Your Center City Correspondent spent the weekend either at the pool, or watching the sporting events on TV, or at church. Between the Phillies, the British Open and the Tour de France, there was enough sports for everybody. Let’s hope the Phillies start playing better than they have so that we have a pennant race this fall. The British Open was won by an unknown (and unpronounceable) name, but St. Andrews is always a treat to see. And the Tour de France is heating up, with the riders traveling over the Pyrenees and into the last week of the race where it finishes in Paris next Sunday.
Mrs. CCC and I were invited to attend the installation of our new pastor at the Cathedral on Saturday evening. This is a highly ritualized ceremony that takes place in the middle of Mass. Cardinal Rigali celebrates the Mass and performs the installation. I can imagine that it is quite a burden on the new pastor, Msgr. Rogers; not only is he responsible for our immortal souls, he is also the caretaker of the Cathedral building which requires a lot of work and attention. God bless him. Afterwards we attended a reception held at the Rooftop ballroom of the Sheraton across the street from the Cathedral and of course, our crew closed the place down.
So what happened to our old pastor, you ask? He got transferred to St. Matthias parish in Bala Cynwyd, and we were invited to that installation also, on Sunday afternoon. Because of his new role, as both pastor of the parish and Vicar of Montgomery County, dozens of priests from all over Montco also attended this installation. More pomp and ceremony, a lot of it similar to the night before, but different enough to keep it interesting. This was followed by another reception, and I had the opportunity to say hello to Cardinal Rigali. I’ve been in his company a few times, but this is the first I actually said hello. He’s a nice enough guy, but kinda intimidating – he’s one step below the Pope, ya know, who is only one step below God! So you don’t mess around when you’re talking to him.
Afterwards, we adjourned to the local for some refreshments and food, then home to watch the Phils drop another one to the Cubs. I hope all the fans who made the trek to Chicago this weekend enjoyed themselves despite the outcome of the games. Chicago is a great town with plenty of things to do.
A note about two young men who serve our country and community. Kevin Livewell, the brother of a friend of mine, is a Philadelphia cop who was shot in the leg on Thursday night. I wish him well, and hope that he’s back on his feet quickly. Like I told my buddy, Kevin must have gotten the looks in the family. Another young man, Nick Lumi, a lieutenant in the US Navy is being deployed overseas to a combat zone this week. He’s my cousin’s boy, and I know that he has made his mother and father very proud and now apprehensive. I wish Nick well and am confident that he will return home safe and sound to his wife and family. God bless both these men.
All for now. Enjoy your week.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
World Cup Sunday
On Sunday afternoon, Mrs. CCC and I strolled down to the local bar to watch the final of the month-long World Cup soccer tournament. Spain and Holland were the two survivors. Neither team has ever won the tournament before, so there were high hopes on both sides. After both England and the US had been beaten in the first knockout phase, the WC took on more of an academic feel for me; I really didn’t care who won, as long as we were treated to good games. The final game wasn’t pretty, neither team got into a real good rhythm, and the game went into extra time tied at 0-0. Spain broke through with a goal with about 5 minutes to go, and held on to win the championship. I’m sure there was celebrating throughout the country that night, culminating in a huge parade in Madrid on Tuesday. Well done to the Spanish boys. Now we have to wait four more years for the next WC tournament to be held in Brazil.
The patrons at the bar were equally split, not between Holland and Spain, but between the soccer game on one TV and the Phillies game on the other. Cole Hamels was sharp and the Phils held on for a 1-0 win to sweep the Reds heading into the All-Star game break. (Isn’t it odd that both games ended 1-0? I’ve always enjoyed low-scoring baseball games because every at-bat, hit and pitch are meaningful. Maybe that’s one reason I like soccer – every score is meaningful.) The Phils are in third place in the NL East, 4.5 games behind the Braves. Let’s hope everybody gets and stays healthy, and the Phillies have the success they’ve enjoyed in the second half over the past three seasons to play their way back to the playoffs.
For those who’ve asked, my leg and knee are coming along fine via therapy and exercise. I expect to go back to work with the Phillies on 7/23, barring any other misfortunes. Thanks for asking.
