QUOTE from Jesse Dylan:"The essence of all health begins with joyful living."
The wedding of William and Kate got my curiosity aroused about royal titles in the U.K. Ruth Ann and I got up at 4:15 am to watch. What a great way to spend the day of April 29, 2011.
When I heard that Queen Elizabeth had given grandson William the title of Duke of Cambridge I got to wondering what that was all about.So I did some research on Yahoo and found out a few things. Here is what I LEARNED:
It has become a royal tradition for the queen to confer a royal title on her own kids and her grandchildren.
They usually get the title of a duke or duchess but not always. Prince Edward, the Queen's son, was going to be given the title of Duke of Cambridge - that is until he watched SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, which had a character called the Earl of Wessex. He liked the sound of it and requested that title instead.
There are five titles to British royalty. These are the titles, in descending order of precedence, or rank:
1. duke - duchess
2. marquess - marchioness
3. earl - countess
4. viscount - viscountess
5. baron - baroness
Dukes or Duchesses used to have land to rule over and they could generate income from it. But today it is mostly a royal title with no principality or land to rule. A duke is the highest rank below that of king or queen in the British nobility.
William also becomes the Earl of Stratheam and Baron of Carrickfergus, making Kate a countess and baroness as well. These royal titles go back hundreds o f years, at least to the Middle Ages.
I found this information quite interesting. As the Brits would say, "It was bloody good."
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Lessons learned from a teacher.
QUOTE from Barbara Stockdill. a Guideposts reader.: "Life is like a long chain stitch. If you don't take time to tie off all the loose ends, it can easily come unraveled."
I LEARNED what some people consider the most memorable lessons they learned from a teacher.
"Be curious about everything, because curiosity generates questions."
"The only stupid question is the one you don't ask."
"Never take what you hear at face value."
"You are not better than anyone, and no one is better than you."
"Laundry is the only thing that should be separated by color."
" How to spell assume: Don't make an "ass" of "u" and "me!"
As a teacher for 36 years I emphasized the first four a lot. I also worked a lot on teaching kids how to remember things by making up mnemonics (memory helpers). An example was our mnemonic on how to remember the countries of Central America, going from north to south. The mnemonic was, "BOB GIVES EVERY HUMAN NICE CURLY PERMS." The countries are: Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama. I had a 30 year old former student come up to me at the Country Club a couple years ago and tell me, "Thanks, Mr. Bungum, for teaching me about mnemonics. I use that technique all the time in my business." Needless to say, it made me feel good.
HUMOR for today from the comic strip HAGAR THE HORRIBLE..
Hagar is returning home from another pillaging trip to England. As he is wallking up the path to his home he is talking to humself.
Hagar says: "Whew! I survived another week of the RAT RACE. My secret? Be strong and never show emotion.
Helga meets him at the door and says: "We're going to my mother's house this weekend."
Hagar breaks down and starts crying, with tears running down his cheeks and screaming, Waaa...Waaa.
I LEARNED what some people consider the most memorable lessons they learned from a teacher.
"Be curious about everything, because curiosity generates questions."
"The only stupid question is the one you don't ask."
"Never take what you hear at face value."
"You are not better than anyone, and no one is better than you."
"Laundry is the only thing that should be separated by color."
" How to spell assume: Don't make an "ass" of "u" and "me!"
As a teacher for 36 years I emphasized the first four a lot. I also worked a lot on teaching kids how to remember things by making up mnemonics (memory helpers). An example was our mnemonic on how to remember the countries of Central America, going from north to south. The mnemonic was, "BOB GIVES EVERY HUMAN NICE CURLY PERMS." The countries are: Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama. I had a 30 year old former student come up to me at the Country Club a couple years ago and tell me, "Thanks, Mr. Bungum, for teaching me about mnemonics. I use that technique all the time in my business." Needless to say, it made me feel good.
HUMOR for today from the comic strip HAGAR THE HORRIBLE..
Hagar is returning home from another pillaging trip to England. As he is wallking up the path to his home he is talking to humself.
Hagar says: "Whew! I survived another week of the RAT RACE. My secret? Be strong and never show emotion.
Helga meets him at the door and says: "We're going to my mother's house this weekend."
Hagar breaks down and starts crying, with tears running down his cheeks and screaming, Waaa...Waaa.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Ted Turner and I think alike.
