little red riding hood

For years I had a print of this Gustav Dore illustration for Little Red Riding Hood, from Perrault's Fairy Tales. The print went back to my days of following wolves and fairy tales and had lots of meaning on lots of levels for me. About a month ago, I mailed it to someone else who loves wolves, but it seems to have gone missing in the mail. I'm feeling as gormless as Red Riding Hood looks in this print. A most excellent wolf, but he is now gone.

yawn, yawn, yawn

A flimsy rumor about Jayson Werth took flight over the holidays and finally floated off into space. It sounded like a bit of 'whisper down the alley', with the original source so vague that it was a wonder anyone gave it credence. I first heard about it Saturday morning on a New York station, but in the end it was just talk.

The most interesting thing heard over the weekend (I skip all the heavy news, of course) is that red squirrels are fond of mushrooms and they "hang them up to dry" before storing them away for the winter.

signs are everywhere

Artist Cyrilla Monzenter sent this image.

that's domonic as in dominique

Really, the most interesting thing of note so far this off-season has been learning, from Dom Brown's agent Scott Boras, that the kid's first name--Domonic--is pronounced Domonique, as in Dominique Wilkins.

Now we have the Derek Jeter soap opera. The outrage on both sides of the media and fan base is hilarious.

liz whitney quisgard

I got a note the other day from New York artist Liz Quizgard, whose work I first saw this summer in a solo show at the Anita Shapolsky Art Foundation in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania. I had been asked to review the show and was lucky to talk with Quisgard on the day I went.

Her work is divided between painting and needlepoint and both make great use of color in a technique that the artist calls 'pseudo-pointillism'. Quisgard does not like having to use the term needlepoint for her fiber works ('sounds too much like things my aunt did') but in the end she says with a laugh that that is what it is. Obsessive geometric patterns dominate both paintings and needlepoint works. Does it have any meaning? None at all, says Quisgard, who firmly believes that the visual arts are just that: visual.

When at university, Quisgard intended to become a serious philosopher, on the lines of Plato or Kant, but she came to the conclusion that there was no truth. Art was the winner. Now in her early 8o's, she continues to rollick along the path of beauty, committed totally to her art and bubbling with esprit.

happy thanksgiving

Snow started falling just before 10 this morning, just breezy flurries at first. Within an hour, though, things had changed. The snow is still falling. Have a happy, folks!

If you want to read a truly amusing indication of how sports coverage has changed forever, check out Logan Morrison, outfielder with the Florida Marlins and darling (seriously) of Philadelphia Phillies' fans, at http://www.baseball-ladies.com/2010/11/24/marlin-in-the-hen-house-11-24-10/

It's all about the twitterly love.

new pots by willi singleton

Potter Willi Singleton, who trained in Japan, will have pots from his recent fall firing for show and sale this December. The dates: December 11 and 12 and December 18 and 19, noon to six p.m. The place: Pine Creek Pottery, 843 Hawk Mountain Rd., Kempton, PA 19529. For information: 610.756.6387 or info@willisingleton.com. It's always good to see Willi's pots, made from clay he digs himself and fired in the Japanese-style wood-fired climbing kiln he built himself.

minor league ducks in a row

The Phillies now have their minor league managerial line-up in place for 2011. It's Ryne Sandberg at Triple-A Lehigh Valley, with Rod Nichols staying on as pitching coach and Sal Rende as hitting coach. Mark Parent, who last year seemed to have a good time with the Lakewood team, takes over at Double-A Reading. Chris Truby, last year with Williamsport, takes over for Parent at low Single-A Lakewood. Dusty Wathan remains with high Single-A Clearwater and Mickey Mickey Morandini, bringing up the rear, is the new manager of the short-season Single-A Williamsport squad.

elliott erwitt at the weinstein gallery

The Weinstein Gallery in Minneapolis is holding a show of photographs by master photographer Elliott Erwitt through January 9th. The photo shown is of Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier in New York in 1971.

ice

What a pity that it's a search to find the NHL on TV---except, of course, when the local team is playing. Saturday night it was the Flyers in D.C. to play the Capitals again. The Caps scored one in the first period, then the Flyers scored two late in the second. About 10 minutes into the third, the Flyers added another. Easy win, eh? Not quite.

