The Curveball at the Crossroads Book Release Party was a smashing success!
Books were sold.
Cake was eaten.
Drinks were drank.
Fun was had.
Thank you to everyone who came out and a major thank you to the James Joyce Irish Pub for their support and allowing me to use such a great venue!
I finally received my copies of the 2nd edition of Curveball at the Crossroads. I was out of town for week and had them shipped to a family member's house and finally picked them up today. These on-hand copies will be for sale at the book release party at James Joyce Irish Pub in Tampa, FL on Dec 20.
Of course, par for the course with any online presence, I had to make an unboxing video. I think it turned out well.
Also, if any one wants a signed copy, let me know. My contact information is in the Connect section of this site. I take venmo and cashapp. Each copy of the book is $20 ($15 for the book, $5 shipping and postage).
On December 20th, 2021, I will be hosting a book release party for the 2nd edition of his highly acclaimed debut novel, Curveball at the Crossroads, from 6pm to 9pm at James Joyce Irish Pub, 1724 E 8th Ave, Tampa, FL 33605.
In a limited 1st edition printing, Curveball at the Crossroads received positive reviews from sportswriters, radio hosts, bloggers, podcasters, and New York Times Best Selling authors. Curveball at the Crossroads was also named runner-up, Best Book by a Local Author in Creative Loafing Tampa’s Best of the Bay 2021 Issue.
The 2nd edition of Curveball at the Crossroads builds on this success with a new cover designed by Grego “Mojohand” Anderson, one of America’s premier blues folk artists. This new cover captures the essence of the story while using the symbology of blues folklore.
Books will be available for purchase at a discounted rate and signed by the author. Drink specials to be announced.
I am super happy to announce Curveball at the Crossroads is now available everywhere! It has been a long road to get the book globally available, but it is now on Amazon, Barnes & Nobles, Abebooks, IngramSpark, IndieBound, and most importantly, through your local book store!
For me here in the Tampa Bay area, that would be Tombolo Books - click here to order Curveball at the Crossroads from them!
Please remember to support local businesses, they need your help!
I also offer signed copies - both of the 2nd edition and the limited 1st edition. I take venmo and cashapp. Hit me up at @JordiScrubbings on twitter or instagram!
On a personal note, it has been such a long journey to get this book to the masses. Somewhere deep in the bowels of this blog are posts where I documented the writing process. That was in 2012/2013. Almost 10 years later, it's out and not only are people buying it, but they are reading it. And they are enjoying it.
That makes the journey worth it.
My good friend Adam from 911Studios has a channel on Amazon called Elite Demonstrations. Adam hosts a show regularly on Amazon where he demonstrates products, from vacuum cleaners to Christmas trees. Adam talks about it all. And he often offers amazing deals on these products exclusive to his channel.
A few days ago, Adam was kind enough to include Curveball at the Crossroads in his carousel of products. He spent a few minutes talking about the book and provided a link to the new ebook available on Amazon.
(Disclaimer: I gave Adam a physical copy of Curveball at the Crossroads because he likes baseball and is a friend of mine. Since however, he has made a youtube review for the book that has nearly 7,000 views and offered it on Amazon. I am lucky to have friends who support my work.)
You can watch Adam's Elite Demonstrations video where he discusses Curveball at the Crossroads here:
A Very Macho Christmas Party! Trees, Electronics, Gifts - Elite Demonstrations, Amazon
Curveball at the Crossroads is available wherever ebooks are available, to include Barnes and Noble and Amazon. There is currently a slight discount at Barnes and Noble, so you can save 50 cents. But at most, the Curveball at the Crossroads ebook is $10.
Only $10 for a book named runner-up Best Book by a Local Author in Tampa Bay 2021.
Check it out here:
Curveball at the Crossroads ebook - Barnes and Noble
Curveball at the Crossroads ebook - Amazon
Super excited to announce that Curveball at the Crossroads was named one of the three best books by a local author in the last 12 months in Creative Loafing's Best of the Bay 2021.
That's huge. Not only is Creative Loafing Tampa read by thousands of people in the Tampa Bay area, but it also has a large online presence.
I definitely want to thank everyone who voted for Curveball at the Crossroads. Thank you!
Once again I will be setting up shop at Ferg's Sports Bar in St Petersburg, Florida. I will be selling and signing copies of Curveball at the Crossroads and my other writings from noon to 6pm on Sunday, September 26th before, during, and following the Tampa Bay Rays game against the Miami Marlins.
Ferg's Sports Bar and Grill is located at 1320 Central Avenue St. Petersburg, FL 33705.
Over the last decade, I have written for many sports blogs. One of my more frequent guest features has been in Rays blog DRaysBay. The folks there have always been supportive and great.
When I told them Curveball at the Crossroads was nominated for Best Book by a Local Author in Creative Loafing, they wanted to post about it. Which I was super cool with. And they included the new cover which is coming soon in the 2nd edition.
Long time e-migo and writer friend Jay Busbee of Yahoo Sports has been a big part of Curveball at the Crossroads since it was an extremely rough draft. Jay had a big role in the book's creation. So of course, Jay was one of the first people to get a copy when it was finally published.
