Encyclopaedia of Tiny Facts

Worst to first; in 1990, the Atlanta Braves finished last place in the National League West division of Major League Baseball, but finished first in 1991; fan favorites on the roster of the ’91 Braves included David Justice, Tom Glavine, Lonnie Smith, Jeff Treadway, Steve Avery, Terry Pendleton, Ron Gant, Mark Lemke, Sid Bream, Jeff Blauser, John Smoltz, Otis Nixon, Rafael Belliard, and Deion Sanders; the first Gulf War ended in February of 1991, though no direct causal relationship can be deduced between the end of the war and the Braves spectacular season; the ’91 Braves, owned by the former husband of activist film actress, Jane Fonda, were an inspiration to many young fans, whose self-esteem was tied to their home team, and, as the Braves were routinely awful, these fans felt poorly about themselves; 1991 was the year this changed; it took the Braves seven games to defeat the Pittsburgh Pirates and claim the National League title; it took seven games for the Braves to lose the World Series to the Minnesota Twins; according to lore, the seventh son of a seventh son will be a warlock; Pittsburgh’s star pitcher was named John Smiley; “Smiley” is not an intimidating name; I watched the final two games of the World Series, which were played on October 26 and 27 of 1991, at the mountain cabin belonging to the family of my childhood friend, Derek; this cabin was in Montreat, North Carolina, and had originally belonged to Derek’s grandparents; Montreat is a popular area for church retreats; much of Michael Mann’s popular film, “The Last of the Mohicans,” was filmed near Montreat; in the film, Daniel Day-Lewis played a character named “Hawkeye”; fans of the Atlanta Braves would often perform the “Tomahawk Chop,” which is similar to “The Wave,” except instead of simulating an ocean wave, it involves miming the chopping action used to scalp an enemy; Derek’s cabin was near a creek; the water in the creek is the coldest water I have ever felt; we would fish for crawfish in this creek, using string, a hook, and pieces of bacon; after catching a crawfish, Derek enjoyed strapping M-80’s to them with a rubber band and watching them explode; I was envious of Derek’s family, which seemed tight, loving, and impervious to pain—like the families featured in TV shows on “Nick at Nite”; these shows included “The Donna Reed Show,” “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis,” and “Leave it to Beaver”; “Leave it to Beaver” ran for six seasons; Derek’s father was my Little League coach when I played for “Holiday Inn”; later, in 9th grade, Derek’s parents divorced after it was discovered that his father was having an affair with a 22 year old co-worker at the drug store where he was a pharmacist; after the divorce, Derek became very angry; more than 15 years later, Derek still seems angry; I have known Derek most of my life; remarkably, Derek’s younger sister seems even-keeled and, if you can believe it, happy; I wonder if Derek will ever get married; Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium became the home-field for the Braves beginning in 1965, and served them through the 1996 season; in 1997, the Braves moved to a new stadium called Turner Field; Turner Field, while newer than Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, was designed to feel like an old-fashioned stadium, thus making it “retro”; the Braves became dominant in the years following the ’91 season; I miss the time in the ‘80’s when the Braves were gutter-dwellers and I believed I was their only fan; “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” the lead single from “Nevermind,” the second album by popular grunge band, Nirvana, was released on September 10, 1991; I turned 13 years old just days before “Smells Like Teen Spirit” was released, and one month before the Braves won the National League championship; it was a good Fall; I had not yet discovered sex.