Talking about boxball

I played many games of "boxball" with my friends. This was played just like baseball, but the only equipment needed was a plain rubber ball and four items (they could be rocks, jackets, almost anything) to mark the bases. There was no pitcher, catcher or bat. The "batter" simply tossed the ball up and hit -- "boxed" -- it with his fist, hence the name. I was never any good.

The quote from which the title of this blog was birthed

"When I needed to find another apartment, I decided to move to Staten Island, partly because I craved natural surroundings that I couldn't get in Manhattan, partly because I wanted to be close to Christine. I was really crazy about her. However, the relationship was never consummated, and being far away from school had a deleterious effect on my studies."

Discover the Legend

I must begin this blog by saying what a joy and an honor it must be to know Joe or even having been a part of his life at any given point (especially in the early nineties at his pinnacle). He is a new discovery for me. I've never met Joe and I'm not sure I want to. I'm ok with simply worshiping the legend that is Joe.

Now on with the blog. The best place to start in discovering him for yourself is here: the long version of his autobiography where you'll find such treasures as:

"In grade school, my best friend Richard Hamilton and I were the two brightest kids in the class, and we were in constant competition for the "smartest kid in the class" crown. Eventually it became a fight over "smartest kid in the school". I also served as an altar boy in church for a few years, and was really into religion when I was young. My mother thought I would become a priest when I grew up. I wanted to be Bart Starr (Green Bay Packers quarterback and My Hero) when I grew up."

and

(edited)
"1996 was really a tough year for me...
Then, while attempting to patch things up with Helena, I allowed her adopted daughter and her boyfriend to stay at my house with their new baby...
Well, almost all of my large CD collection (many of which were extremely hard to find in the first place), practically all of my records (ditto, but even larger), and all of my keyboards, instruments, and musical equipment, disappeared...
As if these problems weren't enough, in losing my "other half", I was stuck with all of "our" debts, and had no real job. Also, I had a car, a van, and a motorcycle, all three of which died on me in short order. I contemplated suicide, went back to delivering pizza, eventually worked for nine months as a receptionist for Mazer Real Estate Company, then got work as a temp."

Thanks the Gods, Joe is still with us.