Spring has arrived in Quincy. The calendar might say it’s still a few weeks away, but don’t believe it.

You always know spring has arrived in Quincy by two specific occurrences. We don’t need a ground hog in Pennsylvania or some sort of eclipse or solstice (whatever that is) to remind us.

If you are a hardcore Quincyan, you know when the big piles of snow melt in the north parking lot at the Quincy Mall it is — for all intents and purposes — spring. And except for some isloated cases, those glaciers are gone.

The other sure sign of spring is when the Girl Scout cookies arrive, and they came this week. And in a big way! I ordered 54 boxes, an equal amount from scouts in both Illinois and Missouri.

I absolutely love Girl Scout cookies, except for the “Thin Mint” variety. But that’s OK, I always order about six boxes of those and give them to my wife. She always keeps a couple for herself and hands out the rest to other family members.

“Don’t you want any, Steve?” I am always asked.

“Oh, no thanks,” I say.

Little do they know I have 48 boxes of the “good ones” stored at work.

A bit much? 48 boxes? Are you going to eat all of those? I get those questions all the time from comrades at the paper.

I proudly answer “yes” to all of those questions, and with good reason.

I’m doing it for the kids.
Created: 2/28/2008

You know, I’ve wanted to believe Roger Clemens’ claims he had nothing to do with steroids and human growth hormone. I really did.

I kept asking myself, “Why would he need/want to do that kind of stuff when he was already a Hall of Fame pitcher, one of the absolute greatest of all-time?”

And then I thought about Barry Bonds. Same thing. Why?

So now we have arguably the finest hitter and pitcher of an entire generation facing potential jail time down the road for any one of several indiscretions, including perjury.

I also keep asking myself, “Why didn’t Clemens just come clean like Andy Pettite and a few dozen others? Just say I did it, I was wrong, I’m sorry.”

America is a forgiving country, especially the sports-crazed part of the nation. We love to give second chances to those who repent.

While Bonds always appeared to come off as a jerk, Clemens was always one to be admired. He could be a little surly at times, but for the most part he did and said the right things.

Bonds and Clemens seem to be perfect punctuations to this whole “steroid era” of baseball — filthy exclamation points for a filthy period of time we are now trying to put behind us.

Hey Barry, hey Roger. Don’t the door hit you in the — ahem, backside — on your way out of the game.
Created: 2/28/2008

While I now consider myself a Quincyan through and through, my perspective as an “outsider” still comes in handy after living here for almost 10 years.

There are times when I don’t think Quincy residents appreciate what they have going here, intangibles that many, many other communities do not. Believe me, I have lived and worked in communities that would have no idea a place like Quincy even exists.

Here are two reasons why:

1. Not too long ago, I had a problem with a front window in my car and a local glass repair shop said to bring the vehicle in before work, which I was more than happy to do. I figured the repair, which took about 30 minutes, would cost me close to $100, considering the part(s) and the time involved. When I asked the gentleman, “How much do I owe you?” he responded, “Aww… Nothing, just tell some of you friends I do a good job and bring your car back when you need some more work.”

Wow. I asked again if I could pay him and he politely refused. Obviously, he has my business for the rest of my life.

2. Another automobile story involving another local business. I recently took my vehicle in for an oil change at a local garage, and to put it mildly, the mechanic who worked on my car really screwed things up. An oil filter was improperly attached and oil was spewing all over the engine.

When I took it back to have a wrong righted I expected to have battle through a ton of red tape, but the shop immediately admitted its mistake and quickly agreed to pay for any and all damages. I had to take the car to two separate places, mostly as a precautionary measure to guard against any possible engine damage. There was none, and the potential nightmare of an incident ended smoothly.

And you know what? I will take my car back to the garage that made that initial mistake. It was a place I had never had any problem with before, and I appreciated the honesty and how the entire situation was handled.

It’s what I’ve come to expect from people who live in Quincy.
Created: 2/27/2008

I know all of the Cardinals baseball fans in Quincy and the surrounding area will not be anxious to hear this, but one national writer made the observation last week that St. Louis might have the worst team in the National League.

A statement like that will be awfully difficult for diehards like Rick Gengenbacher to swallow, but the fine line the Cardinals appear to be trying to walk this year could prove to be mighty dangerous. Realistically, everything has to go right for the team to even have a winning record. And the emphasis is on EVERYTHING.

Albery Pujols’ elbow might be of the most concern, and if he goes down what is already a Punch-and-Judy offense will be reduced to Judy. The starting rotation is patchwork at best and the everyday lineup looks more like an expansion team (minus Pujols) than it does a club two years removed from a World Series title. Cesar Izturis at shortstop? Come on!

My picks for the division winners and wild card in the National League: Central: 1. Cubs, 2. Brewers, 3. Reds, 4. Cardinals, 5. Pirates, 6. Astros.
East: Mets.
West: Diamondbacks.
Wild card: Brewers.

My picks for the division winners and wild card in the American League:
East: Red Sox.
Central: Tigers.
West: Angels.
Wild card: Indians.
Created: 2/26/2008

In honor of Sunday night’s Academy Awards — and the marathon rain delay in the NASCAR race — I decided to watch “Michael Clayton,” the much-ballyhooed picture nominated for an Oscar.

I’m not even sure it was the second-best movie I saw over the weekend, and I only saw two. The other was the new release, “Vantage Point,” starring Dennis Quaid, but more about that in a minute.

“Michael Clayton” had all the feel of a great movie waiting to happen, but never did. George Clooney was OK in the lead role, but hardly great, and Tilda Swinton, who won an Oscar as supporting actress, was watchable but hardly brought an electric presence to the screen. I’m not even sure she had enough screen time to qualify for a supporting actress nomination.

I liked the way the movie wrapped up, but the plot was far too drawn out and downright confusing at times. The movie ran about two hours. It could have been more effectively presented in 90 minutes. If you’re considering watching it, I’d suggest going to the theater and seeing “Vantage Point” instead.

“Vantage Point” will not be nominated for an Oscar and is not a great movie, but it at least keeps you interested until the very end with a wide assortment of storylines all connected to an assassination attempt of a U.S. President.

By the way, if you’re interested, the best movie I saw in 2007 was “Saw IV.”

Dick Chapin will always carry a warm spot in my heart. He was one of the first friends I made after moving to Quincy late in the summer of 1998. Over the next nine years, I spent many an hour talking sports with him in his baseball card shop, which was tucked away in a small strip center just east of the intersection at 36th and Maine.

They buried Dick last month. A long battle with major health issues finally took its toll on this grand gentleman, familiar to most by his floppy fisherman’s hat and love for the Chicago Cubs.

Some of our first conversations in that summer of 98 dealt with the famous Mark McGwire-Sammy Sosa home run battle. Dick dearly loved the Cubs in particular and baseball in general. The months filled with football and basketball simply served as a bridge from one baseball season to the next.

Dick’s card shop brought immeasurable joy to collectors of all ages, myself included. But listening to Dick and his tales was the real treat. I already miss those days, but it’s nice to know Dick will have the best seat in the house when the Cubs open their season. He deserves it. Created: 2/4/2008