October 1995

It wasn't until earlier this month that I realized that two "firsts" in my life occurred in the same month, October 1995. These two events turned out to be the gateway towards countless others, shaping the passions of my early adulthood. Fifteen years ago...I was 21 years old, a senior in college, with my whole adult life ahead of me.

October 4, 1995 - Game 2, Division Series, Yankees vs. Mariners @ Yankee Stadium

The Yankees had not been in the playoffs since 1981. As a seven year old, I was lucky enough to attend several games that postseason, but this was different. The Yankees had been denied by the strike in 1994, ending that shortened season with the best record in baseball. As the first wild card, the Yankees were providing Don Mattingly with a long overdue opportunity to play in the postseason.

Game 1 was the night before, but because it was Erev Yom Kippur, I didn't attend. I watched that game, a Yankee victory, with my grandmother in my parent's house. The next day, I attended Yom Kippur services, prayed for the Yankees, and then headed to The Bronx for break fast. Jared and I had two tickets in the first row in the loge (second level) and some college friends traveled with us, sitting elsewhere.

We were planning on breaking the fast with a pretzel and a beer, so we waited on line at the concession where we bumped in to my cousin Keith. I am pretty sure this was the first time Jared and Keith. So we broke the fast with Keith who was sitting in the same section, although a few rows back. Andy Benes vs. Andy Pettitte (a rookie) with the Yankees up 1-0 in the series.

The game can only be described as a classic. In the sixth inning, Donnie Baseball hit what would be the final home run of his career. With the Yankees down a run in the bottom of the 12th, Ruben Sierra hit a ball off the wall with two runners on. Jorge Posada would score the tying run, but Bernie Williams would get thrown out at the plate. I remember picking Jared up off the floor after that play. The pressure was intense.

A skinny reliever names Mariano Rivera would throw 3.1 scoreless innings giving up two hits and striking out five and in the bottom of the 15th inning, Jim Leyritz (The King) would hit a lazy fly ball to rightfield that carried over the wall for a two run home run to win the game. Mariano was the winning pitcher. Euphoria set in.

Unfortunately, euphoria didn't last long. The Yankees had announced that as soon as they clinched this series, tickets would go on sale the following morning at The Stadium. Remember, this was 1995 and there was no such thing as Ticketmaster.com. So we had the car packed for days...waiting to win a game and then go sleep out in The Bronx for ALCS tickets. The Yankees would lose Games 3 and 4 in Seattle setting up the deciding game in Seattle.

I remember watching the game in my townhouse at school with my friend Andy. We chose not to watch with a lot of people because the game was big. The biggest of our lives really to date. David Cone started and threw 147 pitches in 7.2 innings. He probably went an inning too long. The game went in to extra innings again and the Yankees went up one run in the top of the 11th off of Randy Johnson. However, Buck Showalter chose to stay with Jack McDowell in the bottom of the 11th instead of turning the game over to John Wetteland. Edgar Martinez won the game with a double...Ken Griffey Junior scored the winning run from first base and I remember Andy getting up and leaving without saying a word.

It took me a few weeks to unpack the car and I didn't watch another inning of baseball until 1996.

October 17, 1995 - The Stone Pony, Asbury Park, New Jersey

Bruce produced Joe Grushecky's album, American Babylon and was hitting the road to promote the album with Joe's band, The Houserockers. I scored tickets to two of the shows, The Stone Pony and the Electric Factory in Philadelphia. The night at The Pony would be my first time seeing Bruce in a bar setting and was only my eighth Bruce show.

I showed up around 4pm to wait on line and get a good spot inside. When I got there, I found out that I just missed Bruce by about 10 minutes! He was there for soundcheck, came outside, signed a few autographs and then took off. While I was disappointed, I was psyched to see Bruce for the first time at the legendary Stone Pony.

I don't remember the exact timing, but if I had to guess, they opened the doors around 6, the first band went on around 8 and it was FOREVER until Bruce took the stage. I was two or three people deep from the stage, hanging out with my Aunt Sandy. We couldn't move because it would be impossible to get back to our spots and it was HOT in the Pony. No air conditioning.