And Jay was one of the first people to review it:
"Baseball and the blues, two American originals, come together in this striking -- no pun intended -- tale of faith and perseverance. Like baseball and the blues, CURVEBALL AT THE CROSSROADS is enticing and seductive, a story that will stay with you long after the last pitch."
And Jay was one of the first people to post about it on Instagram. Big thanks to Jay Busbee for his support and encouragement!
These posts never get easier. But even if someone passes through my life on few occasions, I still like to write about those memorable moments. I feel it is a great way to pay tribute.
Way back when I first moved to Tampa, I attended Florida Championship Wrestling. FCW was the training ground of WWE and, as I have written often, it was a family-like atmosphere with a great fanbase. It was where I started rocking my now famous afro wig and joined the famous (maybe infamous?) Afro-Squad.
It was also where I met Norman Wright. Norm was a local wrestling fan with eyes on joining the wrestling business. Norm was a good dude, a nice guy, who always said hello and was a pleasure to be around.
If I am not mistaken, Norm trained with FCW for a bit as well, learning the ins and outs of wrestling. After finishing with the WWE's affiliated school, he then set a sail into the Florida independent wrestling scene, where breaking in is tough and networking is tougher.
But Norm made it, and in 2011, he wrestled several matches in All-Star Wrestling under the name "Roman Wright". I was a regular at ASW shows and saw Roman in the ring quite often. Roman was a tough guy who battled well in the ring, although he drew the ire of fans with his attitude and demeanor. Roman was opposite of Norm, who was a friend to anyone in the crowd.
While that was the extent of my time seeing Norm wrestle, it was a few other times I saw him around town that I will always remember. In 2019, I saw him at the now-closed Franklin Manor nightclub in downtown Tampa. He was hanging out with a few ladies and enjoying himself. We caught up and he told me he was working at another nightclub. It had been years since we talked, but we caught up like old friends.
But my greatest memory of Norm was in October 2008. October 19th, 2008 to be exact. The day the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays played Game 7 of the American League Championship Series. Being new to South Tampa, I was looking for a place to watch the game. I discovered the Press Box, one of Tampa's oldest sports bars. It was packed for the big game and there was not a table to be found. Fortunately, I spotted Norm sitting at the bar with a friend. Although I had only met him a few months earlier at the FCW shows, he waved me over to join them. The whole night was electric was the Rays won and made their first World Series in franchise history. I will forever be appreciative of Norm for finding me a spot in the crowded sports bar and letting me hang with him and his friend.
Farewell, Norm. You were a good dude gone too soon.
It has been a while since I reviewed a concert on this website. I used write about all the concerts I went to. Over the last few years, I haven't done that as often. Admittedly, COVID-19 shut down the live music scene around the world and there wasn't much to write about, but even before then I wasn't documenting as I was years ago. So excuse me if I am a bit rusty.
I am relatively new to the work of Selwyn Birchwood. Although I read his name in articles and saw it on marques for much of the last 10 years, I never took the time to look him up until I saw his song "Guilty Pleasures" on YouTube. I am a blues stickler/purist and I was super impressed. He had soul, he had a groove, and he nailed the blues.
A few months later, during the pandemic, I saw Selwyn in the background in a large blues tribute show video. I think it might be the BB King Tribute in the Capital Theater, but I am not sure and the videos for that show aren't complete. Regardless of where it was, I said to myself that I better get his music before he gets super huge and too expensive to see live.
In 2020, Selwyn put out a new album, Living in a Burning House. The album contains a song called "Freaks Come Out at Night" (no, not a Whodini cover). The video for this song was filmed at the Bradfordville Blues Club, outside of Tallahassee - one of America's last remaining juke joints and one of my favorite places to see live music anywhere. If I wasn't a fan of Selwyn Birchwood before, I was definitely a fan at that point.
I finally had a chance to see Selwyn live in May 2021 at the Safety Harbor Art & Music Center in Safety Harbor, Florida. The Art & Music Center is an interesting place and the crowd was a bit subdued for my taste, sitting throughout the concert and applauding only between songs. I prefer a more active crowd.
And that is what I got at Skipper's Smokehouse.
I arrived with a few friends a few songs into Selwyn's show. Oddly, there was no opening act on the bill, only the headliner. Although I wasn't disappointed, I found the lack of opening act interesting and kinda unique. It is rare to not see an opener.
But no opener leaves more time for the headliner and that was who I was here to see.
Selwyn Birchwood and his band rocked for over 3 hours. They played a lot of his new album "Living in a Burning House", which was a lot like the time I saw him in Safety Harbor months ago, but this time he mixed in several of his older songs, such as "Guilty Pleasures" and "Hoodoo Stew".
All night long, the dance floor at Skipper's was filled with people rocking and grooving to Selwyn and his band. He is one of the few blues acts to incorporate a saxophone and it definitely makes his sound more layered and unique. Selwyn also plays a happier type of blues. Instead of wallowing in the sad things in life, his music tends to be more upbeat and celebrating positive ends through the negative.
While creating his own sound, Selwyn Birchwood did some classic blues impersonations, both in voice and in riff, covering some Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf. But like he said, the reason he doesn't play like them is because they are them and he is himself, therefore there is no reason to play like them.
