Boys of Summer book Entry #28

June 14, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

A dear friend of ours, Chuck Miller wrote to me today. Chuck’s an amazing man who can charm the fangs off a snake. He told us he’d like to give us some money for the project and that he’d be hitting up some of his friends.

Talk about your 11th hour blessings. This is going to make getting on the road a little less frightening.

June 15, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

Hey, one way or another, things are moving. The trip starts on Friday -- THIS FRIDAY! There's so much that needs to be done, so many things I wish would have been done. But you know what? We've done a lot and I'm going to have faith that it's enough to get us out there on the road and...somehow it will all work out.

We really need exposure help still (as I think so much else of what we need will come from that), so we keep knocking on doors, ringing phones/faxes and writing e-mails.

We're also in need of food/lodging locations in a number of places:

July 7 - Philadelphia

July 15 - Detroit

July 17 - Pittsburgh

July 19 - Cincinnati

July 20 - Kansas City

July 22 - Minneapolis

July 23 - Chicago

July 24 - Cleveland

July 25 - New York (upstate)

July 27 - Montreal

July 30 - Chicago

August 3 - St. Louis

I hate having this many “holes” in the production as we’re getting ready to start, but we’ve done the best we can. A lot of this is just going to have to be improvised.

St. Louis 8, Oakland 4

WP: M. Morris (7-5)  LP: C. Bradford (3-3)

 

Boys of Summer book Entry #27

June 10, 2004 - Bob

Manhattan, NY

We got to see a taping of David Letterman today -- another favorite of both of ours. When you enter the studio (well before the show), you are lightly interviewed by some of the show staff. They’re looking for the most energetic people to be up front for the cameras -- makes sense. Guess where Annamaria and I made sure we were? Make sense.

We told them about our upcoming baseball journey and they seemed really interested. I told them we’d gladly be the fill-in third guests if they needed one (always the giver, me). In my heart-of-heart fantasies I was hoping we might be able to do a weekly check-in on our tour like Biff or some of Dave’s other favorites have done throughout the years.

I also knew Dave came out early and asked the audience a question or two before the show started. I was determined to ask him about his how many baseball stadiums he’d been to and which was his favorite.

We got seated I was ready to hit him with it. He comes out on stage and he’s got about 90 seconds before he has to reset for the show (they tape it in time with the actual presentation of the show so everything is rigidly structured). He says hello then asks for questions. Damned if I don’t alligator arm my attempt (in other words, put my arm up half way). Another woman shoots hers up boldly asks her question (which was about whether or not Matthew Broderick, tonight’s guest, had brought along his wife Sarah Jessica Parker with him). Dave had a field day with her, burning the 90 seconds roasting her ignorance and leaving me and my alligator arm without satisfaction.

As we left New York, I thought back on the contest and meeting Stephen King: it was both a thrill and an validation of my belief in myself. It gives me something further to point to when I am feeling down or questioning my ability to climb whatever hill lies before me. The contest, as it was put up on the internet, was wide open. There were thousands of entries. We made a great little film, got selected as a finalist, pushed like hell to get people to vote for it and were rewarded.

It’s that kind of experience that I lean on when I get scared about how (or if) this film is going to “work”. We’re just a week or so away from hitting the road and I still wonder:

Where will we get the rest of the money from?

What if the tailgate parties don’t work out?

What if we get financially (or otherwise) stranded on the road?

Will we be able to shoot the things we need to shoot in order to make a coherent movie?

Does this story make any sense?

Will anyone care about it?

Is my dad going to be healthy enough to do this?

I hate that the money’s my biggest fear, but it is. There’s no turning back. We’re too close and we’ve done a lot, but I know I don’t have the ability to write checks on this project and I’m not going to have my dad do more than he is. He’s already donated their Ford Explorer to the cause as our travel vehicle because Annamaria and I weren’t able to land the RV or SUV we’d sought as a promo/rental.

I have hope and, as Andy Dufresne in “The Shawshank Redemption” told his good friend, Red: “Hope is not a bad thing.”

Entry #26

June 2, 2004

Fan Response!

Dear Robert,

What an inspiration your work is! What a fascinating project you are funding! Thank you for sharing your work and your original ideas with Lynne as you travel from ball park to ball park. Lynne has asked me to send you her blessings for your work and to thank you for taking the principles she has developed in Soul of Money "to the streets" and making them available to everyone through your extraordinary work.

With warm thanks, Pat for Lynne

(Lynne Twist is the author of "Soul of Money")

June 8, 2004 - Bob

Manhattan, NY

Annamaria and I are right in the heart of things at 42nd and 8th. A friend has given us the use of his “sub-studio” apartment which you could call a shoe box only if you were referring to enough space for one shoe. God love you, Junior, this place is great. Thank you!

We’re preparing to meet Stephen King this morning. We took a walk, got a couple of great smoothies (at $7 apiece they better be great!) then ended up doing yoga on a basketball court in Hell’s Kitchen. Read into that what you will.