Within 30 seconds, the Caps tied it up. Then the Flyers scored again for a 4-3 lead, but with under a minute to go, the Caps evened the score at 4-4. Overtime was scoreless. The Flyers finally won in the shoot-out (there must be a better way). Brian Boucher, in goal for Bobrovosky, stopped all three Capital shots. Danny Briere scored the lone shot, helping the Flyers to the 5-4 win. The game was intense and driven, pretty much what you would expect from the top two teams in the Eastern Conference.

olga bajusova

Olga Bajusova, born in Slovakia and now living in the United States, has a show of paintings and graphic designs at the Koloman Sokol Center in Liptovsky Mikulas, Slovakia. Called do you love me?, the show runs through November 27th. Olga and her husband, Jozef Bajus, also have works in Winter, a group show at Indigo Art in Buffalo, New York, which opens on November 26th and runs until January 7th.

what a flurry

The GM meetings in Orlando ended and so did the week with a flurry of activity. Mickey Morandini is returning to the Phillie organization next year as manager of the short-season Williamsport Crosscutters. A handful of players, including lefty reliever Dan Meyer and utility player Jeff Larish, were signed to minor league contracts. Twelve players, including Tagg Bozied, were asked to attend spring training as non-roster invitees. Five players were added to the 40-man roster today to protect them from the Rule 5 draft: righty reliever Justin De Fratus, shortstop Freddy Galvis, second baseman Harold Garcia, second baseman Cesar Hernandez, and infielder Matt Rizzotti. Cesar Hernandez, born May 23, 1990, evokes a new decade.

marlins trade uggla to braves

In the first interesting trade of the offseason, the Marlins yesterday sent second baseman Dan Uggla to Atlanta in return for All-Star utility man Omar Infante and lefty reliever Mike Dunn. When Uggla, a free agent in 2012, made it clear he would not resign with the Fish for the $48 million four-year deal offered, the Fish dealt him. Uggla reportedly wants five years at $71 million. The addition of Uggla, who consistently hits 30 homers, gives the Braves the righthanded power they were lacking. With Uggla, McCann, Jones, Prado, Heywood, and the rookie Freddy Freeman, the Braves should be a much better offensive team than in recent years.

What now do the Marlins do? And speaking of righthanded power, what are the Phillies doing?

roy halladay sweeps nl cy young vote

Roy Halladay was the unanimous choice for the 2010 Cy Young award in the National League, getting all 32 first-place votes. He becomes the fifth pitcher in Cy Young history to win the award in both leagues. In his first year in the NL, Halladay went 21-10 with a 2.44 ERA. He led the majors in innings pitched, complete games, and shut-outs. Congratulations, Doc! You deserved it.

As for the hand turkey, I've been making them since I saw them last week at Zoo with Roy.

ian ingram's clockworks

Rock Bruisic by Ian Ingram. (Photo by Jill Larson.)

I saw Rock Bruisic this spring in the Pittsburgh show Rock, Paper, Scissors. which was curated by Jill Larson, who runs the Fe Arts Gallery. I was writing a review of the show for a magazine and liked Ingram's work but it fell outside the purview of my writing. While going through images the other day, I stopped at Rock Bruisic and finally checked out Ingram's Website (www.ingramclockworks.com). Rock Bruisic is described thus: Machine that composes a bruise on the skin of a Granny Smith using two rocks.

Ingram is one of two tinkers (gotta love it) listed on the site. The other is an assistant with an anagrammatic name. That she operates the Maren Rock, Maine, branch makes her existence even more dubious to me. Click on the cv link in Ingram's bionote for a great read about robotics, mindful intent, and more. Then go through the list of creations. I love this guy's work and sensibility. And, Ani, forgive me if you are an actual person.

ryne sandberg to lehigh valley

The Phillies have hired Hall of Fame second baseman Ryne Sandberg to manage the Leghigh Valley IronPigs, their Triple-A affiliate. The 2011 team may not provide much excitement but Sandberg should certainly get the attention of IronPigs' fans.

