People generally considered me inscrutable for most of my life, despite several attempts to let people know what I was like and what I liked.  So as not to drive anybody else crazy, here are some facts about South Shore Billy. Remember, there will be a quiz:

1. I am 50+ years old
2. I am of Italian ancestry
3. My parents are still alive (2006)
4. I was never close to them growing up
5. All 4 of my grandparents were alive until my 20’s
6. I don’t have any siblings
7. I have numerous first cousins (too many?)
8. I attended Catholic School
9. I have attended three colleges
10. Most of my working life has been spent in the banking and accounting fields
11. Except for the year I worked on a college campus as a graduate research assistant
12. I am a member of the Knights of Columbus
13. I am a member of the Islip Fire Department
14. I have been trained in CPR and have used it a few times
15. I was an Emergency Medical Technician for 3 years
16. I am 5 feet 7 inches tall
17. I got married in 1979
18. My first and only child was born in 1990
19. I have black hair and brown eyes
20. I love to read
21. I am famous for rereading my favorite books
22. My favorite authors include JK Rowling, Roddy Doyle, Barbara Vine, and Leonard Wibberley
23. I generally only use my cell phone in emergencies
24. I should probably wash my car more often
25. but strangely I am kind of a neat freak
26. I’d love to visit London again
27. I can be a procrastinator
28. I generally favor foreign cars over American cars
29. Sleeping late for me is 7:30am
30. I have never bungee jumped
31. nor do I intend to
32. I have never skied
33. but would love to try it
34. I love coffee
35. with half & half
36. I dress in business casual or dirt-bag casual
37. I do own some really nice suits though
38. My favorite colors are royal blue, gold, and forest green
39. I am not a jewelry person (except for my wedding ring)
40. I have visited several states
41. I have visited Europe twice    
42. I was stationed in the South Pacific while in the military
43. I love baseball
44. but am not very good at it
45. I DO NOT want to go on a cruise
46. I like animals  
47. but never owned a dog or a cat  
48. My grandparents spoke Italian
49. but I cannot speak or understand it
50. I don't like crowded places
51. I am a Republican
52. but will break from the party line if necessary
53. I am always the person taking the pictures in any group
54. I prefer small intimate settings
55. I love to eat but I am not a good cook
56. I have a touch of OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder)
57. I have almost total recall, even of things that happened years before
58. I have a good sense of direction
59. I can be illogical when it comes to logical reasoning line
60. I tend to get very creative and can't stop until I finish the project
61. I love Long Island wines
62. and good imported or microbewed beers
63. I hate driving
64. I love subway trains
65. I have played softball for my employer and also in a local league
66. I worked part time in a funeral parlor for over 10 years
67. I dislike egomaniacs
68. I am a native New Yorker
69. but generally dislike Manhattanites
70. I have a very historical mind
71. I served in the US Air Force during the Vietnam Era
72. but still feel that I could have done more
73. I am friendly and out going
74. but don’t have a large circle of friends
75. I generally hated school for most of my life
76. My favorite recording artists are from the 1960’s British Invasion: the Beatles, Pretty Things, Animals, Yardbirds, and the Rolling Stones
77. I hate intolerance
78. and judge the individual
79. I love military history and uniforms
80. but was not happy while in the Air Force
81. I am not very good at forgiving and forgetting
82. despite being somewhat religious and a church goer
83. I have never been arrested
84. nor incarcerated
85. I am an Internet addict  
86. and have created numerous personal web pages
87. I also like jazz music and some classical artists
88. and dislike country music (except Johnny Cash)
89. I own a house
90. but am not handy with my hands
91. despite building model cars until high school
92. Growing up I was not good with the opposite sex
93. yet have been with the same woman since 1978
94. I am slightly dyslexic
95. My only child has autism
96. The 3 of us go bowling together once a month
97. I like Irish music such as the Chieftains
98. but am only Irish by marriage
99. I prefer odd numbers over even numbers
100. I am somewhat afraid of water
101. I don't like motorcycles

The Interests of South Shore Billy

On this page we'll look at my interests: baseball, the Internet, automobiles, and subway trains.

I have been a baseball fan on and off since I was a youngster on the North Shore, and was first a Yankees fan.  Oddly enough around 8th grade I stopped having fun playing or watching the game, and also discovered automobiles and later rock & roll music.  This put a damper on the sport for a long time.  Then in 1983, my brother in law got us free tickets to a Mets-Dodgers game at Shea Stadium.  4 of us went, and I got hooked again.  Since then, I have gone to a major league ballgame every year, except for 1995 after the players' strike.  In 1997 I went to my first minor league game (in Norwich CT) and have become an avid fan of minor league baseball ever since.  Some of my favorite minor league teams are the Long Island Ducks, the Brooklyn Cyclones, the Binghamton Mets, the Kansas City T-Bones, and the Lakewood BlueClaws.  Hopefully I will get to see most of these teams at their own ballparks in the near future.

I had also played softball for my employer from 2001 too 2005, before I was laid off and I was no longer able to play as an "alumnus".

Since my family did not have a car on a regular basis until I was a junior in high school, and I did not own one until I was in the Air Force, I spent a lot of time riding the New York City subways.  To me, it was my way out of the neighborhood, and along with baseball, an excape and a true friend.  Most of my time was on the #7 Flushing line, but since I went to high school in Brooklyn (Northside) I was also on the G line quite a bit.  Since many other major cities also have subway or light rail lines, I have tried to ride them whenever I visit.  Some cities include Philadelphia, Boston, Montreal, London, Paris, Washington DC, and Chicago.  As I now live in the outer NYC suburbs, the subway no longer goes near where I live.  However, there is the Long Island Railroad, and I take it daily from my home town to my office in Times Square.  I have also ridden the commuter railroads in the New York City area, as well as those of London and Philadelphia.

On my own automibile (a 1996 Dodge Stratus), I have a New York State license plate commemorating the 2000 Subway World Series.  What better way to salute two of my favorite interests than with a license plate?

While in elementary school I started to build model cars, concentrating on the pre-World War II autos.  I still have a good number of them, including some Ford Model T's and Model A's, 1940 Fords, a 1934 Duesenberg, and a 1941 Plymouth.  For a long time I wanted to own a real antique car.  However, paranoia would kill me, as the cars are irreplaceable and I would be afraid to go anywhere with them.  I will have to settle for seeing them in museums or on the Internet.