Real. Talent.

After last night’s “decision” by LeBron James, it’s fitting to discuss something positive about the sporting world.

One of the highlights every summer is the 4^th of July parade that occurs in our town. As I recently wrote in “Snap. Shot.” you have the typical floats, politicians and marching bands---but the highlight every year occurs when the Jesse White Tumblers perform. Jesse White is the Secretary of State in Illinois. Unlike most corrupt politicians you find in the “Land of Lincoln,” this man seems to really bring a positive direction to the youth of Chicago.

Nearly 51 years ago, Mr. White founded the “Jesse White Tumbling Team;” he didn’t do it for political motivation, he did it to “serve as a positive alternative for children residing in the Chicago area.” (Since its inception, more than 10,700 young men and women have performed with the team.). To see these young men and women in action is flat out incredible. They work as a team, and together put on a show that takes place blazing hot weather.

The interesting thing, I have never seen Jesse White at the event; all the more impressive when you see countless politicians parading about, handing out candy, and believing we all are really happy to see them in the parade. (I have no idea who most of them are---and don’t really care.) The Jesse White Tumblers are phenomenal, and because they are named after him, he has incredible name recognition.

The team has very strict rules when you consider that every kid (6 years old and up) is from the inner city projects, must stay in school and maintain a “C” average. Most important, any form of gang or drug participation automatically removes you from the squad---I suspect this is a big deterrent if you really are committed to the team. The Tumblers have appeared at NFL, NBA and MLB games and if you saw the movie, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” they were in it as well.

So where will these kids end up? Hopefully in a different environment from where they started and proud of who they are as teammates.

Which brings us back to LeBron James.

James did not grown up with a silver spoon; his Mom was 16 when he was born, they had very little, the one difference---James had enormous talent on the basketball court. It’s too bad he couldn’t think back to these times, when he was making his “decision”—last night he broke the hearts of an entire city. He will never be welcomed back to his town—the area where he grew up and where he was understood and loved.

The photo above was taken last week at the 4^th of July parade in Glen Ellyn. I did Photoshop the picture to black and white, and kept the performers in color. For me it signified how these young men and women stand out in a very crowded field and are working as a team to better themselves. I hope one day all athletes remember the importance of team work---sure money is important, but so are the people who make you look and perform at such a higher standard. The Miami Heat have 4 people on their team at this point---you need 5 to play.

Thanks for stopping by.

W.W.J.D. Part II.

A while back I wrote about LeBron James and his big decision that was looming this summer. The hype, intrigue, and desire to have “King James” on your team were real; there has been a change in my mind, and I think in others as well. Not since the last presidential race have we witnessed such hoopla over a decision---but in this case it was based upon what the people wanted not what an athlete decided. But the difference between LeBron and the U.S. President is---one is played on a basketball court, and the other over the entire Globe. That’s a pretty big difference in playing fields.

You would have no idea this was the case based upon what has been happening since July 1^st when teams could approach players about coming to play for their team. In many cities around the country, including Chicago, the world has stopped to follow LeBron’s decision. (His TV show tonight is called, “The Decision.”)

For the first few days it was pretty exciting---he met with teams, he was weighing his options, and he was trying to find the team where he could win a championship. The excitement ended yesterday; LeBron is a joke. His ego is bigger than any athlete who has ever stepped on a court, field or ice. Remember, all it takes is one bad moment to end a career---just ask any professional athlete whose career ended earlier than expected and they’ll tell you, you go from Hero to Nero. (You’ll be fiddling in the flames baby.)

When I learned LeBron was having a TV special based upon his decision, at first I thought it was a joke. Sure he is a noteworthy athlete, and yes the NBA is part of our culture, but if you ask people their preference, they will often say, “I love college hoops…not the NBA.” That’s a problem when you are shelling out $125 million for one player and hundreds of millions more for others.

What does it really mean?

It’s going to be harder and harder for the fans to watch games---ticket prices will increase, hot dogs will be priced the same as beers and beers the same as parking and parking well, take mass transit if you can. Without the fan base, professional sports are done; yes you will have corporations who will support the teams, but that ends when cuts are made to the bottom line. (For some reason courtside seats or a suite are not as important as a stock price.)

So by the time you read this tonight, the world will be able to breath easier as LeBron will have made “his decision.” If he leaves his current team, he will be missed, if he joins the Miami Heat with their latest additions, he will be welcomed. If they don’t win the championship, the team will change their name from “Heat” to “Beat” because a team with players like they will have can do one of two things---win or lose. I will still love the Chicago Bulls, and will love them no matter what happens; I am really hoping we don’t have a King on our team---we have had one in the past---and he still holds the crown in our hearts with a statue outside the United Center. MJ took the game seriously, but he was never thought of as a joke.

