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Not certain that I’m EXCITED about the Democratic National Convention coming to town.  While just having hotels well packed with people and spare time on their hands in Charlotte makes it seem the mall I’ll be working at will have more potential buyers, Uptown is supposed to become a desert. Building workers are on vacation from hassles, those serving lunches have no need to be around– maybe we’ll find out later if the excitement was legit.

As for Labor Day Sunday and the semi-rememberance of a historic ‘Longest Day’ at the US OPEN, a year when every match went the maximum distance, I’m able to recall giving my best friend about 4 hours of tennis lessons and *still* catching nearly two full matches.  Old Jimmy Connors beat Lendl in the finale, had to use his time out to clear some diarrhea, but a match for the ages between ‘tougher than anybody’ Jimmy and Ice Man Lendl.  At 55 and kinda gimpy, I was inspired by that memory and 90 degree sunshine this morning, so I finally got my tail out and pounded some tennis balls against a wall for about 40 minutes.  Way back on that particular Sunday, I could almost PAINT balls into locations with the new racket I had, a Steffi Graf strung at 56; today I used a Prince Lite Titanium Long Body at 60 and probably couldn’t get that small Graf head on a forehand return of serve up the backhand line I rely on. Surviving 4 hours and two outfit changes?  Not likely on that either.

Brought water and a towel, didn’t overdo it, but something just clicked in after whats been quite a while without any practice, and forehands, serving location, two fisted backhand were all like, well….reliable! Letting out some aggression while considering a political note is legit too.

I think there’s an analogy there, between thumping away at a brick wall and feeling encouraged that progress was being made, maybe even that reliability thing. The GOP just ended their convention, and several others and I agree we have yet to hear a PLAN for the COUNTRY vs. just more “the Prez, does he deserve your vote after not getting us back to good jobs from the hellacious shape we were in back then?”  People recognize the difference, at least the average customers I speak with usually do. Polls show people may be disappointed, but they’re still willing to give him, as a smarter guy they can trust more than that Romney guy, another chance to make it work right. 

Can the GOP masses really believe the crapola churned out about winning when the speakers (other than wife Ann)  barely mentioned Mitt, certainly not in as supportive a manner as they gave their own credentials for oh, maybe a 2016 run? They did the thumping against a wall or unsat-in chair, and for some reason think they accomplished something.  Mostly they looked like a bunch of people, disappointed but steadfast in their convinction of rightness, wandering around waiting for something like a hurricane (or 2016) to happen.  Watch any soap opera wedding and you’ll see the same type of (not really) happy faces for the guest of honor.

I got some worthwhile calluses from todays tennis ball whacking, doing something I haven’t attempted in a while. I think the Prez is going to be doing some thumping this coming week as well, utilize that vast and available amount of focused attention to get a major platform in place.  The GOP seems content to tap lollipop serves to the masses, and I’d bet there are many more concerned with their next doubles match than whether he can beat Obama. Some will probably just be glad to know where he safely stashed his cash…

Glenn S.

While I’ve been expecting to articulate this particular message SOMEWHERE for quite a while, a recent and terrific 35th reunion of my Brockport (NY) sophomore floor compatriots seems a legitimate background.

What many people in Charlotte still can’t 100% understand, or more accurately *allow*, is for people from ‘elsewhere’ to consider themselves Charlotteans no matter how long they’ve resided here. I’ve lived here since Memorial Day 1995; brother Mike arrived from Tampa in 1987. My brother Steven came from Pittsburgh in 1985 and became an essential part of a NCNB banking cadre that launched a good regional bank into the major, major leagues of banking (NationsBank, BOA). He married a local girl (and okay, Meredith is from Gastonia, which still gets looked down on by ‘real’ Charlotte natives) and they had three sons–Paul (Steven, Jr.), a Morehead-Cain scholar at Carolina and now a Rhodes scholar; Ian, who just finished his second year at Clemson, and Ryan, who will shortly enter Myers Park as a freshman.

A couple Christmas’ ago Ian asked how long I felt one had to live here to become a Charlottean, and knowing his prejudices about that, I hedged and said after maybe 6-7 years I pretty much considered myself an ex-Yankee. He listened to both Steve’s and my explanations, then simply said, “We always consider you Yankees,” and THAT is the nut issue.

I stayed at my brother Dave’s house two exits from the Saratoga Racetrack where my long-ago friends and I enjoyed a day together (I finished up $100+ and was responsible for others making a couple worthwhile bets too, thank you very much), but we didn’t consider ourselves Saratogians–that would be silly. Neither I or almost twenty others still call themselves Brockporters either; some of us graduated from B-port, some left after 1977, but we pretty much took it for granted we were “just there for a while.” Celebrating ‘the good old days’ included Steve Kasonofsky’s birthday, but everyone eventually returned safely to the homes they’ve created elsewhere; Kaz and Faith to three veterinarian hospitals In NYC, the Reagans to Conneticut, the Piraccis to Chapel Hill, ‘McDennis’ to Nashville, and me to Charlotte, 765 miles from the city of Schenectady where I was born and lived until 1981-83 (in Tampa) and again from ’83 until moving to Charlotte. 

I’m DEFINITELY not one of those people who whines about not having any really good thin-crust pizza joints here, or that the bagels are barely more than stiffer bread, the brats aren’t anywhere near Chicago quality and there’s “no culture” because a museum or theater isn’t planted on every other corner (that’s were most of the 900 churches are). I’m laissez-faire about what pro football team anyone wants to cheer for. I watched regional double-headers of bad Jets and Giants teams so long I continue hating them despite the Giants winning two Super Bowls, although I also believe Giants dads pass a particular addiction to each new generation. I went to Clemson for a Panthers game Year One, Steve has two PSLs, and we’re all obviously THRILLED that Cam Newton brought back respectability from his very first game. Lots of people, from Charlotte or elsewhere, aren’t fond of the Bobcats because they’re not the Hornets of yore (or because as watchers of ACC ball they actually know what good hoops is supposed to look like), but thats okay too.

My baseline philosophy on CHARLOTTEANS used to center on fact/opinion that if Those Real Natives could’ve shipped Yankees/Others (and that’s 85% of the population) back AND remained as important as this city’s financial industry had allowed it to become by 2007-08, they would’ve taken that deal no problem. On the other hand (work with me…), about 1.7 million young Latinos showed up at centers across the country with as much documentation as possible to prove they’d lived in the USA in a manner that deserved their inclusion in idea of ‘Americans’, or at the very least, a two year exemption from the threat of deportation. That constitutes a huge leap of faith on their part, and being considered a Charlottean (no threat or desire on TNR front), grits-eater or not, shouldn’t rely on anything except Home being where the heart is. Like my Brockport State reunion buddies, fondly remembering where or when about something doesn’t change the fact that you can be something without being born one.

Oh, FYI–Goodlettsville, TN beat Petaluma, CA in the greatest Little League game EVER this afternoon. Down 15-5 going into the bottom of the sixth, Petaluma scored **10** to send the game to extra innings, after which G-ville scored nine more and won 24-17. Having used up all five front line and secondary pitchers to survive as American champs, I hope people won’t be disappointed if the guys lose to a strong team from Japan.  Just something worth noting.

Glenn S.