DAVID VERSUS GOLIATH REVISITED

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ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS BASEBALL CAP
by New Era Cap Company
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"...For who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of The Living God? ... Then David said to the Philistine, 'You come against me with a sword and with a spear and with a shield; but I come against you in the name of The Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. ... And all this assembly shall know that The Lord saves not with sword and spear; for the battle is The Lord's and He will deliver you into our hands'... And David put his hand in his bag and took thence a stone, and slung it..." 
~ 1 Samuel 17
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Certainly there have been many upsets in world history: Buster Douglas knocking out Mike Tyson; the Jets beating the Colts in Superbowl III; the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team triumphing over the Russians. Of course, when Al Gore lost the 2000 Presidential election to George "W", he was plenty "upset", too! And there's no denying that when Eve tasted the forbidden fruit, she really "upset" the applecart.
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One of the biggest upsets in the world of professional baseball was the 2001 World Series when the New York Yankees, 3-time world champions with the most storied legacy in professional sports (and not coincidentally the deepest pockets) met the 4-year-old underdog Arizona Diamondbacks -- a team comprised mostly of has-beens, cast-offs, and overachievers. It was supposed to be "no contest" and it very nearly was, but not in the manner that the Yankees had imagined.
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After many years of inattentiveness to baseball, something about that team from Airheadzona caught my eye early on. Come-From-Behind Victory after Come-From-Behind Victory was gradually making a believer out of me. ("My gosh!", I thought, "They really remind me of the '88 Dodgers -- 'The Little Team That Could'.")
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I'll never forget my Brother walking into the room one June afternoon and stopping to stare, dumbfounded. He looked at the TV. He looked at me. He looked at the TV, and back at me. "What're you doin'?"
"I'm watching the ballgame," I answered.
"What! Are you a Diamondbacks fan now?" he asked incredulously.
"Well, I watch 'em once in awhile," I confessed.
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By July I had informed my Ma (the REAL D-Backs fan) that she could get me a Diamondbacks baseball cap for my upcoming birthday.
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September 2001 saw history's most devastating attack on U.S. soil occur in New York. It was quickly followed by the most exciting World Series in baseball history: David (Arizona) versus Goliath (New York). Even if the result had been reversed, I'd still be calling it the greatest Fall Classic ever played (although admittedly less gleefully). The record book shows that David prevailed over Goliath (again), 4 games to 3, in a Series that saw great pitching, 3 remarkable last-gasp victorious finishes, and one historic drubbing: the D-Backs "must-win" Game 6, which ended  AZ 15 -- NY 2. (*It was REALLY 16-2, but the umpire horribly missed one call at home plate. And that STILL makes me mad!)
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My Brother and I had driven to our Ma's house to watch Game 7 with her. With Airheadzona losing 2-1, Mariano Rivera struck out the side consecutively in the 8th inning, and my Brother headed for the door. He was sure it was over and that The Wealthy Giant had purchased yet another championship. But I had been watching this little team all season long. "I don't think you should leave just yet," I nearly cautioned him. But then I thought: No, let him go if he has no faith.
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I sat down next to my dear Mother and said, "I might as well watch the end of it with you." I later learned from my Brother -- who had the game's broadcast tuned in on his car radio -- that when Mark Grace led off the bottom of the 9th inning with a single, he stomped on the accelerator and got to our apartment's TV just in time to catch the final, astounding Come-From-Behind Victory of the Diamondbacks' improbable 2001 season.
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For me, the Arizona Diamondbacks baseball cap symbolizes every unlikely victory against overwhelming odds. It is an excellent way to tell the world that you support life's underdogs, its overachievers and never-say-die combatants. It says to all of the philistines that you believe in the little guy -- David over Goliath; you believe that dreams DO come true; a determined person CAN fight City Hall; and that money doesn't necessarily determine every outcome! You, too, can own and wear this Everyman badge and silently celebrate every "David's" victory. Of course, this cap is also a pretty decent way to keep the bright, hot sun outta yer eyes and off of yer headbone.
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The hat is made in the U.S.A. by New Era, a company that has been in the baseball cap business since 1920, and supplies the actual Major League Baseball clubs with theirs. This is really Big League and top quality. It's life-affirming headwear. You ladies shouldn't shy away from purchasing this authentic piece of Diamondbacks' uniform either. You may be interested to know that some guys find a baseball cap on a woman to be unexplainably cute!