QUOTE from Jim Rohn, businessman/author: "To solve any problem, here are three questions to ask yourself: First, What can I do? Second, What can I read? And third, Who can I ask?"
I LEARNED today that Ted Turner and I think alike. I've been reading TIME Magazine's "The World's 100 Most Influential People."The article that caught my attention was written by Ted Turner. He was explaining why Oprah Winfrey deserved to be in the TOP 100.
He said in the last 25 years Oprah's show has transformed daytime TV and inspired, improved and changed the lives of people around the world. I have always admired independent thinkers, those with courage, faith and intuition to forge their own ways. and are intent on bettering the world along the way. Oprah, 57, defines this approach. She has not only made it to the top with the cards stacked against her, but she has also made extraordinary contributions to our global community through her philanthropic efforts.
He concluded by saying: I have often said that if women ruled the world for the next 100 years, we'd all be better off. With Oprah's new network, (OWN), I have a feeling that with the possibilities at her fingertips, we may be a step closer.
When I was reading this I was tellling myself that this is exactly how I feel about Oprah. And I've had the same feelings about women ruling the world. I'm in awe as to how she has made something of her life, coming from poverty in Mississippi. Oprah is one of my heroes and so is Ted Turner.
At our daily Happy Hour gathering places I'm appalled at some of the comments I've heard about her. One guy said he wasn't going to watch that "nigger." Another guy said she makes too much money. A lady bartender told me she didn't dare turn on Oprah because the men in there would object, rather loudly. We've made some progress in this country but we sure have a ways to go.
HUMOR for today: Some funny questions for bookstore clerks.
"Can you tell me who the author of Shakespeare is?"
"I'm looking for a book, but I only know the title, not the author. It's called Dante's Inferno."
"I definitely don't want nonfiction. I like autobiographies and history."
"Do you have Shakespeare in English?"
I LEARNED today that Ted Turner and I think alike. I've been reading TIME Magazine's "The World's 100 Most Influential People."The article that caught my attention was written by Ted Turner. He was explaining why Oprah Winfrey deserved to be in the TOP 100.
He said in the last 25 years Oprah's show has transformed daytime TV and inspired, improved and changed the lives of people around the world. I have always admired independent thinkers, those with courage, faith and intuition to forge their own ways. and are intent on bettering the world along the way. Oprah, 57, defines this approach. She has not only made it to the top with the cards stacked against her, but she has also made extraordinary contributions to our global community through her philanthropic efforts.
He concluded by saying: I have often said that if women ruled the world for the next 100 years, we'd all be better off. With Oprah's new network, (OWN), I have a feeling that with the possibilities at her fingertips, we may be a step closer.
When I was reading this I was tellling myself that this is exactly how I feel about Oprah. And I've had the same feelings about women ruling the world. I'm in awe as to how she has made something of her life, coming from poverty in Mississippi. Oprah is one of my heroes and so is Ted Turner.
At our daily Happy Hour gathering places I'm appalled at some of the comments I've heard about her. One guy said he wasn't going to watch that "nigger." Another guy said she makes too much money. A lady bartender told me she didn't dare turn on Oprah because the men in there would object, rather loudly. We've made some progress in this country but we sure have a ways to go.
HUMOR for today: Some funny questions for bookstore clerks.
"Can you tell me who the author of Shakespeare is?"
"I'm looking for a book, but I only know the title, not the author. It's called Dante's Inferno."
"I definitely don't want nonfiction. I like autobiographies and history."
"Do you have Shakespeare in English?"
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Two inspiring stories from the Reader's Digest's Best of America list.
QUOTE from Bill Maher: "The problem is that the people with the most ridiculous ideas are always the people who are most certain of them."
I LEARNED some interesting stuff from rhe May, 2011, edition of the Reader's Digest. The Digest had it's annual "BEST OF AMERICA" list. There were two stories that really caught my attention.
First, AMERICA'S BEST KNUCKLEBALLER. It is the story of Chelsea Baker, a girl from Plant City, Florida. She is 13, 5' 3" and weighs 117 lbs. In 2010 Chelsea pitched on the boys Little League team and was 12-0, had 127 strikeouts, pitched 60 innings, and had a batting average of .604. Chelsea is a great pitcher whose "signature pitch" is the knuckleball. The late, great pitcher Phil Niekro, taught Chelsea how to throw the knuckleball when she was seven years old. Since Niekro died in 2006, she has not lost a sanctioned Little League game. In fact, she has two perfect games, one against an all-star team in 2009. Last year, her jersey was placed in the Diamond Dreams Exhibit in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Chelsea hears taunts and catcalls once in a while. Opposing boys have hollered, "You should go play softball with the girls." Chelsea has an effective retort to the catcalls, although she doesn't do the talking - she just lets the umpire say, "Strike three."