When we got to the Simon & Schuster building and told them why we were there, the Security Guards went from stone-faced who are you to, “Oh my God -- he’s here today?” The staff from Simon & Schuster couldn’t have been nicer. They gave us a standing ovation

as we walked through to a long conference room where we waited for the man.

When he walked in I was so nervous I tried to sink into the wall behind me. But Steve, as he seems to prefer to be called, couldn’t be more cool and easy going. He proudly donned a Red Sox shirt and pin as he shook hands and (this was really funny) introduced himself to everyone. Like we don’t know...

We watched the short film adaptation I made together, he led the crowd in a rousing round of applause for it and congratulated me. After a little film buzz, we got to talking about baseball pretty quickly. He mentioned the growing rivalry between the Red Sox and the A’s. He is very interested in our trip, too, and mentioned that he’s currently in the process of writing a non-fiction, baseball-themed book. As part of the book, he’s attending even more games at Fenway than usual.

When we told him about our schedule, he gave me the room number at the hotel he stays in when in Boston and told me to give him a call when we arrived. If he was there at that time, maybe we’d all get dinner together. That...wouldn’t suck.

Entry #25

June 1, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

Everything feels overwhelming right now. Every day I wake up anxious about the number of things that need to be done.

Yesterday, in the car, I was expressing this to my lovely partner who deserves a hell of a lot of credit for details as seemingly small as me getting out bed in the morning. I was not complaining, exactly, but rather feeling worried that it wouldn't get done. After a bit of back and forth, she took my hand and said:

"Yeah and you'll get it done. You always do." 

That froze me. Because it's true. Somehow, things always work out -- despite or, seemingly, sometimes -- in spite of me. But they do. 

Tonight we're both staring at bills and looking at a scary summertime financially as I'm taking two months off work to do this project and I've been winning more of the bread of the two of us over the last 8 months or so. So now we have some uncertainty, some big bills and some looming doubt.

But I know, somehow, we'll figure it out. We always do. 

Oakland 6, Chicago White Sox 4

J. Duchscherer (3-1)   LP: N. Cotts (0-3)

Entry #24

May 30, 2004 - Bob

Fundraiser II (Electric Boogaloo)

It was quite different than the Oakland affair -- and that makes sense as Vegas is quite a different city.

Fremont Street is old Las Vegas; Binion's Horseshoe (the poker place), Glitter Gulch (the OLD stripper place), every walk of life you can imagine, a spectacular sound and light show every hour on the hour once the sun goes down -- in other words, just your every day Las Vegas freak show.

We had a number of amazingly generous sponsors. The only thing we lacked was a crowd. There were plenty of people walking by as Fremont St. is always happening, but getting them in to join us was quite a different story.

There were a few who did, though. One man, in particular, made me smile as he was, by his own admission, homeless. One of the challenges we faced was the number of homeless people around us. On the one hand, my heart goes out and I'd love to give each of them food. On the other hand, the food is for a fundraiser and if we give to one, then all will come to us and we won't be able to get the crowd we're trying to get. At any rate, George (our homeless friend) said he thought the cause was great and gave us $10 without a blink.

Annamaria was helping him get everything he wanted. She offered him a few whole pizzas to take to "his boys" as he called them. He said no, all he really wanted was a beautiful woman to make him up a plate as it reminded him of how his sisters used to do that for him. He went on to tell me about his son, Michael, who's name he had tattooed on his arm. I had my "little brother" (from the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program I'm involved in), Ryland, with me. George smiled widely at Ryland and said how much he missed his son, who's 18 now.

After George got his food, he thanked us and went on his way. $10 from him meant the world -- much like the story in the Bible about the woman who gives her last pennies.

We had an awesome DJ (Brian from Starz DJ services in Las Vegas) who plugged the heck out of our event, God bless him. Though we couldn't get many people to join us, we had fun trying. When it was over, we packed up like the Cat in the Hat and made our way to the Las Vegas 51's game. Annamaria and I were so tired it was hard to make much sense of the game. But for Ryland, it was his first-ever baseball game and he was very interested (for at least the first couple of innings).

The 51's hammered the Tacoma club, 15-5 and afterward there were fireworks. It was very nice just soaking it all in. We let the crowd file out before us, then took the slow route home. It was a tiring but great night, all told.

Certainly, I wish there had been more people to join us. We ended up donating a good deal of food to a homeless shelter, eating a good deal of the tickets we didn’t sell and barely breaking even.

Now it is on to the actual tour -- it's only a few weeks away...

Cleveland 4, Oakland 3

WP: R. White (2-0)   LP: A. Rhodes (1-3)

Note to Mr. Rhodes: you, too, are trying my patience.

Annamaria:

I had a fear with the party at Fremont St. that a lot of people weren’t going to show up. It was a spectacular set up -- great food, great venue, we had everything a party could ask for -- except the people. 

We need to get thank you cards sent out to everybody right away.

