Basement Hockey

Caving In ... For many months now, people have been hassling me to join Facebook - to get in the game, and all that. I've resisted. The Capricorn in me, I suppose. I mean, I don't even text. What kind of a person am I? Listen, it's certainly not that I'm anti-technology or anything. The fact is I'm actually pretty plugged into things without needing every single contraption that's on the market. But, the past few years have been about wanting, needing some quiet. As one person put it recently - I've needed a place to incubate what is now just about to be completed - my first book.

And then ...

Three Facebook invites from some close childhood friends ...

Marshall's invite was the first to reach me here in KC, followed closely by John's and Jeff's.

Many have tried to get HJ to cross over into Facebook-land, but all have failed. Until this morning, that is.

So, what snagged me?

"Kick Save - And A Beauty!" - I remember hanging out in Marshall's basement a lot when we were all kids. First, there were the Strat-O-matic baseball games, with Marshall, John, Steve and me - that was our league. I was the last one to join in the fun, so I got to pick from all the droppings when the opening year draft first occurred. That would account for my 0-842 record. Actually, I think I won one game ... in 18 innings. It was exciting for me. (A quick note for my old league-members: that's Dave Winfield's "rookie" card on the left - which explains why it pretty much stinks. I'd be curious to see what it looks like today, after a Hall-of-Fame career. Remember the old-timers' cards? Walter Johnson? Hank Aaron? Babe Ruth? And my old favorite - possibly the only good player I had on my team back then ... Nap Lajoie).

I remember Marshall's bar mitzvah party, also in that basement. I made out with someone that night - I'll omit the name here - my folks raised me well. At least I think I made out with her. It may be that I was merely intimate with her shoulder for most of that night, I can't be sure now that I think about it.

Lastly, there were those hockey games. Marshall, John and I would suit up and whack those sticks around - that puck was pretty real, too, from what I can recall. I know this because I remember getting struck in what I'll call a "bad spot," when I was playing goalie one afternoon. Yes, that's the kind of thing one remembers some 40+ years later, trust me.

Anyway - it was fun to hear from such good old friends this morning. Sure, I have resistance to many of the things available out there on the market. So much of it feels like overload to me. But sometimes ... something special appears on the web that catches my eye; something that really works. Things that come to mind: Amazon, eBay, the original America Online with it's IM's, roadfood.com (check that out - especially when you're hungry), myspace, and now ... Facebook.

So ... I'm in. Hopefully, it will mean re-connecting with some special people I've known up until this point. It's funny to me - I love how I've discovered this particular site (and the rekindled friendships flowing from this discovery) right at the time I've lifted up my head, after years of relative isolation, while I've been traveling and dedicating myself to Eldercation. Those who know me well, understand my passion for what I've been pursuing. It's been a challenging but very rewarding time. I'm planning on you all seeing the fruits of my labor very soon.

For now, it's simply good to be back into the flow.

Happy New Year

POSTSCRIPT: Harry J. - sitting here and wondering, "How much of my life can I waste by spending waayyyy too much time on Facebook?" (I love it but ... boundaries will have to be set up).