The Tooth Fairy’s rate of exchange has gone up over last 50 years

Jackson Yngve - Just 6 years old, Jackson ran a 5K on Father’s Day with his dad Kurt. Jackson cried as he crossed the finish line, not because he was hot and exhausted, but because he lost a tooth during the run and he was afraid the Tooth Fairy wouldn’t find it and him and pay up. I told Jackson the Tooth Fairy just flew by with a $5 bill in his mouth looking for him. People nearby were like “what kind of Tooth Fairy lives in your world?” and I got the old “When I was a kid, the Tooth Fairy left a quarter” stories. Anyway, I think Poppa Fredman owes a $5 bill to Jackson’s college fund.

World Cup - I can sit in a dark room on a blue bird sunny day and watch four straight World Cup soccer games. The athletes are exquisite, the nationalism is inspiring, and it’s pretty obvious the world is one big blended tribe. I am 100 percent of German descent, but was happy for Mexico when they upset the Germans 1-0 in the opening round. I read 60,000 World Cup tickets were sold in Mexico and tens of thousands more in the blended country of the United States. Iceland’s 1-1 tie with Argentina was also crazy. As was the Spain 3 versus Portugal 3 game with Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo scoring a hat trick. A worldwide argument is who is the better player Ronaldo or Lionel Messi of Argentina? Ronaldo earned $93 million in 2017, ranked by Forbes magazine as the world’s highest paid athlete. What I noticed about him is he’s 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds of lean muscle mass. It doesn’t look like his diet includes beef from steroid-injected steers.

Zen to ten - Monday night I was scheduled to emcee my 10th straight Cape girls’ state championship lacrosse banquet. I will tell everyone, “there is no chance of ever winning 10 straight state championships in a row ever again, but there’s an excellent chance of winning 11.” Once you get out there in rare air just keep knocking those titles down. I also tell them, “The term dynasty belongs to history,” but in the here and now, you have to fight for everything you get. The Cape girls have won 18 state championships since 2009, including 10 in lacrosse, six in field hockey and two in Division I track and field.

Lean mean fighting machine - The movie Stripes. Dewey Oxberger played by John Candy: “My doctor said I swallow a lot of aggression along with a lot of pizzas.” My late friend Bruce Hefke, a carpenter with the vocabulary of a Harvard professor, once told me that certain body types had a “propensity for pork-ability.” We agreed that all athletes were pulled toward center mass of their genetic code and that diet combined with strength and speed training scientifically designed by that rare person who actually knows what they are talking about is the best way to approach competitive sports. Lean mass that translates to explosive muscle is the goal, but honestly, the reality is that most athletes just show up for the first practice.   

“At least try to fool somebody” - There are some accomplished athletes who have just stepped out the door of high school graduation and are already half-stepping inside the fog of drugs and alcohol with an inflated appraisal of who they are and where they are heading. I only mention it  because I am aware and concerned and understand that self deception is the worse kind of lying. The double irony is that your friends know what’s up but will never tell the people who can help you, figuring that’s some violation of the friendship honor code. This is a side of athletes that needs to be addressed, as posers go skipping and tripping toward the inevitable moment of reckoning.     

Snippets - I’ve been all-in with the Phillies since I parked cars two blocks from Connie Mack Stadium when I was 5 years old. But I am reluctant. They remind me of me Checkers, our North Philly calico cat, who would attack unprovoked when she was tired of being petted. (Don’t we all?) The Phils are 37-32, just four games behind Atlanta for first and a half game behind Washington. All we real fans wanted was a “reason to believe” and an excuse to watch games when we can find the broadcast. The Orioles are an amazing 20-50 and the Texas Rangers 29-44. I still think either Manny Machado or Cole Hamels will be coming to the Phillies at the trade deadline. Beach Blast girls’ lacrosse tournament with 100 teams at Cape and Lewes venues is set for this Friday through Sunday. Go on now, git!