fast so be prepared should you get this call.
Most of us take those summonses for jury duty seriously, but enough
people skip on their civic duty, that a new and ominous kind of fraud
has surfaced.
people skip on their civic duty, that a new and ominous kind of fraud
has surfaced.
The caller claims to be a jury coordinator. If
you protest that you never received a summons for jury duty, the
scammer asks you for your Social Security number and date of birth so
he or she can verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant. Give out any of this information and bingo! Your identity was just stolen. It's my hope that none of you will fall for this insidious scam. Thank you for your time.
Oh,
while I have you here, my computer recently crashed the same week I
lost my Palm Pilot. I'm now in the awful situation of having to
rebuild my entire address book. If you could please forward to me your
name and current address and contact numbers, it would really help.
I'll also need your Social Security Number, date of birth and your mother's maiden name.
Please
don't forget to include all Account Numbers from your banking and
investment accounts along with any passwords to said accounts.
Attach
a letter that gives me the authorization to access all of your medical
and legal files. This letter should be Notarized (more for your
protection, than for mine).
To expedite this tedious process you might want to give me your Power of Attorney.
Thanks in advance for helping me in this matter.
And be sure to be wary if you receive a call from a Jury Coordinator. You never know when your identity is at risk.
Steve Rudnick
1/25/09
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"Did You Know?"
Steve was on his high school track team and once ran the mile in just under twelve minutes.
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"If Obama Had Won the Election: A Fantasy"
January 17, 2009
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| Imaginary President-elect Barack Obama |
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| As the country, and the whole world gears up for the inauguration of President-elect John McCain, I stop to have a fantasy.
What if Barack Obama had won the election? How would things have been
different?
With McCain's Cabinet all but in place (Secretary
of State Jeb Bush, Secretary of Defense Mitt Romney, Secretary of
Health and Human Services Chuck Norris... well, you know the rest) I
got to
thinking what an Obama Cabinet would have looked like?
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Would
he have dared to invite Hillary Clinton to join his team. Surely not a
high-profile post, but maybe something like Secretary of Agriculture.
I'm sure he would have asked the Governor of his home state to come to
D.C. Secretary of Commerce Blagojevich... I like the sound of that.
He probably would have tapped John Kerry to head up Defense and it's a
no-brainer that the new Secretary of State would be either Colin Powell
or Bill Ayers.
And what would Obama be promising? Closing down
Guantanamo? More money for bailouts? A bill to have Alaska secede
from the Union?
Well, it's all a fantasy. Who were we to think that a capable African
American could win a national election? Sure he won California and New
York... but as big as those states are they don't an election make.
Obama would have to have won Pennsylvania, Ohio, a couple of western
states, at least one of the Carolinas, Indiana, and Minnesota to even
have a chance. It just wasn't to be. Maybe next time.
Hold on............
Wait a second............
The news is just coming in. I'm sure you're glued to your TV set, as
I am. John McCain just announced that due to health concerns he will
not be taking the oath of office. Wow! What an incredible event. The
swearing in of the new President will take place on Tuesday January 20, 2009... but it
won't be John McCain.
Well, I'm sure I'm speaking for us all when I
say that we wish President-elect Palin all the best. She's really
blossomed in the past few months. She's proven to us all that she's
more than equipped to take on the job of the leader of the free world.
Change is certainly coming. When we wake on Tuesday morning, we can
all heave a deep sigh of relief.
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| Real President Sarah Palin |
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President Palin will see us through
these troubled time. She just announced that she will ask Mike
Huckabee to be her Vice President. With him at her side, I can't see
any problem that they won't be able to handle. I guess it's time to
stop living in a fantasy world. It's time to stop speculating what
would have happened if...
Barack Obama had won the election.
Steve Rudnick
1/17/2009
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STEVE'S Turn Ons STEVE'S Turn Offs
Steak Emotions
Family Tofu
Elastic Slippers
Sandals Trees
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"In Support or Against Proposition 8"
January 11, 2009
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California's Proposition 8
I'm
for it. In that I'm against it. That is to say, it's so worded that
to be for it is to be against what it's for. And to be against it is
to be for the rights is seeks to deny. It's like when you go to a
doctor and take tests. You hope that all the results are negative.
Though in the rest of your life, you hope that things are positive.
The last thing you want to hear from your doctor is that, "It's
positive." The thing that you hate to hear when asking for a raise, or
did you win the lottery is... "Negative. Which brings me back to Prop
8. When something is presented to you in such a way that to be for it
is to be against a large segment of our population, it's easy to see
why it passed. That is to say, it's hard to imagine that it would
pass. I wonder how many people voted "Yes" to Prop 8 because they
thought that "Yes" is a good thing. "No" sounds so negative.
Can I have more? NO.
Wanna go out with me? NO.
Did you find my wallet? NO.
"Yes" on the other hand, at least to me, has a positive connotation.
Would you like some more? YES.
Care for a stick of gum? YES.
Can I lick it? YES.
Will
you please vote for an amendment that would change the California
Constitution to deny a large segment of its constituents a basic human
right afforded to the rest of us? YES.
See. It sounds positive. But it really isn't... is it?