The second story that caught my attention was "AMERICA"S BEST PLACE TO WORK."
SAS, a software company in Cary, North Carolina, had more than 49,000 job applications for only 741 open positions. Why? Look at the perks:
A 35,000- square-foot health-care center.
A 66,000-square-foot fitness center.
On-site day care.
Car detailing.
Hair and nail salons.
Massage therapy.
Subsidized lunch daily, plus free snacks and beverages.
Dry cleaning.
Personal banking.
Racket stringing.
Wellness programs.
Comprehensive health insurance.
It is easy to see why SAS has been FORTUNE magazine's top-ranked U.S. company to work at for the past two years.
SAS CEO Jim Goodnight explains his company's lavish benefits this way: "Ninety-five percent of my assets drive out the front gate every night," he says. "My job is to bring them back the next morning."
HUMOR for today:
A boy was assigned a paper on childbirth and asked his mother, "How was I born?"
Mother says: :Well honey... the stork brought you to us."
Boy: "Oh... W ell, how did you and daddy get born?"
Mother: "The stork brought us too."
Boy: Well how did grandma and grandpa get born?"
Mother: :The stork brought them too."
Several days later, the boy handed in his paper to the teacher who read with confusion the opening sentence: "This report has been very difficult to write due to the fact that there hasn't been a natural childbirth in my family for three generations."
I LEARNED some interesting stuff from rhe May, 2011, edition of the Reader's Digest. The Digest had it's annual "BEST OF AMERICA" list. There were two stories that really caught my attention.
First, AMERICA'S BEST KNUCKLEBALLER. It is the story of Chelsea Baker, a girl from Plant City, Florida. She is 13, 5' 3" and weighs 117 lbs. In 2010 Chelsea pitched on the boys Little League team and was 12-0, had 127 strikeouts, pitched 60 innings, and had a batting average of .604. Chelsea is a great pitcher whose "signature pitch" is the knuckleball. The late, great pitcher Phil Niekro, taught Chelsea how to throw the knuckleball when she was seven years old. Since Niekro died in 2006, she has not lost a sanctioned Little League game. In fact, she has two perfect games, one against an all-star team in 2009. Last year, her jersey was placed in the Diamond Dreams Exhibit in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Chelsea hears taunts and catcalls once in a while. Opposing boys have hollered, "You should go play softball with the girls." Chelsea has an effective retort to the catcalls, although she doesn't do the talking - she just lets the umpire say, "Strike three."
The second story that caught my attention was "AMERICA"S BEST PLACE TO WORK."
SAS, a software company in Cary, North Carolina, had more than 49,000 job applications for only 741 open positions. Why? Look at the perks:
A 35,000- square-foot health-care center.
A 66,000-square-foot fitness center.
On-site day care.
Car detailing.
Hair and nail salons.
Massage therapy.
Subsidized lunch daily, plus free snacks and beverages.
Dry cleaning.
Personal banking.
Racket stringing.
Wellness programs.
Comprehensive health insurance.
It is easy to see why SAS has been FORTUNE magazine's top-ranked U.S. company to work at for the past two years.
SAS CEO Jim Goodnight explains his company's lavish benefits this way: "Ninety-five percent of my assets drive out the front gate every night," he says. "My job is to bring them back the next morning."
HUMOR for today:
A boy was assigned a paper on childbirth and asked his mother, "How was I born?"
Mother says: :Well honey... the stork brought you to us."
Boy: "Oh... W ell, how did you and daddy get born?"
Mother: "The stork brought us too."
Boy: Well how did grandma and grandpa get born?"
Mother: :The stork brought them too."
Several days later, the boy handed in his paper to the teacher who read with confusion the opening sentence: "This report has been very difficult to write due to the fact that there hasn't been a natural childbirth in my family for three generations."
Monday, April 25, 2011
How FESB can make the senior years more enjoyable.
QUOTE from Helen Gurley Brown: "Money, if it does not bring you happiness, will at least help you be miserable in comfort."