When Bruce finally joined Joe Grushecky on the stage, all the waiting was worth it. While they only played two Bruce songs, it was amazing seeing Bruce that close...having fun, singing back up, and ripping guitar solos. The feel of the crowd, the atmosphere, the music...it was perfect.

I knew that I needed to be in front again two nights later in Philly, but had a class so I couldn't get there that early. Luckily, I made friends with some women that didn't mind holding a spot in line for me if I promised to bring dinner. They were taking the day off and would be among the first on line. I kept up my end of the deal bringing a pizza and sharing with everyone in the front of the line. They kept their end as well, so when they opened the doors, we were among the first in. I positioned myself directly in front of where they would put Bruce's mic on the railing...no one in front of me.

Again, the power of the show was amazing. Bruce was really on fire. One of the Bruce songs played was Light of Day. In the middle of the song, Bruce queued the band to stop playing. The crowd went crazy. The band each picked up their drinks...soaking in the applause. Bruce was really hamming it up. He put down his beer...then picked it up again...the crowd all going crazy. He took a sip, tossed me the beer, and went back in to the song..."Well I got thrown out of work on the Kokomo." I caught the beer and downed the rest (I was thirsty).

A bouncer came over shortly thereafter and wanted to confiscate the bottle as the venue didn't allow bottles in the audience. When I explained that Bruce tossed it to me, he allowed me to keep it. After the show, I asked John Eddie (one of the opening bands) if he could take the bottle back and ask Bruce to sign it. He said he couldn't, but suggested I wait near the tour bus as Bruce was riding with the band.

I waited the near the tour bus. Bruce came out with Terry, carrying his own bang, but wasn't signing for anyone. I asked anyway..."Bruce, can you sign the beer bottle you tossed me?" He responded, "Sure...that I'll sign." He signed the Coors Light bottle, got on the bus, didn't sign anything else, and I had an amazing souvenir.

I have been to countless postseason games at Yankee Stadium since, including the World Series clinching games in 1996 and 1999...and the clincher in 2000 at Shea. I have seen Bruce over 140 more times since October 1995, including several at The Stone Pony, The Tradewinds, and other small venues. Looking back, I still can't believe it was the same month.

"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive" BS

JN

Bonds, Clemens, and Rose

Roger Clemens won over 350 games, struck out more than 4600 batters, won a record seven Cy Young Awards, an MVP Award and is now under indictment for lying to Congress.

Barry Bonds own a record seven MVP Awards, is the career home run record holder with 761, is the career leader in walks and intentional walks, stole over 500 bases and is under indictment for lying to a grand jury.

Pete Rose broke Ty Cobb's career record for hits and finished with over 4200 hits, set career records for most at bats and games played, and was banned from baseball for lying about gambling on the game. He was later sent to jail for lying on his taxes.

These guys were the best. Bonds and Clemens dominated the game both before and after performance enhancing drugs. Rose was the ultimate competitor. As an outsider looking in, it seems that they all thought they were above the game. The rules didn't apply to them. Granted, no one thought the rules applied to them when it came to performance enhancing drugs, but Bonds and Clemens haven't admitted to anything and maintain that they are clean.

Do they think we are dumb? No. They probably have convinced themselves that they didn't do anything wrong. To be that good, you have to convince yourself that you are better than anyone else maybe even before you are. Clemens came in to the league and knew he could get out any hitter at any time. Similarly, Bonds knew he could hit anyone. Would they have been as good if they weren't as confident? No way!

So now they are both under indictment. Their Hall of Fame credentials, once beyond reproach, are under question. As an aside, both would have been first ballot Hall of Famers had they never used performance enhancing drugs based on the first parts of their respective careers. However, Bonds saw Sosa and McGwire getting all of the attention and knew he was better than they were. Clemens was getting run out of Boston and knew he had more in the tank.

Here's where Pete Rose comes in. He has the credibility to get these guys on the phone and offer some advice. If anyone knows the importance of coming clean and asking for forgiveness, it's Rose. He should have called them both and told them to learn from his mistake. However, we are now facing the possibility of the career hits leader, the career home run leader, and one of the best pitchers of our time NOT being in the Hall of Fame. I'm not saying if they came clean that they would be in, but they should be based on the body of work prior to the drugs. If it's not Pete Rose, maybe it should be Mark McGwire. He's back in the game (Cardinals hitting coach), and maybe, just maybe, that will make a difference in the way the writers vote.