Thinking about the trip, I know I am going to miss Bob like heck. I’m concerned about work. I feel like it’s on me to take care of bills, rent, etc. I’m temping right now, which is okay...

Bob and I have a saying we like to remind each other of in scary: “this too shall pass”.

 

Entry #23

May 28, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas NV

We took in close to $3000 all told at the Bay Area fundraiser. The second fundraiser is this weekend. We’re not anywhere near my proposed $50,000 budget for this project. Some adjustments have been made accordingly. The food budget is cut down (Clif Bar has donated a few cases of bars and those will have to be breakfast -- that’s one meal down every day). I do plan on us making money at tailgate/fundraisers along the way. We will be camping as often as possible, saving close to $100 a night (based on the calls we’ve made, the days of the $40 room seem to be over). And if we’re going to be sleeping with critters, I’d rather have it be in a campground than a low-down funky motel room.

* We are going to New York the following weekend.

* We have a private screening of my short film, "Luckey Quarter" (our “other” Stephen King short film project) set for June 14th in Las Vegas. We will also unveil the trailer for our new feature, "Broken Reality" at that time and decide if we're ready to move on to the next level with it.

* We hit the road on June 19th, after our kickoff game on June 18th in Las Vegas.

So as to avoid freaking out by trying to make sense of this, I'm going to bed.

Cleveland 1, Oakland 0

WP: J. Jimenez (1-3)   LP: J. Mecir (0-4)

Note to Mr. Mecir: at this point in the season, I would like to say, in my “professional” opinion, your results suck.

Entry #22

May 24, 2004 - Dan

Walnut Creek, CA

This was our kickoff fundraiser "A day with the A's" which involved a tailgate party and game (A's vs. the Royals). We had 107 friends and relatives sign up and most everyone was there. It was a great day in every respect. The weather was ideal. The food turned out great. The game was exciting, A's won in the bottom of the 10th. Most of all we had a wonderful group. Everyone was very interested in and enthusiastic about the Boys of Summer project. The love and support that Bob and I felt was very energizing. If that was not enough we were surprised by our daughter, Christine, who flew in form Dallas to complete our family.

The day was a success financially, but it was even more of an emotional success. I am very much looking forward to the start of our journey. 

May 24, 2004 - Bob

Fundraiser I in Oakland

It is Sunday night -- technically Monday morning. I feel like it's time to go to bed, but not before I say some things that need be said about this day.

Wow. Amazing. Beautiful.

I'm reminded of how inadequate language can sometimes be in describing things. I will be posting pictures and a video clip up on the web site very soon. Maybe that will help.

I don't want to just laundry list the day’s events as it won’t do justice to the magic of it. We came together, a group of over 100 of us, and we shared an experience. Based on love, respect and the desire to be part of something communal that we all deem to be important, we shaped today into something special.

When I think about this being just the beginning of things (in many ways the tip of the tip of the iceberg) I am blown away.

* I got to see my dad genuinely smile today in a most wonderful way several times. His happiness and state of being was a great joy to be around. We shared memories, we shared presence and we played catch.

* When my sister surprised us all by showing up with her partner Migdalia, I nearly killed myself hurdling a solid concrete divider to give her a hug. Hurdles were my sport in high school but, amazingly enough, high school wasn’t yesterday anymore. My sis told me after reading one of dad's journal entries she suddenly realized  she had to come.

Life, health and economy are similar in that they all rely upon movement in order to remain healthy. In the same way we flush and cleanse our bodies by drinking water (promoting movement and cleansing), the economy relies on money moving in order to remain healthy.

One of the things that Dad and I talked about was the idea that people, generally, do want to give and do want to help. More often than not, however, they don't know how to do so in a manner that makes them feel like what they're doing is a good thing. So then, the person or group that organizes something in the name of the common good and makes it easy to give becomes the facilitator of such good will and, in essence, helps movement.

We are providing a service for people -- and we are neither above nor beneath the group we are serving; we are one with them. We all rely upon each other to lift up that which we all believe in.

“Thank you” hardly seems adequate, but I offer it in kind to all those who made this first fundraiser such a success.

Oakland 3, Kansas City 2

WP: A. Rhodes (1-1)   LP: N. Field (2-1)

Annamaria:

Bob’s parents did a lot of the work when it came to coordinating -- they have wonderful friends. We got a lot of things donated, which was helpful. I always loved coming up to the bay. It was so nice getting all this support. It was nice for Dan and Bob though I was sad Bob’s friends didn’t show up at the tailgate (though they did stop by and very generously contributed later at Bob’s parents house).

I was really hoping people understood what this fundraiser was about. It wasn’t just a party -- it was for this amazing adventure Bob and Dan are going on. It was about supporting a trip and a movie that both support Parkinson’s Disease. I had a feeling some of the people couldn’t see what we were seeing. Some people just don’t get it. More than just giving money, I wanted people to tell others about what we were up to. Ask questions. Get involved.

