Actually Leej, my REAL passion in life has been baseball. When I was 14, my friend Malcolm and I were allowed to attend a Canadian try-out camp sponsored by the Chicago Cubs (in Montreal). I was a hot shot PONY league pitcher in Baie d'Urfey and he was our slugging third baseman. We were both really "up" and nervous as well. I got my one minute in the sun facing two tough inner-city French kids, who BOTH homered off me! On TWO pitches! Game, set and match over for little Ricky's dream of being a big leaguer. Malcolm never even got to bat. They timed him from home to first and sent him home (his real one).

Fortunately I found in Toronto a league (Toronto Arts Baseball League) that was so lousy, that for about 15 years I had the time of my life hitting 215 foot homers and earned the nickname "Around the Bases in Eighty Days". My team was comprised of stand-up comics, songwriters, a politician, and a Lesbian shortstop who had once been a stripper in Las Vegas! We played against teams of Authors, stagehands, reporters, and other total non-athletes.

Rick