About Me

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Delray Beach, FL, Westport, MA, United States
Undergraduate degree, Colby College; MA in English, Columbia Teacher's College; former high school English teacher in three states; former owner of interior design co. with MA from R.I. School of Design. Barking Cat Books published my first book in 2009 titled, MINOR LEAGUE MOM: A MOTHER'S JOURNEY THROUGH THE RED SOX FARM TEAMS. My humorous manuscript titled ELDERLY PARENTS WITH ALL THEIR MARBLES: A SURVIVAL GUIDE FOR THE KIDS was published in June, 2014. In 2015 A SURVIVAL GUIDE won a gold medal in the self-help category at the Florida Authors & Publishers Association conference. In 2018 Barking Cat Books published my SURVIVING YOUR DREAM VACATION: 75 RULES TO KEEP YOUR COMPANION TALKING TO YOU ON THE ROAD. See website By CLICKING HERE.

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Matches Made in Heaven

Back in the days before enlightenment, a jock would determine whether a date was marriageable material by giving her a sports quiz (a la the movie "Diner").  If the date knew the answers, she graduated to a second degree of difficulty and got a second booking.

Each region tested for local sports folklore. We all know that Beantown is bonkers over anything that ends in "-ball," so the questions went something like this (and these were the easy ones):



     1.  Who was the Red Sox player who gave the World Series to the Mets?
     2.  What is the city where the Sea Dogs play?
     3.  What is Carlton Fisk's nickname?
     4.  What was the original name of the Pats' stadium?
     5.  Who won the most games coaching the Celtics?
     6.  Who was the best Bruins defenseman of the 70's?

Chauvinistic?  Of course.  Women learned a few things about sports and then gave the men their own quiz (and these were the easy ones):
     1.  What was the name of the series starring Peter Falk?
     2.   Who shot JR?
     3.   How old was Captain Kirk in his last appearance?
     4.   Describe the article of clothing that was The Fonz's trademark.
     5.   Who was the star of "Giant?"
     6.   What was the nickname of Archie's son-in-law on "Those Were the Days?"

The fun was in the exchanges.  If a man passed the first round, he might be faced with an advanced degree of difficulty on a future date:
     1.  What is Foie Gras?
     2.  Define a "clutch."
     3.  Name a Russian dancer who defected to the U.S.
     4.  Who were the feuding families in "Romeo and Juliet?"
     5.  What is a CZ?
     6.  What has the longest gestation period of any living creature?

With on-line dating today, e-matches are based on profiles.  Here are some questions a computer might ask to determine possible matches:
     1.  Are you a legal citizen?
     2.  What is your gender?
     3.  What is your gender preference?
     4.  What is the age range you prefer to date?
     5.  Do you have a police record?
     6.  How many hours a day do you spend on electronic devices?
     7.  How many times have you read "Shades of Gray" or any part of the trilogy?

I'll repeat myself.  The fun was in the exchanges - telling about ourselves and listening to a date tell about himself.  One's true measure never appeared in a profile.