It was really sweet seeing Bob and his dad together. Sometimes I watch them and I think how sad it is that Dan has Parkinson’s. It reminds me to give thanks -- it’s important to enjoy your family now. Dan’s still pretty healthy, thankfully. He still knows how to have a good time. By the way, Paulette makes amazing brownies.

 

Entry #21

May 17, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

I think remembering to breathe is the most difficult task here. I feel as if I'm being ripped at the seams by my many disparate thoughts and ideas of how things might work.

Tomorrow's a big day of dotting i's and crossing t's for the first fundraiser in the Bay Area. Ticket sales are up to near 70 -- which is great! We have 100 and I'm hoping we at least hit that.

The Las Vegas event is just 6 days after the Bay event and we're planning on being on the road for most of that time so...we have to get most of Vegas nailed down now. We have lots of promoting to do, including a major blast to all the media outlets. I have the added plus of throwing the Stephen King news in there. Things are whirling so fast I can hardly believe I get to meet him.

Promotion’s definitely my main struggle right now. How do I get people to pay attention, let alone care? I think some rest would do me well for now. The A’s are taking the night off and I think I’ll follow suit. 

May 20, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

We're three days away from our first fundraiser and looking VERY good. Thanks in no small part to the wonderful work of my parents, we've booked a solid 100 people for our event. We will have a few more, perhaps, by game time. Regardless, it will pan out to a nice bit of money to get us started.

Our fundraiser the following week is looking good, too -- just nervous about the fact that we don't have any formal confirmations yet. We have 100 tickets and I've committed to them, so we'll just have to play it like that for now. We are busting our tails getting the word out and I don't know what more we can do...faith and hard work.

We've had amazing generosity from many groups -- Albertsons, Vons, Safeways, Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Wild Oats, Domino's, Pyramid Brewery and more...

Oakland 3, Detroit 2

WP: T. Hudson (5-1)   LP: J. Walker (0-1)

Entry #20

May 14, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

I was wrapped off the set of Ms. Congeniality 2 tonight. It's good to be done -- though there is a bit of sadness after working with everyone for several weeks.

Our updated calendar for "Boys of Summer" is as follows:

May 21st -- deadline for Las Vegas 51's ticket sales (I have 100 to sell).

May 22nd -- drive to Bay Area.

May 23rd -- 1st fundraiser for BOS @ Oakland A's game. We've sold enough to break even as of today -- Now we're hoping to raise some funds. We've got donations of: a keg of beer, keg of root beer (thank you Pyramid Brewery), water (thank you Trader Joe's), a gift certificate from Safeway (thank you, you know who) for $25 nailed down. We have Domino's Pizza, Whole Foods Market and gift certificates from Great American BBQ pending.

May 29th -- Second fundraiser at Fremont St. Experience/Las Vegas 51's game. We have pizzas from Dominos so far and chips from Trader Joe's. We are awaiting response from several local restaurants and stores. We are also awaiting a yes/no from the awesome Prince tribute band, Purple Reign as to whether or not they will be playing a set at the Fremont St. Experience.

June 5th -- travel to New York

June 8th -- Meet Stephen King (we made a short film adaptation of a scene from his Gunslinger series and won the Grand Prize!). I am trying to set up an interview with any/all of the morning TV shows, i.e. Today, Regis/Kelly.

June 18th -- Our first official game, seeing the Las Vegas 51's before hitting the road.

June 19th -- Grand Canyon

June 20th -- Arizona D'Backs. Party at Sliders, right next to the Bank One Ballpark. We have a great Parkinson community in Phoenix helping us coordinate this one. I'm buying 100 tickets on consignment from the D'backs -- I hope we'll need even more!

June 24th -- Houston Astros. We'll be getting tickets here, too. Still working on a restaurant for the pre-game party/fundraiser.

June 25th - Texas Rangers. Don't know the tailgating situation here. Sis lives in Dallas -- woo hoo! We'll spend a day or two here. I hope we can work out something with her club in terms of a fundraiser.

July 1 -- Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Playing phone tag with them right now. Not sure of the tailgate status.

July 2 -- Florida Marlins (Miami). This will be BIG as the NPF headquarters are here! We're working on coordinating an event.

Okay -- that's enough for right now. I have good leads in Minnesota (Hubert's), Philadelphia (tailgating at the park okay and I've got a great "friendly" in Maria Gephardt who lives near Philly) and Seattle (Pyramid Brewery).

I really need some help with tickets in Boston (July 9th -- 5 tickets) and Chicago/Wrigley July 30th (5 tickets). We’re trying not to get stuck by scalped stuff as the hard cash flow is so minimal.

Oakland 6, Kansas City 2

WP: T. Hudson (4-1)   LP: J. Gobble (1-2)

 

Entry #19

May 13, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

Work has continued to keep me nearly blind. Between Ms. Congeniality 2, Caesars Palace and producing this project, I almost haven't been breathing (gasp, gasp).