The Phillies are also reportedly close to finalizing a two-year deal, worth $5 million, with 39-year-old reliever Jose Contreras. Is the Big Truck's age or the length of the contract more significant?

just chillin'

Thank heavens for Sergei Bobrovsky and the Flyers for providing some diversion early in this the season of no baseball. Bobrovsky, the 22-year-old rookie goalie with the cat-like reflexes, has so far sparkled. He's an amazing story, plucked from a bad team somewhere in Russia and plopped down into a high-pressure situation in the NHL. The rest of the team, too, has pretty much sparkled. Amazing, too, considering that they are coming off a Stanley Cup defeat. Of course, the Flyers always seem to nosedive in mid-season, setting off a flurry of trades and an inevitable goalie controversy of some kind. For the time being, they are keeping cool and, like Bobrovsky, "just chillin'".

Not to shortchange the Sixers, but they have a long way to go. Some good things early in the season: the developing play of Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner, the intensity of Andres Nocioni, the rejuvenated Elton Brand, the defense. Yes, under Doug Collins, the Sixers are playing defense. Still baby steps but good to see. Cheers, too, for Doug Collins, who is nothing if not dedicated to his team. He's like a tough old mother hen.

bonine and kratz signed

The Phillies yesterday announced the minor-league signings of RHP Eddie Bonine, late of the Tigers, and back-up catcher Erik Kratz, remembered here for being called up to the Pirates during this summer's Triple-A All-Star game. Kratz, who is from Telford, PA, is one of the few Mennonites in baseball. I used to see a Mennonite family at many of my regularly-scheduled games at CBP this past summer.

In other news, Jayson Stark of ESPN reported that someone in the Phillies organization said there was "zero chance" that Jayson Werth would be resigned. Ruben Amaro, Jr., asked about it, denied the whole thing, saying that the Phillies were making every effort to resign Werth but that they wanted a speedy resolution, a wish that agent Scott Boras is unlikely to indulge. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports then opined that it was all eyewash on the part of the Phillies to make them look good with the fans, on the lines of "See, we tried to sign him but he didn't take the contract." So far, what a boring off-season.

suu kyi is free

Aung San Suu Kyi was freed today after 15 years of detention in her native Burma. Long may she enjoy her freedom.

juan samuel added to coaching staff

Former Phillie Juan Samuel has been named to the Phillies' coaching staff, taking the place of Sam Perlozzo at third base. Perlozzo, in a bit of coaching merry-go-round that I do not pretend to understand, will be the new first base coach. Go figure. Just so it works.

Catcher Dane Sardinha has resigned a minor league deal with the Phillies. Utility infielder Pete Orr, who last year played for the Syracuse Chiefs, has also signed a minor league deal.

old #53

Fishing through a bag of papers yesterday, I came up with this forgotten photo from Citizens Bank Park, of old fave Bobby Abreu. His batting stance gave him away immediately. A glance at the scoreboard only confirmed that, yes, it was Bobby. It all seems so long ago, though CBP opened only in 2004. Rollins, Utley, and the boys have been creating some kind of history there. Keep it up!

victorino three times golden

Shane Victorino won his third consecutive Gold Glove, with 11 outfield assists and only two errors on the season. Jimmy Rollins did not make the cut, undoubtedly because of injury. Chase Utley was again slighted. Yes, Chase Utley!

In other news, Mickey Morandini is auditioning for a minor league managerial position with the Phillies and Juan Samuel is being considered to replace Davey Lopes.

Otherwise, the only baseball opportunity is to watch the grass grow down at First Energy Park in Lakewood. The old sod is being replaced and the public is invited to watch the new sod being rolled out and laid down. An email today from the team included lots of actually interesting photos of the process. That I even thought for a moment about driving to the park is an indication of how desperate I already am.

pat gillick and ryne sandberg

In unrelated news, Pat Gillick is on this year's ballot for the Hall of Fame. Let's get it done! In 27 years as a general manager, Gillick had 20 winning seasons, went to nine postseasons, and won three World Championships. He's a genius at GM.

