Homers 2001

August 30, 2001 marked the return of Tim Ohm to the Homer lineup after a three year absence. However, the mirth and revelry was punctuated by an uncooperative Goat Scouts team, who pounded the Homers 18 - 9.

The Homers aren't quite sure why they lost but they think it may have something to do with Richard and Scott M. out scouting for new players for next season. With the Homers left behind to battle for a spot on the team they placed their hearts on their sleeves and headed out to the field. The defensive standouts included:

A couple of nice fielding plays by Karen, one of which included a very nice backhand of a grounder. You go Girl!

A stab of a line drive by Tim at short, unfortunately followed by a Richardesque throw to first.

A bobble, bobble catch by Daniel in the outfield.

In the fourth inning a well (3 year) rested Tim not only drove in from SLO but also drove in 4 runs while hitting an impressive GRAND SLAMMO. Other home run hitters included Daniel, Ron and another soccer player assisted one by the traveling Ohm. Tim's 2 home runs in 3 at bats left the Homer statisticians scrambling to see if any Homer had ever hit home runs in 66.6% of his at bats for the season. On the other side of the offensive spectrum, Steve managed to get thrown out underhand by a woman.

Line Score:

Homers          0  1  0  4  1  1  2      9 
Goat Scouts     3  1  6  1  4  3  x     18 

The Final Lineup:

               1   2   3   4    5   6

Jeff           --  OF  --  --   --  OF 
Karen          2B  --  2B  --   2B  -- 
Tim            SS  SS  OF  --   OF  SS 
Ron            OF  3B  OF  OF   OF  -- 
Kim            --  2B  --  2B   --  2B 
Andres         C   C   --  C    C   C 
Rich           1B  1B  --  1B   1B  -- 
Sheila         OF  --  OF  --   OF  -- 
Tony           P   --  1B  P    P   1B 
Robb           3B  --  P   SS   SS  -- 
Becky          OF  --  3B  --   3B  -- 
Joe            OF  --  OF  OF   --  OF 
Daniel         --  OF  C   --   OF  OF 
Steve          --  P   SS  OF   --  P 
Annette        --  OF  --  3B   --  OF 
Mary           --  OF  --  OF   --  3B 
Sue          ----- Field Manager ------

Spectators included a very mobile Alyssa, an immobilized Kona (due to leash constraints), and Scott S. (who, as far as we know, has no such leash constraints). Dinner points were awarded to all those who convened to (surprise) a 'Toadless' Crown City Brewery. Revelers included Jeff, Karen, (empty seat in honor of Scott M, who does not get dinner points for having only his seat present), Scott S., Kim, Ron, Sue, Annette, Mary, Tim 'I washed my hands' Ohm, Steve, and Robb.

With the season now at an end the Homers replaced the hearts on their sleeves with a black band to mourn the end of another softball season. As we turn our focus on the upcoming opportunities for next year, Homers have yet to see the scouting reports to be provided by the absent Richard and Scott M.

I would like to thank Sue, Richard and Jeff for once again making the Homers a fun team to be a part of this season. Thanks for all your hard work. Our next Homers game will be in April of 2002. All those who won't be able to attend please contact Richard or Jeff as soon as possible.

The Homers postgame at Hooters was acclaimed as the best Homers postgame EVER, by some. Well, OK, by Richard. The more politically correct Homers made appropriate disappointed noises about attending such a disreputable establishment (but still attended), some simply boycotted the event, while others banded together to form Homers Against Hooters, and marched around the entrance displaying placards saying "Homers, Just Say No To Hooters". Oddly enough, those inside did not pay much heed to the protesters outside.

Unfortunately, all the controversy overshadowed another contest between longtime rivals, the Homers and one of the various Toad incarnations, Vociferous Toad Fungus, or something like that. One of the many common names for the species bufo halitosis (mistakenly classifed as Bufo boreas halophilus Kaczinski in a previous report). They are distinguished by their bright coloring, their persistent, extremely loud vocalization, and an affinity for habitats where fermented grain products are plentiful (hence the species name). It is not known how they reproduce. Some form of asexual reproduction is assumed, but no one has really been interested enough to find out. Oh, and they like to play softball and abuse Homers in the process. Emphasis on the latter.

The game got off to an inauspicious start, with the Toad Fungus banishing Steve from the mound by roughing him up for 6 runs. Defensive lowlights included Richard overthrowing Rich at first twice, Steve handling an easy ground ball like it was covered in Toad slime, and a hard grounder through Ron at 3rd. Afterward, Steve immediately applied copious amounts of Micatin.

The Homers rebounded with 5 runs in the bottom of the 1st, and at the end of the 3rd inning were on top, 10-9.

Unfortunately the Homers were overtaken by a bad case of the Virulent Toad Fungus, who outscored the Homers 11-2 over the final four innings, leading to a final score of 20-12. Alyssa was the only Homer maintaining the correct mindset, bashing and tossing around the croaking Toad idol throughout the game.

Game Highlights:

Andres is well on his way to becoming the Homers' Bengie Molina - a solid defensive catcher who has trouble on the basepaths. He fielded a ground ball in front of home and made the throw to Jeff at first for the first out in the 2nd inning, and he made a running catch on a pop-up in the 4th, but in the 2nd he ran through Scott's stop sign at third and was thrown out at home. Doh!

In the 5th inning, Kim, showing all disregard for potential repercussions, fielded a ground ball at 2nd and threw to Jeff at first to nail her group sup, Dave Seal. Actually, she was aiming for his head, and missed.

Karen snagged line drives in the 2nd and 3rd innings, and Daniel made a juggling catch in left in the 7th.

Dingers were hit by Steve and Ron, and actually Richard, who ripped one into the soccer players behind Seamus (aka Jim) in left center and who had no chance to make a play on it. But some very misguided (and uncharacteristic) sense of sportsmanship inspired him to stop at 2nd. Dummy. Scott and Ron also had triples.

Batting leaders were Richard and Rich at 3/3, and Annette at 2/3. Joe had a "coulda been" game, but two line drives he smacked were hit just too hard - they turned into easy plays for Antler (Brian Dunn) in right center.