The photo above was taken a few years back in Milwaukee. LeBron James put on a show and it was a great show. Deep down I hope he stays in Cleveland; he is part of the community, has added a lot to that city, and frankly they have given him a life he will not find anywhere else. When it’s all over, and he becomes an ESPN sports trivia question, he will learn there is more to life than a basketball court.

Thanks for stopping by.

Details.

Many years ago, when my brother went off to college, he came home talking about cars he would see cruising around Adams Street in Peoria, IL. He went to college at Bradley University. Gary would come home and talk about wide white wall tires, fur-lined interiors and the most memorable….hood ornaments on the front of the cars. It was not until I saw these ornaments for myself that I understood what they truly brought to the personality of a car.

When my brother got his first car, thanks to our Dad, he made sure he decorated the front of it with something that said he had arrived---on the hood was a “duck decoy.” If only for the photo, and yes we still have it somewhere, it took a very bland Nova and made it into a very hip, “Maroon Nova with a duck on the front.”

You don’t see hood ornaments very often, as I believe they are some of the easiest items to remove from a car. Look at some of the cars from long ago and the hood ornament was what identified it from others in its class. It could be a Jaguar, a woman on the Pierce Arrow, or better yet, the design on a Cadillac. Today if it is on the car, it’s just a reminder of yesterday—and yesterday in today’s cost conscious world, is not part of the scene. I suspect the cost and labor to add a hood ornament is not as popular as say, “A DVD player” for the kids.

My first car, which was a really cool Camaro, didn’t have anything affixed to it. No bumper stickers, antenna toppers, or wide white walls…nope, it was just a really cool yellow Camaro with a black interior. For those of you who have had a black interior in your car, you know how cool it looks---until you sit down on it during the summer in St. Louis. Then you realize that black does not reflect heat, it absorbs it.

Cars and personalities go way back; I can still remember when a Pontiac Trans-Am (very hot car in it’s day) had a huge sticker affixed to the hood or when “muscle cars” had decals with flames, patterns or whatever they felt identified “their car” as being different. I must admit, when you have a lime green Dodge Roadrunner with wing on the back for better airflow, it has to be easier to find in a crowded parking lot.

The photo above was from this past weekend’s parade. The woman’s head on the front of the car brought back memories that only if you had lived them, would you understand the importance of having a hood ornament on the hood. Since leaving Bradley for his career, my brother no longer has his maroon Nova, he has graduated to BMW’s, Mercedes-Benz’s, and his latest, my Mom’s old Caddy. I have not checked, but I don’t think it has a hood ornament, BUT, it does have a special key because my Mom had owned several Cadillac’s over the years---she was a returning customer. Perhaps my brother will carry on the tradition but make it his car with some furry dice, wide white walls, and the ornament that best explains who he is.

Thanks for stopping by.

Superman and other famous people who live in our town.

As far as the number of celebrities in Chicago, and its surrounding suburbs, our community would probably be fairly low on the list for the highest number. We do have a lot of important executives who probably run their companies, but as far as the really well known sports and entertainment celebrities, you won’t see them around Glen Ellyn.

If you are looking for Chicago Bull’s players, you have to live in the Northern suburbs—that’s where the Bull’s practice facility is located. Michael Jordan had a home, I assume it’s no longer his, in an area about 8 miles from where I used to live. There are hotels that are smaller than his former home---I was never asked inside so I am not sure how many rooms it had. I do know, and this was because I used to work on the Sub-Zero refrigerator business, that he had more than 25 refrigerators in the house. A combination of kitchen refrigerators and refrigerator drawers that were located in his bedroom, bathroom and other areas of the house; you need to have at least 25 refrigerators when you are the spokesperson for Gatorade, McDonald’s and other food companies. I am sure it was a tax right off then.

Thinking about hockey? Live in the city. Most of the Blackhawks are under 25 years of age---like the entire team---so they live where they play; both the game and their social life. I am not sure about baseball, soccer or other sports---but I do know many celebrities live on the Gold Coast. I have seen Oprah out and about, Mia Hamm (she used to live in the ‘burbs until they moved) and a few other stars. But all in all, if you don’t look for them, they are not hanging out at the bus stop.

Back to Glen Ellyn.

