 A hopeful spring goes south for the Tigers
By Ken De Laat “A good friend of mine used to say, 'This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains.' Think about that for a while.”- Nuke Laloosh, Bull Durham “I see you haven’t written anything about the Tigers lately?” The question didn’t seem to be an inquiry based on wanting to see more of my perpetually optimistic assessments of the team and was tinged with that sprig of sarcasm friends delight in delivering to each other when previous predictions go south. And mine certainly did. From my Opening Day column: "But hey, I’m a Tiger fan. I think the pitching staff will most certainly live up to its billing and those young guys are going to feed off each other sharing some hot batting streaks up and down the order. Carpenter and Torkelson will be our first pair of 30 dinger guys since Miggy and J.D. did it in 2015 and Colt Keith turns out to not just be the real deal but puts together a rookie of the year season. The bullpen is chock filled with lively arms and A.J. Hinch has finally got the talent that allows him some room for creative managerial moves." And my hopes for a magical season that began with a 5-0 start (thanks to schedulers giving us the White Sox and Mets) now has the Bengals languishing 15 games behind the smoking hot Guardians and 61/2 games out of a wild card spot with 5 teams in front of them. Nope, no playoffs. The duo of Torkeleson and Carpenter I hoped would be combining to rock the house with homers were derailed by Tork’s puzzling inability to hit that bought him a ticket to Toledo and Carpenter’s injury. Greene has been prone to slumps, Keith at second has improved after a brutal start and speaking of brutal starts Parker Meadows was mercifully sent down when he was unable to squeak his average into triple figures. Then there’s Baez, turning out to be the worst long term signing since Jordan Zimmerman floundered on the mound for 5 years back in the teens. The shuffle of players from the Mud Hens hasn’t helped much yet and I am struggling to recall when Baddoo actually had a decent bat. Pitching-wise Skubal is the real deal and Olson, though roughed up a couple times, has generally pitched great with zero run support. Almost uncannily poor run support The bullpen began well but has become a mess. This is just not a very good baseball team right now. Though guilty as charged for the preposterous predictions, truth is, I wasn’t quite as rosy about the season as my column may have indicated. While it was fun to see them get hot early I wrote this to my brother and fellow lifetime Tiger fan after the previous column: “The team is, of course, destined to fail. To go through what young teams do as the Tigers did in the early 80’s. Learning how to win when you shouldn’t and carrying a swagger that as Dizzy said so eloquently, ‘It ain’t braggin’ if you can back it up.” They won’t hit with any consistency unless they can channel the ghost of Charley Lau but on occasion they’ll look awesome. In 2015 they started 6-0 after sweeping the Twins and Cleveland. Even got to 11-2. Ended up 74-87 and Dombrowski left in August replaced by Avila aka the Ned Harkness/Matt Millen of the Tigers. It’s been a long decade since.” Ok, again, no playoffs this year. Likely a trade or two dangling Flaherty and/or someone from the bullpen since few other players would yield much in return. But we are going to see a lot of players over the second half of the season in an effort to get the right mix and maybe there will be a few winning streaks to get excited about or a previously unsung player who gets on a hot run. As for me? They have always been my team and always will. I’ve followed them when they were good and when they were really, really good. I’ve also been with them through a multitude of mediocre seasons, some bad seasons and some really, really bad seasons. And while the good ones are way more fun? I’ll be tuning in right through that last home series against the White Sox ( a team playing like the Pistons of baseball). After all, it’s the Tigers. Note: R.I.P Mr. Mays. Circa 1960 I was at a Braves/Giants game with my family at old County Stadium. On the field were Hank Aaron, Eddie Mathews, Warren Spahn, Willie McCovey, Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal and you, the best ballplayer I ever saw play the game.