The line score:

                         1  2  3  4  5  6  7
Vociferous Toad Fungus   6  0  3  1  7  1  2   20
HOMERS                   5  1  4  0  2  0  0   12

The lineup:

             1  2  3  4  5  6  7
Karen        C 3B 2B --  P 3B 2B
Jeff        OF 1B 1B -- 1B OF --
Scott       OF OF -- OF OF -- OF
Ron         3B  P SS  P 3B --  P
Kim         2B 2B -- 2B 2B 2B --
Richard     SS OF OF -- OF OF SS
Steve       P  SS -- SS SS SS --
Rich        1B -- 3B 1B -- 1B 1B
Annette     OF OF OF OF -- OF OF
Andres      --  C  C  C --  C  C
Joe         -- OF OF -- OF OF --
Sheila      OF -- OF OF OF -- OF
Robb               P 3B --  P 3B
Daniel            -- OF  C -- OF
Sue         <-- Field Manager -->
Tony - injured reserve, aka, big wussie

The Homers were cheered from the stands by Scott S., Alyssa G., and Gyro (well, Gyro seemed mainly to cheer for Daniel).

Edna Villareal took a break from her run to view the spectacle, and coincidentally or not, that's when the Homers bats went on vacation.

Homer order of appearance: Jeff, Karen, Scott M., Ron, Sue, Kim, Scott S., Richard, Steve, Annette, Sheila, Alyssa, Andres, Joe, Tony, Robb.

Names of the attendees at Hooters were originally going to be witheld to protect the innocent, but, since Homer points are at stake and some people actually care about such things ... they were: Jeff, Karen, Scott M, Ron, Sue, Kim, Scott S., Richard, Steve, Joe, and Robb.

The next game is Thursday, August 30, vs. the Goat Scouts on field H3 (the corner field). Postgame will be at Pleasures.

Richard will be away in Alaska, where much to his dismay, he'll discover the male/female ratio is worse than JPL's. So if you can't attend, let Jeff know.

A textbook game. An early and aggressive advance by the Lunatics in the first inning was rewarded by 5 runs. Daniel shone stopping the attack with 2 outs, one catching a foul-ball and another with a flawless pass to Jeff on first. But that was the end of the threat of the Lunatics since they had awakened the Homers. A tremendous defense prevented the Lunatics from scoring any more runs during the rest of the evening. In the outfield, "shoeless" Joe Jacob proved once again that he is in top form by catching two flies to the left field. A pass from Tony to Karen and an almost 'all-Richard' 5-th inning showed that our short-stops are to be feared. On to top of it all we are doing quite well at the bases.

Defense wins the game but offense gets the glory and what a glorious evening it was. Consistency, hard work, patience, strategy and tenacity (or many be just sheer luck) got us 19 runs. Words cannot express the exultation in the stands at the beauty of the plays so we'll try with a small graphic summary of the events. Here are some scenes of the great performance of the Homers at the Rose Bowl.

1st Inning... The stands get ready for the game, Richard exhibits his battle wounds (an intimidation tactic that seldom works).

Players (or should I say "warriors") look within to find the focus to prevail.

Apprentices brought to the field to learn the ropes pay attention to every detail.

All right.. the game is on.. it's a sunny day in California and we are having fun!

This was embarrassing.. Richard hit a homerun and decided to chat with the catcher for a while before making the rounds.. distraction or another intimidation tactic..? we are not sure. The only thing that we are sure of is that he laughed all the way to the home plate.

"Take this, you scummy ball" appear to be the feeling of "shoeless" Joe Jaboc as he attempted to smash the innocent softball into smithereens.

A happy celebration reminiscent of those at Camelot. Smiling faces satisfied with a job well done. photographer: Andres Castano

Homeruns of the day were hit by Rich (1), Richard (2) and Scott (1).

The line score:

                 1  2  3  4  5  6  7
Lunatic Fringe   5  0  0  0  0  0  0     5
HOMERS           2  6  6  2  2  1  -    19

             1  2  3  4  5  6  7
Karen       3B 2B -- P  2B -- P
Jeff        1B OF -- 1B 0F -- 3B
Ron         SS 1B -- SS SS -- 1B
Scott       OF OF -- OF OF -- OF
Kim         2B -- 2B 2B -- 2B 2B
Tony        P  SS -- 3B 3B -- SS
Richard     OF -- SS OF -- SS C
Daniel      C  -- OF C  -- OF OF
Annette     OF -- OF OF -- OF OF
Joe         OF -- OF OF -- OF OF
Sheila      -- OF OF -- OF OF --
Andres      -- C  C  -- C  C  --
Becky       -- OF 3B -- OF 3B --
Rich        -- 3B 1B -- 1B 1B --
Steve       -- P  P  -- P  P  --
Sue         <-- Field Manager -->

Dinner took place at Crown City where Scott M. was knighted with an 800th-beer applause. Joining in the applause were Karen, Jeff, Ron, Sue, Kim, Scott S., Richard, Annette, Daniel, Joe, Becky, Andres, Rich, Steve and Robb.

The next Homers game is scheduled for Thursday, August 23, at the Rosebowl, Homers, vs the Voodoo Toad Fury. This game promises to be an excellent one.. don't miss it. If you can't make it, let Jeff or Richard know.

Despite the distraction of having a squadron of cheerleaders practicing their high kicks and splits right behind home plate, the Homers were able to overwhelm the Paper Tigers with a 19 to 14 win. 

Memorable events include:

Mary was brilliant with her base running in the last inning, making the third baseman run towards her for the tag thereby wasting enough time for everyone else to get to base safely. 

Joe had a spectacular catch in the fifth inning, causing Richard to take back every bad thing he has ever said about Joe. 

Andres sacrificed his body by sliding (tumbling?) to safety at third base and showed off the resulting nasty leg wound at dinner. 

Kim survived a near trampling during the first inning when an over-eager Rich decided to call a fly ball that was clearly coming towards Kim, and she quickly regained her composure in the second inning to make a great catch.

 Steve got a home run in the third inning despite a random "good samaritan" fielding the ball and throwing it to their outfielder. 

"Regardless of the verdict of juries, no player that throws a ball game; no player that undertakes or promises to throw a ball game; no player that sits in conference with a bunch of crooked players and gamblers where the way and means of throwing games are planned and discussed and does not promptly tell his club about it, will ever play professional baseball". Kenesay Mountain Landis, baseball commissioner, on his banishment of eight Chicago White Sox players involved in the 1919 World Series betting scandal, despite their acquittal in a Chicago trial, 1920.