I LEARNED how FESB can make the senior years more enjoyable.In Sunday's Cedar Rapids Gazette there was a supplement entitled, "Retirement Living." One of the articles was entitled, "Move It! Exercise is a key to good health at any age." I pretty much knew everything I read but it was good to refresh my memory, especially about the benefits. The article said the key to good health is an exercise routine that consists of four types of activity. I've made a mnemonic out of those four - I call them FESB. The F stands for FLEXIBITY; the E stands for ENDURANCE; the S stands for STRENGTH; the B stands for BALANCE. The key is to work all four of those into a weeks workout routine.
I'm pleased to say I do all four of those in my exercise routine. My philosophy is that I can take one hour hour of each day to exercise - I do mine in the morning. I realize I will not be able to do these forever so when I'm still able I'm going to do them. I take the first fifteen minutes of the hour to lift weights three days a week, do the excercise ball three days a week, do yoga postures everyday, and then walk for 45 minutes everyday.. I feel I fulfill all the FESB criteria - at least for a 70 year old man - and I feel great.
I hope the benefits, as enumerated in the article, are true for me as I get up in years. The benefits of FESB exercising are many. They can reverse type 2 diabetes and high cholestorol. They can prevent or delay
such conditions as dementia, osteroarthritis, obesity, high blood pressure, and osteoporosis (osteo means bone). Even if you have an irreversible disease FESB will slow the progression. FESB is also fantastic for the prevention and treatment of anxiety and depression. That is really true for me as I don't feel I'm wasting my life as a couch potato.
By doing FESB I have more energy and more positive thoughts which enable me to write books and write this BLOG. Exercising the mind is just as important as the body - they go together. I realize I will not be able to write books or BLOGS the rest of my life so I'm going to exercise both body and mind as long as I can. I love to write and share my perspectives on life - it keeps me learning and laughing.
HUMOR for today: Whe men shouldn't take messages.
A husband was home alone when the phone rang. It was the doctors office calling to talk to his wife. She wasn't home so the husband said he would take the message. This is the note he left his wife.
"Someone from the Gyna Colleges called. They said the Pabst Beer is fine. I thought you didn't like beer."
I LEARNED how FESB can make the senior years more enjoyable.In Sunday's Cedar Rapids Gazette there was a supplement entitled, "Retirement Living." One of the articles was entitled, "Move It! Exercise is a key to good health at any age." I pretty much knew everything I read but it was good to refresh my memory, especially about the benefits. The article said the key to good health is an exercise routine that consists of four types of activity. I've made a mnemonic out of those four - I call them FESB. The F stands for FLEXIBITY; the E stands for ENDURANCE; the S stands for STRENGTH; the B stands for BALANCE. The key is to work all four of those into a weeks workout routine.
I'm pleased to say I do all four of those in my exercise routine. My philosophy is that I can take one hour hour of each day to exercise - I do mine in the morning. I realize I will not be able to do these forever so when I'm still able I'm going to do them. I take the first fifteen minutes of the hour to lift weights three days a week, do the excercise ball three days a week, do yoga postures everyday, and then walk for 45 minutes everyday.. I feel I fulfill all the FESB criteria - at least for a 70 year old man - and I feel great.
I hope the benefits, as enumerated in the article, are true for me as I get up in years. The benefits of FESB exercising are many. They can reverse type 2 diabetes and high cholestorol. They can prevent or delay
such conditions as dementia, osteroarthritis, obesity, high blood pressure, and osteoporosis (osteo means bone). Even if you have an irreversible disease FESB will slow the progression. FESB is also fantastic for the prevention and treatment of anxiety and depression. That is really true for me as I don't feel I'm wasting my life as a couch potato.
By doing FESB I have more energy and more positive thoughts which enable me to write books and write this BLOG. Exercising the mind is just as important as the body - they go together. I realize I will not be able to write books or BLOGS the rest of my life so I'm going to exercise both body and mind as long as I can. I love to write and share my perspectives on life - it keeps me learning and laughing.
HUMOR for today: Whe men shouldn't take messages.
A husband was home alone when the phone rang. It was the doctors office calling to talk to his wife. She wasn't home so the husband said he would take the message. This is the note he left his wife.
"Someone from the Gyna Colleges called. They said the Pabst Beer is fine. I thought you didn't like beer."
