It was an ordinary day. Right in the middle of all that is happening on the East Coast of the United States, my son, Derek decides to have a birthday! Young man was born on March 28, 1971 which makes him xxxx years old today. He and his wife Barbara and son Caden are taking in the opening home game of the Baltimore Orioles in the afternoon. Luckily the weather seems to be cooperating with low winds and an air temperature in the mid-50s. Also looks as if the sun might enter the sky and warm up the fans a the Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Derek was a great baseball player in his younger years. Was an all-star pitcher for Manheim Township High School and won a full scholarship to play baseball at Villanova University. Was one of their top pitchers for a few years until he injured his pitching arm. Seems that all the major league teams stopped calling us after that happened. Tough to handle for a young man whose hopes of becoming a professional baseball player had dwindled due to an injured left arm. He never regained his velocity, but still was able to play local baseball and coach at the high school level. His son, my grandson, Caden was also a fantastic baseball player, but not at the same level as his dad. Derek enjoyed coaching his son and today the two of them still love the sport of baseball; just as their dad and granddad has enjoyed all of his life. I'm hoping that I may see them in the stands today as I watch the Orioles and the Los Angeles Angels. I realize that finding them in a filled stadium is next to nothing, but I'll still watch to see if I might find them. But, baseball isn't the only thing that brings back memories of our son on this birthday. It was back on Thursday, March 28, 1979 that the Unit 2 nuclear reactor at Three Mile Island power plant in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania melted down. A combination of equipment malfunctions, design-related problems and worker errors led to the partial meltdown. Everyone in Lancaster county was worried that the radiation that was escaping from the reactor might reach Lancaster and cause havoc. Derek and his friends were out playing in our back yard and we didn't quite know what to do. So, we called the Lancaster General Hospital and talked with the father of one of Derek's guests that day and asked if we should be concerned. The boy's father worked in the radiology department and told us not to worry since the hospital had a sensor on the roof of the building and if it would pick up any radiation, he would call us immediately so we could take the boys into our house. Luckily never happened and Derek's birthday party was a huge success. I also enjoyed the cake and ice cream that all the guests were eating. Hard to believe that that was 45 years ago!! Where did all the time go? Well, have to call it quits with my computer so I can grab some snacks and a drink to watch the ballgame on TV. Just finished talking to my son and he told me where he and his wife and son were sitting.....waiting for the game to start. Must go now so I might see them if the cameraman pans the stands. Yeah right!! What are the chances that that is going to happen?? So...Happy Birthday wishes to our son Derek and wishes that the Orioles win their first game of the season on our son's birthday. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy. The following photo shows the knees of our three family members who are at the ball park. Great seats!!! so they are! PS - Our son-in-law Dave is also at the game....but, Dave lives a bit closer being he lives in Maryland.
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