I am rooting for Albert Pujols or Ryan Howard to hit 800 clean home runs. I hope Derek Jeter bounces back, finds a clean and legal fountain of youth and finishes with 4300 hits. I hope someone comes along to make us forget about Rocket and his seven Cy Youngs. However, with two small words, they could start the healing process that may allow them eventually to enter the Hall of Fame. "I'm sorry". Bonds doesn't seem to care...but Clemens sure done. Hopefully these guys figure it.

"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive" BS

JN

The Voice and The Boss

By the time George Steinbrenner purchased the Yankees in 1973, Bob Sheppard was a fixture at The Stadium. "The Voice of God" was hired as the public address announcer in 1951 which happened to be Mickey Mantle's first year...and Joe DiMaggio's last. The year bridged two amazing eras in Yankee baseball and launched the career of man whose voice would fill The Stadium for 57 years to come. Mickey used to say that he got the chills every time Bob Sheppard announced his name...Sheppard said he got the chills announcing Mickey's name too.

Bob Sheppard's voice was deep and unique. He took his time. He wasn't there to play to the crowd. With proper pronunciation, class, and elegance, he announced to the crowd the batters, the pitchers, and any special announcements. Many have tried to imitate him over the years, including me. As a child, I would imagine hearing Bob Sheppard announce my name, "Now pitching for the Yankees, number 19, Jeremy Neuer, number 19". When Keith and Doug Rosen came back from Yankee fantasy camp a few years ago, I thought the fact that Bob Sheppard had recorded an intro for each camper was about the coolest thing I could imagine.

While he was also the announcer at Giants Stadium, Bob Sheppard will always be about Yankee Stadium for me...the original Yankee Stadium. I think it was somewhat fitting that he never announced a game in the New Stadium. While it's a great building, I am not sure if it's worthy of Sheppard's class. However, his voice will live on in recordings, including the one that announces The Captain before each home at bat, "Now batting for the Yankees, number 2, Derek Jeter, number 2." Last night's silent tribute...they played without an announcer...was truly fitting.

Paul O'Neill may have said it best. When they honored Sheppard with his own day at Yankee Stadium in 2000, O'Neill said, "“It’s the organ at church. Certain sounds and certain voices just belong in places. Obviously, his voice and Yankee Stadium have become one.”

During his first two decades owning the team, Bob Sheppard was one of the few Yankee employees that George Steinbrenner didn't fire. When George purchased the team in 1973, he famously said that he would leave the day-t0-day to the baseball people and he would stick to building ships. Nothing could have been further from the truth.

For much of the 70's and 80's...and even in to the 90's...George Steinbrenner didn't get it. He was about quick fixes and he should have patented the phrase, "You're fired". However, as I have said the past few days, he had a great "third act". Since he was reinstated to the game in the early 90's, he left most of the baseball decisions to the right people and while he still pushed them, his trigger finger was much more patient.

The Boss cared deeply about winning, the Yankees, and Yankee fans. He promised to put the best team on the field every year and did whatever he could to provide the fans with a winner. He wanted his teams to look a certain way, insisting on hair cuts and clean faces. He even once ordered Don Mattingly benched because his hair was too long.

Steinbrenner transcended baseball and became a pop culture figure. He was in beer commercials, spoofed on Seinfeld...the most successful sitcom of all time, and hosted Saturday Night Live. He was a tireless philanthropist, often insisting that his good deeds be anonymous as a stipulation of his generosity. When the emails started pouring in after his death, the one that stuck out was from a friend in Tampa. It read, "Tampa has lost its greatest citizen today". That says a lot about the man.

I met The Boss twice...once as a teenager and once in 1997. In 1997, I was standing in the tunnel leading from the field level to the exit in the bottom of the 9th of a game in May. The Yankees had won the World Series the previous October. The Yankees were down in the bottom of the 9th...so there I am...waiting to see if the Yankees can tie the game and I look to my right. There's The Boss. He's waiting to see if they can tie it up also and he's standing there with one security guard. I extended my hand and just said "thank you for everything last year". He shook my hand, smiled, and said simply "you're welcome". With that, Tim Raines hit a home run to tie the game. He left the tunnel...I assume back up to his box and I went back to my seat.

