I forgot about the sushi. A distinctly
non-proletarian feel to the place--I don't
remember large numbers of latinos, for instance,
though you could get a fish taco (you can get a
fish taco anywhere in San Diego).
My first ballpark was Ebbetts Field in Brooklyn.
It must have been 1946 or 47. It was thoroughly
integrated in every way, I think the first time I
ever saw black people (I was three or four years
old)--my distinctly working-class/lower middle
class neighborhood was Jewish, Irish and Italian.
The rich people sat in boxes over the dugouts,
privileged, but visible, and they stood on the
same bathroom lines and bought their peanuts or
hotdogs from the same roving vendors as the rest
of us. Seats in the bleachers were dirt cheap,
and teenagers waited for over-the-fence balls
outside on Bedford Avenue. If they caught a ball
they could turn it in for a free ticket.
The players were elevated above the rest of us by
their celebrity, and they made good livings,
enough to pay for an upper middle class
lifetsyle. Now they have the wealth of oil shieks.
The ballparks are still more heterogeneous than
many American public places, though the tickets
are exorbitantly expensive. The rich are now
invisible--they hang out in skyboxes, away from
the sweaty masses. The sweatiest of the sweaty
masses pay less and watch the game on portable
televisions outside the stadium, in the parking
lot, in a huge tailgate party, complete with
barbecues (taking the whole family inside would
simply be ruinous). At least they did in San
Diego. Are there tailgate parties at Shea?
Candlestick Park, where the Giants used to play,
sat on the edge of San Francisco Bay. People
would hang out in boats, waiting to fish out the long balls.
The only thing I remember about that first
ballgame was that I'd been sent off to the
bathroom by myself, with the admonition to ask an
adult to help me. Among the classes of people who
weren't likely to be kidnapped for ransom this
unimaginable degree of casualness about the
safety of children was pretty much
standard--minimum good will towards children was
simply assumed. An elderly black man got me back
to my parents. I remember him, and I remember the
structural girders of the stadium, like the
Piranesi Carceri, but without the threat. I don't
remmeber any fear at all. And I remember the smell of mustard.
Mark
At 07:16 AM 3/3/2007, you wrote:
>espresso was not all they sold at that park -- it was the first park
>I was ever at where you could buy sushi -- but I'm happy to only go
>to Shea -- "meet the mets, meet the mets" indeed, only team I root
>for --
>
>good to have Anny and Joe back in the saddle -- that second point of
>the statutes is no problem -- the (or certainly one core) reason
>poetry has been what I've looked out at the world through & with for
>so long is exactly that: everything is relevant & thus related to
>poetry.
>
>Pierre
>
>On Mar 2, 2007, at 6:39 PM, Mark Weiss wrote:
>
>>I never liked the Padres, tho they sold espresso at the ballpark.
>>My last stable fandom was the Giants before they moved to SF. Now I
>>tend to get passionate about whatever team a friend would probably
>>die for. Which is why I've been to Fenway Park more recently than
>>to Yankee Stadium. Of course I keep quiet about this in the local bar.
>>
>>Mark
>>
>>At 05:04 PM 3/2/2007, you wrote:
>>>This goes without saying, of course. Have your
>>>loyalties changed since you moved to NYC?
>>>
>>>Candice
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>--- Mark Weiss <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>>
>>> > Saying anything bad about a team I'm rooting for
>>> > should be
>>> > interpreted as a flame.
>>> >
>>> > Mark
>>> >
>>> > At 12:57 PM 3/2/2007, you wrote:
>>> > >Looks good to me. Item #3 needs rigorous
>>> > enforcement.
>>> > >Agree wholeheartedly with Mark and I'm sure Tad
>>> > will excuse the
>>> > >occasional NFL reference in season. Go Bills!!!
>>> > Oops out of season.
>>> > >
>>> > >Roger Collett
>>> > >
>>> > >
>>> > >----- Original Message ----- From: "TheOldMole"
>>> > <[log in to unmask]>
>>> > >To: <[log in to unmask]>
>>> > >Sent: Friday, March 02, 2007 5:45 PM
>>> > >Subject: Re: Proposed Policy Document for
>>> > Poetryetc: Please Comment
>>> > >
>>> > >
>>> > >>And don't forget that the baseball season is about
>>> > to start.
>>> > >>
>>> > >>I figure we're all here because we care about
>>> > poetry, and if a
>>> > >>discussion starts wandering far afield, someone
>>> > will bring it back
>>> > >>to poetry. I'll volunteer to be one of those
>>> > someones.
>>> > >>
>>> > >>----- Original Message ----- From: "Mark Weiss"
>>> > <[log in to unmask]>
>>> > >>To: <[log in to unmask]>
>>> > >>Sent: Friday, March 02, 2007 12:36 PM
>>> > >>Subject: Re: Proposed Policy Document for
>>> > Poetryetc: Please Comment
>>> > >>
>>> > >>
>>> > >>Joe: Looks good to me, except for #2, unless
>>> > >>"related discourses" is interpreted very broadly.
>>> > >>For two reasons: 1. everything most of us do
>>> > >>tends to spiral back to or feeds poetry
>>> > >>eventually; 2. sometimes it's ok for the list to
>>> > >>be just a pub where all the regulars agree that
>>> > >>it's normal to be a poet, even if the talk is
>>> > >>about the rugby match on the tube.
>>> > >>
>>> > >>Mark
>>> > >>
>>> > >>At 12:08 PM 3/2/2007, you wrote:
>>> > >>>Poetryetc List Policies [Draft]
>>> > >>>
>>> > >>>Poetryetc is a forum for the discussion of
>>> > poetry, poetics, and related
>>> > >>>matters. The list is unmoderated and depends on
>>> > the good will of members to
>>> > >>>maintain a useful and productive environment for
>>> > conversation. Poetryetc has
>>> > >>>few rules, but list managers take them seriously.
>>> > Repeated violations of
>>> > >>>list policies as outlined below will lead to
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>>> > >>>enforcing these policies, the managers must
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>>> > rests with our judgment
>>> > >>>about the kind of environment we want for the
>>> > list.
>>> > >>>
>>> > >>>1. No racist, gender-biased, or homophobic
>>> > language.
>>> > >>>
>>> > >>>2. Posts should concern poetry, poetics, and
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>>> > >>>
>>> > >>>3. No personal attacks against other members of
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>>> > >>>Criticism of anyone, whether a member of the list
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>>>
>>>
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>=================================
> "It may well be the case that one has
>to wait a long time to find out hwether the
>title of avant-garde is deserved."
> — Jean-François Lyotard
>=================================
>Pierre Joris
>244 Elm Street
>Albany NY 12202
>h: 518 426 0433
>c: 518 225 7123
>o: 518 442 40 71
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>email: [log in to unmask]
>http://pierrejoris.com
>Nomadics blog: http://pjoris.blogspot.com
>=========================
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