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COLLEGE FOOTBALL RESULTS FROM SEPTEMBER 1st

HEADLINES

Concordia_MIYET ANOTHER NAIA TEAM DEFEATS AN NCAA D2 TEAM – The NAIA’s CONCORDIA (MI) CARDINALS took it on the road to face the NCAA Division Two team the MALONE UNIVERSITY PIONEERS. The higher division Pioneers were at home, too, but none of that mattered as the Cardinals showed Malone how football is played in the NAIA. Concordia won the game 42-27. 

Morehouse Maroon Tigers helmetDIVISION TWO OVER DIVISION ONE – NCAA Division Two’s MOREHOUSE COLLEGE MAROON TIGERS likewise played at a higher division team yesterday. In this case the Maroon Tigers traveled to face NCAA Division One’s UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS AT PINE BLUFF GOLDEN LIONS. By Halftime Morehouse had the Golden Lions on Upset Alert with a 28-20 lead and followed through with a 34-30 victory.

Hutchinson Blue DragonsNUMBER FIVE GOES DOWN – In the NJCAA the HUTCHINSON COLLEGE BLUE DRAGONS were on the road against the number 5 team in the nation – the INDEPENDENCE COLLEGE PIRATES. A 14-7 Blue Dragons lead in the opening Quarter turned into a 37-7 advantage at the break and ultimately a 37-27 win for Hutchinson College. 

NNAS_VAUSCAA OVER NCAA – The NEWPORT NEWS APPRENTICE SCHOOL BUILDERS (formerly the Shipbuilders) from the USCAA (United States Collegiate Athletic Association) visited the NCAA Division Three GREENSBORO COLLEGE PRIDE. The Builders converted a 7-0 1st Quarter lead into a 26-6 Halftime advantage. From there NNAS coasted to a 34-13 triumph.  Continue reading →

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JOE MAGARAC: NEGLECTED AMERICAN FOLKTALE

Joe MagaracLabor Day weekend seemed like the appropriate time to post my long-delayed look at neglected working class folk hero Joe Magarac. This figure was the Steel Mill equivalent of Paul Bunyan and John Henry.

Though mostly associated with Polish-American steel workers in Pittsburgh, PA the general figure of a literal “man of steel” helping and protecting his coworkers can be found from the East Coast through the American Midwest. Sometimes the figure is Croation or some other ethnicity instead of Polish. 

Written versions of Joe Magarac and/or similar steel worker tall tales seem to have started around 1930 or 1931. Oral legends about such figures – but not specifically Joe Magarac – have been dated as early as the 1890s.

Vintage advertisements from tattered old newspapers indicate that such Man of Steel imagery may have been used for the steel industry prior to World War One. This “Which came first, the chicken or the egg” dilemma for Joe Magarac and other Steel Men puts one in mind of the quandary surrounding Billiken lore.        

Joe Magarac statueAs a lame play on words since this is Labor Day season I’ll present Joe Magarac’s origin and then depict his tales as “Labors” like in The Labors of Hercules.

BIRTH – Joe Magarac supposedly sprang into existence from a mound of iron ore and – depending on the version – that mound was either in Pittsburgh or the Old Country. Magarac emerged from the melting mound fully grown and spoke broken English like so many of the other Polish steel workers. He was called into being by the urgent need to catch up on production since the current shift had fallen dangerously behind.

Joe was 7 or 8 feet tall, his flesh was like solid steel, his torso was as wide as a smoke-stack and his arms were as thick as railroad ties. His surname Magarac meant “mule” in the workhorse sense, referring to his stamina. Joe’s appetite was such that he carried his lunch in a washtub instead of a standard lunch box.

Magarac’s favorite leisure time activity was polka-dancing and halushkis were his favorite food.

THE LABORS OF JOE MAGARAC:   Continue reading →

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ASK BALLADEER: LUCY MAUD MONTGOMERY BOOKS

masc graveyard newQUESTION: What is the difference between Anne of Green Gables and Anne of Avonlea?

ANSWER: I think Anne of Avonlea is the one where she fights the Russian boxer.

Got a question for Balladeer? Just let me know.

 

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL RESULTS FROM AUGUST 30th

HEADLINES

Pikeville BearsANOTHER NAIA TRIUMPH OVER NCAA D2 – The UNIVERSITY OF PIKEVILLE BEARS are the latest NAIA team to defeat an NCAA Division Two team. (For newbies that’s like when a 1AA team upsets a 1A team) Their opponents were D2’s LIVINGSTONE COLLEGE BLUE BEARS, for a sort of “Bear Necessities Bowl.” The University of Pikeville utterly destroyed visiting Livingstone College by a score of FIFTY-TWO to TWENTY-THREE!

Grand Valley StateNUMBER TEN GOES DOWN – NCAA Division Two’s number 10 team in the nation – the UNIVERSITY OF INDIANAPOLIS GREYHOUNDS – took it on the road last night against the 14th ranked GRAND VALLEY STATE LAKERS. The Lakers were clearly feeling their dynastic past as they dominated on both sides of the ball while clobbering the Greyhounds 30-7.  Continue reading →

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THE PRISONER: FREE FOR ALL

Balladeer’s Blog continues its examination of the 1967 science fiction/ existential drama The Prisoner. For Part One, in which I examined the themes and concepts at play in the series click  HERE 

Free For AllEpisode Title: FREE FOR ALL … In the ongoing debate about the exact numbering of the 17 episodes of The Prisoner I place this as the 8th episode.

Our previous episode wallowed in grim, depressing realism. Free For All takes us back into the realm of allegory and metaphor. It plays like Kafka, Ionesco and Pirandello blended with science fiction.

The Story: Eric Portman plays this episode’s Number Two, the rotating series of Village executives who manage the prison-city for varying periods, sort of like Officer of the Day duty in the military but stretched out for weeks at least.