The patrons at the bar were equally split, not between Holland and Spain, but between the soccer game on one TV and the Phillies game on the other. Cole Hamels was sharp and the Phils held on for a 1-0 win to sweep the Reds heading into the All-Star game break. (Isn’t it odd that both games ended 1-0? I’ve always enjoyed low-scoring baseball games because every at-bat, hit and pitch are meaningful. Maybe that’s one reason I like soccer – every score is meaningful.) The Phils are in third place in the NL East, 4.5 games behind the Braves. Let’s hope everybody gets and stays healthy, and the Phillies have the success they’ve enjoyed in the second half over the past three seasons to play their way back to the playoffs.
For those who’ve asked, my leg and knee are coming along fine via therapy and exercise. I expect to go back to work with the Phillies on 7/23, barring any other misfortunes. Thanks for asking.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
The World Comes to Philadelphia
People ask me where I’m going for the 4th of July. Going? Why would anyone want to leave Philadelphia, the place where it all started, the place where people travel to from all over the country and the world, the place where the best celebration is held?
Your Center City Correspondent can tell you from first-hand experience that people clamor to come to Philadelphia for the 4th, and that a lot of them come right to my neighborhood for the parade, the exhibitions, the concert and the fireworks show. Walking around the neighborhood on Sunday afternoon, I can tell you that there was not an open (legal) parking spot between Green St. and Brown St. A tip of the cap to the nice couple who invited us to their party on Brown St., nice home, interesting people and good food – and all just a stroll away.
Later on Mrs. CCC and I walked over to Pennsylvania Avenue for the fireworks – the city puts on a great display after the concert at the Art Museum. The streets were jammed with pedestrians and cars. There were a lot more people at the show this year than last. All of us were craning our necks to see the show, and we were not disappointed. After the fireworks, the show continues as they all try to drive home – thousands of cars on roads designed for horses and buggy traffic. I sit on my front step nursing a cold one and once again thanking my lucky stars that I live right here in Center City.
The final of the World Cup soccer tournament is this Sunday. Holland and Spain, probably the two best teams coming into the tournament, meet to decide the world champion for the next 4 years. They both employ an attacking style of play, so I doubt that it will be a 0-0 snoozefest. It’s on ABC, so give it a try.
All for now.
Your Center City Correspondent can tell you from first-hand experience that people clamor to come to Philadelphia for the 4th, and that a lot of them come right to my neighborhood for the parade, the exhibitions, the concert and the fireworks show. Walking around the neighborhood on Sunday afternoon, I can tell you that there was not an open (legal) parking spot between Green St. and Brown St. A tip of the cap to the nice couple who invited us to their party on Brown St., nice home, interesting people and good food – and all just a stroll away.
Later on Mrs. CCC and I walked over to Pennsylvania Avenue for the fireworks – the city puts on a great display after the concert at the Art Museum. The streets were jammed with pedestrians and cars. There were a lot more people at the show this year than last. All of us were craning our necks to see the show, and we were not disappointed. After the fireworks, the show continues as they all try to drive home – thousands of cars on roads designed for horses and buggy traffic. I sit on my front step nursing a cold one and once again thanking my lucky stars that I live right here in Center City.
The final of the World Cup soccer tournament is this Sunday. Holland and Spain, probably the two best teams coming into the tournament, meet to decide the world champion for the next 4 years. They both employ an attacking style of play, so I doubt that it will be a 0-0 snoozefest. It’s on ABC, so give it a try.
All for now.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
The Sun Also Sets
Your Center City Correspondent is a sucker for redheads, big churches and sunsets. The less said about redheads the better, I’ve already written about churches, so this must be about sunsets. Mrs. CCC and I have traveled the globe to witness sunsets; two of our favorites we’ve seen are from the Eiffel Tower and at the beach in Naples, FL. But let me clue you in to the best-kept secret in Philadelphia – we have beautiful sunsets here too. I guess it’s an Acres of Diamonds thing. The best place to view the sun going down is at the Water Works behind the Art Museum. The sun sets downriver, behind Fairmount Park, and with the Waterworks in the foreground and Boathouse row off to the right, it’s a real pleasure on a summer evening. Give it a try some night.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
World Cup fever strikes out
The USA team lost today to Ghana 2-1 and exited the World Cup finals. That is the same scoreline that Ghana won by in 2006 to send the USA home then. The bar was packed, the emotions were high, but the US could not respond to the overtime goal by Ghana. If psychic energy counted for anything, the US would have scored two goals in overtime to win the game and advance to the quarterfinals. But no such luck. The US has to move away from playing X’s and O’s and play more on instinct in order to win on the international level. This is not a wait till next year proposition. We have to wait till 2014 when the next World Cup final is held in Brazil.