Saturday, April 23, 2011
I talked to Jesus today.
QUOTE from Albert Einstein: "Hydrogen and stupidity are the two most common elements in the universe, not necessarily in that order."
HUMOR for today: On Wednesday I took Ruth Ann to the eye doctor in Cedar Rapids. While waiting to go into the exam room she heard three of the female employees talking and laughing their heads off. The one lady was telling the other two how she made a call the other day to remind a patient about his appointment. His name was Jesus Martinez.
She makes the call and the guy's wife answers the phone. She says to the wife, "I'm calling to remind Jesus about his appointment. Is Jesus there?" The wife giggled and said I'll get him.
Jesus gets on the phone and the lady says, "Is this Jesus?"
He says, "Yes, this is Jesus but my name is pronounced Hey-sue."
The employee and Jesus had a good laugh. She was thankful that he had a good sense of humor. I'm sure it had happened before. The employee obviously didn't know much about the spanish language.
When the lady got home that night she told her husband and son that she had talked to Jesus today. She said they both lost it as they were laughing so hard.
What I LEARNED from a D-Day survivor. While waiting for Ruth Ann in the waiting room I saw an elderly man with a WWII Veteran's cap on. I went over and struck up a conversation with him.
His name was Harold Bartz, he was 92 years old and went in on the second wave on D-Day near Omaha Beach. He told me they loaded the men up the night before at their port in England. After midnight they headed out to sea and anchored a mile or two from the beach. It took a while for the men to get off the ship and into the launch vehicles. When going in he said they were let off too far out and the water was pretty deep. He was 6'3" so the water was not over his head but the shorter guys could hardly stay up. We had 80 pound packs on our backs and 6 grenades attached to the front. He made it to shore even though the Germans were on a bluff picking us off like flies. Some of unit didn't make it.
When on shore he got up to throw a grenade. He was throwing it with his left hand when a bullet went through his left arm. The grenade dropped to the sand and he knew he had to move fast as he had already pulled the pin. He dove into the sand and the grenade exploded. He got shrapnel in his right arm and back
from his own grrenade. Those was the only wounds he got the rest of the war.
He said that when he recovered he became a scout for General Patton. The scouts would go out ahead and try to see what the German positions were, etc. He knew Patton personally and would sometimes argue with him. One time there were eight scouts being sent out and Patton ordered them to take off their dog tags. He told Patton you can't do that because if we get killed nobody wiil ever know what happened to us. We'll be eaten by some buzzards. Patton won the argument. He said Patton did give him a Silver Star.
He got to come home in December of 1944 because of the point system. Harold said his main thought everyday in combat was will I live to see my baby son. Whe he got home he went into farming near Belle Plaine, Iowa, and raised six kids. Over the years he has talked to numerous high schoold classes about his wartime experiences. He said every once in a while he'll have a flashback to D-Day. Of the 128 men in his D-Day outfit 124 were killed before the war was over. What an interesting man.
He and wife are writing a book about their 69 years of marriage.
HUMOR for today: On Wednesday I took Ruth Ann to the eye doctor in Cedar Rapids. While waiting to go into the exam room she heard three of the female employees talking and laughing their heads off. The one lady was telling the other two how she made a call the other day to remind a patient about his appointment. His name was Jesus Martinez.
She makes the call and the guy's wife answers the phone. She says to the wife, "I'm calling to remind Jesus about his appointment. Is Jesus there?" The wife giggled and said I'll get him.
Jesus gets on the phone and the lady says, "Is this Jesus?"
He says, "Yes, this is Jesus but my name is pronounced Hey-sue."
The employee and Jesus had a good laugh. She was thankful that he had a good sense of humor. I'm sure it had happened before. The employee obviously didn't know much about the spanish language.
When the lady got home that night she told her husband and son that she had talked to Jesus today. She said they both lost it as they were laughing so hard.
What I LEARNED from a D-Day survivor. While waiting for Ruth Ann in the waiting room I saw an elderly man with a WWII Veteran's cap on. I went over and struck up a conversation with him.
His name was Harold Bartz, he was 92 years old and went in on the second wave on D-Day near Omaha Beach. He told me they loaded the men up the night before at their port in England. After midnight they headed out to sea and anchored a mile or two from the beach. It took a while for the men to get off the ship and into the launch vehicles. When going in he said they were let off too far out and the water was pretty deep. He was 6'3" so the water was not over his head but the shorter guys could hardly stay up. We had 80 pound packs on our backs and 6 grenades attached to the front. He made it to shore even though the Germans were on a bluff picking us off like flies. Some of unit didn't make it.