Overall, it was a great show. Three hours of blues, groove, soul, and dancing makes for a great time. Especially on a pleasant Florida summer night. Selwyn Birchwood is the real deal, an entertaining bluesman with a modern sound that calls back to the legends of the genre. He is one of several new artists carrying the blues on to the next generation.
On a social note, my friend's friend who joined us was a young mid-20s Black girl who wasn't used to the blues scene, but wanted to come out for some live music. While she had a great time and did quite a bit of dancing, she mentioned how it was weird how she was a minority in a show performed by a band that was 80% Black doing music her culture invented. There weren't many Black folks in the crowd. I told her my theory on how the blues was stolen from Black people in the 60s and Black culture moved on to R&B, Soul, and eventually Hip-Hop. But from my perspective as a white dude, it was interesting to see and hear her reaction to the music and to the crowd.
Before I close, however, I want to mention the venue. Skipper's Smokehouse did a lot while closed to clean up and make the concert experience more comfortable. Outside of the always tight parking, Skippers is a great place to see a show. Everything was cleaner, from the bathrooms to the stage to the walls of the venue.
My one complaint was with the obnoxious older couple who tried to push my friend and her friend off of their seats when they tried to find a place to sit. They got an attitude and the incident almost turned into a mess. But we avoided conflict and spent most of our time on the dance floor directly in front of them, blocking their view and rocking to Selwyn Birchwood.
Pro wrestling is big business these days. Wrestlers are stars who attend award shows and do big interviews.
The problem I have is when they break kayfabe. As wrestlers, they play one role - that of their in-ring persona. They are not actors, playing different roles in different movies. Wrestlers are more like Pee-Wee Herman. They are their performing role for the extent in which they are that role. If they move companies and change roles, names, or characters, then the old character ceases to exist. They don't talk about the old character.
But unfortunately too many wrestlers today are treating their in-ring persona as just a thing they do when the cameras are rolling. Their gimmick is only something they do when they are in a pro wrestling environment, whether it be a ring, a stadium, or an autograph signing. The gimmick is just a job, not a way of life.
Perhaps the worst offender of this new mentality is Lexi Kaufman otherwise known as WWE Superstar Alexa Bliss. For years, Lexi Kaufman has ignored the traditional rules of kayfabe and varied between her real life and wrestling personas. This differentiation has become more obvious when her gimmick became a dark, possessed, demon girl while in real life she likes Disney movies, playing with her dog, and hanging out with her significant other.
All of her real life hobbies would be fine if she broadcasted them under the name Lexi Kaufman. Instead, they are all published under the name Alexa Bliss, the name of a demonic, evil person in the WWE Universe.
Lexi Kaufman has never been one of my favorite pro wrestlers, if she would even call herself that. She probably prefers "sports entertainer", a term invented by WWE.
Recently, Lexi did an interview in which she stated that she would like to get into acting because "she is doing a lot of acting now in WWE". I cringed when I read that. Such a blatant disregard for kayfabe.
So I did what I normally do, and I tweeted my objection to Lexi's comments. Notice however that they are attributed to Alexa Bliss. That purposefully blurring of the line is what makes wrestling unique. Actors don't do interviews as their characters, but wrestlers do interviews in their gimmick. As they should.
But apparently Alexa Bliss wants to get away from her doll holding, creepy wrestling career and get into acting. Or is that Lexi Kaufman's goals? What are Alexa Bliss's goals in the WWE?
My tweet objecting to Lexi's interview was seen by Lexi who replied on her Alexa Bliss twitter account. So who replied to me? Was it Lexi, the Disney-loving athlete-entertainer? Or was it Alexa Bliss, the dark, demonic, doll-carrying wrestler?
Either way, she came back with a heelish reply. And I am ok with that.
I had the pleasure of talking to the folks at the LockedOnRays podcast recently. I had a great time talking with host Kevin Weiss. They divided the interview into three parts.
We talked about Rays attendance, the Rays stadium situation, and of course my novel Curveball at the Crossroads.
Interviewing Rays Stadium Expert Michael Lortz (Part 1)
Every year, Tampa Bay alternative weekly Creative Loafing holds a "Best of the Bay" contest. This election lets readers vote for their favorite Tampa Bay things, such as restaurants, concerts, performers, sports teams, and arts.
Of course, books fall under arts. And Curveball at the Crossroads is listed among 20 of Tampa Bay's best new books in the last 12 months. Now the goal is to be number 1. For that, I need your help.
There is some stiff competition for Best Book of Tampa Bay but I am sure I can gather the votes to win. After all, how many of the books on the ballot are about a pitcher going to the crossroads and making a deal with the Devil?
One. Mine.
So please take a moment and vote Curveball at the Crossroads for Best Book by a Local Author. Thank you and I appreciate your support!
My friend Matt has a podcast called the EstoBro TV show. It is a fun pop culture podcast where he and his friends talk about everything and anything from sports to video games to comic books to food to anime. It is wide reaching and fun.
For the last few months, Matt and I have talked about me being on the podcast to promote Curveball at the Crossroads. Matt has read the book - he was one of the first people to buy it - and has posted reviews of it on both Amazon and Goodreads.
I really enjoyed being on this podcast. It starts with me killing a cockroach in my apartment and we weave our way through discussions on baseball, the blues, the Wu-Tang Clan, and Curveball at the Crossroads. I answered some great questions about the references in the book, who I would to direct the movie Curveball at the Crossroads, and what music is best to listen to while reading Curveball at the Crossroads.