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 The odometer tells the story The fascinating phenomena known as Shop Hop By Ken DeLaat Lifetime Spousal Companion Lil has developed a number of interests since her retirement a few years back. Yoga groups. hiking groups, book clubs and such began to fill the time gained once one is freed from the work world. Then a while back, a long dormant interest reappeared with the purchase of a new machine designed for quilting. And so it began. Visits to shops, online seminars, conversations with other quilters, articles on the craft and suddenly (it seemed) an entire room dedicated to the craft. Lily doesn’t do many things halfway. Combined with legendary patience born out of putting up with a half century of cohabitating with yours truly, once she develops an interest in something her thirst for knowledge about it has no depths. A burgeoning interest in sourdough has stuffed the freezer with enticing breads and rolls and such and the wonderful blueberry pancakes made from it have become regular and most welcome breakfast fare. Then a few months back, Lil mentioned the Shop Hop, a 2 month quilters extravaganza throughout the state that promoted visiting as many quilt shops as possible and collecting stamps that could lead to prizes. My LSC can be a tad competitive when it comes to chasing prizes. It was maybe March when she brought it up and (after a couple of beers) I casually mentioned being willing to play chauffeur during her travels. It was one of those things you might have tossed out in the waning days of winter since at the time it seemed like it would be close to forever before summer arrived. Then summer did indeed arrive. The Shop Hop was to begin June 1st and run through the month of July. My commitment to the cause of filling the Shop Hop book with stamps from as many of the participating shops as humanly possible was about to begin. But I had no idea where (and how far) this would lead. We began in the hometown quiltery The New Ewe where stamp number one was placed in the coveted Shop Hop magazine. We then cruised to Muskegon and Montague then motored to Pentwater. That was Saturday the first day of the SH. Apparently more of a test run since Monday saw us hit shops from Spring Lake (including a short stop at the Village Bakery for scones) to Holland along with South Haven, Niles and a number of places on the return like Dowagiac, Portage and I think Kentwood. On Thursday we began at Plainwell (breakfast at the Barbed Wire Cafe is highly recommended) and motored as far south as Hilisdale before heading north to hit Marshall (lunch at Win Shuler’s of course), Lake Odessa and Caledonia on the way back. The following week a trip to a conference I was attending in Traverse City allowed for the addition of Evart (2 shops) Lake City and Williamsburg. While I was in meetings the next day Lil visited shops in TC, Bellaire and Charlevoix. Then this past week we spent a day picking up Kalamazoo, Grandville, Wyoming, Standale , Comstock Park and hit the two on Plainfield ave in GR. Thus far we have visited 40-some shops and driven about 1500 miles. And we still have a 2 day trip to the northeast section taking us as far north as Alpena then heading south and coming to an end about 15 shops later in Chesaning. Along the way I have seen some outrageously gorgeous quilts, been treated to cookies, coffee and other goodies by the sympathetic (“You must be the driver”) Shop Hop proprietors and driven through areas that despite spending most of my 7+ decades in this state have been previously unvisited. I’ve learned that the price of fat quarters varies from place to place, gained perhaps a smattering knowledge of the quilting language, experienced sticker shock when perusing the price of some of the machines and realized that there are men out there who know their way around a long-arm. I’ve encountered dozens and dozens of shop hoppers who have been at every stop. They come in groups, pairs, threesomes and they come alone. Some even arrive by bus (chartered for the Shop Hop) and take over the small shops putting a welcome dent in their inventory. They buy patterns, materials, various tools of the trade, and talk about quilts and quilting. They have an eye for what’s good and what is superb and share stories about their craft. And not one has seemed anything but happy about the adventure. We have now filled the stamp spaces in 2 of the states 5 sections and will complete 3 with the northeast travels. The two we will likely not visit are the southeast section of the state and the U.P. And though on several occasions Ms. Lily has brought up how the U.P. would be such a long trip and so far away, given the right setting and another casual conversation that led (after a couple of beers perhaps) to my suggesting we take it on... We would be bridge-bound at the next available time slot. “Two quilters who have just met will be strangers only until their mutual passion for quilting is revealed. Then they can talk for hours like the best of friends.”- Jennifer Chiaverini   To the Editor: Nobody needs to be told of the high prices at the gas station and grocery store. They began during Covid due to supply chain issues but haven't come down even though the supply is much improved. I recently did an online search to find out why prices have remained high. An article by Time magazine and then postings by individual food and gas companies opened my eyes. Many of these companies have figured out that we have to eat and drive so they can charge whatever they want. Their profits have skyrocketed, not to cover their costs but to provide them with larger profits! For example, Shell gas had $28 billion in profit in 2023. Exxon Mobil's profit was $36 billion. Conagra Brands (Chef Boyardee, Hunts, Duncan Hines, Marie Callenders, Orville Redenbacher, etc.) had a 60% profit between December 2022 and February 2023. Kraft Heinz (Oscar Mayer, Jello, Heinz, Oreida, Lunchables, Weight Watchers, etc.) was up 448%! Tyson's profits more than doubled. Cal-Maine Foods (Land o Lakes, 4 - Grain, etc.) had profits up 718% and General Mills profits were up 97%. You can look online and find more. These companies love being able to present these numbers to their shareholders, and the shareholders are happy because they are paid high dividends. This is a case of the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer. There is a way we can fight back. You can research company profits for foods and gas you buy. Then buy from companies who haven't kept their prices so high. Buying fresh food and making your meals rather than buying prepared meals will also help. You can also grow some of your own food this summer, in a vegetable garden, in a planter, or mixed with flowers in an ornamental garden. Becky Tuuk Fremont  I have served as drain commissioner since 2012 with my experience, the collaboration I have developed along with the important relationships with State agencies, I am the best candidate. This position has many responsibilities and requires a great deal of energy and time. There are over 200 legally established County drains to monitor and maintain within the county. I have worked hard to do this in the most cost-effective way to minimize the financial burden to landowners. I am the designated officer for soil erosion control for Newaygo County. My office is responsible for review of permit applications, issuing permits, inspecting and addressing violations of soil erosion. As drain commissioner I am responsible for seven lake level elevations that are designated by the 27th Circuit Court. Additional responsibilities by state statute include being a member of the following: County Parks Board, Board of Public Works and six Lake Improvement boards. Another duty is to provide representation on the two sewer authorities in Newaygo County. As the chairman of the board of Public Works I coordinate the recycling program, household hazardous waste collection and scrap tire recycling event. Grant funding is obtained to help support these programs to reduce the County's Financial commitment. I volunteer and I'm part of various Community groups. I am a board member for the Fremont Area Community Foundation Economic Development committee, the Autism Board, the Human Trafficking Task force board, and am the NCRESA Board President. I value our community and serve wherever I can have a positive impact. I firmly believe I am the best qualified candidate and ask for your vote. |
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October 2024
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