Although there are no facts to support it, the debate will rage for years, possibly the next 80 or so. It is rumored that "Shoeless" Joe Jacob was given a new bowling ball by Cinco Equis management if he would drop a couple of fly balls during the game. While Joe may be rolling a sweet new Brunswick (is this who makes bowling balls?) in future games, it is wasn't enough to stop the Homers from squeaking by Cinco Equis, 22-19.

In addition to Joe's theatrics, a late inning slide by the rest of the team almost doomed the Homers to another bitter loss but by the grace of they were able to finally put down an 8-run rally to finish the game.

Some highlights :

• Kim made a nice play to 1st, stopping a hard hit grounder to 2nd.
• Richard hit a shot to right center which cleared the fence for a HR (1) and racked up a pitch count of almost 350 while facing only about 5 batters.
• Ron got a HR (1), a triple and a nice 2-1/2 base hit as he stood between 2nd and 3rd pleading with Jeff that his ground rule double was really another home run.
• Many thanks to Amy (Fringe) for aptly filling at third base.

Dinner should have been at Twin Palms (as an act of pure malicious intent) but was most likely at Crown City. Everyone except Sheila and Tony probably went.

Next game is 8/9 at Muir. Show up.

Box score:

Homers        1 5 2 3 5 6 0   22
Cinco Equis   2 2 2 0 5 0 8   19

Scott
Jeff
Ron
Kim
Richard
Joe
Rich
Sheila
Tony
Amy

field mgr: Sue

w/spectators: Scott S. Kona and Alyssa

As 'N SYNC played the Rose Bowl tonight to thousands of screaming fans, the HOMERs were SYNC-'N as they lost an embarrasing game to the LA Radars at Muir High School.

Ron's CNN contacts told him tonight that when former Dodger manager Tommy Lasorda heard about the game, Lasorda was quoted as saying, "I can't believe the <BLEEP> <BLEEP> <BLEEP> HOMERS couldn't <BLEEP> <BLEEP> the <BLEEP> <BLEEP> with Richard's <BLEEP> <BLEEP> <BLEEP> <BLEEP>, what the <BLEEP> <BLEEP> were they <BLEEP> <BLEEP> <BLEEPITY> <BLEEP>, and <BLEEP> <BLEEP> Scott <BLEEPIN> Morgan's fault , that <BLEEP> aqua shirt <BLEEPITY> <BLEEP> ...!!!" The rest of the transcript is, well, unprintable.

On the bright side, at least no one had their car stolen or locked up in the school grounds.

The Muir H.S. hard infield sped up the ball and made fielding more difficult, but that does not explain why no HOMERS hit HOMERS, the closest being triples by Ron and Joe. Two innings went one-two-three, the first inning setting the tone with a double play as Richard hit a caught line drive and the second baseman caught Jeff off of first.

That said, one must also mention the two hot-to-handle infield hits that Jeff got. Also nearly missed in the funereal aftermath was the fact that Tony had a stellar pitching performance, allowing no runs to score in both his innings as pitcher (3 and 7).

Another bright note (for Tim anyway) is that no Tim Ohm records were surpassed.

Line Score:     1  2  3  4  5  6  7  Total 
LA Radars       3  4  0  2  2  4  0    15 
HOMERS          0  1  0  0  4  0  0     5 

Players  1  2  3  4  5  6  7 
Karen   3B 2B 3B 2B  - 3B 3B 
Jeff    OF 1B OF 1B  - OF OF 
Richard SS OF SS SS  - OF OF 
Ron     OF  P SS  - SS SS  C 
Kim     2B  C 2B  - 2B 2B 2B 
Rich    1B 3B 1B  - 1B 1B 1B 
Steve    P SS  -  P  P  P SS 
Joe     OF OF  - OF OF OF  - 
Sheila  OF OF  - OF OF OF  -
Andres   C  -  C  C  C  C  - 
Becky    - OF OF OF 3B  - OF 
Mary     X  X OF 3B OF  - OF 
Tony     X  X  P OF OF  -  P 
Sue     <-- Field Manager --> 

Spectators: Scott Steadman (almost recruited as catcher in the first inning), a walking Alyssa Ganino, a barking and overly affectionate Kona Ganino, and Robb, who refused to join the lineup when he showed up in the 7th since he thought it might adversely affect Amgen stock prices.

Dinner at the Soup Plantation and a special viewing of Richard's scar were enjoyed by Jeff, Karen, Ron, Sue, Kim, Scott S., Richard, Joe, and Robb.

The next Homers game is on Wednesday, August 1, *again* AT MUIR HIGH SCHOOL vs the Cinco Equis. Let Jeff or Richard know if you can't make it.

Sue Kientz

The Homers rebounded from their dissapointing loss last week with an awesome offensive and defensive performance that left the Wild IR Turkeys feeling like they had been plucked, beheaded, stuffed, basted, and roasted at 325 degrees for 4 1/2 to 5 hours or until golden brown. After racking up a 6 to 1 lead in the first inning, the Homers never looked back. When the dust and feathers settled, the line score read 26 to 4 and the slaughter was complete. On the defensive side it was a solid team performance and no individual plays stand out except for one. Amidst cries of "NOOOOOOO!" from both teams, Scott served up a side of humiliation, combining with Rich at first base to throw out a defenseless Wild Turkey from right center field to end the game. In Scott's defense, he did look very sheepish and embarrassed after the throw and had pangs of guilt that had him agonizing over it throughout dinner.

The Homers lived up to their name offensively by hitting 8 homeruns including a grand slam from the rookie Andres, two homers each from Scott, Steve and Tony, and one from Rich. Becky showed total disregard for the pride of the guy batting after her by making him look bad with awesome power hitting, including a triple in the 2nd inning that very nearly duplicated last weeks home run performance.

It should also be noted that Scott S. spectated his ass off to help the Homers achieve this victory, noting afterward that he spectated so hard his leg fell asleep.

Line Score:      1  2  3  4  5  6  7  Total 
Wild IR Turkeys  1  0  0  1  0  2  0    4 
Homers           6  5  2  3  6  4  X   26 

Players  1  2  3  4  5  6  7 
Karen    P  C  -  P 2B  -  P 
Scott   OF OF  - OF OF  - OF 
Jeff    1B  - OF 1B  - 1B  - 
Ron     OF SS SS  -  P SS  - 
Kim     2B 2B  - 2B  - 2B 2B 
Tony    SS 3B  P  - SS  P  - 
Sheila  OF  - 2B OF  -  - OF 
Steve   3B  P  - SS 3B  - SS 
Annette OF  - OF OF  - OF OF 
Kathy    - OF OF  - OF OF  - 
Andres   C  -  C  C  -  C  C 
Becky    - OF 3B  - OF 3B  - 
Joe      - OF OF OF  - OF OF 
Rich     X 1B 1B  - 1B  - 1B 
Robb     X  X  X 3B  C  - 3B 
Mary     X  X  X  X OF OF  - 
Sue     <-- Field Manager --> 

Spectators: Scott S., Alyssa Ganino and Kona Ganino.