Ryne Sandberg is reportedly interviewing for manager of the IronPigs. While it would energize fans, I can only wonder what it would do for Sandberg. No offense, 'Pigs, but 2011 does not promise to be that much better on the field.

morgan and miller gone

ESPN is at long last changing its Sunday Night Baseball cast. Joe Morgan is out and Jon Miller has been offered a radio gig. Word is that Orel Hershiser and Dan Schulman will take their place. Please let it stop there. Three in the booth and one on the field are two too many. Hershiser has been pretty good the times that I've seen him and Schulman is better on TV than on radio. Truth is that with MLB network, I almost never see ESPN anymore. May MLBN stay off the ESPN road.

is jamie moyer finished?

It was reported Saturday that Jamie Moyer had suffered a left elbow injury while pitching in the Dominican Winter League and had had to leave the game. Initial word was that the injury was career-ending. It's hard to believe that Moyer, even if he turns 48 in a week or so, is done. He was with the Phillies for almost five seasons, compiling a 56-40 record and winning a World Series. This year, in a season cut short by injury, he went 9-9, including two complete games. One was a stunning two-hit shut-out of the Braves on May 7, a day after the passing of pitching great Robin Roberts.

Except for a vinegary blip last year when he was sent to the bullpen, Moyer was all that one could hope for in a professional athlete. Best of all, in so many ways he got better and better with age. Lots of people say that he will become an MLB pitching coach once his playing days are done. He would no doubt excel in the role but I could see him more readily becoming a high school coach or some such down in Florida, where he and his family make their home.

Fine as wine. That's pretty much Jamie Moyer, one of the coolest stories of the 2008 team. Hometown boy comes home, wins the World Series. What could be better than that, especially at age 46.

zenyatta loses her last race

Zenyatta lost the Breeders' Cup yesterday, coming in second to Blame. Once again the winner of a highly-touted race was put in the unenviable position of forced graciousness. Just about everyone wanted the big mare to win and finish a perfect 20-0 career. But she got a bit boxed in during the race and, despite making her signature run, just didn't have the time to make up for it. Or maybe, as some analysts saw it, she thought she had finished before she actually did. Or maybe, used to running on a synthetic surface, she was momentarily thrown off by the dirt thrown up early on by the track. Jockey Mike Smith, who has a remarkable face, was visibly devastated by the loss. No doubt all in the Zenyatta camp were. Still, it was a thrilling, memorable race under the lights at Churchill Downs last night. By its end, I was feeling drained from two days of compelling, beautiful horse racing that featured drama and heartbreak of all kinds.

Someone said the Breeders' Cup is racing's equivalent of the Stanley Cup. I can see that. Goldikova, another great filly that, like Zenyatta, makes a specialty of coming from behind, did it again to win her race in stunning fashion. I missed the race with Uncle Mo, said to be some kind of special horse. And I learned only later about the horses that broke legs and had to be euthanized.

This morning's NY Times online edition had a spectacular photo of Zenyatta and Blame as they headed for the finish line under the lights.

2010 fielding bible award to chase utley

Yes, Chase Utley won the 2010 Fielding Bible Award for second base. To see the complete list, go to wwww.actasports.com/ and click on John Dewan's Stat of the Week.

RIP, Sparky Anderson, an old-time baseball guy the likes of which are fading from the game.

hot hope

Hot hope for a cold, raw day. This is one of 100 or so 'nipples', part of a piece called Nip It in the Bud, which was created by emerging artist Anna Divinsky for a delightful show she had this spring in Pittsburgh. Each nipple was 3" x 3" and made of mounted hand-painted silk. It's a miserable day here, made a bit worse by the electric wire from the utility pole to the house falling down. Nothing can be done to fix it until the rain stops. Anna's work was super when I saw it. On a day like today it's as good as Tokaj, not that there is any Tokaj at hand.

Home Town Parade

eager crowds line Montgomery Street


Bochy rides by with the World Series trophy



Posey enjoys the view from the cable car bus

Uribe reacting to the Oooo-ree-bay! chants from the crowd

too bad ticker tapes don't exist any more. A sprinkling of torn memos gave the feeling of Christmas

Timmy Lincecum was the most exuberant, waving and smiling and making the car stop every few paces

After the last car passed by, all that was left was confetti.