Fortunately, MC2 wraps on Friday so I'll have more time to focus on Boys of Summer -- and none too soon! We're just outside of a month away and we have two fundraisers in the interim.

Under the file of “Those who don’t get it” -- a jackass crew member from MC2, who shall remain nameless, expressed a lot of interest in this project when I told him what we were up to. He went so far as to tell me about his connections to former big leaguer Glenallen Hill. He went on to say he could get us an interview with him and maybe even with the enigmatic Barry Bonds -- citing the wonderful father/son reference, Barry’s father Bobby passing away recently.

This all sounded great until it came up that I really didn’t have a budget. The Jackass said, “Ohhhhh”. And I said, “What?” Jackass said, “That’s too bad.” And I said, “Why?” Jackass looked at me and I filled in the blank for him, “You mean, because we don’t have any money to offer you....like as a finder fee?” Jackass nodded.

Memo to Jackass: this is a nonprofit project serving Parkinson’s Disease and those affected by it. Yes, by the way, he was made very aware of that. Did it change his stance? Uh, no.

Jackass.

I'm just noticing the ads that pop up on my message board -- someone does a good job of researching as there are ads for the Yankees and Red Sox up there. Nice.

I have a ton of phone calls and coordinating to do. My big push is for an RV right now. I had a very interesting phone call with one  dealer which eventually got me to a nice “Sounds great but--”. I get a lot of those. He did give me a list of other RV dealers, though. So -- time to dial 'em up and see what happens.

Detroit 3, Oakland 1

WP: M. Maroth (4-1)   LP: M. Redman (2-2)

Entry #18

May 4, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

Faith is, to me, at the core of what I do. I don't mean this in a religious sense, but in a generalized sense of belief and trust in what I like to call the process. 

The latest example:

This morning I felt very tired as I had worked on the set of “Ms. Congeniality 2” as a stand-in until about 4:30 am. My Bella has work at another job today so I don't get to see her beautiful face or have the pleasure of working with her (she's awesome). After spending about 20 minutes sifting through scraps of paper with any number of phone, fax and e-mail contacts (none of which I was looking for, but, certainly, valuable in their own right...at another time), I thought, "I don't know if I can do this today." We still are short on so many things we need and sometimes it only takes one door slammed in your face to say, “I’m done”. In other words I was suffering basicus overwhelmusitis.

Just then, I got a call from Holly Ryan, a representative from Dominos Pizza. They were one of the many names on never-ending contact list. I had left them a message just yesterday requesting some pizza for our Las Vegas event (okay, it wasn’t “30 minutes or less”, but still…). 

Not only are they giving us pizzas for our Las Vegas event, but also $500 in Domino’s gift certificates for the road, support in Anaheim and Detroit (pizzas to be discussed later) and the number of a television producer/contact of hers with a very influential talk show. 

Her enthusiasm and support lifted my spirits at just the moment I needed it. And so, like many other times in my life when similar things have happened, I feel humbled, thankful and very respectful of faith and the process. 

New York Yankees 10, Oakland 8

WP: D. Osborne (2-0)   LP: C. Bradford (1-1)

May 7, 2004 - Dad

Walnut Creek, CA

Talk about your unexpected silver lining.

Paulette and I have a dog, Emma, and she has two neighbor friends, Henry and Axel. Henry and Axel's owners are in the process of moving so for the past two days we have been dog sitting. 

I came home yesterday at two p.m. needing to be at the golf course for the start of a three day tournament at 4 pm. When I opened the door to our family room where we keep the dogs when we are not at home, I could hardly believe my eyes. Every where I looked there were piles of dark brown, lumpy, slimy goop. These are not large dogs, about 25 pounds each. It looked as though two or three of them had exploded except there they were looking at me and wagging their tails.

It took me about an hour and a half to clean up the mess (they had gotten into some chocolate) and it didn't occur to me until I was retelling the story to Bob that because I no longer have hardly any since of smell I was spared from what must have been the worst part of dealing with that mess, the odor. 

Looking back I began losing my sense of smell years before I was diagnosed with Parkinson's. As it turns out the loss the sense of smell can be a symptom. You can imagine the many unpleasant odors I no longer appreciate. 

By the way, I sank a 20 foot putt on the final hole to capture second place for my team. Ah, the sweet smell of victory.  

Oakland 11, Minnesota 9

WP: C. Bradford (2-1)   LP: T. Mulholland (0-1)

Entry #17

Apr 28, 2004 - Dan

Walnut Creek, CA

I have a new assignment I'm working on: to be able to play "Take me out to the ball game" on the harmonica. Looking back, it seems that in many efforts I have been long on inspiration and some what short on perspiration. My last musical attempt ended with me singing the theme from “Maverick” at my Diablo Valley College voice training class. My throat felt the size of a pin hole but somehow I got through it.