Dinner at Crown City was enjoyed by Scott M., Jeff, Karen, Ron, Sue, Kim, Scott S., Annette, Joe, Rich, Robb and Mary.

The next Homers game is on Tuesday, July 24 AT MUIR HIGH SCHOOL vs the LA Radars. Let Jeff know if you can't make it (I'm not sure Richard will be back from his vacation to get your message).

Well, it was a close one. Unfortunately, we lost. Fortunately, it was quick and painless.

Defensively we did quite well, but offensively we were unable to put together enough runs to bring us a victory.

Notable defensive plays include:

• Steve winning the race to first base to get the third out of the second inning.
• Annette made a spectacular catch in the 3rd inning to make an out.
• Mary made a nice catch and tag to bust the runner going to 3rd base in the 6th inning.
• Richard hurled the ball over the first baseman's head sending it careening into the street and striking a car with a satisfying thud.
• Brian, of the Goat Scouts, got too cocky, and waited for Scott M to get almost to 1st base before throwing the ball and missing the 1st baseman.

Notable Offensive playes include:

• Becky's home run in the 4th brought the spectators out of their chairs with exaltation.

          1   2   3   4   5   6   7
TGS       0   1   0   0   2   8   0   11
Homers    0   2   0   5   0   2   1   10

          1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Annette  3B  3B   C   OF OF  OF  --
Jeff     1B  1B  1B  1B  1B  1B  --
Scott M  OF  OF  OF  OF  OF  OF  OF
Richard  SS  OF  SS  SS  SS  SS  SS
Kim      2B  2B  2B  2B  2B  --  2B
Ron      OF  SS  OF  3B  3B  OF  1B
Joe      OF  OF  OF  OF  OF  --  OF
Steve     P   P   P   P   P   P   P
Kathy    OF  OF  OF  OF  --  2B  OF
Scott S   C   C  --  --  --  --  --
Becky            3B   C  --  OF  OF
Mary                 --  OF  3B  3B
Daniel                    C   C   C
Robb                             --
Sue      <----- field manager ---->

Spectators included Sue, Scott S, Gyro, and Robb. Dinner afterwords had to be relocated from Round Table to Georgies. Kim, Steve, Ron, Sue, Scott S., Richard, Rob, Jeff, Annette, Joe, and Scott M. were all in attendance.

Next week's game is Tuesday 7/17 against the Wild Turkeys on the H2 field.

With the excitement of People Magazine's listing of the most eligible bachelors and the disappointment of Richard coming in 51st, the HOMERS were highly distracted in their game with the Deep Space Cadets. Moreover, when Steve had uncharacteristically not appeared by the time the game got underway, the team was completely unable to focus. As a result the HOMERS got into a hole early from which they were digging out through the game, until they were finally able to tie in the bottom of the seventh. Although most people were happy with the come-back, one HOMER, in particular, insisting on going extra innings to settle the issue. This proved to be fatal for the HOMERS, as they had their worst defensive inning in the 8th and lost the game.

Outstanding defensive plays were made by Kim who stopped a tough grounder and made a good throw to first to get the out. Andres, at catcher, caught two pop ups. In the sixth, Tony caught two flies, and made a good effort on a third, running halfway to the neighboring field in an attempt to catch a foul. Richard had an amazingly (particularly for him) accurate throw from the outfield to first to make an out in the fourth inning. Finally, Joe had no notable errors through out the game.

Offensively, the HOMERS had a very strong inning in the fourth, scoring nine runs. The fifth was brought to a premature end when Richard's pop up to the outfield was cleanly caught, leaving two people on base. This after Richard had spent the past two innings yelling 'Don't pop it up' to every batter. Home runs were hit by Richard, Tony, Rich and Steve (2).

Line Score:

            1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8
DSC         7  5  2  4  0  1  0  8  27
HOMERS      2  1  4  9  0  2  1  5  24

           1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8
Kim        2B 2B -- C  2B -- 2B 2B
Jeff       OF 1B -- 2B OF -- -- --
Scott      OF OF OF -- OF -- OF OF
Richard    OF OF -- OF SS -- OF OF
Annette    3B OF -- 3B 3B -- 3B 3B
Tony       SS -- SS P  -- OF SS SS
Ron        P  SS -- SS -- OF OF OF
Rich       1B -- 1B 1B -- 1B 1B 1B
Sheila     OF -- 2B OF -- OF OF --
Robb       C  -- 3B -- 1B SS -- --
Joe        -- OF OF -- OF OF -- --
Becky      -- 3B OF -- OF 3B -- OF
Steve      xx P  P  -- P  P  P  P
Andres     xx C  C  -- C  -- C  C
Mary       xx xx OF OF -- 2B -- --
Daniel     xx xx -- OF -- C  -- --

Sue:       FM FM FM FM FM FM FM FM

Spectators included: Scott S., Sue, Kona, Gyro, injured Kathy, and baby Ganino Crying into their beers (or lemonades) at Crown City after the defeat were Kim, Jeff, Scott, Richard, Ron, Rich, Robb, Joe, Becky, Steve, Andres, Scott S., Sue, and Kathy.

There is no game the week of the Fourth of July. The HOMERS next game is Thursday, July 12 against the Goat Scouts (H2).

Garth Franklin of the Gravity Fielders called to forfeit at 11:00 a.m. on game day. Practice at Muir. Attendees: Richard*, Scott*, Kim* & Scott*, Tony, Charlie Kaczinski* (really to drop off T-shirts for his City League championship), Annette*, Joe*, Rich*, Becky, Andres, Ron*, Robb*. (* went to dinner at Crown City Brewery).

Next week's game is on Thursday against the Deep Space Cadets on H2 of the Rose Bowl. Please let Jeff or me know if you can't make it.

