I hate when that happens. Actually I don't

In yesterday's Sox game which Chicago won 9-6. A kind of crazy play happened in the 4th inning. Alex Rios was up and he hit a hard ground ball to Atlanta Braves Third Baseman Brooks Conrad. The ball got lost in Conrad's shirt and Rios was on board with a single. Don't believe me? Here is the play.

Almost exactly 3 years ago the same thing happened to Ryan Zimmerman of The Washington Nationals when they played the Cleveland Indians. Inter league play must have an effect on National League third baseman where they want to keep the ball.

Robin Hood - A Review

The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle is by any definition a classic work of children's literature.

I just read the above pictured edition (Available at Amazon).

Even if you are well acquainted with the legend and have seen the movies and television programs there are many stories here that I have not seen in film. Even the familiar tales of Robin Hood's first meetings Little John and Friar Tuck both come to life here in more detail than I had previously encountered. The encounter with Friar Tuck is my kid's favorite part and they often quote it and make themselves laugh in the process.

The book originally published in 1883 still has a freshness and originality to it. The adventures are as enjoyable and intriguing as if they were just told for the first time. One aspect of the writing that both dates the book and casts it in a bad light is it's stereotypical treatment of Jewish people. This may have been acceptable in the late 1900's but I was surprised these crude comments weren't edited out of modern editions. Unlike Mark Twain's derogatory language in Huck Finn, I don't see any purpose educational or literary to keep them in the book.

The Maid Marian is the only notable figure missing from Pyle's stories. This makes the book heavy on adventure and light on romance. This suited me and my Son quite fine. (He hates it when his adventure stories are interrupted with kissing).

The edition pictured above features some fine discussion questions by Arthur Pober Ed. D. Next fall I am going to read the book to my kids as part of school and use some of the discussion questions for writing assignments.

Next Time: Home School Conference.

A Father's Day Hero

Not all Father's Day heroes are fathers. Take for example, my BIL Mike. Mike is a couple years younger than me. (If you don't know how old I am, I'm a couple years older than Mike.) As long as I've known Mike, he's been working on his novel. Like many aspiring novelists, Mike has had internal and external road blocks detouring his path to Novelist Extraordinaire. I am not sure if Mike realizes that his journey through the roadblocks might just be the story he's been looking for all this while.

A few years ago, Mike's father's (my FIL) health took a serious nose dive. Mike stopped all he was doing and moved back in with his parents and supervised his father's care. Now, while my FIL and MIL have both worked very hard in their own right on Donn's road to recovery, Mike has been tirelessly involved behind the scenes. He takes Donn to his appointments, spearheads his physical therapy, and supervises his diet and medication. Mike has essentially willed his Dad back on the road to health amid the obstacles.

I also consider the bravery of Mike. When he realized that he was taking care of his Dad's health at the risk of his own, he devised a plan to both care for his Dad and achieve victory in his own personal life. Mike is my Father's Day hero because he has dedicated this time in his life to making every day Father's Day for Donn.

P.S. Families Again is hosting a special Father's Day inspired Men's Monday Meme. The Question this week was:

Who is/was the most influential man in your life? Tell us about him?

I am not participating as such, if you are interested in participating click here.