I've dusted off my harmonica and located the music for "Take me out...” and I've started on the perspiration. We have a dog, Emma (a cockapoo) and two neighbor dogs, Henry and Axel (short hair and long hair dachshunds) that were initially attracted by my efforts but soon went looking for a more peaceful place to sleep. I've been through the song a dozen times and as simple as it is I can tell I have a ways to go. Wish me luck. 

May 1, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

I’ve received good feedback from the Houston Astros, Chicago White Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks. We will not be able to tailgate in any of those markets, but there are sports bar alternatives.

I need to attack the media harder to get us more publicity. This idea is so well-received by those who have taken the time to hear it. It only takes one biggee, then we build off that.

I got very kind "thanks, but no thanks" from Paul Newman's and Kevin Costner's publicists in request to interview them for the film. I understand they are very busy and also understand they must be careful about what they say yes to because then a thousand more hands come in ("Pick me! Pick me! Me too! Me three!").

I worked a celebrity golf tournament this morning (as Caesar) and met a lot of interesting people. It's nice to meet them and get in their minds, if ever so briefly, so when I do make a request (at the appropriate time), perhaps they'll remember me and I'll have an "in". Would you forget Caesar?

Oakland 6, Tampa Bay 5

WP: C. Hammond (2-1)   LP: L. Carter (0-1)  

Entry #16

April 28, 2004

Mary Ann Sprinkle’s Reply

Dan:

I will write more later, but I wanted to say how very touched I am by your e-mail and with your sharing your story with us.  More than anything else, I look forward to meeting you at that Marlins game in July and, yes, we exist to find a cure for Parkinson disease, just as we support all those who are working to find a cure for breast cancer!

I can tell in my conversations with Robert that he is an extraordinary man, so you and Paulette are two wonderful parents.  You are both dealing with a great deal, but I know your children must be your great achievements. I'm sure Christine is terrific as well.

It will be an honor to get to know you better and to share, through a love of baseball, an important story with this world.

Thank you, again, for taking the time to help us know Dan Cochrane a little better.  And may the canister remain more full than empty.

Mary Ann Sprinkle

National Parkinson Foundation

April 28, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

The official website goes up tonight: “www.baseballdoc.com". (AUTHOR'S NOTE -- unfortunately this domain name was not renewed in time, due to my son being born with a life-threatening condition, and the company who has bought it refuses to release it to me...oh, but I can buy it for $2000 -- our website: http://www.bosmovie.com).

We got approval for a food donation from a Whole Foods Market in Seattle. They are going to give us a gift card so we can get whatever food we want. The significance of that is other Whole Foods now have a precedent to follow (like the MLB teams have the A's tailgate to follow).

We heard from the Arizona Diamondbacks today. They are using the A's tailgate as a reference and helping us for our game there (which falls on Father's Day -- very cool). They do not have traditional tailgating, either, but they have several sports bars right downtown and a very active Parkinson group.

I contacted Morgan Spurlock, the director/star of "Super Size Me", and he got right back to me. I met him up at Sundance 2004 and his movie is fantastic. He loves the idea for our film and is probably going to join us at one or maybe both of the games in New York -- how cool is that? He also gave me a good lead to some other documentary people. By the by, "Super Size Me" hits the screens on May 7th -- be on the lookout!

The A's game is coming up quickly: May 23rd. We really need to get on two things right away:

1) Press releases to Bay Area Media

2) Securing the Paypal site off the web site so people can send in their payments.

The Las Vegas tailgate/fundraiser is set for Saturday, May 29th. The game will feature a fireworks afterward.

Annamaria’s working on a fundraiser in Des Moines, Iowa (hometown of the AAA Cubs and Annamaria).

New York Yankees 5, Oakland 1

WP: J. Contreras (1-2)   LP: M. Mulder (2-2)

Ewwwwww...a five game skid? How’s Miggy doing in Baltimore? Don’t tell me.

Entry #15

April 27, 2004

Dan’s Letter to NPF

Mary Ann:

Bob forwarded your e-mail to me and asked that I respond regarding my personal information. I am 59 years old and have been married for almost 38 years to my wife, Paulette. We have two children: Christine, 36, lives in Carrolton, Texas and Bob, who you know.

I went to my doctor in June 2001 because I seemed to be losing dexterity in my left hand.  After a brief examination, my doctor told me that she was referring me to a neurologist. I thought, “Great, I'm going to get some real expert answers.” My doctor asked me as kind of an after thought, was there any family history of Parkinson's. I kind of laughed and said I was not aware of any and did not think any more about it.

A month later I met with my neurologist. After a brief examination he told me he was quite sure I had Parkinson's. He ordered a series of tests that would rule out most of the other possibilities, and they did. He told me that it was not possible to predict the progress of the disease. He said I could be in a wheelchair within a year or maybe it would be 30 years.

He started me off on a low dose of Mirapex and I am now up to the maximum effective dosage of 1.5 MG, three times a day. The same week that I was diagnosed with Parkinson's my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer. I decided that because I seemed to be having greater difficulty handling the stress and because of the treatment process my wife was going to be going through that I would take a leave of absence from my job. I was a municipal bond underwriter and trader. The firm that I worked for would have to hire someone to fill my position unless I could promise them a date  for my return. I could not and recommended that they hire someone to replace me. I don't expect to try to go back to work.