(AP) MADRID - A throng of protesters gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in this European capital on Tuesday. They came to express their views on a wide ranging set of topics: capital punishment, global warming, missile defense, and Dubya's poor Spanish pronunciation. But by far the most emotional of protests came from the those that felt left out by not being invited to the HOMERS annual carne asada summer solstice BBQ.

According to Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar his countrymen felt ignored and snubbed by the U.S. "Everyone else was apparently invited. Why weren't we? After all carne asada is actually a Spanish invention. Oh sure, the Mexicans may claim it as their dish, but in reality its roots go back to the Spanish conquistadors."

HOMERS team management was quick to respond. Head HOMER Richard expressed the team's desire not to create an international incident. "I have decided it is in the team's best interest to send HOMERS assistant manager Jef, to Madrid next week to diffuse the incident." In special consideration for Jeff's sacrifice, Richard also stated his intention to award Jeff special HOMERS attendance points for the game next week that he will have to miss while conducting the HOMERS diplomatic efforts.

Meanwhile, back in the states, the HOMERS took care of important business before the BBQ by beating the Paper Tigers 20-8.

Paper Tigers   0   1   3   1   2   0   1    8
HOMERS         8   4   2   2   4   0   x   20

Kim      2B 2B 2B -- 2B 2B 2B
Scott    OF OF -- OF -- OF --
Jeff      C 1B  C 1B 1B OF --
Ron      3B SS  P SS OF --  P
Sheila   OF OF -- 2B OF -- 3B
Richard  SS OF OF  P OF -- SS
Rich     1B  C 3B  C -- 1B 1B
Tony      P 3B 1B -- SS  P OF
Annette  OF -- OF OF -- 3B OF
Joe      OF -- OF OF  C OF --
Steve    --  P SS 3B  P SS OF
Kathy    -- OF OF -- OF OF  C
Mary     XX XX -- OF 3B  C OF
Sue      <-- field manager -->

Spectators and dinner participants included Scott S., Alyssa, Kona, Daniel, and Karen (actually as a Bruiser).

Offensive highlights included every HOMER getting at least one hit, and most getting at least two hits. Richard hit a grand slam in the first inning which usually reliable sources inform me was the 600th HOMERS home run. Other home runs were hit by Ron (2), Tony (1), and Steve (1).

The real highlight of the evening was the BBQ. Richard did his usual masterful job as team mom (a job he is willing to give up) and organized a great event. He finally figured out not to end up with pounds of leftovers: Simply invite every JPL C-league team in sight to join us. Of course I sure it was purely coincidence that all of the teams that joined in (Paper Tigers, Bruisers, and Eclectic Eccentrics) have all recently lost to the HOMERS.

As always many thanks to Richard for a great job. Also thanks go out to all of the HOMERS and others who pitched in with cooking and clean-up.

Next weeks game is on Thursday against the Gravity Fielders. Currently the game is scheduled to be held at Muir High School due a Galaxy conflict at the Rose Bowl. Please let Richard know if you can't make it, or if you need directions to Muir High School.

AP - "...A sole sentry battled the hordes of attacking Bufo boreas halophilus Kazcinski outside the gates of Homerdom. As he flailed away helplessly at the slimy critters, his cries for help went generally unheeded by the HOMER community, save for a few individual efforts. Just when it seemed the Homers were finally going to get it together and beat off the halophilus Kazcinski, one Homer, in a misguided quest for additional M. HOMER points, threw open the gates of Homerdom, which was then overrun by the croaking, bullhorn-equipped Bufo boreas. .."

This pretty much sums up the fiasco that was the annual HOMERS - Toads game.

                                  1  2  3  4  5  6  7
HOMERS                            1  0  0  0  1  0  1  -  3
Bufo boreas halophilus Kazcinski  2  1  5  3  6  0  X  - 17

            1  2  3  4  5  6
  Scott M  OF OF OF -- OF OF
  Karen    3B 2B -- 3B -- 3B
  Jeff     OF OF -- OF -- OF
  Ron       P SS -- OF  P --
  Richard  SS OF -- SS SS OF
  Kim      2B -- 2B 2B -- 2B
  Rich     1B -- 1B 1B -- 1B
  Joe      OF -- OF OF OF --
  Andres    C --  C  C --  C
  Kathy    OF -- OF -- OF --
  Annette  -- OF 3B -- 2B OF
  Steve    --  P SS  P --  P
  Robb     -- 1B  P -- 1B SS
  Becky    -- 3B -- OF 3B --
  Daniel   --  C OF --  C OF
  Sue      <-field manager->

Spectators - Scott S.

The GOOD:

1. Karen made a good throw to nail a Toad at first
2. Richard and Rich teamed up to nail a croaking toadette, left field to first.
3. And, in the play of the day, Jeff cut off ball hogging Richard in left field to grab a fly ball, and then, using managerial wisdom, Jeff passed up the grandstand play - a chance to nail Charlie at home, and went after the runner at 2nd base instead.

1. HOMER hitting - there were fewer hits than HOMERS, never a good thing.
2. Scott's umpiring - we know she's your Honey, and it seems like the wise thing to do, but man, that was a bad call!!

1. Ron's baserunning.

As a result of this game, a new concept has been adopted by HOMER management - the negative homer. The homers for the game:

Steve	1
Scott	-1	(HOMERS are not allowed to behave like Bufo boreas halophilus Kazcsinski!!!)
Ron	-2	(there was some discussion about whether this should be based on the number of outs caused, or the number of runs the HOMERS were behind (15) when the bonehead play occurred).

Attending the post-game wake at Round Table were Scott, Karen, Jeff, Ron, Richard, Kim, Rich, Joe, Annette, Steve, Robb, and Daniel. (ed note: also Sue and Scott S)

Reminder - next Tuesday's game is the annual celebration of the summer solstice, so bring your appetites for the barbeque!!

In the days after his momentous defection from the Republican party, Jim Jeffords of Vermont remained publicly silent regarding his motivations. However, top aides overheard Jeffords as the Senator surfed the web looking for an appropriate occasion to address the issue. "Hospital opening in Georgetown - eh. Little Leaguers at White House - ain't been there, ain't done that. Wait a minute: Eclectic Eccentrics defeated - must be the President's energy policy!"

Thus on a mild spring day in Southern California, Jeffords found himself speaking at the dedication of Rose Bowl field H2 following the Homers' hard-fought 21-17 victory over the Eclectic Eccentrics. With the faint hum of air conditioners in the distance, the Senator spoke:

Seven score and four days ago, our leaders brought forth upon this country a new administration, conceived somewhat legitimately, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are entitled to as much energy as demanded.