It was a good decision to take in the Giants' victory parade from Montgomery Street. Civic Center Plaza was absolutely packed and I figured there was no way I could get any vantage point. The crowds were thick on Montgomery too, but I still managed to find a crack amongst the bobbing heads to take some pictures. The parade replicated the 1958 route the Giants took when they first moved to San Francisco, going from Washington and Montgomery down to Market Street, then on Market to Civic Center. Montgomery is the heart of the financial district, but times have changed. Most of the big banks have moved away, gone broke or acquired, and brokerage firms no longer use ticker tapes. Ecology measures mean no paper-tossing. Still, someone managed to sprinkle some pixie dust on the parade, which made me very happy. The players looked a bit stunned, probably from lack of sleep. Only Timmy had the energy to wave and smile and interact with the crowd.

I ran home and watched the speeches on TV. The government dignitaries and baseball brass did their tedious thing. The Governator suggested that Brian Wilson replace Gavin Newsom as SF Mayor (Newsom was just elected Lieutenant Governor and his job is vacant). I enjoyed the Spanish radio announcers and their impromptu call up for Andres Torres, Uribe and Renteria. Boy Torres has a very sexy voice - especially in Spanish. Had to laugh at the ending - Huff pulling his rally thong out from his crotch in front of the huge crowd.

Withdrawal pains have started. I guess I can console myself by replaying Ashkon's version of "Don't Stop Believing" YouTube video until spring training.

And hooray for California! It stays a blue State!!!! Congrats Jerry Brown, Barbara Boxer and Gavin Newsom! And it looks like Kamala Harris will pull it off too.

rising stars

Justin De Fratus and Josh Zeid, minor league relievers in the Phillie system, were selected to appear in the Arizona Fall League's Rising Stars game, which will air Saturday night on the MLB network. I've seen both at Lakewood, Zeid in the championship game in September. Way to go, guys! Both have performed well for the Mesa Solar Sox this fall in Arizona. De Fratus has a 0.00 ERA in five relief appearances.

Congratulatios to the San Francisco Giants, who got it done.

Angels' bench coach Ron Roenicke is the new manager of the Milwaukee Brewers. This is interesting because only last week the mainstream media were reporting Bobby Valentine as a lock for the job. Journalism gets weirder and weirder. See: elections 2010.

Dream Come True

Lincecum had his game on and so did Renteria. Lee had cojones pitching to Edgar and thank you for that. A great pitching duel much of the game, something I had looked forward to in Game One. What I will remember: the fluidity of Timmy's delivery, the clenched jaw intensity of Freddy Sanchez' at-bats, the relaxed swing of Renteria's bat, Cody Ross' sunny smile that epitomized what this game is all about. The momentum was all-Giants in this clinching game.

Congratulations Giants!!!! 52 years of waiting comes to an end.

oh no, davey, don't go!

Jim Salisbury of csnphilly.com reports that Davey Lopes, first base coach extaordinaire, is leaving Philadelphia. Lopes was offered a contract extension but he and the Phillies were unable to agree on a salary for next year. Why does it always come down to the money? Bummer, bummer, bummer.

Lopes was integral to the Phillies' success on the base paths and it is devastating to see him go. He joined the team in 2007. With him, the Phillies led the National League in stolen-base percentage for the past four years.

Lopes has been an absolute rock for the team. Just as the fans came to love him, he came to love Philadelphia. He said today that he enjoyed winning the World Series with the Phillies in 2008 more than he did when he won it as a player with the Dodgers. Lopes, who lives in San Diego, will likely look for a gig with a West Coast team.

where's the game?

All I know about last night's World Series game is that the Giants won 4-0. I watched a couple of innings on TV, then searched on radio. Nada. Football had taken over every single ESPN station from Chicago to New York and Philadelphia. The series was pretty much over as soon as Cliff Lee lost game 1. He pitches tonight but football is likely to rule the airwaves tonight, too. Boo.