It's fitting that Steinbrenner died with the Yankees as the reigning World Series Champions and in first place. Being 36, the only Yankees I have known are the Steinbrenner Yankees. The Stadium is different now...and now so too will be the announcer and the owner. No one can replace Bob Sheppard or George Steinbrenner. I just hope that the new announcer does so with Sheppard's class in mind and the new owners continue to invest in the team and chase the World Series every year.

So...to The Voice of God...and The Boss...thank you for the memories.

"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive." BS

JN

Blood Brothers

Ten years ago today, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band ended their 99-00 Reunion Tour at Madison Square Garden. It was the 10th night of a 10 night stand at The Garden. It was my 36th show of the tour and my ninth of the ten at The Garden. The only one I missed was the third show for my cousin Noel's wedding (Happy Anniversary Noel and Danielle).

Flynn McLean did a great job of recapping the show on Backstreets.com (http://www.backstreets.com/news.html), so I will skip that part. What I remember most 10 years later, both about the show and the tour, is the friendships. The friendships on stage, the friendships in the parking lots, the friendship at the shows, and the friendships on the road trips. There were a bunch on that tour as I followed the band everywhere I reasonably could. The tour took me to Philly, DC, Penn State, Hartford, Albany, State College, and of course, the local shows.

The music was amazing. It was my first E Street Band tour, so everything was new for me. Bruce was pulling out material from the back catalog that he hadn't played in many years and the rarities from Tracks were always fun. Some great songs and great shows stand out in my mind from that tour, but I always remember who I was with, how we got there, where we were sitting, etc. For me, that tour was all about friendships, both new and old.

Whether it was hitting softballs off of The Spectrum after the last night in Philly (first ever Incident for me) with Fresh and the two Dave's, sitting in the 4th row two nights in a row in Atlanta with Marc Schwartz, seeing Andy and Jeff Koko in dark sunglasses sitting in the first few rows at The Garden, too many Long Island Ice Tea's in Albany, the debacle that was the Penn State trip with Noel, Chet and Meatball, Gary Miller flying in from LA for a show in NJ, Hartford for two shows with Ira, or sitting in the first row for the first time with Andy in Philly...they were all great great memories. I also got to go to shows with my sister Sari, my mother and my father on that tour.

So...to my Blood Brothers...so many shows since then...it's been a great ride. Thanks everything. More shows, more miles, and more music to come.

"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive" BS

JN

Quick Thoughts

Well, we saw the last of Jack Shephard and Jack Bauer this week with the last episodes of Lost and 24, respectively. Of course, 24 will return on the big screen, but this marks the end of two of my all time favorite shows. We came to them late, but through the magic of Netflix, we were able to catch up on past seasons quickly during the writer's strike and subsequent summer.

While we may see an action show similar to 24 (Fox already tried with Human Target), there will likely never be another show like Lost. Combining strong characters and relationships with science fiction and mythology, Lost had something for everyone, right up until the last scene. The pilot was the most expensive pilot of all time, and while the finale was a bit polarizing, I loved it. For those that haven't seen it, I won't go further, but you should. You can watch it on abc.com (http://abc.go.com/watch/lost/93372) or hulu.com (http://www.hulu.com/lost). Or, you can stream it through Netflix.com also. How f'ing cool is technology???

Well, anyone who follows the show knows that 24 will be back on the big screen with Jack Bauer taking his next adventure to the movie theaters, giving up the 24 hour real time format. Jack is on the run again having once again crossed some lines that shouldn't have been crossed. They set it up perfectly for the next chapter in Jack's amazingly interesting life and I am looking forward to 24...the movie. While some seasons were better than others, the show consistently kept me on the edge of my seat, even if it was predictable at times. If you would like to watch 24, you also find it on hulu.com and Netflix.com.

What do I watch now? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Congrats to Roy "Doc" Halladay on his perfecto. It was just a matter of time.

I loved seeing the Dodgers win a game on a walk-off balk. You won't see that again any time soon.

