dropping The Ball
2024 got off to an upbeat start for me. I watched CNN's New Year’s Eve broadcast with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen live from Times Square. Good music and fun interviews with onlookers from around the world. More than a million people were in Times Square for the hoopla. A lot of them had been there since 10 a.m. I gotta tell ya, the main reason I watch every year is to hear Sinatra singing “New York, New York” after the giant Wiffle Ball drops. It reminds me of walking out of Yankee Stadium after a ballgame. The best tune ever in the best city in the world.
Usually the crowd skedaddles after the ball drops. This year, a surprising number of people hung around. Laughing, dancing, and having a helluva time. I’m telling ya, people want to be around people. We all need it to make it through.
The next day I did what I always do and watched the NHL Winter Classic, played outdoors this year at the Seattle Mariners’ stadium. It’s always a great event. And it brings back a lot of memories for people who skated on backyard rinks and frozen ponds. When I was a kid, we played hockey in the reservoir. We used to play out there for hours. The goals were wooden boxes or a coupla bricks or boots or whatever the hell you could find. There was a log fire to keep ya warm. Maybe we’d cook up a few weenies on a stick. Sometimes my jackass cousin who would chase a runaway puck and fall through the ice. No biggie, keep playing. No crybabies allowed. In the spring, when the snow melted, you’d find all the pucks you lost.
The NHL pros recalled the same memories. That’s where they learned the game. After the Winter Classic, it was just like Times Square. There was no rush to leave the stadium. Too busy talking, laughing, and having a helluva time. Something’s going on out there, Bucko.
Keep your dukes up.
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