Friday, June 25, 2010
World Cup fever strikes
As most of you know, your Center City Correspondent is an avid soccer fan. He follows the English Premier League most of the time which runs from August till May. But this summer soccer fans get a month-long smorgasbord of games, namely the World Cup. 32 national teams have qualified to play in the WC finals being held this year in South Africa. The United States is one of those teams, and I’ve seen a huge surge in interest in the US team who have done well so far. In the first couple of games the US sort of putzed around and came up with two ties, meaning they needed to win their third game in order to advance to the next round. They waited until very late in the game to score the winning goal which catapulted them into the next round. It was a moment of rapture and high-fives all around. They play Ghana on Saturday at 2:30 PM. From now on it’s win or go home. The US must have payback on their minds because in the last WC, Ghana beat them 2-1 to send them home early.
All these games are on TV, most of them on ESPN or ESPN2, so you could sit at home and watch them. But the real fun is going to a bar to watch the games with fellow fans and newcomers. During the long stretches of time when not much is going on, it’s fun to chat up the other patrons. Once in a while you find another fan and the conversation can go on for a long time. But most of the time the questions from the new fans come flying at you, especially when there’s a bogus call by the referee, which seems to happen a lot. These new fans are starting to understand the passion as well as the frustration that the sport engenders. When you are emotionally engaged with a team, the game is a lot of fun. It’s just a shame that their passion will end when the US gets knocked out.
So get out to a bar in your neighborhood on Saturday afternoon and enjoy the atmosphere and the game.
Go USA and Go Phillies.
PS. Why did I write this whole post in the third person?
All these games are on TV, most of them on ESPN or ESPN2, so you could sit at home and watch them. But the real fun is going to a bar to watch the games with fellow fans and newcomers. During the long stretches of time when not much is going on, it’s fun to chat up the other patrons. Once in a while you find another fan and the conversation can go on for a long time. But most of the time the questions from the new fans come flying at you, especially when there’s a bogus call by the referee, which seems to happen a lot. These new fans are starting to understand the passion as well as the frustration that the sport engenders. When you are emotionally engaged with a team, the game is a lot of fun. It’s just a shame that their passion will end when the US gets knocked out.
So get out to a bar in your neighborhood on Saturday afternoon and enjoy the atmosphere and the game.
Go USA and Go Phillies.
PS. Why did I write this whole post in the third person?
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Late night conversations
Your Center City Correspondent wants you to know that one of the biggest differences between living in town and living in the suburbs is the number and volume of late night conversations that you overhear. In the classic marital dilemma, your CCC is a windows-open guy, that is, he likes to sleep with the window open. Fresh air and soft breezes coming through the window are so much better than stale air conditioning. And with the window open, you overhear so many late night conversations coming from the sidewalk below. In the hinterlands, you might hear a kid once in a while, and you just tell him to keep it down. But here in town there are just so many and of such a variety that it is worth it to eavesdrop on them.
There are at least two main types: bar groups and lovers’ quarrels. With a bar at the corner and another one two blocks away, we hear a lot of the first type. People on their way to the bar or on their way home, and obviously, on the way home is much more lively and louder. And everybody agrees that it’s the girls who make most of the noise. You can hear them approach like a flock of pigeons with their chattering and laughing, then get very loud as they pass by, and then fade into the distance. It gets really bad around the end of school, or the start of school, or any holiday, or if there’s a big game, like this evening’s Flyers game. Of course, if the home team loses, the crowd is much more subdued, not that I’m wishing ill on the Flyers. The timing of these conversations is anywhere from 1:30 to 2:30, that's AM.
Some of my favorite conversations I’ve overheard over the years:
Girl #1: Why is the sidewalk all wet?
Girl #2: Because it’s raining, silly.
Uncontrollable giggling.
Numerous voices: Chattering and laughing
Girl #1: Geez, I wish I was down the shore.