Check out EstoBro TV: The Podcast - Curveball at the Crossroads.
Once again, I set up shop at Ferg's Sports Bar and Grill outside of Tropicana Field. I sold several copies of Curveball at the Crossroads and my previous book, The Man Makes You Work, before, during, and after the Tampa Bay Rays game against the Boston Red Sox.
Selling outside of Ferg's is a lot of fun. Sure, the average baseball fan is not looking to buy a book during a trip to the ballpark, but some do and they are willing to support local writers. I appreciate these people. Some come by my stand and check out my book and chat, which is ok as well. Some come by and ask for beer, which I can't help, unfortunately.
But Ferg's is a blast and I can't wait to go back.
I had the pleasure of talking with my longtime friend Sully on his podcast on the LockedOn network. Comedian, TV producer and creator of the Sully Baseball Podcast Paul Francis "Sully" Sullivan is the host of LockedOnMLB, a podcast that covers all of Major League Baseball.
Of course, we talked about Curveball at the Crossroads, then we discussed the Tampa Bay Rays, both on the field and off the field statuses.
I highly recommend Sully's podcast. He has a passion for the game and such a wide array of interests - check out how our conversation veered to Star Wars - and amazing knowledge of baseball.
Here is the link: Locked On MLB - Daily Podcast On Major League Baseball
Spike on the Mic is a fun show that covers weird and unusual headlines and has humorous banter between a bevy of hosts. I felt right at home talking with them. In the final minutes, I told them about my book, which most of the hosts were excited to hear about.
Thanks again to Spike for having me on and I hope to be on again soon!
Here is the link to the Spike on the Mic Show featuring Curveball at the Crossroads.
I sold copies of Curveball at the Crossroads at WXW Wrestling in Minneola, Florida on Saturday, July 10, 2021. Big thank you to the Anoa'i Family for letting me set up a table.
And big thanks to this fine fellow from a far away galaxy who checked out Curveball at the Crossroads. He also bought a copy of The Man Makes You Work
I am very happy to announce that Curveball at the Crossroads is now available at Mojo Books and Music in Tampa, Florida. You can find the book in the local authors section and every copy available at Mojo Books and Records is signed by the author (me).
Mojo Books and Records is a perfect first place to sell Curveball at the Crossroads as it is also a used music store. Given the blues music inspirations in Curveball at the Crossroads, that's perfect.
Mojo Books and Music is located at 2540 E Fowler Ave, University Center Shopping Plaza, Tampa, FL 33612-6271.
I will be selling and signing copies of Curveball at the Crossroads at Ferg's Sports Bar and Grill on June 12, 2021 before and during the Rays 4pm game with the Baltimore Orioles.
Come out and say hello!
I recently posted my thoughts about my Grandfather, who passed away last week. While I will always have pictures and memories to remember him, there is also a song by Nirvana that brings a smile to my face every time I hear it.
The first time I heard "Sliver", it was on MTV in the mid-1990s. I was familiar with Nirvana's bigger hits such as "Smells Like Teen Spirit", "Come As You Are", etc, but I had never heard this raw, punk-like Nirvana song. I wasn't even sure what album it was on (1994's Incesticide, I would find out. Although it was a single released during Nirvana's earlier days with SubPop Records.)
Sliver stayed in my memory for a long time as in those pre-internet days, trying to find a song you heard once was fairly difficult. Today, I would have searched YouTube for 10 minutes and found it. It wasn't until I found a bootleg copy of "The Best of Nirvana" at a vendor table in Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1998 that I finally owned the song I heard years earlier.
First, the video, then I will discuss why this song means so much to me.
When I was little, my parents and I lived approximately 10 minutes from my mother's parents. We went there regularly. It was there that I watched Star Wars on VHS for the first time - and every time I visited. While the adults talked and prepared dinner, I was in the living room watching Star Wars or cartoons. Every time.
And when my parents had to go somewhere and couldn't bring me, as the song says, they dropped me off at Grandpa Joe's. The rest of the lyrics also reflect different times at my Grandparents.
[Verse 1]
When Mom and Dad went to a show
They dropped me off at grandpa Joe's
I kicked and screamed
Said, "Please, don't go!"
Although I liked going to my Grandparents' house, I am sure I did this a few times.
[Verse 2]
Had to eat my dinner there
Mashed potatoes and stuff like that
I couldn't chew my meat too good
I ate dinner at my Grandparents' house many times. As a growing kid with a fast metabolism, my Grandmother used to say I had a hollow leg. One of my Grandmother's best dinners was meatloaf and mashed potatoes and stuff like that.
[Verse 3]
She said, "Why don't you stop your crying?
Go outside and ride your bike"
That's what I did
I killed my toe!
I don't remember riding my bike around my Grandparents' house when I was little, but when I was 10, we visited my Grandparents' new house in Florida. I went outside to ride a bike and instead of killing my toe, I flipped off the bike, banged my head, and had a concussion. Not quite the same, but close.
[Verse 4]
Well, after dinner I had ice cream
I fell asleep and watched TV
I woke up in my mothers arms!
I guarantee this happened. As I mentioned, I watched Star Wars every time I was there. And like most kids, I had a huge ice cream habit.