This Number Two pretends to be calling the Prisoner’s bluff, implying that if he doesn’t like the way things are done in the totalitarian atmosphere of the Village he should run for office and try to enact some changes. Nobody has come forward as a candidate in a long time, so Number Two encourages Number Six to run against him. 

Free For All 2Needless to say our protagonist figures this election nonsense is just another experimental Head Game of the Villagekeepers. His suspicion increases when he sees that the Villagekeepers had already printed up campaign posters for him and distributed them to all the other Villagers. Despite our main character’s misgivings he gets swept along in this new cerebral duel with his captors.

NOTE: This is why I place Free For All AFTER Many Happy Returns. That episode made it clear that the Villagekeepers have too many co-conspirators in the outside world for any escape to be permanent. With that being the case the Prisoner can justifiably feel he has nothing to lose by playing along with the obviously phony “election.” If he gets lucky he might be able to at least strike some sort of defiant blow against the people who run the Village. Continue reading →

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WEEK TWO OF THE 2018 COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON STARTS TONIGHT

Last Thursday kicked off the 2018 college football season in the NAIA and the NJCAA. Tonight NCAA Divisions 2 and 3 join the action. Among tonight’s games are plenty of clashes between ranked teams.

NCAA DIVISION TWO

IUP Crimson HawksThe number 4 team in the nation – the INDIANA UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA CRIMSON HAWKS – will be on the road against the 16th ranked ASHLAND UNIVERSITY EAGLES.

This game has a 7:00pm Eastern Time kickoff. 

Central MissouriThe 19th ranked UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL MISSOURI MULES travel to take on the number 9 FORT HAYS STATE TIGERS in a sure gridiron bloodbath.

Look for this game to kick off at 8:00pm Eastern Time. Continue reading →

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ELEVEN MORE COOL FOOTBALL HELMETS

North East Grape PickersNORTH EAST GRAPEPICKERS

Comment: The stylish look of the N and the E sold me on these helmets immediately.

The unique team name “The Grapepickers” turned things up to eleven in terms of the coolness factor, making them a cinch for this list.

Northampton Konkrete KidsNORTHAMPTON KONKRETE KIDS

Comment: The Kids are far more than just “alright.”

And the spelling “Konkrete” to go with the “Kids” only adds to the already considerable charm of this entire setup. Ya gotta love the Konkrete Kids!

Danville IronmenDANVILLE IRONMEN

Comment: Instead of Boyz II Men we’ve just gone from (Konkrete) Kids II (Iron)men.

I know, that’s a pretty lame segue-way into what may be the coolest helmets on this latest examination of them.  Continue reading →

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BONNIE RAITT WITH DENNIS QUAID: THING CALLED LOVE

Seeing Dennis Quaid in that insurance commercial that’s been getting frequent airplay put me in mind of his appearance in the video for the Bonnie Raitt song Thing Called Love. So here’s a Give Them A Shoutout Before They’re Dead segment that’s technically for Bonnie Raitt.  

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL RESULTS FROM AUGUST 25th

*** NAIA ***

Marian Knights helmet newDOWN GOES NUMBER SIX – The 15th ranked MARIAN UNIVERSITY KNIGHTS welcomed the number 6 team in the nation – the SAINT XAVIER UNIVERSITY COUGARS. The Knights proceeded to annihilate the Cougars, leading them 17-0 in the 1st Quarter and 38-0 at Halftime. After the break Saint Xavier University mustered just 7 points in the 3rd Quarter while Marian University added 14 more in the 4th for a FIFTY-TWO to SEVEN blowout. 

Cumberlands_KYOTHER UPSETS IN THE TOP TWENTY-FIVE – The UNIVERSITY OF THE CUMBERLANDS PATRIOTS were on the road against the 11th ranked SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY FIRE and slipped past them in a 27-26 Instant Classic   ###    And the number 24 FAULKNER UNIVERSITY EAGLES traveled to upset the 19th ranked CAMPBELLSVILLE UNIVERSITY TIGERS 16-10.

Southwestern CollegeLOVING THE SEVENTIES – The SOUTHWESTERN COLLEGE MOUNDBUILDERS hosted the GRACELAND UNIVERSITY YELLOW JACKETS yesterday and eviscerated them SEVENTY-SIX to FOURTEEN   ###    And the 12th ranked BENEDICTINE COLLEGE RAVENS sent their guests the BETHANY COLLEGE SWEDES back home reeling from a SEVENTY-FIVE to SEVEN beatdown. Just burn the game tape and deny the game ever happened, Bethany.   Continue reading →

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THE PRISONER: MANY HAPPY RETURNS

Balladeer’s Blog continues its examination of the 1967 science fiction/ existential drama The Prisoner. For Part One, in which I examined the themes and concepts at play in the series click  HERE 

Many Happy ReturnsEpisode Title: MANY HAPPY RETURNS … In the ongoing debate about the exact numbering of the 17 episodes of The Prisoner I place this as the 7th episode.

This is the most relentlessly downbeat installment of The Prisoner saga.

The Story: The Prisoner wakes up on his own, rather than being awakened by the usual syrupy-sweet broadcast of the Village’s “good morning” message. That is odd, but what is odder is the way that there is no running water as our protagonist discovers when he tries to take his morning shower.

Many Happy Returns 2Number Six gets dressed and ventures outside but finds the entire prison-city deserted. The automatic doors don’t work either, because all the power is out, but the doors can be pushed open since they are not locking like they usually do.

Our hero has access to all of the food and bottled water of the Village’s stores so he is in no immediate danger. In a well-rendered moment of irony this most anti-social of characters actually seems to wistfully miss a little human contact after awhile.    Continue reading →

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