Boy #1: Well just close your eyes and pretend you’re there.
Numerous voices: More chattering, etc. getting closer
Girl #1: Eek! Muffled sounds.
Boy #1: What happened?
Girl #1: I closed my eyes and tripped on the sidewalk!
Boy#1: Hey Bill!
Bill: What!
Boy #1: I’m going to the Green Room. Want to come?
Bill: Dude, you just got tossed out of there. They don’t want to see you anytime soon.
Boy #1: Oh.
Or my favorite:
Boy #1: Charlie. Charlie. Hey, Charlie!!
Me (from the window): What do you want?
Boy #1: We were just passing by and thought we’d say hello.
Boy #2: It wasn’t we. It was you.
Boy #1: Ok. Charlie, what are you doing?
Me: I’m trying to sleep.
Boy #1: You want to go to St. Stephen’s?
Me (after pondering the question for about a second): No thanks. Maybe tomorrow.
Boy #2: I told you he wouldn’t.
Boy #1: OK. See you later.
Voice from bed: Would you please close that window!
The lovers’ quarrels usually come later, after 3AM and they can range from short, sharp spats to long-winded discussions about the other person’s heritage, parentage or sexual practices. I try not to listen to them too closely, they can be kinda scary. Once in a great while, the cops show up and try to restore peace. Then the two lovers turn on the police and settle their differences quickly by taking them out on the cop.
Some people think these late night conversations are nuisances. I find the humor in them, and one of the things that endears me to the city. If I ever moved back out to the hinterlands, I’d have to hire a few people to stand outside my window and make some noise, just so I’d feel more at home.
Go Flyers and Go Phillies!!
There are at least two main types: bar groups and lovers’ quarrels. With a bar at the corner and another one two blocks away, we hear a lot of the first type. People on their way to the bar or on their way home, and obviously, on the way home is much more lively and louder. And everybody agrees that it’s the girls who make most of the noise. You can hear them approach like a flock of pigeons with their chattering and laughing, then get very loud as they pass by, and then fade into the distance. It gets really bad around the end of school, or the start of school, or any holiday, or if there’s a big game, like this evening’s Flyers game. Of course, if the home team loses, the crowd is much more subdued, not that I’m wishing ill on the Flyers. The timing of these conversations is anywhere from 1:30 to 2:30, that's AM.
Some of my favorite conversations I’ve overheard over the years:
Girl #1: Why is the sidewalk all wet?
Girl #2: Because it’s raining, silly.
Uncontrollable giggling.
Numerous voices: Chattering and laughing
Girl #1: Geez, I wish I was down the shore.
Boy #1: Well just close your eyes and pretend you’re there.
Numerous voices: More chattering, etc. getting closer
Girl #1: Eek! Muffled sounds.
Boy #1: What happened?
Girl #1: I closed my eyes and tripped on the sidewalk!
Boy#1: Hey Bill!
Bill: What!
Boy #1: I’m going to the Green Room. Want to come?
Bill: Dude, you just got tossed out of there. They don’t want to see you anytime soon.
Boy #1: Oh.
Or my favorite:
Boy #1: Charlie. Charlie. Hey, Charlie!!
Me (from the window): What do you want?
Boy #1: We were just passing by and thought we’d say hello.
Boy #2: It wasn’t we. It was you.
Boy #1: Ok. Charlie, what are you doing?
Me: I’m trying to sleep.
Boy #1: You want to go to St. Stephen’s?
Me (after pondering the question for about a second): No thanks. Maybe tomorrow.
Boy #2: I told you he wouldn’t.
Boy #1: OK. See you later.
Voice from bed: Would you please close that window!
The lovers’ quarrels usually come later, after 3AM and they can range from short, sharp spats to long-winded discussions about the other person’s heritage, parentage or sexual practices. I try not to listen to them too closely, they can be kinda scary. Once in a great while, the cops show up and try to restore peace. Then the two lovers turn on the police and settle their differences quickly by taking them out on the cop.
Some people think these late night conversations are nuisances. I find the humor in them, and one of the things that endears me to the city. If I ever moved back out to the hinterlands, I’d have to hire a few people to stand outside my window and make some noise, just so I’d feel more at home.
Go Flyers and Go Phillies!!
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