I am not sure if Kurt Cobain really had a Grandpa Joe. I am also not sure if his childhood was spent eating dinner at his Grandparents house, having ice cream for dessert, and falling asleep to Star Wars. Maybe this is just a catchy pop tune that popped into Cobain's brain as he was fiddling with his guitar. Maybe he just dug the rhythm of the lyrics and an Uncle Ralph or Uncle Fred wouldn't rhyme with "show".
But I had a Grandpa Joe and whenever Sliver plays, I will remember those days.
Every line ends in rhyme.
[Chorus]
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
Grandma, take me home!
I wanna be alone!
When we are born, we inherit family roles. You are a son or a daughter. Your parents become Mom or Dad. Aunts become Aunts. Uncles become Uncles. Brothers become brothers and sisters become sisters. Grandparents become grandparents.
That's how it usually is. But I was lucky. I had a Grandfather who became a friend.
Had. That's tough to write. To be honest, I have dreaded writing this for years. Although I had penned a tribute to a teacher and fellow student in college, the first time I wrote about a family member passing away was when I wrote about my Grandmother, my Grandfather's wife of over 60 years.
Both of my Grandmothers passed away when I was working in Afghanistan in 2012. I wrote about what both of them meant to me. I wrote because I missed funerals and it was a way to say good-bye. Now as I get older, and more people close to me pass away, I write as a way to process.
Since my Grandmother passed away nearly nine years ago, my Grandfather and I became much closer, making this essay that much more difficult. But it not that this is tough to write. Far from it. It is that trying to capture the memories, his personality, and what he meant to me in less than a million words is a challenge.
And in what order do you put a lifetime of memories?
For sake of not repeating earlier essays, I will pass over times spent with both grandparents - the times they visited me when I was in the Army stationed in Texas (pictured above), the times I visited them on my way to see parents during my college years. While I hold those memories near and dear, this essay is only about my time spent with my Grandfather.
The best place to start is in October 2012, when I was home on a vacation from Afghanistan. My Grandmother had only been gone six months, and I took time from seeing friends, a girl I was dating, and my parents, to swing by Ocala, Florida to see my Grandfather. It was the first time I hung out with him without my Grandmother. It is here when spending time with him became unique, as it was just us.
We went to Outback that day, or "the Outhouse" as he like to called it. He asked how I was doing. I told him stories of Afghanistan, how I was working in an international environment, and how I learned to say greetings in Polish, the language of his immigrant parents.
He seemed in good spirits, although it was obvious he was lonely.
I returned from Afghanistan in 2013, nearly year after my Grandmother passed away. I didn't have a job nor a place to live yet, so I asked if I could spend a month at his house, as it was close to Tampa where I was planning to move again. He agreed.
We spent quality time together during that month. We went out to eat a lot. We talked. I watched him talk on the phone with his children, his brother, and any other relative who called. My favorite thing was catching him purposefully giving people wrong information. For example, he would tell each one of his children - my mother, aunts, and uncle - a different date for an upcoming doctor's appointment. Then they would each run in different directions. Pulling people's leg gave him joy. He was mischievous like that.
I think he also told people wrong information because he was tired of them asking the same questions repeatedly. "When is your next doctor's appointment?", "What medicine are you taking?", "What did the doctor say?". I think he liked me because I never asked those questions. We talked about anything else. And I made a point to never ask about his doctors or his health. Enough people asked those questions. My conversations with him, whether in his house or in his care facilities always started with "How you doing?".
As the years progressed, his ability to manage his home diminished, and he was moved into a home closer to my parents. This actually made it easier for me to see him, as I had moved back to Tampa. Every time I visited my parents on the east coast of Florida, I would see my Grandfather for a bit. Sometimes if I was in town for an extended amount of time, I would spend a day with him. He always asked about my jobs and my classes and I asked him how the food was where he was living. Of course, it was always horrible and he always wanted to leave. But we had fun, even if he did make fun of me for dozing off in his guest chair on occasion.
"You came to visit, and all you are doing is sleeping? You could have done that at home."
Sometimes I would check him out of his facility and take him to lunch. One afternoon we picked up food and went to the local river and people watched. He made me laugh with sarcastic comments about almost everyone who passed by. After eating at the river, we drove the ocean and walked to the boardwalk. That's where I took a picture of him with the ocean in the background. I like this picture.
Although there are many of other pics of he and I, I wish I taken a selfie of us at the beach. I think it also would have turned out good.
On a side note, I like how the picture above compares with the below picture from a Long Island beach in October 1949. In '49, he was 23, World War 2 was over, he was recently married, and the world was in front of him. In the above picture, he has seen so much and the world is behind him.
A few years after we went to the beach, my Grandfather settled in his final home, a 24-7 care facility. The logistics of getting him out were too great, so I continued to visit him there every other month or so. In 2018, I took another international job, this time for nine months in the Middle East. When I returned, I brought him a small wooden camel. It stood alongside his family portraits and his other few personal belongings.
As the years went on, and his memory continued to fade, our talks got more and more abstract. He couldn't carry on conversations for more than five minutes without intermingling the real world with something he saw on television. Family members were suddenly living on ranches with Indian invaders, but it was ok because they had their old car and they were going move to North Carolina and remember that guy who had the store on 42nd street, he was a good guy. But the other guy on 52nd, he would rip you off. And there was a two-story building on the base when he got off the ship and if he didn't pack his clothes and get out of his room soon, the lieutenant was gonna look for him.