My neurologist told me at our last meeting a little over a month ago that I was still in stage one of Parkinson's. I was encouraged and asked him if that meant that the pace of progression would continue to be slow. He said not necessarily; the supply of dopamine is like a canister of flour. You just keep using it until the canister is empty and then one day there is none.

I feel fortunate that the symptoms are not speeding in their progress. My golf handicap has gone from 13 to 22. I've gone from walking and carrying my clubs easily to walking with some difficulty with my clubs on a cart. Everything takes a little longer and at times people have difficulty understanding what I'm trying to say. Swallowing food is more difficult and my neurologist says maybe I should give up the idea of playing piano for a living.

When Bob came to me with his idea of making a documentary combining baseball, a two month road trip and living with Parkinson's I had very mixed emotions. I knew it would take a lot of planning, work and money and the there was the question of how this would affect my wife. We have never been apart for two weeks not to mention two months. The three of us discussed the idea and assured Paulette that she could join us when she wants to on the tour. After a reluctant approval she has become extremely enthusiastic and my enthusiasm has taken a big jump.

Bob will give you his resume and I think you will be impressed by his accomplishments. What it will not say is what a fine person he is. He is bright, enthusiastic, hard working and very passionate about his crafts. I don't think you will find a nicer person to associate with.

If you have any further questions about me please fell free to ask. I look forward to working in association with you. Hopefully we will meet one day and that day drink a toast to having found a cure for Parkinson's.

Dan Cochrane

New York Yankees 10, Oakland 8

WP: D. Osborne (1-0)   LP: J. Mecir (0-2)

 

Entry #14

April 22, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

It seems a lot of these entries are happening late at night. It’s my way of draining the brain before I the last train to Sleepsville...

My Dad wrote the most amazing letter to NPF (see below). It was so warm, funny and sweet that it had me in tears.

Our first tailgate/fundraiser in Oakland is taking shape. The main two places I’ve been pushing for food and beverage have been Costco and Budweiser. It’s good foundation to lay because they're both in almost every MLB marketplace and seem to be friendly to charitable requests. I'll definitely use my experience in Oakland as a watershed event.

It's great having the Oakland event (May 23rd) set up ahead of the actual tour so we can work out the kinks early and get the publicity machine rolling. I'm sending out media releases tomorrow to the Bay Area outlets.

It also gives me a chance to set a precedent and pass that information along to the other Major League teams -- to give them an idea of what we're up to and how this could work for all of us.

I'm going to take another shot at the national media, too. I just want to make sure I have as much info as possible when I hit them up. Then again, it never hurts to just be really persistent.

Oakland 8, Seattle 2

WP: M. Mulder (2-1)   LP: J. Moyer (1-2)

The A's winning the last two (after two tough 2-1 losses to the M's) in Seattle was nice. Keep rollin', boys (10-6)!

Entry #13

April 19, 2004 - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

Today was one of my more difficult days with "Boys of Summer". Though we've been rolling along extremely well up to this point, we hit a potential snag on Friday when it appeared I may have misunderstood the nature of my collaboration with the National Parkinson Foundation. I spent the weekend in overdrive, trying to figure out alternate routes in case I would not be able to accomplish the things I set out to -- and, to clarify, none of this had anything to do with anyone doing anything "wrong" or changing their minds or anything else -- it simply was a matter of communication (you can all relate, can't ya?).

I wrote a lengthy letter to NPF today, outlining in more succinct detail my plans for this trip. I also wrote more about the potential for financial return to NPF, both immediate and in the future. It was a scary letter to send because if it turned out NPF was not able to help me in the manner I had hoped they would (again -- through no one's fault), I would be back at a form of ground zero -- only much later in the game. Getting someone to get on board with a film project in development is hell because there are so many unknowns, hence the term “development hell”.

I had the fortune of Annamaria suggesting a movie night – a great way to take my mind off things out of my control.

Afterward, we saw a rough cut of a trailer for another project we’re developing called, “Broken Reality”. It offered some relief as it looks great.

The deep sigh came with the letter from Mary Ann Sprinkle. Once again, she showed her compassion, kindness and wisdom. She told me I hadn't misunderstood, she just needed some clarification.

WHEW (X20)!

The interesting thing is that this potential problem motivated some creative solutions I wouldn’t have come up with otherwise (mother necessity, ya dig?). I'm relieved and ready to face a new day of challenges.

I've been through preproduction fears enough times to know better than to hit the panic button. It takes time, patience, faith, trust, a lot of hard work and communication. And then, after you get out of bed – Hey-Yo! We’re joking here, folks!

Good night. 