Well
by now, in the shadow of the Inauguration, it's no secret that
Proposition 8 did pass. But is it over? Yes. And by that I mean,
No. There are many lawsuits out there to rescind the vote. Is that
ignoring the wishes of the populace? Yes. And by that I do mean...
Yes. I mean, whoever said the populace is always right? They've been
wrong before. Prohibition. Denying women the right to vote.
Disallowing interracial marriages. Giving Nashville a Professional
Hockey Team. They could be wrong in this instance.
Now, I know
that a lot of people out there think giving same sex couples the right
to marry somehow undermines the sanctity of marriage. "Where's it
going to stop?" they ask. "What's next? The right for a man to marry
a dog? A woman marrying a toaster? Children marrying candy?" Well...
maybe. We'll just have to see what the populace has to say about those
things.
And they're never wrong... are they?
Check One YES___ NO___
Steve Rudnick
1/11/09
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"My New Thesaurus"
May 8, 2008
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I latterly
procured a new Thesaurus. I cannot fathom what forged me to do it. I
was at a provincial book emporium, riffling the derogate bins, and
envisioned it. It cost over twenty-five dollars in its primordial state
and was forthwith on sale for a scant five dollars and ninety-five
cents. It seemed like an expedient covenant.
It
was a sweeping tome with a vivid lamina and multitudinous pages. The
distaff moppet vendor was daunted by my procurement. She beamed as she
rung up the transaction. As I left the boutique, I savored the
sentiment that I had realized a propitious entity for myself. I was
filled with valiancy, amour-propre and felicity.
By and by my
disposition permutated. I ascertained myself riddled with incertitude.
Was the volume a beneficent buy? Or did I presently acquire a futile
contrivance? My psyche hastened. Being an abated item it was
non-commutable. I was lodged with it. And then a heinous contemplation
smote me.
What if I never got a chance to use it?!
Steve Rudnick
5/8/08
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"Last Lecture"
April 10, 2008
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I was moved
recently upon reading about Randy Pausch. He was asked to give a "last
lecture" at Carnegie Mellon University. Many universities have
professors give a "last lecture" in which they ruminate on what matters
to them most. Shortly after agreeing to give the lecture, Randy learned
that he was dying. He decided to give the lecture anyway and it became
a truly "last lecture." It got me to thinking. What would I leave
behind in my last lecture? What pearls of wisdom could I pass on? Here
is what I would like to say.
Einstein and Hawking
notwithstanding, time is fleeting. I'd like to tell my children that
time passes by faster than you could possibly imagine. It sounds
cliche, but one day you wake up and realize-- oh, before I forget. I
brought my good suit in to be dry cleaned. It's not the dry cleaners we
usually use. It's the one by the Vons. Not the Vons by the Frame
Store... the one by the donut shop. I paid in advance, so don't let
them charge you again. And in the back of my sock drawer is my good
underwear. My underwear drawer is for my everyday underwear. You'll
understand the concept of "good underwear" as you get older. There's a
bag of batteries in the hall closet. Those are all no good. I was going
to take them in to be recycled, but never got around to it. I'm pretty
sure there's a recycling place right by Trader Joe's. Not the Trader
Joe's by the movie theater... the Trader Joe's by the donut shop. Hey,
if you take the batteries to be recycled, you can pick up my good suit
at the dry cleaners. Remember not to let the pool get too low. It
should always be just above the first line of grout on the tiles or the
filter won't work right. This isn't so much of a problem in the winter,
but in summer keep an eye out for it. Especially on the hot days. I
left a key to the front door under a fake rock near the garage.
Actually, now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure that it's an old
key. Remember when I put the ladder through the window of the front
door and we had to have it replaced? Well we put in a new lock and I
never replaced the key. Take care of that, will you? I have an
account at County Bank that I never got around to closing. There's
only about seventy-five bucks in it, but it's something. Remember the
garage door sticks after it rains. Don't forget to feed the fish.
There's a roll of film I haven't developed yet in the junk drawer.
It's from our trip to Coronado. You can have my wallet, I know you
always liked it. Don't forget Mom's birthday is on October first... or
the third. Pay your credit card bills at least two days before they're
due. Oh, and one last thing. When you go through my computer files...
if you come across a lot of porn... it's research I was doing for a
screenplay I was working on about pornography.
Steve Rudnick
4/10/08
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"A Century of Promise"
April 1, 2008
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As the 2008
baseball season starts we must ask ourselves a question. Is this "the
year" for the Chicago Cubs? It has been 100 years since the Cubbies won
the World Series. Now, I grew up in Chicago. But I was a White Sox fan.
I did enjoy going to Wrigley Field as a youth, but it was the Sox that
I rooted for. And the White Sox have won a World Series recently.
Over
the last century nothing much has changed for Cubs' fans. They love
their Cubs. They pray for their Cubs. They watch as their beloved Cubs
make a run for it. Then they watch in horror as the Cubs... well
there's only one way to put it... play like the Cubs. And they have
gotten close. In 1969 the Miracle Mets came out of nowhere and dashed
all hope. Then came 2003. The year it would finally happen. They were
actually chilling the Champagne in the locker room. The Cubs were
leading the Marlins 3 - 0 in the eighth. Five outs to go and the Cubs
would go to the World Series. I can't tell you what happened. Even as a
White Sox fan it hurts too much to re-live what happened. Look it up
for yourselves. Yes, nothing much has changed for Cubs' fans in the
last hundred years. But life in the U.S. has undergone some change.