When on shore he got up to throw a grenade. He was throwing it with his left hand when a bullet went through his left arm. The grenade dropped to the sand and he knew he had to move fast as he had already pulled the pin. He dove into the sand and the grenade exploded. He got shrapnel in his right arm and back
from his own grrenade. Those was the only wounds he got the rest of the war.
He said that when he recovered he became a scout for General Patton. The scouts would go out ahead and try to see what the German positions were, etc. He knew Patton personally and would sometimes argue with him. One time there were eight scouts being sent out and Patton ordered them to take off their dog tags. He told Patton you can't do that because if we get killed nobody wiil ever know what happened to us. We'll be eaten by some buzzards. Patton won the argument. He said Patton did give him a Silver Star.
He got to come home in December of 1944 because of the point system. Harold said his main thought everyday in combat was will I live to see my baby son. Whe he got home he went into farming near Belle Plaine, Iowa, and raised six kids. Over the years he has talked to numerous high schoold classes about his wartime experiences. He said every once in a while he'll have a flashback to D-Day. Of the 128 men in his D-Day outfit 124 were killed before the war was over. What an interesting man.
He and wife are writing a book about their 69 years of marriage.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Jackie Robinson makes it to major leagues.
QUOTE from an email. "I believe....That sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel."
I LEARNED about Jackie Robinson's major league career.
Branch Rickey decided Jackie Roninson was ready for the big show in Brooklyn. So six days before the start of the 1947 season he called him up to the Dodgers. His debut was on April 15, 1947. Eddie Stanky was entrenched at second base so Robinson played first base.There were 26,623 spectators, including more than 14,000 black patrons. He didn't get a hit but the Dodgers won anyway by 5-3.
Racial tensions existed in the Dodger clubhouse and existed with other teams. Some Dodger players insinuated they would sit out rather than play alongside Robinson. The potential mutiny ended when manager, Leo Durocher, informed the team, "I do not care if the guy is yellow or black, or if he has stripes like a fuckin' zebra. I'm the manager of this team, and I say he plays. What's more, I say he can make us all rich. And if any of you cannot use the money, I will see that you are all traded." Mutiny ended.
Other teams were hard on Robinson, especially the St. Louis Cardinals. They threatened to strike if Robinson played. They were informed they would be suspended if they did - the message came from Commissioner Happy Chandler and National League President Ford Frick. The Phillies called him a "nigger" from the dugout and told him to "go back to the cotton fields." Branch Rickey said that the abuse from the Phillies did more than anything else to unite and solifidy the thirty men on the Dodger team.
The one Dodger who was Robinson's biggest supporter was shortstop PeeWee Reese. Reese said, "You can hate a man for many reasons. Color in not one of them." In 1948, Reese put his arm around Robinson in response to fans who shouted racial slurs at Robinson before a game in Cincinnati. Robinson finished the season with 12 home runs, 29 steals, .297 betting average, .427 slugging percentage and 125 runs scored. At age 28, his performance earned him the inaugural Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award.
Racial pressure on Robinson eased in 1948 as a number of other black players entered the major leagues. Larry Doby (who broke the color barrier in the American League on July 5, 1947) and Satchel Paige played for the Cleveland Indians, and the Dodgers had three other black players besides Robinson. In February, 1948, Robinson signed a contract for $12,500 (equal to $114, 043 today). In the spring of 1949 Robinson turned to Hall of Famer George Sisler, for batting help. Sisler taught Robinson how to hit to right field, how to quit lunging, and how to check his swing until the last fraction of a second. As a result he had his best season in the major leagues. He raised his batting average to .342, stole 37 bases, was second in the league for both doubles and triples, had 124 RBIs, and 122 runs scored. For his performance Robinson earned the 1949 Most Valuable Player award for the National League. He was also voted the starting second baseman on the National League All-Star team - the first All-Star Game to include black players. He helped the Dodgers get to the World Series in 1947, 1949, 1952, 1953, 1955, and 1956. They finally won a World Series in 1955 when they defeated the Yankees, 4 games to 3.