Sometimes it was challenging to keep up with the conversation, but that didn't diminish the fact I still enjoyed visiting. And I was proud of the fact that even to his last days, when he remembered maybe only ten names, I was still one he knew and recognized.
Like many other relationships in 2020, COVID-19 made seeing my Grandfather difficult. I didn't see him for most of the year. But I did get to see him in December 2020. He was inside his facility, eating and enjoying himself, and my mother and I were outside the window, talking to him through a six-inch opening. I couldn't give him a hug, but I could see him and talk to him. Merry Christmas 2020.
A few months later, his health took a severe turn for the worse. I was scheduled to go on yet another long trip, this time to Hawaii and Korea for over two months. But after seeing my Grandfather, I asked my boss if I could be taken off the first leg of the trip. I wasn't going to miss saying good-bye to my last grandparent. Not after missing both of my grandmothers. And definitely not this grandparent.
But a miraculous thing happened over the next few weeks after I saw him - my Grandfather regained his strength and returned to his 95-year old norm. With him doing better, I took my chances and went to Korea for a month. While there, I bought him a small piggy bank signifying the year of the ox. When I came back to the states, my mother gave it to him. She said he enjoyed it.
He passed away last weekend, a few months after my return. I like to think he waited for me to get back. When I stopped by his room on the night he died to see how my mother was doing with the final arrangements, the ox bank was on the same shelf as the wooden camel, alongside my Grandfather's other treasured mementos.
Not many people can say that their Grandfather was their friend. But mine was. Joe Walicki was a great man and I very much enjoyed his company. I like to think he would say the same about me. He will be missed dearly.
Here is his obituary, which I had a hand in writing. His funeral is Monday, where he will be buried alongside my Grandmother at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida. I will be sure to still visit.
Tonight we're gonna flip and trip and let it all hang out tonight
We're gonna say what we like"
Back in the late 80's and early '90s, "on the serious tip" was a semi-common phrase in hip-hop culture. A quick google search of the term reveals a few songs with the term and quotes from De La Soul and The Fresh Prince.
Possibly the most famous use of the term, and the one people are most likely to hear regularly - at least on old school hip-hop channels - is in Shock G's verse on the Digital Underground classic "Doowhutcha Like". So it is absolutely fitting that I write this tribute here, on this blog, which has been named after the old school hip-hop phrase since 2006.
Shock G has been gone for nearly a week and this is still tough to write. It is not often that a music legend, a big part of a genre's history, is a part of your life. But Shock G was a part of my life. Admittedly, I didn't know him all too well, but good friends of mine considered him a good friend.
I have been lucky enough to become friends with people who have been part of Tampa's hip-hop scene for over 30 years. They were there when there was only one radio station, WMNF 88.5, that played hip-hop. And they were there when the earliest DJs and MCs were putting on shows.
Shock G was one of those MCs.
Through hustle and probably a bit of luck, Shock G made it happen in Oakland. He became an international superstar. He rocked stages. He made appearances. He created other legends. His contribution to hip-hop is undeniable.
But around my friends, he was just Shock G, another member of the Tampa hip-hop community. A dude to goof around with, to kick it like they used to back in the day.
My favorite part of this video, besides the fact that I am in it, is that he calls Nick Major, "Fred".
I first met Shock G at a club called Blue Martini in Tampa in late 2011. My friend Nick Major was living with me and had known Shock G for decades. But if I remember right, he hadn't seen Shock in several years. But he got word that Shock was performing at the nightclub and so we had to be there.
I don't remember why I brought my huge afro wig into the Blue Martini. I also don't know why I had funny nose glasses with me. But they proved to be a key part of one of the coolest pictures I have ever taken. I like to think I could have fit in on stage with Digital Underground back in the day. We didn't talk too long with Shock G that night, but Nick was able to get his number and stay in touch.
Thanks to Nick and Paradox 2WX aka Spike La Rock aka Dox, I was able to interview Shock G a few weeks after we met him at Blue Martini. Shock was super cool and eager to tell his story.
There is so much history in this interview. But the video itself has its own history. After we did this interview, I left for Afghanistan for 14 months. My friend Bill McArdle of TampaBayNightLife.tv saved it on a hard drive and stashed it among his other recordings.
Years passed. Occasionally I would ask Bill if he still had the interview, and he would say yes, and that was that.
In 2019, I finally asked for a copy of the video. After Bill found it, we copied it to my personal drives.
So was it actually "lost"? Depends on who you ask. Bill knew he had it. I sure didn't know exactly where it was.
After we filmed the interview, Nick, Paradox, Shock G, his friend Chadoun, and I went out to eat. Of course with Shock G it is fitting we went to Burger King. No one got busy in the restrooms, but we did learn that Shock G was a big fan of the veggie burgers. After chilling in Burger King for a while, we all went our separate ways.
A few years after our interview, I saw Shock G in a Chilis in Tampa. He was getting take-out for him and a friend. I reminded him who I was and we talked for several minutes. He mentioned he visited Tampa to get away from California and pressures of the showbiz world. Although he was successful, he seemed to enjoy home more.
