Take heart all of you, and particularly those 70 and over.  Several hints of Spring have surfaced.  This has been one hell of a winter!   But it may not be over yet, don’t get cocky.  Remember that the Blizzard of 1888 took place the second week of March.

Thanks to my good friend Susan Bela, Publisher and Managing Editor of “Great South Bay Magazine,” I’m reprinting two articles I wrote about Spring and three unforgetable gentlemen. The magazine is a mirror of all that is great about life on the Great South Bay. Google it or go to http://greatsouthbaymag.com, and you’ll understand how difficult it was for me to make the move to Essex.   Emmett will be 101 in August.  Frank and Bill will be toasting Spring in Heaven.

A NEW SIGN OF SPRING

Think of Jack Haley, Hickory/The Tin Man in the Wizard of Oz, tending his aching joints with an oiling can.  That’s me!  I’m shot with arthritis in my joints, five operations on my right leg and ankle, a new left hip and bursitis in my shoulders, left-overs from playing three contact sports in school, plus a well-spent youth. I ’m also able to feel sorry for myself at the drop of a hat.   I’ll be 75 in May.

Four, usually five times a week, I work out at the Bay Shore “Y” walking and jogging 40-50 one-way laps in the pool, adding other exercises as circumstances permit.  Swimming is out, alas, the bursitis the culprit.

March 13: After a workout, I dropped by my club, Southward Ho.  I was aching a bit.  Several golfers were on the course.  The day was slightly overcast, the temperature in the low 50’s, a nip in the air from the gentle north-west breeze.  I missed playing golf.  Even though I was lousy at it, I enjoyed every round I ever played.

There I was seated on the middle of nine stools in front of the bar in the 19th hole.  Several tables were occupied behind me, mostly card players.  Doug, our friend and bartender, handed me a drink.  We chatted as I absentmindedly gazed up at the three T.V. sets in front of me.  Golf from somewhere on one, the market showing a lot of red on the middle set, and Fox News live and scrolling on the far right.

Suddenly from the table closest behind me, I heard, “Frank, you come out.”  The sound of five cubes tumbling in the dice cup, then rattling on to the table top, then a pause, “Bill, I’ll stay, try topping three fives in one!”  Doug had delivered a draft beer and a Coke to their table.  The loser would sign the chit and buy the round.

The dice game followed a game of golf.  They had just finished nine holes, the ritual roll for the refreshments, capping a busy day.

Suddenly, I forgot my aches and pains.  Any thoughts of my impending birthday disappeared with them.

Bill Gerek, age 91, couldn’t beat Frank Flynn’s roll.  Frank 92, smiled.  Bill signed the chit.

This year, my New Sign of Spring, found it’s way early.

3/24/07

SEQUEL TO “A NEW SIGN OF SPRING”

The May edition of  “The Great South Bay Magazine” included my article, “A New Sign Of Spring,” about two fine gentlemen enjoying a friendly game of golf in early March, Bill Gerek 91, and Frank Flynn 92.   I’m always excited to see my articles in print, and get a kick out of any positive feedback.

One morning in late June, I was just finishing my exercise routine in the YMCA pool.  As I paddled to the pool’s stairs, I heard someone say, “Hi George, I haven’t seen you in a long time.”

The voice belonged to Emmett McNamara, an old friend and tennis opponent (before my legs deserted me).  He was splashing and moving his arms and legs in his own exercise routine.  We talked about friends, the eight months he spends in Florida each year, and the Bay Shore ex-patriots that he frequently encounters.

Emmett had read my article and complemented my writing, but didn’t particularly enthuse over the story.  I knew that he was older.  I asked him, “Em, I hope you don’t mind me asking. How old are you?”

He looked at me a little sheepishly, “George I’ll be 98 in August.  My doctor made me give up tennis last Christmas.”

Close friends Alan and Mary Van Nostrand, both highly respected tennis professionals assured me that Emmett could have been world ranked in the 90 and overs.

Happy Birthday, Emmett!

7/10/07

George S.K. Rider