Now we are engaged in a great and slightly suspicious power crisis, testing whether one state, energy-rich and environment-hostile, can impose its will upon the rest of the nation. We are met on a great battlefield of that crisis. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting place for those dark aspirations. We here highly resolve that you Homers shall not have battled in vain, that this nation shall have a new birth of conscience, and that government of the Texans, by the Texans, for the Texans, shall not run roughshod over this earth.

Homers        0  3  0 11  5  2  0    21
E Eccentrics  3  0  5  3  4  1  1    17

  Kim        2B 2B  - 2B 2B  - 2B
  Scott      OF OF OF  - OF OF  -
  Jeff        C OF  -  C OF  -  C
  Ron         P 1B  -  P OF SS  -
  Kathy      OF  - OF OF  - OF OF
  Richard    SS SS  - SS SS  - SS
  Rich       1B 3B  - 3B 1B  - 1B
  Tony       3B  -  P 1B  -  C OF
  Annette    OF  -  C OF  - 3B  -
  Joe        OF  - OF OF  - OF OF
  Steve       -  P SS  -  P 1B  P
  Becky       - OF 3B  - 3B  - 3B
  Robb        -  C 1B  -  C  P  -
  Mary        -  - OF OF  - OF OF

The two biggest hits of the day belonged to Rich, whose two-run homer in the 4th tied the game at 8, and Steve, whose three-run homer later in the same inning gave the Homers a decent margin. Mary may have had the most satisfying hit when she burned the left fielder for a 2-run double to end that inning's scoring. Richard (solo), Ron, and Tony (both two-run jobs) also hit home runs. Defensively, shortstops Ron and Richard in the 6th and the 7th innings assisted to first on all 6 outs of those innings. In the third, Annette made the play of the day from catcher by fielding a swinging bunt up the first-base line, then throwing over the batter, who was way too far inside the baseline, to Robb at first for the out.

However, the number one star of the day was Cris Windoffer, the opposing manager, who moved 20 left-field-encroaching soccer players. Our timid Homer management salutes you.

Next week's game is on Wednesday, June 6, though the location is not determined due to the L.A. Galaxy, who produced a schedule very late. Please let Jeff or me know if you won't be there. We will let you know the location (possibly Loma Alta Park, possibly Muir High School).

Richard

One would think that winning their 7th consecutive game against the Crawdads last night was the highlight of the HOMERS week, but outshining it had to be Scott Morgan appearing in the Universe for being selected into the Software Architect Program. No, he was not wearing his trademark aqua shirt (so how do we know it was really him, right?).

But back to the HOMERS game, which was especially notable as the Crawdads forgot the bring the equipment bag. Consequently, the bases we did use looked like they were donated by the Salvation Army: shirts, pants, and jackets were used. But despite the late start (5:50 p.m.), the HOMERS played their first 7-inning game of the year. The score was modified from 20-14 to 21-14 because in doing the box score, it was discovered that two runs were actually scored in the HOMERS 6th inning instead of one run that was listed. The HOMERS improve their season record to 4-1, and are 8-1 against the Crawdads since 1993.

Defensive Line-up:

Jeff       c  1b   -   c  of  c    -
Karen      p  2b   -  3b  2b  -    p
Scott     of  of   -  of  of  -   of
Richard   of  of   -  of  ss  -   ss
Ron       3b  ss   -   p  of  of   c
Kim       2b   -  2b  2b   -  2b  2b
Rich      1b   -  3b  1b   -  1b  3b
Tony      ss   -   p  ss   -  of  of
Kathy     of   -  of  of   -   -   - 
Joe       of   -  of  of   -  of  of
Steve      -  3b  1b   -   p  ss  1b
Annette    -  of  of   -  of  3b  of
Sheila     -  of   c   -   c   -   -
Robb       -   p  ss   -  1b   p   -
Mary       -   c  of   -  3b  of   -
Sue       <-----Field Manager------>

The HOMERS got off to a quick 7-0 lead in the first inning, and never looked back. The mercy rule went into effect in the 4th inning when the HOMERS scored 8 more times and led 18-7. Richard batted in the cleanup spot, and boy he did he cleanup. Richard hit 3 homers and knocked in 8 runs, and just missed getting a 4th at-bat in the last inning. In honor of Richard's 3 homers-in-a-row effort:

http://www.vicious-arrogance.com/Homers/games_noughts_and_homers.cfm

Rich also hit a 3-run home run in the 1st inning and ended up with 4 RBIs. Tony added a solo shot in the 6th inning. Incidently, Richard and Tony have now homered in 3 consecutive games. Unburdened from having to do the lineups, Jeff went 4 for 4 as the leadoff man, and even hit one to the right of second base. Jeff leads 1-0 vs Mary on the contest on who hits the most balls to right field. Robb, sporting his new Wonder Brace on his leg, slammed out a double and triple. Mary and Sheila knocked in 2 runs apiece. Steve was also perfect at the plate (3 for 3). We were robbed of a couple of base hits when the Crawdads pitcher (Bob Deen) snagged a couple of hard-hit line drives up the middle.

Team leaders in home runs for the year after 5 games:

     Richard   8
     Ron       4
     Tony      4 
     Rich      3
     Joe       2
     Scott     1
     Daniel    1

     Total    23

The annual HOMERS box score:

             AB  R  H RBI
   Jeff       4  2  4  1
   Karen      4  1  2  1
   Scott      4  3  3  1
   Richard    3  3  3  8
   Ron        3  2  2  0
   Kim        3  1  1  0
   Rich       2  1  2  4
   Tony       3  1  2  1
   Kathy      2  1  1  0
   Joe        3  0  1  0
   Steve      3  1  3  1
   Anette     3  1  1  0
   Sheila     3  1  2  2
   Robb       3  2  2  0
   Mary       3  1  1  2

   Totals    46 21 30 21

   HOMERS   7   1   2   8   1   2   0  - 21
   Crawdads 2   1   4   2   0   1   4  - 14

   LOB - 9. 2B - Ron, Tony, Robb.  3B - Robb.
   HR - Richard 3, Rich, Tony. SF - Rich.

