Who's on first? A Mitt Romney Topps baseball card??

Every summer I pick up a pack of baseball cards - sort of a nod back to childhood memories of collecting and trading cards. The brand to collect was always Topps^®. Last weekend I picked up a pack in the checkout line. Later I carefully opened it and with the anticipation of an 8 year old from Boston hoped for a couple Red Sox players. Miguel Tejada, Byung-Hyun Kim (former Sox!), Kevin Millar (another former Sox... getting closer), Jose Baustista, Mitt Romney, Josh Willing... wait a sec, hold on, rewind... Mitt Romney? MITT ROMNEY!?! What the? Mitt Romney of the "GOP" team - in a suit and tie. Mitt Romney? Mitt the Mormon! Is this some kind of joke? Did he play ball? No. At least GW had some MLB connections. Now if I was an 8 year-old and got stiffed with a Mitt Romney card instead of Jeter, I'd be PO'd! Whose bright idea was it to mix politicians into the deck?
Well no Sox cards and no gum! What happened to that stale pink chipboard they passed off as gum?
At least Mitt was governor of Massachusetts. I would rather have found an Obama card.



Update: Aug 2012 - Well if he wins this year, maybe the value of this card will increase.

---

J is for June (& July). J is for Jimmy [Part 2]

Well the month of June flew by fast.
And a lot of free time for the 1st few weeks of the month was devoted to another Jimmy - Jimmy V, specifically the Jimmy V Junior Celebrity Golf Classic. For the past couple years I've been part of the core dozen or so people that coordinate the event. All our hard work resulted in 72 children golfing with 18 local celebrities (plus Lorenzo Charles) supported by another ~150 volunteers and generous sponsors that help us raise funds (estimated $50,000) for pediatric cancer research.
I can't verify it, but I believe the "Jimmy V Junior" is the only fund raiser of its type - one in which kids are the primary participants and raises funds for kids. Some of the golfers are cancer patients, even better, some are survivors.

I gotta credit the sponsors for bringing in the funds, but a special shout out goes to all the volunteers from Larry, our Tournament Director, to the die-hard Standard Bearers. Sunday June 22 we overtook a bowling alley for the "Pairings Party" (catered by Moe's) where golf group pairings were announced and an auction raised additional funds (I was tempted - and won - some Red Sox memorabilia featuring Jason Varitek). On Monday volunteers started arriving at the course at 6am. The volunteers were, as usual, awesome. Random needs always crop up. Every time something needed attention, there was a volunteer (or 2) nearby ready & willing to jump in assist. And working with fellow enthusiastic volunteers for a good cause keeps me coming back.

Speaking of coming back, the main event, the "Big V" - the Jimmy V Celebrity Golf Classic in historic Pinehurst, NC is on the horizon. I'll be there - August 9th & 10th.

J is for June. J is for Jimmy [Part 1]

Saturday June 7, 2008 was a treat. For the 1st time since 2002, what used to be an annual event returned to my town & my calendar. Yes, it was the long awaited Return of Buffett - Jimmy Buffett and The Coral Reefer Band, live in Raleigh outside. With four "fun tickets in my pocket, visions in my brain" we braved the 100° heat to partake in the tailgating ritual before staking claim to a tiny bit of grass on the Amphitheater lawn. The heat actually wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. Perhaps the super-soakers, canopy & fan eased the heat, or maybe it was the boat drinks.

The show was excellent. It was my 14½th live Buffett concert (and counting), the 1^st for both T & her daughter (a happy belated 21st bday!) and 2^nd for her buddy Cameron (for a 21 yro, I was very impressed w/ his Buffett knowledge - but he's still trying to figure out what kind of cheese goes on a Cheeseburger in Paradise).

The set list was a great. Jimmy is starting to show is age - a little (but still going strong) - on several songs members of the band took the lead on vocals, including USS Zydecoldsmobile, Makin’ Music For Money and a personal favorite, The City. The ode to Bob Dylan with Rainy Day Women was a surprise. The common Buffett concert cover of Brown Eyed Girl was in the mix, along with most of the fan favorites (Cheeseburger, One Particular Harbor, SofSofSailor, Volcano & of course Maragritaville). The video monitors displayed footage of JB's recent trips to the Far Side of the World (Thailand, Cambodia) which was neat. Fins was part of the encore and is always a sight to see live. The autobiographical School Boy Heart was a pleasant surprise. JB updated and personalized Fruitcakes for NC and closed out the set most appropriately with another favorite from the License To Chill album, the romantic Coast of Carolina.

In summary seeing Jimmy on stage with his regulars (Mike Utley, Mac, the chick w/ the long blonde hair) felt like a reunion with old friends. I hope I get to do it again some day.

Jimmy Buffett - Thanks for stopping in Raleigh, NC!

P.S. There are photos of the event - if I get my hands on them, I'll share a few select shots. :)