Relevancy

For a long long long time my favorite baseball team, the New York Yankees, was irrelevant. Despite the rich history of the team they were pitiful. I endured the losing seasons graciously though and still hated the Boston Red Sox because I knew they weren't going anywhere either. As a fan of a mediocre team solace was gained in the knowledge that though the Yankees drought stretched a decade, Boston's was getting close to that four score and seven years ago mind numbing count. 

When the team was bad, tickets were always available. I once walked up to the Yankees box office hours before first pitch and scored a ticket 10 rows up from home plate on the aisle. I was able to see the pitcher grimace with every bad call from the umpire. I once went to the storied Fenway Park to watch the Sox play the Indians. I sat just behind the dugout and was struck with how empty that stadium was and though I was wearing a Yankees hat, I was barely hassled.

it's okay to look down

With the resurgence of baseball in general and with the recent success of these two storied franchises;  Boston's 86 year World Series drought ended a few years back; tickets are tougher to come by and tickets can be very pricey. Yankees stadium may be a cathedral for the sport, but it costs a lot of indulgences to enter. (That's a Catholic reference.)  Although I have been a fan of the Yankees since my youth, I had never seen these two teams play a game against one another. This past weekend we went. Tickets were not available through the Yankees website, but they were on StubHub.com. After everything was added in, including the 4.95 download fee so you can print tickets at home, we saw the Yankees lose 4-1 to the rapidly fading Red Sox for approximately $40 per ticket. Of course we were unable to see any facial expressions from our aerie, but we had a great view of the facade. Oh, and by the way, the Yankees have a 4 game lead in the AL East as of today, while Boston is playing .484 ball and are 13 games back... YES!

Leaving my body to science

If you ignore your friends they will go away. The same holds true for your teeth. As a founding member of Team VFH I am well aware of the need to keep both your friends and your teeth. Without teeth you'll not get many invites to parties, because your friends will figure you are more interested in attending a Kenny Rogers concert. Like a brilliant beacon on a stormy sea, sporting an array of neon bright chicklets draws friends close. They'll want you around, they'll open their doors to you. You'll have full access to their refrigerators and their pools. Combined with proper grooming (unless your friends like Rasputin stunt doubles), there's no telling how much you can mooch with an infectious smile.

Now, proper dental work can be expensive. Forget about maintenance like cleanings and cavities, but orthodontics and prosthodontics can be a heavy hit on the wallet... Unfortunately if you weren't blessed with perfectly aligned chompers you will have to go this route. Afraid of the dentist? Tough... Suck it up...think of how much sunlight can glint off your incisors poolside.

At least I have a partial solution to the cost factor involved. Go to a dental school... I know, I know, that's a scary proposition, especially if you consider the sound of a drill frightening, or think it's wrong to have some student perfecting their novocaine needle technique on your gums. Going to a dental school is like leaving your body to science....and experiencing it at the same time.

I can understand if you think I'm nuts, that this is a new low for Team VFH in its money hording 

ways, but truthfully it's not that bad. For years I was dreadfully afraid of dentists and their costs before discovering U.M.D.N.J. in Newark, NJ. It is one of the largest dental schools in the country. The school produces great dentists and specialists and they offer their services at a fraction of the cost. And, at least I know the  young doctors are diligent in their efforts because their every move is checked by faculty members who will probe and poke you before the

leaving your body to science

actual work begins... This means you can sit in a chair for awhile, but at least you're not being churned in quickly by someone trying to make his mortgage payment or a tee time. My scaredy cat ass was comforted by slowly moving dentists who took their time, listened to my fears and explained procedures when necessary.  I've been going to U.M.D.N.J. since 1994 and I have become brave enough, although I still hate those novocaine needles. But! I saved a lot of money and the good student doctors have taken my motley array of crooked teeth and through braces and crowns have transformed me into a science project worth displaying poolside....

Now if I can only get something done about my receeding hair line... 

