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!!