Jackie Robinson retired from baseball in February of 1957.. He had been traded to the New York Giants after the 1956 season but decided to hang it up and not play for the Giants. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962. He is the only player in the history of Major Leauge Baseball to have his number, #42, retired from every major league team. Nobody wears #42 and never will.
His leagcy is that he was the first black man to play Major League Baseball. His legacy also is that he took Branch Rickey's advice and kept his mouth shut through all the racial taunts and threats on his life during that 1947 season. Mr. Rickey made a good choice.
Robinsom died in 1972 at the age of 53. He was a diabetic and had heart problems. With complications from diabetes he was nearly blind in his last year. He died of a heart attack at his home in Connecticut.
HUMOR for today: In primitive society, when native tribes beat the ground with clubs and yelled, it was called withcraft; today, in civilized society, it is called golf.
I LEARNED about Jackie Robinson's major league career.
Branch Rickey decided Jackie Roninson was ready for the big show in Brooklyn. So six days before the start of the 1947 season he called him up to the Dodgers. His debut was on April 15, 1947. Eddie Stanky was entrenched at second base so Robinson played first base.There were 26,623 spectators, including more than 14,000 black patrons. He didn't get a hit but the Dodgers won anyway by 5-3.
Racial tensions existed in the Dodger clubhouse and existed with other teams. Some Dodger players insinuated they would sit out rather than play alongside Robinson. The potential mutiny ended when manager, Leo Durocher, informed the team, "I do not care if the guy is yellow or black, or if he has stripes like a fuckin' zebra. I'm the manager of this team, and I say he plays. What's more, I say he can make us all rich. And if any of you cannot use the money, I will see that you are all traded." Mutiny ended.
Other teams were hard on Robinson, especially the St. Louis Cardinals. They threatened to strike if Robinson played. They were informed they would be suspended if they did - the message came from Commissioner Happy Chandler and National League President Ford Frick. The Phillies called him a "nigger" from the dugout and told him to "go back to the cotton fields." Branch Rickey said that the abuse from the Phillies did more than anything else to unite and solifidy the thirty men on the Dodger team.
The one Dodger who was Robinson's biggest supporter was shortstop PeeWee Reese. Reese said, "You can hate a man for many reasons. Color in not one of them." In 1948, Reese put his arm around Robinson in response to fans who shouted racial slurs at Robinson before a game in Cincinnati. Robinson finished the season with 12 home runs, 29 steals, .297 betting average, .427 slugging percentage and 125 runs scored. At age 28, his performance earned him the inaugural Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award.
Racial pressure on Robinson eased in 1948 as a number of other black players entered the major leagues. Larry Doby (who broke the color barrier in the American League on July 5, 1947) and Satchel Paige played for the Cleveland Indians, and the Dodgers had three other black players besides Robinson. In February, 1948, Robinson signed a contract for $12,500 (equal to $114, 043 today). In the spring of 1949 Robinson turned to Hall of Famer George Sisler, for batting help. Sisler taught Robinson how to hit to right field, how to quit lunging, and how to check his swing until the last fraction of a second. As a result he had his best season in the major leagues. He raised his batting average to .342, stole 37 bases, was second in the league for both doubles and triples, had 124 RBIs, and 122 runs scored. For his performance Robinson earned the 1949 Most Valuable Player award for the National League. He was also voted the starting second baseman on the National League All-Star team - the first All-Star Game to include black players. He helped the Dodgers get to the World Series in 1947, 1949, 1952, 1953, 1955, and 1956. They finally won a World Series in 1955 when they defeated the Yankees, 4 games to 3.
Jackie Robinson retired from baseball in February of 1957.. He had been traded to the New York Giants after the 1956 season but decided to hang it up and not play for the Giants. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962. He is the only player in the history of Major Leauge Baseball to have his number, #42, retired from every major league team. Nobody wears #42 and never will.
His leagcy is that he was the first black man to play Major League Baseball. His legacy also is that he took Branch Rickey's advice and kept his mouth shut through all the racial taunts and threats on his life during that 1947 season. Mr. Rickey made a good choice.
Robinsom died in 1972 at the age of 53. He was a diabetic and had heart problems. With complications from diabetes he was nearly blind in his last year. He died of a heart attack at his home in Connecticut.
HUMOR for today: In primitive society, when native tribes beat the ground with clubs and yelled, it was called withcraft; today, in civilized society, it is called golf.
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