Ready to Start

"Now I'm ready to start, my mind is wide open." Arcade Fire

Always think of colleague Rhiman Rotz, who died nine years ago, on Nine/Eleven. MSNBC replayed without commercials a “Today” show tape from nine years ago when the Twin Towers and Pentagon were attacked. Until the second plane struck, Matt Lauer and Katie Couric weren’t certain whether it was the work of terrorists or an accident. When the first tower collapsed, they were speechless for a couple seconds. People leaped to their death rather than be incinerated, but you can’t see it, nor was there mention of it during the telecast. Nobody knew the extent of casualties or that people on the upper floors had called their loved ones to say goodbye. On the way to class that morning I learned about the Flight 93 plane going down in western Pennsylvania, supposedly after passengers stormed their captors (one of them allegedly said “Let’s Roll”). Conspiracy theorists speculate that an American fighter plane shot it down, fearful that its destination was the White House. I talked to my students about previous shocks such as Pearl Harbor and the Kennedy assassination, even though what happened was unprecedented. One guy asked that I cancel class or put on the TV, and I responded that anyone could leave who so desired. At “Ground Zero” they still read off the names of the 2,700 casualties. Looking back, it’s inconceivable that 19 Arabs with knives could cause such carnage.

Inside Town and Country throngs were lined up waiting to meet Dan Hampton, a standout defensive lineman on the 1985 Bears, who went on to win the Superbowl under Coach Mike Ditka and defensive genius Buddy Ryan. “Danimal” looked tanned and handsome. He was among the players honored at Soldier Field on opening day. The Bears won when an apparent TD catch by Calvin Johnson was ruled incomplete due to an idiotic rule even though he had both feet down in the end zone and landed on his butt before the ball came out of his hand. The 1960 Eagles were honored prior to Philadelphia’s opener against Green Bay. Quarterback Norm Van Brocklin would be 90 if still alive. His favorite receiver, Hall of Famer Tommy McDonald, was one of 22 old-timers on hand, as was warrior Chuck Bednarik, who played center on offense and linebacker on defense. Thanks to a dorm-mate whose uncle was athletic director at Penn, I was at the 17-13 win over Vince Lombardi’s Packers. Bednarik tackled Jim Taylor near the goal line on the last play of the game. The current Eagles wore throwback uniforms but lost their QB Kevin Kolb to a concussion and the game by seven points despite heroics from Michael Vick (back in the NFL’s good graces after serving time for being connected to a dog-fighting ring). Redskins beat the hated Dallas Cowboys after an apparent last-second tying TD was called back because of offensive holding. My Fantasy opponent “Pittsburgh Dave” (to distinguish from my second born) had both quarterback Matt Schaub and wide receiver Andre Johnson. Fortunately most of Houston’s 38 points came on the ground; at the end of the day I was only down eight points with both running backs still to play in Monday’s doubleheader.

The Vietnam novel “Matterhorn” dramatizes a fragging incident; soldiers kill an unpopular officer by throwing a grenade under his bunk while he is sleeping. At the end the main character realizes that the North Vietnamese won’t quit unless annihilated and that the war is hopeless. Seeking something more pleasant, I picked up Richard Russo’s “That Old Cape Magic” for a second read. The protagonist is the son of two English professors, serial adulterers who bemoaned being stuck at a Hoosier state university. I like that the chapters have titles such as “Slippery Slope” – a cliché I often use. Urged the Portage librarian she should order “Maria’s Journey.” She had seen the newspaper piece and wrote down the information.

Responding to Toni’s notice on the Internet about free appliances, two men carted away our old stove and washer, plus many logs for firewood. One with a full beard and hair longer than mine said he was helping his daughter get her life together. A woman took our old TV and converter box. Dave and Angie rented a U-Haul and with Tom Wade and John Teague moved the piano and other heavy items. The night before, I won both games of Inca Gold (which Jef Halberstadt taught us), which we taught to James and Becca, but got shut out during our normal rotation of Amun Re, St. Petersburg, Acquire, and Stone Age.

A Times article by Marisa Kwiatkowski called “Reality Stranger Than Fiction” documented wacky “off-the-wall” 911 calls. Panicked parents have sought help when willful children have refused to go to school. Police have dealt with runaway pigs, horses, and ostriches. Jackie Gipson, identified as an IU Northwest professor even though she quit in August (tired of departmental bullshit), told the reporter that people are more likely to ask for help in nonemergency situations when they have a positive image of law enforcement officers. On the other hand, she concluded, “Where you feel police show up and you are the target of harassment, you are much more reticent.” Jackie was a brilliant student who graduated from Valparaiso Law School before becoming a lecturer in the School for Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA).

Suzanna’s eye surgery was a success, and she went to a Blues Festival in Sharon, PA, which started out with a solemn 9/11 dedication. She recalled our going on roller coaster rides at ancient Willow Grove Amusement Park (it was around when my mother was a kid. Our boys liked to go to a place in Merrillville (was it called Merriland, I wonder?) that had little roller coasters.

Laughed during “Going the Distance” at the antics of the male lead’s buddies, played by Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis, but the plot was pretty pedestrian and the sex jokes (involving dirty phone talk, pubic hairs on a dining room table, and dry humping) rather lame. Drew Barrymore, as always, was intriguing as Jason Long’s love interest and a “thirtysomething” trying to balance adult responsibility and remaining a free spirit. The granddaughter of actor John Barrymore, Drew was in “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” and has hosted “Saturday Night Live” six times, including in 1982 at age seven.

At the Patio to discuss the impeachment of Andrew Johnson, during a debate about whether the Senators were motivated by idealism or were corrupt, I argued that lawmakers did what was in their best political self-interest and defended Thad Stevens against those for claimed he was vindictive. Who wouldn’t be against rebels who caused a half million people to die and wanted to force freedmen back into virtual slavery. Ray Arredondo showed up and sold three copies of “Maria’s Journey,” which the group will discuss in March. On the way home, when the Ravens-Jets broadcast went to commercial, I heard Arcade Fire’s “Ready to Start” on WXRT. It repeats the line over and over, “If I was yours, I would, but I'm not.” I only needed nine points to start the Fantasy season 1-0 but sweated out subpar performances by Ray Rice and Ryan Mathews barely won 65-62. Will need to do better next week against Pittsburgh Dave’s girlfriend Kira who has Aaron Rogers, Tony Gonzalez, and Anquan Boldin (on her bench but after last night’s showing ready to start).