Annie's Blog

Whoo Hoo! You did it! Katelyn’s essay was chosen as the winner of the Briggs and Stratton essay contest, and so now her baseball field will receive $20,000 toward renovations.

Thanks gang!

See the comment for a note from Katelyn’s uncle…

Whoo! so after eight days and seven nights of single parenting, I’m ecstatic that my DH is finally home from his Boy Scout camp school training week. So glad, in fact, that as soon as he gets back from today’s training stint (first aid and CPR), I’m ditching him and the kids to visit a new yarn store. And then he’s taking us out to dinner at Viva Mercado’s, quite possibly the best family-friendly with good food and greater margaritas Mexican restaurant in the whole of Las Vegas. Bring on the margaritas!

I’m on THE LAST REPEAT of the border of the Spring Garden Maze shawl. And then I get to pick up about 450 stitches to start the body. No big deal, right? (gads, I hope I can do it evenly and count correctly the first time! Lots of markers. LOTS of markers)

And I’ve already got the yarn for my next two projects–a cabled sweater for DH in Peruvian Highland Chunky, and a Flower Petal Shawl (check out the free patterns section at Elann.com) in Peruvian Pure Alpaca. No problem to finish those by Christmas, right???

I’m a little bummed this morning–I got stung by a bee on my finger last Saturday while I was at the pool with the kids. Yesterday the wind started blowing in Las Vegas, and something in the air was triggering a slight allergy attack–and so last night and this morning my finger has swollen–not quite balloon-like, but enough that it’s uncomfortable to bend it more than a few degrees, and enough so that I’m seriously thinking that I’m going to need to have someone cut my class ring off. I’ve taken benadryl and I’ve been icing it, but it’s still pretty swollen. I’ll just have to watch it and see if it gets any worse. I’d hate to have to cut the ring–and it pisses me off that it took this long to react. Oh wells. Maybe soaking in the cool water at the pool again this afternoon will help.

Don’t forget to go contribute to Claudia’s MS Ride. It’s a great cause–help her meet her $10,000 goal!

Hey all. I got this message from a friend at work–and it’s real. The girl he’d like you to vote for actually lives in the same house he did 20 years ago in Cape Cod. How cool is that? Benjamin loves baseball as much as his wife and daughter, and is incredibly passionate about preserving the sport for children. So if you have a chance, visit the website in the story below and vote–either for Katelyn H. or another one of the kids/fields featured. Save Baseball!

Message with Story:

Okay Everyone, from the looks of the distribution list above, you’re going to think that the following message is a forwarded e-mail asking you to send this on to seven other friends in the next 13 minutes to be “kissed by an angel” or some similarly absurd idea.

HOWEVER, I have compiled this list of individuals (some of you are listed multiple times because I don’t know which e-mail you check) from a number of lists that I have, and you have been included on the list for one of several reasons:

1) You seem like the type of person who will read this message to the end and enjoy how peculiar the universe is.

2) You’re the type of person who thinks a little girl can do anything and will support me in my grass-roots effort.

3) You’re a baseball fan who loves a good baseball story (yes, there is even a YANKEES fan on the distribution list).

4) You’re the type of person who forwards everything that you receive (which maximizes the impact of my grass-roots effort).

5) I haven’t heard from you in a century, and I’m interested to see if your e-mail bounces back.

Only you can guess as to which of those reasons I’ve chosen to include you on the list, but what I want to reinforce is that I, too, hate thoughtless forwarded messages (as some of you who keep forwarding me Republican party propaganda have yet to figure out), and I hope you don’t consider this message to be one of those.

On with the story…

I was recently reminiscing about my childhood and thinking about my plan to take Ilaria & Aurora back to see some of the places that I grew up when I realized it’s been exactly 20 years since I left Cape Cod (and haven’t been back!). I looked up some of my old stomping grounds and found an article about my elementary school (the one I was at when I first found out I faint when I bleed, the one where I asked everyone I could think of if they saw my lost dog, the one where I followed Crista McAuliffe’s story… and where I learned of it’s tragic ending, the one where I got my (first) concussion, and a number of other stories I’ll spare you).

Here’s a link to the article:
http://www.capecodonline.com/cctimes/shesteps13.htm

That happens to be the baseball field where I first pretended to be Roger Clemens striking out 27 batters for the perfectest of perfect games in the 7th game of the 1986 World Series (well, we all know it turned out a little differently than that). It’s also the baseball field where I cried when I learned about the Challenger. It’s where I played with gypsy moth caterpillars until I learned they gave me a rash. It’s where the schoolyard bully called me “four eyes,” and I proudly proclaimed “I’m not four eyes… I actually have six because I have bifocals!”

In short, that field was a place for me where teachers get launched into space, where caterpillars are cute and cuddly, where lost dogs don’t die, where having six eyes is somehow cooler than having four, and where Roger Clemens plays for the Red Sox–yes, a fantasy world.

So because I still remember and long for that fantasy world, I am lobbying for 8-year-old Katelyn Haglof to win the Briggs & Stratton “Diamonds in the Rough” grand prize of $20,000 for field improvements to Hoxie Field. Go to http://www.briggsdiamondsintherough.com to vote for her.

Those of you who know me well know that I play hardball when it comes to politics, and I’m hard-nosed (or hard-headed… depending on how you look at it) when it comes to my political causes. As I mentioned above, I don’t bombard you with junk mail espousing my CNN- or Fox News-inspired cause of the day, and you’d be hard-pressed to find me trying to convince someone of a cause unless I really found it important. So while the people I’ve sent this message to all have differing opinions on war, immigration, abortion, or any number of what I referred to above as “causes of the day,” the one thing I think everyone will agree on is that its important for Katelyn Haglof to have a chance to play where it’s still possible for a girl to play on a level playing field with the boys. She has the next 20 years to grow up and discover that caterpillars sting, dogs (and teachers) die, and the Red Sox don’t (always) win the Word Series. For now, I encourage each of you to go and vote (with as many valid e-mail addresses as you have) to make Katelyn’s dream come true.

Just click on http://www.briggsdiamondsintherough.com

I can’t guarantee that forwarding this message to your own distribution list will make a wish come true or will inspire Bill Gates to send you a dollar for each person you send it to, but I do challenge you to think about who else might be inspired by Katelyn’s story and send it on.

Again, I’m sorry to blitz you with my hardball lobbying, but to quote Katelyn “I don’t play softball because softball’s for girls.”

Sincerely,

Benjamin D. Peltier
bdpeltier@yahoo.com

P.S. – Obviously, the story inspired me, and as I researched more on Katelyn and her story, I found out an interesting/inspiring fact (which might further explain my passion for her to win the prize): Katelyn and her family now live in the very house I grew up in on the Cape. She could be sitting right now in the very bedroom that I sat in 20 years ago dreaming about pitching in her own World Series… so what are you waiting for? GO VOTE NOW!

http://www.briggsdiamondsintherough.com