Seattle 2, Oakland 1

WP: K. Jarvis (1-0)   LP: J. Duchscherer (0-1)

Big ups on the A's taking 2 of 3 from the Angels on the road; BUMMER about the 2-1, 14-inning loss to the Mariners earlier tonight. J. Dye is earning his money in a big way. NICE to see it.

 

Entry #12

April 16, 2004 (approx 1 A.M.) - Bob

Las Vegas, NV

Taxes kept today from being a little more productive day. I swear this is the last time I do my own taxes ('til next year).

I got some really good news from the A's today: they're moving ahead with their commitment to have a tailgate/fundraiser for us in late May. We're shooting for Sunday, May 23rd. The A's have been extremely generous in offering us a package deal that will make us some good money for the trip. It will also give us the chance for a lot of publicity (in, what should be, a "friendly" marketplace to us) as dad's a 30-year local, I grew up there and we’ve been fans of the green and gold since the days of Billy (Martin) Ball. It will also give us a template to offer to the other MLB teams for how our tailgate/fundraiser can work.

I'm going to begin focussing more on companies and corporations that might be able to help us along the way as we hit the road. This will help keep our costs down and ensure that the most money possible goes to NPF.

I’ve also been working on “the look” of the film in my mind. I’m going to be mining a lot of old pictures and 8 mm films for gems. I would like to shoot some new 8 mm to go along with the mini DV and the stills we’ll be taking to add a nostalgic feel.

Oakland 9, Texas 4

WP: M. Redman (1-0)   LP: R. Dickey (1-1)

The A’s are 6-2 and cruising. Jermaine Dye looks healthy, as his 4 RBI’s tonight showed -- a VERY good sign. Looking good...

April 19, 2004 - Dan

Walnut Creek, CA

The last two weeks have been an emotional blur. It started with surgery to remove cancer from Paulette's nose on Monday, April 5th. The next day Paulette had 6 hours of reconstructive surgery and would stay over night in the hospital. When I arrived home Tuesday night I received a call from a friend asking if I had heard about a close mutual friend. I said no and she said “I have some very sad news -- our friend is dead.” A real shock. I would not have expected that news in any circumstance but I was completely focused on Paulette's situation and then from nowhere, "Mark is dead".

I brought Paulette home on Wednesday and I was amazed at how well she was doing. Her attitude and emotional health are incredible considering what she has been and is going through. Most of the week I was involved with housekeeping and taking care of Paulette.

Mark's memorial service was on Monday, April 12th. I was one of the pallbearers and Paulette and I were helping with the gathering for a celebration of Mark's life that afternoon and evening. The rest of the week was spent taking care of household chores, preparing meals and just getting by.

I've expressed to Bob my concern about sharing the responsibilities and effort needed to make our Boys of Summer idea into reality. I have a difficult time asking people for things. I have always been more comfortable earning what I need. He told me the best thing I could do for starters was to journal on a regular basis, so this is another effort in that direction.

One of the ideas I've been working on is a logo that would capture the idea of our tour. It might be used on stationary, hats, shirts, jerseys and banners. So far I have a lot of wadded up paper. It seems to be a little more difficult to concentrate. I don't know if it's age, my emotional state or Parkinson, but I find myself easily distracted. I'll keep at it. By the way the A's took two out of three from Anaheim on the road. Yahoo!!

Entry #11

April 15, 2004

Letter from Mike O’Leary, Parkinsonian

Phoenix, AZ

Hi Dan,

It was nice getting your letter, although I am not sure if you like what I had suggested or not. The idea of having a Parkinson's awareness night at the ball park came from the lady who is coordinating our conference in Minneapolis.  The last day of the Young Onset Parkinson conference is 8/1 and the Twins are giving discount tickets to Parkinson's patients and designating the game as Parkinson's Awareness Day. I am on the planning committee for that conference. I had intended to contact the Diamondbacks and seeing about some publicity of that sort, because I am coordinating the 2005 conference here in Phoenix.

On the subject of conferences, we normally have some sort of time in which we have people tell their stories or experiences. Would you and/or your son be interested in telling your story at our 2005 conference? No definite answer needed right now, just keeping a file on our possible speakers.

As for my story, my symptoms are about like yours. I still play some golf but 18 holes walking with my bag over my shoulder has changed to 9 holes in a cart. My friend(who has Parkinson's) and I tried to play racket ball the other day. My eyes saw the ball, my mind said "move feet and get the ball," my feet were just a little reluctant to follow the brains orders. It was fun, you have to be able to laugh at it, or it will get you. I was diagnosed at 42, and it was a rough one. I have since found that the Parkinson's community is like a family to me, and I care for and love each one like my own brother or sister.

Looking forward to meeting you,

     Michael O'Leary

April 15, 2004 - Dan 

Walnut Creek, CA

I wrote Mike back to say we would be interested in participating in the Parkinson's Awareness Day subject to our schedule. I also told him I was interested in the conference he will be coordinating in 2005. 

Finally I'm sending our old 8 mm film off and I just wanted to insure that the format you want is MiniDV, right?

Love always,

Dad