Remembering some baseball players

LSU's 1953 first final four basketball team was honored recently at a baseball game, a picture of the team  as they are 60 years later bringing  back memories. I met only two of the players -- Bob Pettit long after he had ceased playing, and Benny McArdle, who I knew very well.

Benny played baseball as well as basketball and pitched at least one summer for Homer in the Big Eight semi-pro baseball league..  If my memory is right Benny was from New York.  At least that might explain his actions and his attitude.  He was different, to say the least.

During those early '50's Big Eight baseball was very popular in  the summer, not only at Homer but at Minden, Ruston, Farmerville, Dubach, Bernice, Bastrop and Springhill.  We relied heavily on LSU players, including locals like Bud McDonald, Albert Doggett, and Ken Adkins.  From other places I remember Jerry Marchand, Jim Barton, Tommy Virgets, and McArdle.

        (Not much wrong with my long-term memory; short term is a different story.)

A salute to Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher, the only female to serve as prime minister of Great Britain, has died at age 87 following a stroke. Called the "Iron Lady" because of her firm stand against communism, she joined President Ronald Reagan in  opposing the threat of communism all over the world.  Among their triumphs was tearing down the wall that imprisoned East Germany.

ADHD increasing --Report claims

One out of five high school boys has ADHD (attention deficit hyper disorder) according to the Center for Disease Control.  Girls fare better, with one our of seven being diagnosed with this disorder.  What is the true situation?  Is this problem increasing or is it that  just more children are being examined?   A few years ago few people had even heard of this problem. If a boy was very active, he was "just being a boy."

I feel I have some knowledge  of this problem since I had a son diagnosed as ADHD when he had problems in the first grade.  (He is now a school psychologist, helping children with all types of problems.)  He was never hyper-active but he was easily distracted and got bored with school work that was repetitive. For example, if he had 20 similar problems to solve, the might do l2, become distracted, and not finish.

I am trying to make the case that some children may be wrongly diagnosed as ADHD, and each child may need to be treated differently to help him cope. Parents and teacher may become frustrated in dealing with this problem but they should know that with their understanding and help the child will overcome the disorder.

You would be bankrupt

This is not original with me I am not capable of doing the math.  It puts the nation's situation in a way we can understand how dangerous for us it is.

Here's what the government budget looks like,  If you turn  it into a household budget by subtracting eight zeros.

       * Annual family income, $21,700

       * Money the family spent, $38,300

       * New debt on the credit card, $16,500

       * Outstanding balance on the credit card, $142,710

       * Total budget cuts so far, $38.50

Can you see anything but bankruptcy ahead?   Of course, the government can print paper money, which robs everyone.

I've got Irritable robbery syndrome

Yes, the deadline to  file federal income tax is a few days away and I am stressed mentally, emotionally, and physically.  When a person reaches an advanced age, he should be excused from dealing with the IRS and its complications.  Maybe all we earn from  every source should just go directly to the government which would then dole out what the feds want us to have.  Wait, is  not that what Obama is striving for?

Filing returns early is not an option for many; there's always one or two items of tax information that arrive only a few days before April 15.  It may be a report on as little s 48 cents earned in interest but it has to be included.

I have been considering joining that group who carry a paper sack of reports of wages, interest and dividends earned, losses, etc, dump it all on the desk of a tax professional and say," Here, get me some money back like you promise in your ads."


          (Triumph! Federal and state returns filed and accepted!)

A dot away from perfection

How I was persuaded to take on the position of proof reader of the Daily Reville and how many months I did that thankless job, I don't remember.  I can recall  at times working late at night and going our for breakfast in the early morning.  I held other positions on the paper, such as staff writer and news editor that sometimes earned praise and recognition, but the lowly job of proof reader required more dedication than any of them.

While the proof reader was responsible to find and correct typographical errors, I didn't limit myself and often corrected grammar and spelling in news articles that the news editor had missed.  This resulted in me putting in more hours with the newspaper than anyone else.

As I said, I don't remember much about this experience but I have a very clear memory of what Frank Price, faculty adviser to the newspaper, said after checking the first paper I had proof read.  He could find only a 10-point period where it should have been 8-point.  Understand, he was reading the newspaper while I had read galley proofs.

Price jokingly asked, "Didn't that wrong font  period leap off the page at you?"  I responded, "No, it lay there quietly for me."

One ship's first day at Okinawa

Easter morning April 1, 1945.  The USS Pickens, APA 190, was second in line behiind the USS Hinsdale, APA 120, in a column of transports carrying the 2nd Marine Division, one of 2,000 vessels approaching Okinawa. General Quarters had been called at 5 a.m. as had been done daily  since leaving Saipan a few days earlier. The Japanese liked to launch suicide attacks  out of the sun at dawn. In the radar room we were watching the screens intently as a plane detected 20 miles away would arrive in 200 seconds.

Sudden;ly, hell was unleashed. Kamikaze  planes attacked like flies on jam. At around 5:50 a plane hit the Hinsdale near the water line, exploding and creating several holes.  Another plane headed for us but failed to clear the mast of an LST, fell to the deck and set off several explosions of ammunition.

The Pickens put boats in the water and rescued survivors of the Hinsdale and LST's 724 and 884.

That Easter Sunday was  the beginning of one of the largest sea-land battles in history.  Casualties were very high, 72,000 for the Allies, more than 100,000  for the Japanese, and tens of thousands of natives.  The proven effectiveness of suicide plane attacks influenced President Truman to launch the atom bomb.