On a side note... I was born in Newark and raised in Harrison, New Jersey, so the idea of traveling up to this northern Jersey area is all right by me. When I go to the dentist I often reward myself by getting a Cuban sandwich and cafe con leche at a hole in the wall joint on Ferry Street in the Ironbound section of Newark which is a very short drive from the school. It's an area boasting scores of Portuguese and Brazilian restaurants in what is sometimes called "Little Portugal." The name "Ironbound" refers to the many railroad tracks in the area, with Amtrak's Northeast Corridor forming the western boundary. Another area named for tracks was in Brooklyn, New York. The Dodgers once played at Ebbets field and the area was crisscrossed by trolley car tracks, forcing patrons to 'dodge' the rattling trolleys. When my mother lived for awhile in this area of Newark it was called "Down Neck." I remember being driven past the old Ballantine Brewery and Ruppert Stadium where the Newark Bears of the International League, and owned by the New York Yankees, as well as the Negro League Newark Eagles played. Even if you're not going for a filling Ironbound is a place to visit for a filling.
IRONBOUND

There is also good bread in the area. Portuguese rolls, especially from the Teixeira Bakery are amazing. But deeper into Newark is the Italian Bakery Calandra's. I often get a seeded sourdough bastone for home and a baguette for the road. Sometimes I splurge on a chocolate cannoli. I go to the First Street store in Newark, but they have locations in Fairfield and Caldwell. The smells of the freshly baked bread and the sights of all the pastries are overwhelming, so make sure you take a number for service, lest Tony Soprano cuts in front of you.
CALANDRA'S BAKERY

Harrison, NJ boasts its own bakery. I wrote about my hometown in my first novel, "Hi, How Are You?", Xlibris 2000, and leveled the town so the government could erect a huge shopping mall that could be seen from outer space. Harrison is this little insulated town. Newark is across the river and the meadowlands are on the other side. Despite these affronts Harrison was like a little Mayberry RFD, innocent and quiet. But because of its small size, just a mile square, and its longitude and latitude, Harrison either smelled of the dank decay of the meadowlands, or the warm, comforting smell of Pechter's Bakery on Jersey Street. After Sunday Mass I often accompanied my father to pick up dinner rolls for the big Sunday lunch Mom would make. It is where I first learned the term "baker's dozen". I loved those little rolls, but the favorite by far is the black seeded rye bread. Waiting in the line at the little factory store they often bring more loaves out and the air is heavenly with the moist smell of fresh bread. The clerks will slice the bread for you, even if it's warm and when we were kids we'd fight over the union sticker that was attached to one end of the crust. I can eat that bread without butter, savoring first the doughy interior and then the seeded upper crust and then finally the thick chewy bottom crust. Absolutely wonderful. I often buy a couple of loaves and freeze one when I get home, they're that good. Yes, Pechter's Bakery is yet another reason to go to the dentist. 
PECHTER'S BAKERY in Harrison, NJ

BTW ... 16 Washington Street in Harrison is at: 40.746431 N , 74.15277300000002 W
AND, WHERE ARE YOU?

A Friend In Need

The comedian Joe E. Lewis had a great line: "A friend in need....is a pest..."
Another observation he had was that money can't buy happiness, but it certainly calms the nerves.
Words to live by, except when you're Team VFH. We don't have the luxury to ignore our friends, because they offer so much more in return, and our "nerves" we fear, will always constantly be frazzled with the lack of funds. We don't have the ability to flit off to Hawaii or Europe this summer, so, in the pursuit of good karma we are happily tendering all requests from friends and conversely will accept all the invites that invariably come our way.

Can one pursue karma? Gather it up like stocking shelves in a super market? We're not sure, but we certainly have been blessed with good fortune so far this summer. We must be doing something right and the friend in need aspect of the summer has played a part in our karma.
No, we're not Karma Chameleons though I poke fun at just this sort of thing in this blog. We currently are guests of friends at the Delaware shore who needed someone to watch their pooch while they themselves enjoy the company of other friends at a bigger house on the water. Karma must be like energy, it is never used, just transferred... In appreciation of our "watching" their dog, they've left us with a refrigerator filled with beer and their Rubicon Jeep with Delaware Park tags so we can drive onto the beach.

So, if you need a pooch pandered (or your tropical plants watered) we're the team for you. It'll help if you have a pool, or jet skis, or a well-stocked frig...but it's not a necessity, we're glad to help.

"A friend in need .... is a pest"

And, now, quoting Frank Sinatra, quoting Joe E. Lewis, his good friend and of whom he said at his 50th birthday party recorded at the Sands in Las Vegas, "I would have the body of a 22 year old had I not spent all that time drinking with Lewis," "Ladies and Gentlemen, it's post time...."