           IP  R  ERA 
   Karen    2  6  21.00
   Robb     2  2   7.00
   Tony     1  4  28.00
   Ron      1  2  14.00
   Steve    1  0   0.00

Pitching honors goes to Robb and Steve. Robb only allowed 2 runs in 2 innings pitched, and Steve pitched a scoreless 5th inning.

The DOH! Player of the Week Award goes to Joe. Joe has the uncanny ability to popup to the opposite sex when his name is chanted from the sidelines, which he proceeded to do in his final two at-bats when the chanting began. "Just Say Joe" T-shirts will be issued at next week's game.

After the game the HOMERS dinner at Burger Continental was attended by Ron, Sue, Steve, Jeff, Robb, Scott M, Karen, Scott S, Kim and Richard.

Next week's game is on THURSDAY, May 31 on H2 versus the Eclectic Eccentrics. As usual let Richard or Jeff know if you can't make it.

It was the longest game, it was the shortest game It was the best of games, it was the wor... well, actually, it was a pretty good game over all, and boy did we kick some ass!

The homers, quite literally, cut through the Fringe like a guillotine through a soft bourgeois neck: 34 to 13 in 6 innings. The onslought started in the first inning with 11 runs brought in by the Homers and continued with an average of about 4.6 runs per inning for the next five innings. The Fringe had a good first inning, scoring 7 of their 13... foreboding what looked to be a very long game indeed since both teams defensive play was initially a tad less than good... but thankfully the Homer defence kicked in and stopped the bloodletting for the remainder of the game. After about 1 and 3 quarter hours of play time the Fringe threw in the towel at 7:30, at the bottom of the 6th, making the long game end one inning short of normal play.

Offensive highlights included a 3 run homer by Richard in the 1st, resulting in the 1st mercy out. Joe squeeked in a 3 run homer while the catcher was sleeping in the 3rd, and Daniel and Ron each smacked home runs in the 5th. Becky, Robb, and Earl get hitting honorable mentions because they got on base during each at bat. Kim also smacked a couple good line drives to get back to back singles in the 2nd and 3rd. Since we were short of people in the 1st Sue stepped in during and got a single during her only at bat.

Defensive highlights included Robb mercilessly throwing out a 8 year old girl at 3rd in the 1st inning, Richard running down the mysterious man known only as the "croquet player" between 2nd and 3rd in the 3rd inning (an entertaining deer in the headlights effect was observed). In the 5th short stop Mindy teamed up with Kim on 2nd in what looked to be a forced out for the Fringe player racing to 2nd, but due to some question of timing and a feeling of relative pity for the opposing team at that point in the game (29 to 11 at that point) the player was called safe. Joe Jacob also made a nice catch over in right field in the 5th.

Making the victory even more amazing was the fact that it was pulled off by a squad that was short most of the usual heavy hitters. Of course, the 3 "kids" between what looked to be 8 and 16 that were playing for the Fringe might have contributed to the route... but we'll ignore that and revel in the fruits of our righteous victory.

Special thanks go out to Earl and Mindy for showing up and saving us in our time of low body count need.

The line score:

                   1  2  3  4  5  6  7
HOMERS            11  5  3  2  8  5  x   34
Lunatic Fringe     7  2  0  0  0  4  x   13

Rich              1B xx xx xx xx xx
Daniel            OF  C  C  C  C  C
Richard           OF OF  P OF  C  P
Kim               2B 2B 2B 2B 2B 2B
Ron                P 3B OF 3B  P OF
Joe               OF OF OF OF OF OF
Robb              3B 1B 3B 1P 1B 3B
Mindy             SS SS SS SS SS SS
Andres             C OF OF OF OF OF
Earl              xx  P 1B 1B 3B 1B
Becky             OF OF OF OF OF OF

As ever, Sue did a superb job of managing the lineup and field positions.

The very faithful Homer's fan Scott S. was joined by slugger in training Chance on the sidelines. Chance kept Richard and Daniel entertained in between innings by playing catch and keep away.

Lending credance to Robb's Apocalypse theory was the fact that for the first time in the season the Homer's squad went to a eatery that did not have the initials CC... Daniel, Richard, Rich, Kim, Scott S, Joe, Robb, Mindy, Chance, Andres, Becky, Sue, and Ron showed up after the game at Round Table.

The next game will be Thursday on field H2 (wherever that is). Let Jeff or Richard know if you cant make it.

rebuttal
From: Joseph Jacob <jjacob@foxfire.jpl.nasa.gov>

Daniel, well done. :)
But, I think that guy was a "cricket" player, not "croquet". Ron is the croquet expert. ;)

Joe

DATELINE May 1, 2001.

Tonights Dateline Special Report is presented by Kim Steadman.

This reporter got to participate in one of the most anticipated games of the year at the Rose Bowl fields in Pasadena. On a night eerily reminiscent of days gone by the Homers took the field against the Bruisers. Before the game began, the Bruisers gathered for a final pep talk by lead Bruiser and part time Homer Karen Chan. The pep talk would do them no good.

The first batter stepped to the plate at approximately 5:40pm. The Homers lived up to their name in the first inning smacking two homers before the Bruisers got their first chance at bat. By the end of the night the Homers had a total of 5 home runs. (Richard 2, Tony 2, Scott 1)

The biggest hit of the night came from the bat of Tony Ganino. As he stepped up to the plate with the bases loaded in the 5th, the Homers cheered loudly. He looked into Right field and saw a huge gap. With the skill of a marksman he smacked the ball hard and directly to the huge hole in right. GRAND SLAM the Homers exclaimed. There was much rejoicing.

Defensively the Homers provided some fireworks as well. Kathy made two nice plays. She snagged a fly ball in the outfield and crawled after an errant ball at second base to finish up a double play. Joe made a spectacular running catch in right field that amazed the roaring crowds. The overwhelming response from the crowd must have unnerved poor Joe. Later in the game he exhibited Richard like tendances as he threw the ball from left field to no one. Sending the ball into the street and a Bruiser to home.

The evening came to an end after 6 innings and the Homers claimed victory. Their odd winning chant of "CROWN CITY" could be heard for miles.

This reporter's contribution to the victory was 4 outs in 4 at bats. But no errors in the outfield which is always a good thing.

