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THURSDAY |
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Hall-of-Fame Weekend, as always, officially began when Patti and Mart picked up the Tombie at Newark Airport. A fun ride up the Thruway, and just a few hours later, they arrived at The Acreage. There was much work to be done, however, as the house had just completed receiving a huge facelift, most notably the new windows on the kitchen half, and all-new siding, roofing, and insulation. Additionally, Pat and Mart had piled up a nice bunch of scrap and crap from the barn, basement, and back porch to be hauled away by the Haul-It-All guys. Pat, Mart & Tombie decided to include this big pile of old roofing shingles that had been sitting around near the Milk Barn for a couple of years. It had to be loosened up with a hoe, and Mart and Tom started hacking away at it. Only problem was that there were a bunch of snakes living in there. Not that they're harmful... just a few garter snakes, but Mart hacked a little too hard and cut one of their bellies open. He felt awful, but didn't want the snake to suffer, so his next strike was right behind it's head to de-capitate it. Lawns were mowed and trimmed, back-porch party lites were installed, a couple of tents were pitched, the kitchen sink was put in place and connected... all in a day's work! A relaxing evening followed. A view of the barn & house |
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BEEE- |
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Port-o-Potty... Frankie Heal's Chinese Hat... the Tent Cities... the Campisi
Slum-Lords... the Septic Tank... Shoeless Kenny... the Megaphone... the
Sold-Out Saturday Night Campfire... the over-caffienated Bus Boy at Brooks...
the Pocket N-Boss... Swass... Genie Gene-Gene... Mrs. McGivney's Que Pasa
Verse... Erwin's Que Pasa Verse... how do we manage to come up with a
completely new set of unforgettable memories every single year???
It never seems possible that a better time can be had than last year's Hall-of-Fame Weekend, but somehow, you can always manage to come away saying that you had the best time every time. Betty's Twisted Acres Hall-of-Fame Weekend 8 effectively re-iterated what the spirit of BTA is: an unconditional good time with unconditionally good people. It's amazing to feel the weight lift off your shoulders around that campfire... This page attempts to act as a sort of yearbook: summing up and re-capping the happenings and good feelings that emanated from a 51-acre tract of land in central New York State one unseasonably cool weekend in July. |
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FRIDAY |
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Tombie, Mart & Pat woke up early for there were still much preparation in anticipation of the coming throngs. Mart & Tom went to Max V. Shaul State Park to make sure the field was unoccupied for the following day. While there, they had their annual pre-Rusty-Game catch and batting practice. Both of them so look forward to those couple of hours together on the ballfield. They then got some ice cream, and some CORN! Yes, Corn Challenge 2000 was in full effect, and everybody needed to have more than their share of maize, Mart and Tombie included. In fact, later in the day, when ear after ear was being shucked in preparation for that night's meal, it seemed that every time Mart ate a raw ear, everybody else involved in the Challenge reached into that big bag and downed another ear... just to keep up. Folks started arriving mighty early, with some of the first folks being Vinny and Marie Campisi with their massive, massive tent. Socko's tent has always been the record-holder for luxurious woodland accommodations, but he's got company now! Vinny's and Socko's tents right next to each other made the upper tent-site look like the Las Vegas Strip with it's mega-resorts, thus causing the lower tent-site (near the pond) to receive the moniker, "The Slums." By mid-afternoon, arrival after arrival: Dave and Carol with Renee, Chelsea, and Rachele... Liz and Jimmy with Jamesy-Boy and Francesca... Big Bob and Eddie... The Mount Rushmore of Idiots (minus one): Joey Jo-Jo, Frank, and Brendan, but Don couldn't make it up because of a logistical snag at his f'ing job (which he should QUIT!)... Brian, the last-ever Rookie (since it was Mrs. Landy who bestowed the nickname upon him), the fifth member of the Mount Rushmore of Idiots, despite not being in the original photo... Kenny (who would achieve legendary status the following day) and Erwin... by 6pm, the Acreage was taking on a very familiar and welcome look! This year's goodie bag contained the ever-popular T-Shirt (which, this year, was available in your choice of three colors), the inflatable Stadium Seat Cushion, the usual postcards and stickers, and a copy of a collection of songs Mart had been writing and recording for over a year: Glorious. Everybody got their goodie bags and, after setting up their campsites, meandered over to the most famous campfire on earth. Mr. Juke did a brief set (just a warm-up for the big weekend), and everyone mingled while their frosty beverages twinkled in the star- and campfire-lit night. |
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The
Mount Rushmore of Idiots pack their vehicle |
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Catfish
are a-jumpin' in the pond If
you have any pics from Friday, let us post them! |
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SATURDAY |
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Rusty Game Day... Mart & Tombie took an early run down to the dump to get rid of Thursday & Friday's cans & bottles. The Can Crusher continues to work like an absolute charm. At previous HOF's, cans used to fill up at least 10-12 garbage bags... with the Crusher in effect, cans accounted for only 2 garbage bags this year. And now, in addition to your can-crushing responsibilities, a new chore has been successfully added: ringing the bell everytime you crush a can. How many angels got their wings this weekend!? Rusty Game II wasn't getting underway until late afternoon, giving folks plenty of time to do as much (or as little) as they liked. Some folks slept in, some went swimming at one of the nearby waterfalls, some went shopping, some hiked up Vroman's Nose, some hung around the unlit campfire, and some went back to New York City to audition for "The Sopranos"! Whatever you did during the day, there's no doubt that you ended up at Max V. Shaul State Park for 4:30pm to warm up for Rusty Game