In late 2015, I saw Shock G again when he returned to Tampa to perform at the 3rd Annual Kenny K tribute concert at Crowbar in Ybor City. Kenny was Shock G's friend and the man who got Shock G back into hip-hop in the late 80s/early 90s. They, along with Doc P and others, were the founding members of Digital Underground.
After the show, I got to hang out with Shock G in the green room at Crowbar. When I congratulated him on the show, he remembered me as "Nick's friend" and told me we need to do another interview sometime. While I stood to the side, Shock G chatted with Dynasty, a Tampa MC who was blowing up at the time. Dynasty has since moved on, but it was a great moment in Tampa hip-hop past and present.
Although my friends saw him several times after, that was the last time I saw Shock G. They have pictures with him during his other Tampa visits, to include birthday parties and hanging out at hip-hop clubs. Shock G was always around.
As time has gone on and I have been able to interview more people for the Kenny K Documentary project, there was always talk of re-interviewing Shock G. We even discussed getting Shock G more involved in some way - perhaps he could host the documentary.
Unfortunately, that will never happen.
As I got to know him a bit, Shock G was an inspiration to me. An artist who was adaptable to different trends, used props when he wanted, created characters, and as I said on WMNF's recent tribute show, was "creativity personified". Although he went through a lot of tragedy, Shock stayed creative. It was his way of connecting with the world.
Shock G's death is personal. He was a good dude to me and to many of my friends. We had to share him with the world, but he will always be our friend.
While attending the Oxford Exchange Book Fair, I had a chance to sit down with local newscaster Sorboni Banerjee. She was interviewing each author and giving them a few minutes to talk about their latest book. While her original broadcast was nearly 2 hours long, I chopped out only my section, which was the final interview of the night.
As I said, I wasn't the last, I was the headliner.
A few days ago, I had the pleasure of chatting with the folks of the Rays the Roof Network. They have a website, podcast, twitch, youtube, and are all over social media talking about the Tampa Bay Rays. During our nearly 50 minute talk, we discussed the Rays, the Rays stadium situation, and of course Curveball at the Crossroads.
I am always appreciative of local baseball media for the opportunity to talk baseball and promote my debut novel. The Rays the Roof guys were fun to talk to and I hope we can connect again.
Listen here: How Sweep It Is + Stadium Saga Talks w/ Michael Lortz
BIG NEWS: I will be at the Oxford Exchange Annual Book Fair on Thursday, April 22, 2021 in downtown Tampa from 6pm to 9pm. I will have my debut novel Curveball at the Crossroads as well as other books I have been a part of over the years.
The Oxford Exchange is an amazing location and a fantastic place to check out my work as well as the work of many other local authors.
It will be a great time. I am super excited.
More information on the book fair can be found here:
Curveball at the Crossroads was mentioned in Vires, the Florida State Alumni magazine. The entry for the book was directly under the latest news of Oscar-winner and Academy Award nominee Barry Jenkins.
FSU Class of 2003 doing great things and telling great stories.
Tonight's cinematic misadventure was Top Dog (1994) starring Chuck Norris and a dog. Chuck Norris, the baddest man on the planet, teamed up with dog to fight a group of right-wing, white power terrorists trying to destroy San Diego. Why Chuck Norris needed a dog's help in saving the day is beyond me, but a dog has to get paid somehow.
Chuck Norris is the man. He doesn't need help. But when an old cop is killed, his K9 becomes the partner of a cop who doesn't play by the rules. Fact number 1: if you looked up "not playing by the rules" in the dictionary, you would find a picture of Chuck Norris. Fact number 2: if you looked up Chuck Norris in the dictionary, a roundhouse kick jumps off the page and hits you in the face.
There are people who say white power terrorists are too strong of a bad guy for this buddy cop comedy that sometimes seemed like a kid's movie. But to them I say, no bad guy is too strong for Chuck Norris. Add in the world's smartest crime fighting pooch, and this was a walk in the park for the good guys.
Grade: 4 roundhouse stars out of 5.
Tonight's cinematic misadventure was Silver Streak (1976) starring Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder. This movie also starts the guy from Superman (Ned Beatty), the guy from My Favorite Martian, Jaws from James Bond, and Fred Willard. You would think such a loaded and eclectic cast of characters would be hilarious. Alas.
Silver Streak is the story of a mild-manner book editor who witnesses a murder on a train. He gets tossed from the train multiple times by the bad guys only to get back on the train to rescue a woman he hooked up with on his first night on the train. Sounds entertaining enough.
However, this movie is nearly 2 hours long. Richard Pryor doesn't enter the movie until an hour in. This movie should been 90 minutes, tops. It plays like a drama with a touch of humor, instead a full-blown comedy, which would have been much better. I know movies in the 70s were slower paced than the present day, but this movie is slow even for then. Although their pairing is great, Richard Pryor doesn't add enough to Wilder's slow story build for this to have any lasting value.
Grade: 3 silver slow stars out of 5.
Tonight's cinematic misadventure was Track of the Moon Beast (1976), a low budget horror about a dude who gets a piece of moon rock stuck in his head and turns into a giant lizard. The movie stars no one of any significance, although somewhere someone is proud of their grandfather for being in this.
