FIRST LOVE
(Excerpt from "GITG")
"When you're four years old, it's difficult courting a woman. Most are too old and can't hold a candle to your mother.
Others are immature and talk in squeaky voices while wasting their time on dolls. That's why this Bronco Buster Belcher fell
in love with his cowboy outfit.
There wasn't one piece you could single out as the best. The combination of accessories turned any mediocre child into
the next Richard Boone. 'Have Gun, Will Travel' was my motto; and the best part was . . . I had two!
I still get pistol envy thinking back on those fine handguns. From their pearl handles to the ends of their barrels, they
wreaked of the old West. The cylinder and casing were all metal, because cowboys never shot plastic. Even the shootin' shells
were metal and required hand loading. With the addition of greenie-stickum caps, they were awesome.
No ordinary holster could handle these gems. It had to be leather. When buckled to your waist and strapped to your legs,
you knew you were a man.
Topping off the outfit was a red bandanna with white polka dots, and the traditional cowboy hat. My hat was gray. That
way, no one could tell if I was a good guy or bad guy. It all depended on my mood. If my hat got crumpled with age, it never
mattered. A tilt to one side of the head gave me that meaner-than-heckle appearance.
As with all first loves, mine didn't last. Whether my cowboy outift was lost in a buffalo stampede or ripped off my rotting
carcass by some scoundrel, I knew one thing for sure. You checked your guns at the parochial school saloon."
AMAZON
TRAVELS WITH FERRIELL!
On Feb. 20th, 2004 I met ESPN commentator, DICK VITALE at
The Broken Egg restaurant in Sarasota, FL. I gave him a signed copy of "Getting in the Game", and we talked briefly.
I declined an offer to receive a free copy of his book, saying I just wanted to meet him. Later, Mr. VITALE called
me to his table and asked for my address to send me a book. I thought, "RIGHT! He's sending me a book?
No way!" Three days later I received Mr. Vitale's book "Living a Dream", in the mail!
On Feb. 29th, 2004 I took part
in the largest book signing in history. PublishAmerica arranged a mass signing for their authors at the Fredericktowne
Mall in Frederick, MD. With 153 authors present, we will be in the Guinness Book of World Records.
BOBBY PLUMP, hero of the 1954 Milan,
IN State Champions has a copy of "Getting in the Game"!
Screenwriter, ANGELO PIZZO, whose works include "Hoosiers" and "Rudy", has a copy of "Getting in the
Game"! Who knows? Maybe we'll soon see, "Getting in the Game" - THE MOVIE!
Relive
Indiana's one-class Tournament!
