I received a very nice early Christmas present from my buddy Steve Raley the other day. Following lunch one day last week he told me about his brother Carl clearing out some of his baseball memorabilia to donate for a fund raiser. Carl had everything arrayed along a wall and told Steve to take any item that he liked. Steve, knowing I was a big Orioles/Jim Palmer fan, grabbed this Hall of Fame induction plaque for me. How cool is that?!
This means a lot to me because I was there in Cooperstown that weekend for Jim’s induction. I’d like to say that it seems like only yesterday but in fact it seems like ancient history now.
Thank you Steve; thank you Carl. I don’t know how Santa can top this but he’s got to go some to bring me a present anywhere near as great as this one. Then again, I haven’t been too good this year so Santa may not be bringing me anything anyway.
Speaking of Santa, you know about the controversy surrounding the Christmas song Baby It’s Cold Outside right? (If you don’t (click here for story.) But were you aware that Santa Baby is also on the banned list? Turns out that the song has been deemed controversial because it portrays women as gold diggers using their feminine charms to induce Santa to lay some lavish gifts on them. For a good article on how the song came to be in 1953 click here .)
You’ve heard Eartha Kitt and Madonna sing it, but check out Shakira’s take on it. (Wonder if Shakira would ever like to go to an Orioles ball game with me?)