The
last time the Cubs won the World Series there were 46 states in the
Union. Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid were killed in Bolivia. Henry
Ford produced his first Model T. Buddy Ebsen, T.V.'s Jed Clampett, was
born. The Boy Scouts of America was founded. The annual income was
$900. William Howard Taft defeated William Jennings Bryan for the
presidency. You could get a good Prime Rib for 14 cents a pound and 12
cents would get you a pound of coffee. If you read the daily paper, it
would cost you a penny. D. W. Griffith directed his first film, "The
Adventures of Dollie." Mother's Day was observed on May 10th... for the
first time. And the Cubs' fans had reason to celebrate.
That
was one hundred years ago. Every adult who saw the Cubs win... is dead.
If you were ten years old and remember the victory, you're 110 years
old as I write this. So I'm going to say this now. As a die-hard White
Sox fan, and it's difficult for me to say............ GO CUBBIES!
Steve Rudnick
4/1/08
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"It's Happened Before"
March 23, 2008
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| Pastor Jeremiah Wright |
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As most of
you already know, a controversy arose recently about Barack Obama's
Pastor, Jeremiah Wright of Chicago's Trinity Church. The Pastor Wright
was quoted as saying, "The governmnet drugs them, builds bigger
prisons, passes a three-strike law and then wants us to sing 'God Bless
America.' No, no, no. Goddamn America!" Senator Obama came under fire
due to the Pastor's comments. My questions is, 'Why?' It's not up to
the candidate to control what his pastor says. And it's not the first
time a presidential candidate was linked to comments made by his
spiritual leader.
Who of
us can forget the words of Joe Lieberman's Rabbi? Rabbi Chaim
Rothsteinbergman of Temple B'Nai Yeshiva was quoted as saying, "They
give us a cup of coffe at Starbucks for a dollar fifty-five and want us
to say, 'Thank you, can I have another?' I mean what's in a cup of
coffee? Hot water and ground beans. For a dollar fifty-five? Please."
Remember how the coffee drinking lobbyists came down hard on Candidate
Lieberman for his rabbi's comments. It cost Al Gore the presidency.
Then there
were the words of Father Paul Stablehorn of the Holy Roman Church of
Life. Remember the look on Candidate John F. Kennedy's face as he sat
in church and watched as his priest said, "The Red Sox have a chance.
The Curse of the Bambino my ass. The Yankees suck!"
Jimmy Carter's Minister, Robert Joseph Dupree almost cost Carter the
presidency when he said in Jimmy's presence, "Shoot, we would have
never lost the Civil War if we didn't run out of money." If not for
Gerald Ford's pardon of former President Nixon, Carter would never have
won.
So let's cut Obama some slack.
Steve Rudnick
3/23/08
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"In Support of Wolves"
March 2, 2008
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| L.A. Times 3/2/08 |
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| An article
in the L.A. Times (March 1, 2008) caught my eye. It seems a Belgian
writer has admitted that she made up her best selling "memoir"
depicting how, as a Jewish child, she lived with a pack of wolves in
the woods during the Holocaust. Misha Defonseca's book, "Misha: A
Memoire of the Holocaust Years" had been translated into eighteen
languages and was even made into a feature film in France. It's a
story of survival. It's a story of the horrors of the Holocaust. And
it's also a figment of her imagination.
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This offends me on many levels. Firstly, as a Jew. The Holocaust was heinous enough without people making things up.
It
offends me as a writer. When we write fiction, we hope to make a
connection with the human spirit. And when we write fact, we strive to
make sure our story is drenched in verisimilitude.
But most
importantly, it offends me as someone who was indeed raised by wolves.
I'm sure my lupine mother is turning in her shallow grave as word
leaked out about Mrs. Defonseca's spurious story.
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| My Mother, Doris |
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I called a
friend of mine as soon as the news broke. He was raised by an American
Black Bear, and they lived in a cave not too far from ours. He hadn't
seen the story and was as shocked as I was at Misha's fabrication. All
of us who have been raised by wild animals share in this
disappointment. My sister (raised by racoons) choked on an acorn when
I told her.
Defonsca joins the pantheon of others, most notably
James Frey whose bogus bio, "A Million Little Pieces" nearly brought
down our beloved Oprah when she championed his sham of a "shocking true
story." These counterfeiters must be stopped. They put an ireasable
stain on all those who write poignant autobiographies, from "One Small
Schlep," the true story of the first man to walk on the moon (my Uncle
Irwin) to "Going, Going Gone," the memoir of the man who hit eighty-six
home runs in the 2006 Major League Baseball Season (my cousin David
Solomon).
We who have been raised by wolves (and there are
hundreds of us) take umbrage. Ignore the posers. Listen to our
stories. They're real. And reality is the backbone of the genre.
Steve Rudnick
3/2/08
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