Just heard Bill Lee signed to the Brockton Rox at 63 years young! When he pitched for the Red Sox he was the hero of my house. How my parents relished his renegade and kooky ways. Poor Don Zimmer (the Gerbil) was right there with Nixon as far as my family was concerned. He was “the man”, the squasher of free spirits, the bore. Worst of all he we thought him an “explainer”, you know the type, an expert in his own mind. My mom wrote an essay called “Bill Lee a Love Song” and sent it to him. Months later she and my dad saw Lee at the Eliot Lounge and she asked him if he had received it. He said, “Are you kidding! I put it in my scrapbook!” With those words he was cemented forever in the hearts of the Hughes’.

photo from: Spaceman: A Baseball Odyssey

My brother JoJo is working this summer on Jeju Island, South Korea. I read that the island has been historically matriarchal. In large part because of the Haenyo who have been the primary breadwinners. Apparently the men were too skinny and the women better adapted to stay in the water. They are able to dive 20 meters deep and hold their breath for over 2 minutes. Often it was the men who stayed home and raised the family. How cool is that!

photo: source

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