Even though we don’t have a lot of celebrities, we do have some interesting people. In the heart of our downtown we have a food pantry that serves the homeless. When I first moved to the area I was a bit surprised, but when you live here, you realize they just are part of the scenery and community. I have given money to some of them before, my first real boss said to me years ago---“Mark, be thankful you are not in need the same way they are.” I have never forgotten.

The photo above is of a local man---he is in his 40s---who dresses up like Superman for events. I would not be telling the truth if I said he was not a bit odd---there have been stories about him, of which I have no idea if they are true, but as part of the fixture of our community he is dubbed, “Superman” no matter where he goes. I have seen him at local bars, and even though he is not in character, he is still known as “Superman.” He does not have a Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, or Perry White hanging out with---it’s not easy seeing people who are down on their luck or homeless. I do know by being in our area, they are in a much better place than they would be if they were in other areas throughout Chicago. The only time it gets dicey for Superman is when the Kryptonite comes out---but then again, he just dresses up as the “man of steel" he's not real.

Thanks for stopping by.

The 5th of July.

For most people, they see July 5^th as the day after America’s birthday. For 99.99% of America, that would be an accurate assumption. Unless you happen to be my brother and I; when we were growing up, the 5^th of July was a very important day.

Early the morning after July 4^th, my brother Gary and I would get up early and go scout for the ”coolest” fireworks we could find around our neighborhood. We’re not talking about fireworks that were still “live,” we looked for the shells of ones that had been shot off. In other words, our picking up the left over shells was comparable to picking up people’s trash. What did we know, we thought it was cool and I am happy to report we have did figure out, after a couple of years, we were basic trash collectors.

As crazy as it seems, we did find some very cool shell casings. One thing it did prove was we were shooting off some really cheap fireworks while other people were putting some really great ones into the sky. Probably our greatest find were “Black cat” brand firecrackers that were “still good” as we would call them. That and “punks” that still had some “punk” on them to light fuses of fireworks. For those of you who really want to know what a “punk” is made of, here’s the answer (and to think we put the ends in our mouths)---they are made of bamboo, a brown coating of dried manure or sawdust.

We had other traditions in our household revolving around holidays. On Passover, we always set a seat for Elijah and sure enough every year he would show up at the front door. There are others, but for sure the 5^th of July will reign supreme in my memory of this important holiday.

The photo above was taken at last night’s fireworks display. For the first time I can remember, the fireworks began before 10PM. Last night, they started about a half-hour early. Thankfully we were able to view the display---it was really good---but without my brother to help me, I am sorry to report someone else picked up the empty cases.

Thanks for stopping by.

The 4th.

Of all the holidays we celebrate, I would assume none is hokier than the 4^th of July. We dress up in red, white and blue, have parades, and best of all shoot off fireworks to celebrate an event that happened nearly 225 years ago. If that’s hokey, that’s fine with me. As my kids know, the 4^th of July is my very favorite holiday---even more than Arbor Day and we know that’s a really big holiday!

When I tell people I love the 4^th of July, they will usually ask why not Thanksgiving, Valentine’s or Christmas/ Chanukah? Why? Because unlike these other holidays this is my favorite time of the year and it’s in celebration of the birth of America. That is truly a reason to celebrate.

Growing up we had some traditions on the 4^th of July; we would often buy fireworks in St. Charles (a local area) because they were not illegal like they were where we lived. We would also go to the Washington University area and watch the spectacular fireworks show---but what I remember most is having a summer dinner with my family. It would always consist of one thing no matter what the main dish happened to be--- corn on the cob. My Mom and Dad would buy fresh corn either at a nearby stand or where my Dad worked. It didn’t matter---it was always good and in abundance. But it didn’t stop there; when we ate corn, we ate it row by row. When we were done with an ear, there was not a spec of corn left on it. Yes it’s odd, but it was good and it made the corn last longer. Oh, and I didn’t use butter on the corn, always salt and pepper. Go figure.

Since we are on true confessions, I am probably the only person I know who actually told a police officer he had fireworks back at his house when he was caught---he asked me, I did and ran as fast as I could to give them all I had. I am not sure who is laughing harder, my family or that police officer---both probably still tell the story. At least I know my family does!

The photo above is from today’s parade. For me, nothing is more patriotic than a parade celebrating the birth of our country. We were very fortunate this year as we had very good weather---something that does not happen every 4^th of July. I am looking forward to next year's 4th of July; it's hard to believe it will be 25 years since the bi-centennial...I am sure we will have a lot of the same as we have every year, but that's okay by me. Because when it's your favorite holiday it usually lives up to the memories.

Thanks for stopping by.