I was reading the Atlanta Journal Constitution while doing arts & crafts at my job for folks who are physically and mentally challenged. Sports page, of course and those box score of baseball and basketball. I tried to make a box guitar out of popsicle sticks like guitar legend, Bo Didley. Working with two other fellows, I realized that the job was stacking three popsicle sticks on top of each other using glue and tape.
To prevent glue stains on the table, my boss asked me to put paper underneath the popsicle sticks. She reminds me of Barney Fife from the Andy Griffith show. LOL. Needs to be in total control but unlike Barn, competent. She is no Andy Taylor but can read tendencies of certain people. She noticed my co-worker looking at a clothing advertisement while doing the popsicle project on top of the newspaper. With my other co-worker, they got into a argument of why this project. Then, she noticed my sticks were on top of an NBA Finals box score between the Lakers and Magic. Meanwhile, my mind wandered to a match that I saw the night before on the Tennis Channel, the 1973 Wimbledon final, Chris Evert vs. Billie Jean King.
My impressions of that match was of shaky confidence from the 18 year old, Chris while the 29 year old, Billie Jean was of confidence and fight. The score ended up being 6-0, 7-5 in favor of Billie Jean. From this match and others, I usually remember more from the losing player than the winning player whether it was her behavior, a certain shot, or a failure. Since Chris lost, I remember her graciousness towards a winning Billie Jean (she held her trophy when Billie got tired holding it to the cameras), a top-spin lob over a net approaching Billie, and her drop shot over the net with Billie standing on the service line. Some points later, Billie tried to hit a drop shot and ran towards the net. Remembering the lob, Billie tried to go back but Chris hit a shot right at her feet. Finally, Chris's serve failed in the first game of the match, the first game of the second set, and in her final game.
We finished the required work of fifty-four stacks of the three-stick popsicle set though we all shook our heads of why the work. Meanwhile, my boss put a barcode sticker over the NBA box score because I was discussing to the workers how a box didn't tally up for one team's score. However, the box I was discussing was for the WNBA, Atlanta Dream, whose box score was on the next page. Their tally showed them at fifty-seven points instead of the sixty-seven points they scored against the Connecticut Sun who scored 62. Maybe, she or Aunt Bee knew. But, what did I learn?
P.S. This article is dedicated to my two nephews.
By Davan Mani, 2009
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