The play that Mariano Rivera made in the 9th inning of Sunday's game (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-8_9sq-cUE) was one of the all-time great plays in a career of great plays. Stealing a line from Ted Williams and The Natural, if I saw him walking down the street, I would say...there goes the best that ever was...and the best that ever will be.

For the conspiracy theorists out there, how do you like the NBA right now? LeBron has an excuse to leave Cleveland, and the Lakers and Celtics are playing in the finals. Could this have worked out any better for David Stern? The league is doing great, but it would be doing better if the Knicks were relevant.

The new Nets owner, dubbed Mutant Russian Mark Cuban by Bill Simmons, will make the Nets interesting, if nothing else. He guaranteed a championship within five years and said that his goal is a dynasty. I guess this guy didn't get to be a billionaire by aiming low.

RIP to Gary Coleman. "Whatchu talkin' 'bout Willis?" is still a relevant quote to this day.

RIP Dennis Hopper. My vote goes to Hoosiers for his best role, but as pointed out by Brian Fassel, his ads for the NFL a few years ago were pure genius. "Bad things man".

Happy 64th to my father. One more year...I won't even say it.

I've been thinking a bit about what I would like to see Bruce do next. Sessions Band? Another solo project/tour? Nah. I think it's time for something new. Since he will never do a Traveling Wilbury's type project, which would be too cool, but I think his ego might get in the way...how about a guitar-based, straight forward, rock band? Bruce, Nils on guitar, Shawn Pelton on drums, Jeff Kazee on the keys, and Tommy Simms on bass. Theaters the first leg of the tour and then on to arenas once they find their stride. A new album, and an opportunity to reinvent and reinvigorate some of the back catalog. Who's in?

So Avery's new thing is to negotiate everything and after she tells you how she wants things to go, she ends the sentence with "Deal?". For example, yesterday, I told her that it was bath time and then we were going to come downstairs, sing happy birthday to Grampa Philly, and have dessert. Her response was, "No, no, no. Let's sing happy birthday, have dessert, and then have bath time. Deal?". It cracks me up every time.

Finally, I am really looking forward to the Jeremy's Heroes event next week. The outpouring of support for this event is truly special and amazingly appreciated.

"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive..."

JN

A Rant on the NCAA

Someone should fix the NCAA. It's obviously broken. March Madness is the best championship system in sports, yet the BCS is the worst. Those debates have been discussed before. What I want to talk about is what's REALLY wrong with the NCAA. Unfortunately, for the purposes of this article, I am simply going to focus on football and men's basketball. I know the other sports exist and I know that football and basketball subsidize the other sports, but it's gone way too far.

Men's basketball and football are goldmines for the NCAA. It's almost a license to print money. Television contracts, corporate sponsors, rich alumni paying big bucks to sit court side...it's a cash cow. Yet none of that money goes to the athletes that we watch, root for, cheer against, etc. They are expected to entertain us in return for a college education. While the cost of the education is probably similar to what a minor league baseball player makes, at least the minor league baseball player has the choice on how to spend it. I think the players should be paid...and not under the table.

The celebrities in college sports are the coaches. Are you kidding me? Have you ever jumped out of your seat because Jim Calhoun made an amazing substitution? Ever gone crazy because Roy Williams drew up a breathtaking inbounds play? No...you cheer for the execution of the play or because the player that was brought in did something amazing. What does the player get? An education? Really? Come on. The coaches, however, get multi-million dollar contracts, backed up by sneaker deals, tv/radio shows, and booster money. These men are paid and paid well.

Because the coaches are the celebrities, not only does it give them a platform to make ridiculous amounts of money, it also encourages them to cheat. Yes...I said it. The system encourages them to cheat. If someone is really good and gets caught, it's a slap on the wrist and on to another school where they can get away with more stuff. A good coach never has to apologize and never has a hard time finding a job. He simply has to recruit well. That's all a coach really has to do well. If he doesn't recruit well, he might lose his job. So, would you rather be a bad coach or a bad team or maybe cheat a little? If you have made your money like Billy Donovan at Florida, maybe you just want to play within the rules. If you want a national championship and have some rich alumnus that will help make it happen...isn't that super tempting?