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True, this is the Arizona D-Backs' "road" cap, and every game of the 2001 World Series was won by the "home" team, but here in Phoenix, we all prefer the logo on the road cap. (A rattlesnake in the form of the letter "D".) And since it's predominantly black, it goes with everything, and is acceptable attire at Airheadzona black-tie affairs, as well as our funerals. Visit us sometime and you'll see 10 to 15 "road" caps on Phoenician heads to every 1 "home" cap worn.
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After the D-Backs dethroned the mighty Yanks and broke their magic spell (N.Y. hasn't been able to BUY a championship since), naturally, the loud-mouthed New Yorkers loudly protested that Arizona "just got lucky". Let's see what the 2001 World Series statistics have to say about that...
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AZ. TEAM STATS:
65 Hits / 31 Earned Runs / 17 Walks / 3 Errors / .264 Batting Avg. / 1.94 Earned Run Avg.
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NY. TEAM STATS:
42 Hits / 14 Earned Runs / 16 Walks / 8 Errors / .183 Batting Avg. / 4.41 Earned Run Avg.
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The Diamondbacks were superior in virtually EVERY SINGLE IMPORTANT CATEGORY! We may be pretty stupid here in Airheadzona, but we don't call that "luck"; we call that, "A good, old-fashioned azz-whuppin'!" We call that, "Bringin' the Phoenix Heat!"
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The truth is that the Yankees were very fortunate that a couple of last-minute heroics snatched victory from certain defeat. This Series really shouldn't have gone beyond 5 games. But then that's what made the 2001 World Series baseball's best!
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Remember the great Series and celebrate the overachievers everywhere by proudly donning the ultimate underdog's baseball cap. No, the "D" doesn't only mean "Diamondbacks", it also stands for "DAVID".
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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THERE’S A LITTLE BALLERINA IN ALL OF US...

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CAROLINA 12-INCH ENGINEER BOOTS
Made in the U.S.A.
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There's a little ballerina in all of us...
...but when you plop these bad boy boots onto the coffee table, crack open your tenth Budweiser and bellow for your little woman in the next room to keep the chips and dip coming, your Sunday NFL buddies -– including that Chicago Bears fan to your right –- will never suspect that this applies to you as well.
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Let’s face it, throughout history, all the coolest people wore boots. Pirates wore 'em. So did cowboys, miners, and World War I soldiers (Man, them doughboys was tough!) Nowadays, motorcycle gangs wear 'em. John Wayne wore boots. So did Gary Cooper, Marlon Brando, and Nancy Sinatra.
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In fact, some people have been so enamored of boots that they named themselves after them. A few examples are: the original “Nature Boy”, Gypsy Boots; saxmaster, Boots Randolph; and funkmeister, Bootsy Collins. Yeah, when you’re in boots, you’re in good company. But ballerinas never wear boots, and that’s exactly why you SHOULD!
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These CAROLINA 12” Engineer Boots come in sturdy black leather (black, it’s the ultimate anti-ballerina color), and they contain an internal steel-toed covering which means that you’ll never again lose a game of kick-the-can to those neighborhood kids; and next Earth Day, when you kick that Greenpeacenik in the can, he’ll really get your point.
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Maybe the best part about these Carolina boots is that they are made in America. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find footwear made in this country? I once wore out four pairs of foreign shoes trying to find one pair of shoes made in the U.S.A.
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I’ve been wearing boots for most of my adult life, but I’ll admit that when I switched to these Carolinas, the first couple of days, my dogs were really barking. But after I gave them a day off for loud behavior, they’ve been quiet ever since. Now, until the dye dies, you may find that the tops of these boots leave a black ring around your calves. You can either wear higher socks, or just imagine that the rings are tribal bands tattooed around your lower legs. In other words, just do like I did and pretend that you’re in with the "In Crowd” for the first time since “The Summer Of Love”.
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I actually prefer the cowboy boot style to the engineer design, but until I can locate a good American-made cowboy boot with a durable, oil-resistant polyurethane outsole, I’ll stick with these cool Carolinas. I was so very happy to find these boots and I dig them so much that I feel like breaking out into a pirouette...
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“Hey, watch it, fella! Can’t ya see I’m dancin’ here?”
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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POSTSCRIPT POSTMORTEM:
I'm sad to report that after wearing my Carolina engineer boots nearly every single day for at least 18 years, in April of 2015, I was finally forced to lay them to rest. The leather had just gotten too old and cracked... like me.
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