As mentioned, the movie is about a guy, a loner who lives his mom, who enjoys stalking around the desert. He meets this photographer lady who falls in love with him in a few hours. They go to a cliff to watch a meteor shower and a piece of moon rock lands on Earth. A shard of this moon rock lands in this guy's head. After a few days of headaches, he merges with his pet iguana and becomes a giant lizard man. Giant lizard man then torments the town before getting shot with an arrow by a Native American professor.
This movie is listed as one of the dumbest movies of all-time and rightfully so. The character development is weak, the monster is a guy in a rubber suit, and pretty much all the dialogue is awkward and stilted.
Grade: 1 moon rock stars out of 5
Tonight's cinematic misadventure was Best Defense (1984). This war comedy starred Dudley Moore and Eddie Murphy, enough comic firepower to topple the Soviets, pummel the Iraqis, and crush the Vietnamese.
Except, like the tank in the movie, it misfires. Badly. There has to be a good story behind how bad this movie is. Someone needs to tell the tale of why this was two completely different movies, weaved together through a really bad plot. While Moore plays an engineer designing tank parts in 1982, Murphy plays a tank commander in 1984 whose life depends on Moore's part. Along the way, however, is bumbling, stumbling, spying, espionage, murder, and more than enough sexual innuendos and racial stereotypes.
This movie could have been decent. As a matter of fact, it probably should be completely rebooted. The idea of a bumbling engineer who makes a part that saves a military unit might not be too bad. But trying to weave it into two comedies and filling the plot with side stories and bad jokes makes Best Defense downright offensive.
Grade: 2 bad shots of 5.
Tonight's cinematic misadventure was The Beast of Yucca Flats (1961) starring Tor Johnson and other people who don't really matter outside of IMDB.
The Beast of Yucca Flats is a bad movie watcher's mecca. It is so atrociously unwatchable it needs to be watched. There is a plot, at least, but even that is flimsy at best. There is very little dialogue, so the movie has that going for it. But it has a narrator. The movie is completely tell, rather than show.
As far as the plot, Tor Johnson plays a Soviet scientist - at least I think he is Soviet - on the run in the Yucca Flats. An atomic bomb explodes and Johnson turns into a lumbering beast, think George The Animal Steele meets Freddy Krueger without the cool parts of either of those characters.
The beast kills a few uninterested people - if I was in this movie I would uninterested as well. The police hunt him down. As I said, its bad. Even for low budget 1960s b-movies, its bad.
Grade: 1 beastly star out of 5.
Tonight's cinematic adventure was the final Bill and Ted movie, Bill and Ted Face the Music. Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter return to the roles they played over 20 years ago to save all existence and to prevent time and space from breaking apart.
I went in with limited expectations. I was pleasantly surprised. Bill and Ted Face the Music was fun. They did a good job bring back old characters and integrating new characters, even if the Missy situation got a little weird, but I think that was the point.
I definitely liked how they brought in different musical characters, although I was curious how they selected who they selected (Kid Cudi, really?) or how they made up other characters.
Overall, it was another excellent adventure.
5 excellent stars out of 5
Ryan Whirty is a baseball researcher and writer. Among his many writing pursuits is his blog HomePlateDontMove, a Negro Leagues Baseball blog named after a famous Satchel Paige quote. A few months ago, I sent Ryan a copy of Curveball at the Crossroads after reading a post he wrote on baseball and the blues. I cold-emailed Ryan, but based on his passions, I knew he would be interested.
After reading Curveball at the Crossroads, Ryan asked if I would be open to an email interview. Of course I was interested.
Ryan emailed me some very good questions about the influences of the book and my thoughts on the commonalities of baseball and the blues.
Check out the interview for a great deep dive into Curveball at the Crossroads.
New novel explores link between baseball and blues - HomeplateDontMove
Senior book reviewer Gary Roen of the Midwest Book Review read Curveball at the Crossroads had very nice things to say.
"Curveball at the Crossroads" appears to be a baseball book, but is a lot more with a character driven story, set against the backdrop of a good and evil universe. JaMark Reliford is on his way to a possible career in the major leagues until an earth-shattering injury topples all of his plans. A while later he is offered by a man wearing black pants, shirt and top hat at a fork in the road, a way in to the game. The agreement has terms to be met or there will be consequences. For a while JaMark is on top of the world but something changes and the bargain takes a new turn. "Curveball at the Crossroads" is a wonderful first novel that is a multi-layered story that moves along at a brisk pace to its final pages with writing and a story that is guaranteed to please.
I have been a fan of Tampa comic John Jacobs's work for a long time. He has an off-beat creative style that is hilarious and abstract and off-the-wall.
In his latest short movie, Jesus Talks, Jacobs plays Jesus Christ if Jesus were to come back to Earth as a stand-up comic. The premise is great and the delivery is divine.
Of course Jesus would come back in a way that was preachy without being preachy. Of course He would return in a way that would make us look at ourselves and laugh. Of course Jesus would have a self-depreciating sense of humor. He is the Son of God, if he can't make fun of himself, then can any of us?
This movie reminded me of an old song entitled Talked to God by a rock group called The Uninvited. They had a few hits in the late 90s on alt-rock radio, but never made it huge. Their content however, was A+.
See if you can find the similarities.