So aside from the fact that the players don't get paid and the coaches get paid too much and cheat, what are my problems with the NCAA? I just don't think they get it. Here are my suggestions for some quick fixes:

- Pay the players. Figure it out.

- If a coach gets caught cheating, he is out for life. Go get a job in the pros. If his program is found to be dirty, but he is not involved (yeah right), he's on a three strike system. This will force coaches to run a clean problem from top to bottom. How clean would Kentucky be right now if Coach Cal had to run a clean program or be banned for life?

- If a player leaves prior to graduating, he needs to repay the tuition he received. If they simply want to use it as a way station to the pro's, they shouldn't be able to do it for free. This may contradict my first point, but aren't these supposed to be scholar-athletes?

- Fix the BCS. Declare a real champion. It's non-sense.

I rarely watch college sports these days, but still follow the major news. The NCAA is a serious organization with some serious problems. It's constituents (the student) don't have a choice and are the ones getting the short end of the stick. The coaches are the highest paid state employees in many states and surely the highest paid employees on campus.

The NCAA is broken. Can anyone fix it?

"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive"

JN

Some quick thoughts...

Really just a few quick thoughts...

- Did Scott Boras sell Johnny Damon down the river or what? He spent the beginning of the winter focused on Matt Holliday, hoping he would set the market for Damon. Holliday got $120m for seven years to stay in St. Louis, which was a great situation for him. Damon turned down a two year offer from the Yankees for $14m and wound up with $8m in Detroit.

Yankee Stadium is perfectly suited for Damon's swing. They will compete for the World Series every year and he was loved in the clubhouse. He has made over $100m during his career. Maybe he spends money like a basketball player, but it strikes me that at 36 with two World Series rings, maybe squeezing the last dime out of this deal shouldn't have been his top priority. You can't tell me that he yearned to play in Detroit. Bad job by both Damon and Boras.

- The NBA is truly a dysfunctional league at this point. With teams going in to the tank to save money and clear cap space, it is a league that is clearly in need of a new system. This will happen when the owners lock out the players in 2011. Football is also headed towards a labor dispute in 2011. Wouldn't it be funny if baseball was the only of the big three that didn't have a major labor problem after numerous work stopages in the 80's and 90's? Bud Selig doesn't look so bad after all.

- Speaking of labor issues, after seeing the problems in the NBA, do people really still think that baseball needs a salary cap? It's basically useless in the NBA and the NFL is headed towards an un-capped year. The economy was all we needed to put a damper on salaries.

- Anyone not watching Modern Family should be.

- I think Lost has been great. I am psyched to see what will happen, but a bit upset that it is ending.

- While I was at the Light of Day concert last month, Bruce played with Joe Grushecky. They played a Grushecky song called Talking To The King. In the song, the singer has a dream about having a conversation with Elvis. There's a line in the song "Sometimes I think I sold my soul to become the king of Rock and Roll". I always think how ironic it is when Bruce sings that line since he, maybe more than anyone, definitely did not sell his soul...and might be the current king of Rock and Roll.

- Avery knows the words to a few Bruce and Beatles songs. This might be my greatest accomplishment as a parent so far.

That's all for now...

"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive..."

JN

Happy Birthday Red!

After a long hiatus...I am back. Not only am I back with one post, I am back with two very different, simultaneous entries. I compare it to Bruce releasing Human Touch and Lucky Town on the same day in 1992. Enjoy.

So as some of you may know...I call my mother Red. I guess it's something I picked up from my stepfather David, and it just stuck. Well, today, January 12, 2010 is my mother's 60th Birthday. Bruce wrote a song for his mother called The Wish...so I figured the least I could do was write a blog post about my mom.

To know my mother is to know that she spends every minute of her days, every fiber of her being, doing things for others. She gave up a corporate career in the food service industry to work at The WindMill...partially because her father wanter her to...and partially because it would allow her to put her family first before her career. She takes off every Friday so she can cook Shabbat dinner for anyone and everyone who wants to show up and dinner usually includes two soups, two main dishes, three sides, and at least one dessert. Then on Saturday, she treks down the shore, fighting shore traffic during the summer...all so we can be together Friday night. She invites the masses for Rosh Hashanah and Passover, year in and year out...cooking everything from scratch. She makes dozens of holiday baskets...again...everything made from scratch for people that she works with, people David works with, people I work with, people she met 20 years ago, etc.