The line score:

            1  2  3  4  5  6  7
HOMERS      6  4  5  2  8  4  -    29
Bruisers    0  4  0  3  3  0  -    10

                1  2  3  4  5  6  
Kim            2B 2B 2B -- 2B 2B
Scott M        OF OF OF -- OF OF 
Jeff           1B OF -- OF 1B C 
Ron            P  3B --  P SS OF 
Kathy          OF OF -- 2B OF OF
Richard        SS SS xx xx xx xx
Tony           3B -- P  SS 3B SS
Andres         C  -- C  C  C  --
Annette        OF -- OF OF xx xx
Joe            OF -- OF OF OF --
Becky          -- OF OF OF OF OF
Sheila         -- xx xx xx xx xx
Rich           -- 1B 1B 3B -- 1B
Steve          xx P  SS 1B -- P
Robb           xx C  3B -- P  3B
Sue          <--- Field Manager -->

Spectators were in abundance and included Scott S., Sue, Tony's mom, Alyssa, and Kona. The following HOMERS attended that celebration at Crown City: Steve, Kathy, Scott, Jeff, Joe, Kim, Scott S, Sue, Ron, Robb, and Rich.

The next game is May 16th. As usual, please let Richard or Jeff know if you are unable to attend.

A weekly sports periodical runs a regular column entitled "Why the Apocalypse is upon us". It's intent is to demonstrate that we, as a society, are on the verge of collapse, and points to strange/weird events from which the conclusion is drawn. Until recently, I had personally not put a significant level of credence to their claims. However, I must now confess that events of the last week (+/- 10%), have me wondering. For you consideration, and at the risk of literary piracy...... reasons why the Apocalypse is nigh!

1. The Dodgers wake up and fire (excuse me, let resign) their GM.
2. Lennox Lewis is knocked senseless by some guy nobody ever heard of (can we say Tyson/Douglas?).
3. The Kings defy the senses and win a playoff game.
3a. The Kings defy the senses and all logic and win a playoff series.
4. Shaq and Kobe "seem" to be getting along. and, the most obvious reason that the Apocalypse is upon us.......
5. The Homers loose their first game of the season to the Radars.

The game was marked by the Homers attempting a rally to overcome a huge early inning deficit (9-2), only to have the game shortened through a semi-negotiated settlement. The game was also marked by a couple of firsts: (1) Andres first (and second) hits of his Homer career. Congratulations! (2) The first ever Homer (and perhaps ever in history anywhere) FM-->C-->1B pickoff. Translation.... Field Manager to Catcher to First Base pick-off. A quick summary...... Radar dude leads WAY off of 1B..... Jeff yells from the sideline "Throw to first"....... Jeff yells from the sideline "Throw to first"..... Jeff yells from the sideline "THROW TO FIRST" (did I mention the dude was WAY off first)..... Jana throws to first.... Mary catches the ball and steps on first for the out.

Other notable events. A nice slide into third by Becky, a triple down the left field line (what a surprise) by Mary.... and dingers by Joe and Ron (2). Honorable mention goes to Jeff for juggling not the ball, but a lineup whose membership constantly shifted like windblown sand.

The line score:
               1  2  3  4  5  6  7
LA Radars      4  0  5  0  7  2  -    18
HOMERS         1  1  0  6  1  5  -    14

                1  2  3  4  5  6  

Scott M        OF OF OF OF 3B OF 
Jeff           1B -- C  -- -- -- 
Ron            P  3B OF 3B OF 3B 
Annette        OF OF 3B -- -- --
Richard        SS OF SS -- -- --
Joe            OF C  -- OF OF OF
Andres         OF -- OF C  C  OF
Kathy          2B OF -- -- -- --
Rich           3B 1B -- 1B SS --
Steve          -- SS P  SS P  SS
Robb           -- P  1B P  1B P
Jana           xx 2B OF -- 2B C
Kim            xx xx 2B 2B -- 2B
Becky          xx xx xx OF OF OF
Mary           xx xx xx OF OF 1B

Spectators were absent the normal assortment of animals and children, and were limited to Scott S. and Sue. The following HOMERS could be found at Crown City discussing the huge investment opportunities afforded in the upcoming Scott and Robb's Wonderful Trifecta Adventure (SARWTA): Joe, Sue, Ron, Rich, Scott, Jeff, Kim, Scott S, Becky, Andres, Robb.

The next game (barring the expected Apocalypse) is next Tuesday against the Bruisers. As usual, please let Richard or Jeff know if you are unable to attend.

The HOMERs opened the 2001 season against traditional power-house Cinco Equis with a 16-7 victory. During the game, "Homer Boy" Richard was seen vehemently defending the honor of the HOMERs multiple times with "Cinco Girl" Natalie over such issues as what inning it was, what the score was, and whether it was OK to call Ron "Blue Guy". "Homer Sheriff" Jeff stated that "Homer Boy" may have gone too far this time and began speculation that he may be replaced by Steve Lavin.

Rich opened the M. Homer competition with a grand slam in the first. The homer output continued with Rich socking a second one in the 5th, Richard hitting a pair, and Ron and Tony leaving the starting gate quickly with one each.

Notable defensive plays came from Kathy, who made a catch and a putout in the 5th, and Sheila, who slapped a tag on an advancing runner at third in the 4th.

Also, a big HOMER welcome to Andres who made his HOMER debut - welcome!

The line score:

               1  2  3  4  5  6  7
Cinco Equis    3  0  0  1  1  1  1    7
HOMERS         4  2  4  2  4  0  x   16

Scott M        OF OF OF -- OF -- OF
Jeff           1B OF 1B -- C  -- C
Richard        P  SS SS -- SS SS SS
Kathy          OF 2B 2B -- 2B -- 2B
Rich           3B 1B -- 1B 1B -- 3B
Ron            SS P  -- OF 3B -- OF
Joe            OF -- OF OF -- OF --
Kim            2B OF -- 2B -- 2B OF
Daniel         C  -- C  C  -- 3B --
Steve          -- 3B P  SS P  1B --
Annette        OF -- OF OF -- OF --
Andres         xx C  OF OF -- C  --
Becky          xx OF 3B -- OF OF OF
Tony           xx xx xx P  OF -- P
Sheila         xx xx xx 3B OF OF --
Robb           xx xx xx xx xx P  1B

Juggling of the HOMER defensive lineup was courtesy of field manager Sue.

Cat-calling, barking, and drooling duties were handled by Scott S, Kona, and Alyssa, respectively.

The following HOMERs departed to Crown City for the traditional post game sedation: Scott S, Kim, Richard, Sue, Ron, Joe, Robb, Rich, Jeff, Scott, Steve (late arrival).