Andy Roddick Almost Photo Flop
I have a camera curse. Whenever I really want to take a picture of something I can pretty much count on dead batteries, no film or a full memory card, an unremoved lens cap or some other malfunction. it’s a given. I really don’t know why I continue to even bring a camera…but being the eternal optimist I brought my camera to the St. Louis Aces tennis match tonight hoping to get a picture of Andy Roddick and my kids….especially Andy Roddick and my younger son, Sam who is a ball boy for the Aces and who had been looking forward to seeing Roddick since he cancelled his St. Louis appearance last year.
Before I left home I carefully put new batteries in my camera and made sure I had an empty memory card. I was hopeful that I would break the curse. Sam was working on Roddick’s side of the net when the match ended and he ran up to him and asked him something….Roddick swatted him away. I asked him later what had transpired and he said he asked him for his jersey but that Roddick "gave it to some old Lady". I didn’t ask what his defintion of an "old lady" was but I immediately decided Roddick was a jerk. My hopes for a photo op dimmed slightly.
So, the ball boys get to line up first for autographs and pictures and Sam was first in line. My older son Forrest, a former but not current ball boy was summarily taken out of the front of the line and moved back to the non- ball kid line by a very strict young man in an Aces t shirt who apprently was in charge of the line. He was providing on going instructions on the proper line behavior for both kids and parents while everone waited for Roddick to finish his shower and come out to meet and greet the kids. Apparently earlierr in the evening Roddick had been a no-show at the sponsor’s tent and there was some speculation that he might not even come out at all.
After quite some time, Roddick came out looking none to happy to be there…I fired up my camera to take Sam’s picture when the line boss lunged forward, grabbed my arm and inexplicably told me to stand back. I missed the shot. I protested that it was my turn to move forward...that was my son’s turn and he had made me miss my shot. He glared and nodded at Sam to move back to Roddick so I could try again. I snapped away….nothing happened. The curse of the camera had returned. 
I call this one from 2003, Almost Martina. First my lens cap was on. Then Forrest kept moving in front of Navitrolva as I tried in vain to get them both in the shot in the nanosecond you are alotted. Well, Forrest was coming up in the Roddick line and I got hopeful again.
Well, Forrest looks good, Roddick is out of focus but they are in the same picture.
Now, what about Sam? He spots another Andy, Andy Ram. Andy Ram was much more congenial than the other Andy. He put his arm around Sam, smiled, and the curse lifted. We headed for the exit. Sure Sam was disappointed about his hoped for picture of Roddick but Roddick didn’t really seem too happy to be there signing autographs…lets hope he was just disppointed in his match loss and not that he has turned into just another…well you know what I mean! 
Kickball Lives!
An article in today’s WSJ on kickball caught my nostalgic Boomer’s eye… I started thinking about that red ball, recess, and grade school. 
I would never have imagined back then (way, way back then) that there would be such a thing as WAKA, the World Adult Kickball Association. Kickball, it seems is quite popular among "recent college graduates" who according to the WSJ "appreciate its combination of minimal physical exertion, ample game-time socializing and postgame drinking." 
Sounds like the perfect sport for the recently publicly labeled entitlement generation.
No less an authority than Dr. Mel Levine has proclaimed an epidemic of twentysomethings "who had too much success early in life
and who’ve become accustomed to instant gratification…many of the individuals we see are heavily
committed to something we call ‘fun.’" Must have been all those blue first place ribbons for "participation" that they have….now they are all expecting to graduate from college, put in a hard morning as CEO of General Motors, and play competitive kickball until Happy Hour.
The entitled have responded at Corante by blaming their elders…. for misinforming them. Is not-it one word or two?
Shaq Adds MBA Title to his NBA Titles
Shaquille O’Neal received his MBA degree today from the Unversity of Phoenix saying he wanted to get ready for the real world.
He said, " "Someday I might have to put down a basketball and have a regular 9-to-5 like everybody else", as reported in Yahoo News.
The MBA Lives!
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