But that's just the tip of the iceberg. My mother will drop anything, any time for anyone she cares about. She flies to Florida at a moment's notice to take care of my grandparents, she used to take my car to be serviced for me because it was on her way to work, she goes to doctor appointments with my sister, and she happily took my daughter to gymnastics recently. She lets people live in her house...really. She will do anything.

She is the first one on the dance floor at any party, usually dragging or coaxing the rest of us with her. And when our family has had hard times, she is our rock.

My mother loves without limits, strings or guilt. She got that from her grandmother, Mama. She told me a long time ago that different children need different things. My sisters and brother needed more of her time, but any time I need her...she somehow knows. She used to tell me a story about how when she was in college and had no money, somehow a letter would show up from Mama with some cash in it. How did she know? My mother doesn't send me money...but she is in tune with what all of her children need from her at any given time. It's amazing.

I could go on and on, but I will just say this last thing before I finish. I live my life every day hoping to make my mother proud. She tells me all the time that she is proud of me...and even at 35 with two kids of my own...it means the world to me.

So...I will leave you with a quote from The Wish...

"And if it's a funny old world, ma, where a little boy's wishes come true

Well I got a few left in my pocket and a special one just for you
It ain't no phone call on Sunday, flowers or a mother's day card
It ain't no house on a hill with a garden and a nice little yard
I got my hot rod down on Bond Street, I'm older but you'll know me in a glance
We'll find us a little rock 'n roll bar and baby we'll go out and dance"

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RED!

JN

Lukas (Luke) Nolan Neuer

On November 3rd, my wife delivered our son, Lukas (Luke) Nolan Neuer.

While it has taken me a while to write a blog entry, it wasn't from a lack of thought, or a lack of desire. So many thoughts have gone through my head when I have sat down to write this entry that I have had a hard time organizing them in my mind, let alone on the screen.

Some quick thoughts:

- Luke was born in between Games 5 and 6 of the World Series. We watched the first four innings of Game 6 together and his first home run was Matsui's shot off of Pedro.

- The first song I sang to him in the hospital was Curtis Mayfield's "People Get Ready". Not sure why...it just popped in to my head.

- Avery and I gave him the nickname "Buddy Buddy" the first week. Not sure why...but that's what we came up with.

- The Saturday night after he was born, Bruce was playing at the entire The Wild, The Innocent, and The E Street Shuffle album at The Garden. This is my favorite Bruce album. Right around the time the show started, Luke and I sat down on the couch...he layed on my chest...and we listened to the entire album...front to back. I couldn't imagine being anywhere else.

- The kid pukes...a lot. Seriously. A lot.

- As an infant, Avery really liked Jackson Browne. I think Luke likes Elvis Costello.

The rest of it, I really guess I covered in the short speech (longer because it was hard to get through without stopping to compose myself) I gave at his bris. It was a pretty emotional day and I hope I never forget the feeling I had that day. His whole world was ahead of him. It still is. I have so many things I want for him...to experience, to know, to want, etc. It's amazing to think that Christine and I are responsible for Avery and Luke...to teach them, to help them experience life, to pick them up when they fall...and to know when not to pick them up...it's a HUGE responsibility. I can't think of a bigger one. Can you?

Anyway...below is the speech from the bris with a few minor edits.

First, I’ll start with the thank you’s. To my beautiful wife, none of this could be possible, literally, without you. I love you more every day.

To our family with their never support, love, food, and shopping addictions, we can’t thank you enough.

To our rabbi, Mark Kaiserman, this is the fourth major event that you have officiated for our family and we hope there are many many more.

To everyone that came today to celebrate the bris of our son, Luke, it really means a lot to us that you took time out of your work day to joins us. Tuesday mornings are tough and we truly appreciate it.

Last…I must must must thank my daughter, Avery, who has welcomed Luke with open arms, shared her birthday week for this event, and puts 1000 smiles on my face every day.