II. Leigh-Ann, Linda, Tony and Colleen once again came up for the game... along with several thousand of their friends! Mrs. McGivney (Tombie and Rusty's mom) and her nephew John made the trip all the way up, which made the game that much more fun and poignant. This year, the Ringleaders jumped all over Team Red with 9 runs in the 1st inning. Offensive standouts included Drew and Big Bob with 4 runs apiece. A late charge by Team Red (4 runs in the 9th) couldn't keep Rusty Game II MVP Socko Jones from pitching a complete game victory. Socko lasted despite being struck by some hard line drives hit by his brother. Another legend was added to the Twisted Acres Long List o' Legends when Team Red 3rd Baseman Kenny Corson decided that his shoes were a little too uncomfortable to continue playing in. No one noticed when he trotted onto the field sometime during mid-game with nothing but grey socks covering his probably-pretty-stinky-by-now feet. But after making at least 3 fantastic plays and coming up with a 2-run homer and a pair of singles, the Legend of Shoeless Kenny Corson was born. Offensive notables for Team Red: Mart, 3-4, 2 2B - Kenny, 3-4, 2-run HR, 3 runs. The final score: The Ringleaders 20, Team Red 12. Everyone then headed back to The Acreage for a fantastic meal prepared by (among others) Kevin McCole, Kristen, Patti, and Carol... and as we ate, the campfire was lit for what has become a top highlight of Hall-of-Fame Weekend: the Saturday Night Campfire. Mr. Jukebox had quite a laundry list of songs to play (he wishes he could have played all of them), and his good friend Tom Michetti did more than his share to make the music around the fire sound better than it ever has. Thanks, Tom! "Que Pasa" lasted almost 45 minutes, and the second it started, several folks bolted from their seats in fear of having to perform a verse. What has now become known as the "Que Pasa Anonymous Support Meeting" took place inside the Main Residence, and lasted exactly as long as the song did. Nevertheless, the verses were unmatched for their hilarity and rhyming-mastery. The Que Pasa rookies, most notably Erwin, Mrs. McGivney, and Ron & Reggie Gaylord, turned in some mighty fine verses. |
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But
first...
HOW ABOUT THAT HOUSE!!! |
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Far Left: The Main Residence on Fourth of July Weekend 2000, just before extensive repair work to the outside Near Left: The Main Residence during Hall-of-Fame Weekend 8. Did you notice? |
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SUNDAY |
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Sunday is Hall of Fame Induction day in Cooperstown, but a surprisingly low number of AcreHeads attend every year. Most folks spend the day enjoying themselves and each other by going swimming at the falls or just chilling out. But I must tell you, for a baseball fan, the Induction is nearly as much fun as the Hall of Fame Game itself. Seeing the returning Hall of Famers assembled on that stage together... the Greatest Team of All-Time... gives a chill like no other. Hector, Freddie, Fish, Patty, Mike and Kristen among others went to Bouck's Falls for a swim. The water was cold, but the times were good. As is our custom, we set up our sun-screen tent near the back at the crest of the hill overlooking the Clark Sports Center and the huge tent where the Induction takes place. As expected, far fewer people were on hand for this year's induction compared to last year, but the atmosphere was just as joyous and exciting. Carlton Fisk, Tony Perez, Sparky Anderson, and descendants of Bid McPhee and Turkey Stearnes gave their speeches while we laid in the sun, played Pepper, and just soaked in the glorious goings-on at the Mecca of Baseball. Afterwards, we visited the Baseball Hall of Fame, moseyed over to our Ticket Day HQ, the Bold Dragoon, for a few Old Sluggers, then drove into Oneonta to feast on the fine fare at Brook's House of B-B-Q. Joey Jo-Jo's father, Genie-Gene-Gene (of COURSE he was getting a nickname), joined us for the induction and dinner. He and his wife were spending the night in Oneonta in anticipation of Monday's Hall-of-Fame Game. We all ventured back to The Acreage for another night of campfire hijinks. Septic tank issues aside (you'll be glad to know that they're permanently resolved), it was a great day. |
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MONDAY |
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Hall of Fame Game Day... the culmination of BTA Hall-of-Fame Weekend... breakfast at Mrs. K's... racing down I-88 to exit 17: Colliersville, Cooperstown... Arriving at Doubleday Field... sitting down... screaming your lungs out. A lot of folks head home straight from the game, so Monday morning was not only a blind rush for the shower, it was hard work to pack up camping equipment while at the same time get ready for the game. The port-o-potty was picked up on Monday, and boy, oh boy, did it get used (see photo link below... if you dare). No Hall of Fame Game could ever measure up to the 1999 Game... the Zaun Game. But a great time was had! The Right Field Crowd was rarin' to go from the second they showed up. Most people sitting out there knew what to expect, and it seems that more people got seats in right field for that very reason. EVERYBODY responded when Mart shouted, "What field rules," and it made for a lot of fun. The best right-fielder of the day was Single-A player Timmy Olsen, who seemed to be a bit surprised by the outpouring of love we shower upon our beloved right-fielders. He played along, and took home a Right Field Rules seat cushion... and trust me, he can use it. Those benches down at the lower-lever minors are pretty tough on a 20-year-old tush. After the game, it was time to say good-bye to just about everyone. It's a wistful time, because there are folks who you absolutely LOVE that you only get to see this one weekend. You miss them immensely, but you know you'll be together again and the conversation will pick right up where it left off. I can't thank everyone enough for coming up year after year, making yourself at home, letting your hair down, being such great friends, and taking such good care of the Acreage and each other. It blows my mind that the place means almost as much to you as it does to us. It's your place, too, and you are ALWAYS WELCOME. |
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SEE
YOU AT
BETTY'S TWISTED ACRES HALL-OF-FAME WEEKEND 9! August 2nd - 7th, 2001 |
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