Sports Memories

Tonight Mr. Bill is watching UCONN Girls Basketball.  Something he doesn't get to see often.  For that matter, any sports from the Northeast are tough to find down here. On Sunday, rarely does he get to see his beloved New York Giants, only if it the game of the week or they are playing a Florida team. 

Sunday afternoons and Monday evenings at Fred's News, people gathered to watch, Football.  Other seasons, other sports, were also televised at Fred's, but Football was the draw.  I believe people lived for the hit.  These games more than any other, brought out the heckler qualities of the patrons.  Everyone fought to sit on the stool right after the big column.  They would use the wide wooden column as a back rest, at the same time being segregated from the rest of the patrons. Others would sit at the long table in front of the Coke cooler.  God forbid anyone interrupted their train of thought or line of sight to the TV.  Many times Patrons stayed in the restaurant, long past closing, just to finish out a game.  Although Football was the sport of choice, allowing screaming at the TV, Red Sox baseball bordered on furious frenzies, usually directed at the Manager, not the players.   Everyone had their opinion concerning managements ability to run the team, the Fred's News group felt they were more qualified.  At times, they could be downright vicious, I thanked God they were not in a more openly visible place than Fred's. 

If you were not a sports fan but chose to dine at Fred's during one of these events, you either enjoyed the frenzy and the show or you never returned in the evening, there was no happy medium.  A few times I called attention to their behavior, that was a loosing battle, I might as well of talked to a rock.  Of course they'd laugh after it was over, me I'd take some Tylenol for the headache. 

A much more subdued crowd would watch Women's Basketball, occasionally a crude remark but for the most part all viewers behaved.  One year Marcy, a local teen and graduate of Norwich Free Academy, moved on to play basketball at UCONN, her friends enjoyed knowing they'd see her on TV, then maybe catch a glimpse of her Saturday or Sunday morning at Fred's.  Son Mark, a UCONN grad, also provided T-shirts for a few patrons during his years as a student there. 

Our evening regulars, did included a few of the early morning people, but generally speaking, they were those that visited either for dinner or after dinner, enjoying a fresh hot cup of Fred's coffee, unwinding after a long days work.  Much like a local pub,  Fred's evening regulars shared their lives and families with us and each other, making our evenings pass quickly and so enjoyable.