If there was ever a day to make promises, this is probably the day. So…to Luke…we promise to be the best parents we can possibly be. We promise to learn from our parents and all of the wonderful things they did for us. I promise to teach you how to win with class, lose with grace, and always get back up when you fall down. I promise to teach you how to score great tickets, and to keep score at a baseball game. I promise to let your mother and your two grandfathers not named Neuer teach you how to fix things, use power tools, and generally fix things…although, I did do a bang up job on the mailbox. We will teach you to be polite, courteous, gracious, generous and charitable. We will try to guide you the best we can and we hope all of your dreams come true.

A quick story…

On April 8, 1974, when I was 17 days old, your Grampa Philly will tell you that I watched my first baseball game. In that game, Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s home run record and my love affair with the game of baseball commenced. Well, your first game was Game 6 of the 2009 World Series and the first home run that you witnessed was Hideki Matsui putting the Yankee ahead and sending them on their way to their 27^th World Series Championship. So many people in this room today including, but not limited to each of my three parents, my Uncles Steven, Michael and Eddie, my Aunt Peggy, Keith, etc...and my cousin Mike who never let me go without a ticket in the old days before I had season tickets…have all taken me to Yankee games at some point in the last 35 years. It’s one of my passions. I promise that no matter where you find your passion, I will be there with you, driving you, supporting you, cheering with you…whatever it is. If your passion turns out to be the Yankees…well…that’s cool too.

So…the names. Your first name, Luke is not for Luke Skywalker, contrary to popular opinion. Your sister has Aunt Lori’s Hebrew name….well, the L at the beginning of your name is for her also. Another story…in 1987, my grandparents took me and the family to Israel to celebrate my bar mitzvah. When I came home, in my room was my first CD player, and my first CD. Born in the USA by Bruce Springsteen. It was a gift from my Aunt Lori…one of so many…talk about shopping addictions…it really runs in the family. So I’ll try to skip the emotional stuff, but let’s just say that she was the one that got me hooked on Bruce a long time ago. As a quick aside, every night Avery and I listen to music and dance and her favorite Bruce song is Working on the Highway and last night, without any prompting, she started singing along to No Surrender…both from the Born in the USA album. Anyway, anyone in the room who has been the beneficiary of Bruce tickets throughout the years, I think you would agree that my Aunt Lori is worthy of being honored in both of my children’s names. As part of our promise to teach you how to be charitable, we will be establishing a small annual scholarship at The College of New Jersey that will go to a student studying to be a special ed teacher. That scholarship will be Lori’s name and you be funding it with your allowance. Just kidding about the allowance part.

Your middle name, again, contrary to popular belief is not for Nolan Ryan. While it may be a happy coincidence, if I was going to pick a name for a pitcher, your middle name would be Mariano. The N is to honor your Grandy’s (that’s my stepfather David for those who don’t know who Grandy is) Cousin Norman. He was a brilliant man who was so generous with his time, and open to our family, and really an amazingly cultured and kind man. He was a very important figure in Grandy’s life and I have such nice memories of Norman and his generosity. Sometimes, quirky…but always generous. I remember him giving me a very odd stop watch that was probably more like a fancy egg timer. I was probably 14 or 15 and he had to explain to me a few times what it was…and I am still not sure I get it.

Your Hebrew name…there are no misconceptions about this one…is Gershon for your mother’s Uncle George. Now many of you may be saying…Christine has a Jewish uncle? This is a joke right? Not a joke. Uncle George was your Papa’s best friend for more years than either of them would admit. He passed away earlier this year and while I only met him once, he embodied the word friendship, something I hope people say about you someday.

So, I know everyone is waiting for the Bruce quote. I am going to quote Bob Dylan instead. Blasphemy I know. The remake of this song by Rod Stewart is one of your Gigi’s (my mother) favorites (and I love this Pepsi commercial).

May God bless and keep you always

May your wishes all come true

May you always do for others
And let others do for you
May you build a ladder to the stars
And climb on every rung
May you stay forever young

May you grow up to be righteous
May you grow up to be true
May you always know the truth
And see the lights surrounding you
May you always be courageous
Stand upright and be strong
May you stay forever young

"It ain't no sin to be glad you're alive..." BS