Got an e-mail invitation to celebrate the birth date of Fong Ha's one-year-old daughter, Emily. Fong was database guy for the Sporting Box Football Contest, which had a five-year run during the mid '90s. After …

The Box would like to offer a big, "Welcome home," to the San Diego Chargers team who won last year's AFC West Division with a record of 12 and 4 and showed up Sunday to …

'I get there about a half hour before the show starts. Normally, a cavy [guinea pig] show is a one-day thing. If I'm flying in, I'll arrive the day before. Someone picks you up, takes …

'We cannot be complacent with playing good but not winning games," Marty Schottenheimer said after losing to Denver on Sunday. The Chargers gained 41 yards in the second half of that game. FEMA personnel are …

San Francisco (underdog by 7) leads the NFC West after they prevailed over St. Louis on Sunday. New Orleans (underdog by 7) won at Super Bowl--bound Carolina. Dallas (underdog by 5) beat Super Bowl--bound San …

My first day in school was really my second day — Jangchup Phelygal The Radiators That Ticked Heat into the Room — Laura Rhoton McNeal Rear Rank Rudy — Jim Morris Forget-me-nots — Rosa Colwin …

A bell rings. The big metal door flies open, and hallway sounds of boisterous chitter-chatter rush into the empty classroom like lake water breaching an ill-built dam. Now comes a paddling of young humans, averaging …

On August 24, 1968, Mary McBride and I stood one mile south of Hawthorne, Nevada. It was 108 degrees, and we hadn't eaten in a day or had a change of clothes in two. She …

College football, hereabouts, kicks off on Saturday with UCLA (6-5 last year) playing San Diego State (4-8 last year) at Qualcomm. The game will be televised on ESPN2. We need to clear the decks, people. …

'Now, let's talk about derailleur adjustments," says a male ectomorph I'll call Henry. Henry uses the airline-stewardess "happy-to-serve-you-and-I'd-like-to-watch-you-die" dialect for public discourse. He is employed as a bicycle repairman, which is a job title from …

Here's what we know: (1) The Padres are in first place in the National League West. (2) The Padres have lost more games than they've won. Why is the NL West, in all of Major …

'How did you come upon this?" Beth Shannon says, "My sister made a donation in my name." We're talking about Old Friends, a Kentucky nonprofit "dedicated to providing a dignified retirement to old champions." Old …

RE: the rock and roll album and unfurnished island situation. I'm going to have a problem packing my rucksack. The fact is, I don't have a relationship with music, although at one time in my …

Before we move into football (the NFL preseason kicks off on Saturday), the Box would like to award its Sportsman of the Year trophy. Regulars will recall that the trophy is a handsome 18-inch-tall bronze …

'I'm a .5." Speaking is Paul Richardson, president of San Diego Wheelchair Athletic Association and a veteran player for the San Diego Bushwackers quad rugby team. I've called to get his review of the documentary …

Continuing with Michael Bogey, who spends his time in the company of things that go fast. Bogey competes or has competed in luge, go-karts, motorcycles, and race cars. Boats, airplanes, skis, skates, bicycles, and rent-a-cars …

The phone rings, I pick up and hear, "Feel like dinner? I'm in town." This is the familiar voice of Michael Bogey, travel junkie and adrenaline addict. Bogey likes fast. He's raced motorcycles in Africa, …

This is the last year Americans will follow the Tour de France. Little children will torment their pets, master their first video game, log 26,000 hours in front of the family television set, and borrow …

Let's browse magazine-rack sports publications, see what's new. The usual way of going about this is to slog over to the chain bookstore nearest your kitchen (Barnes and Noble, on this occasion), order a café …

I mistype a Web address that results in a visit to the Sports Authority website. Their opening ad reads, "Lionel Riding the Rails Hobo Train Set. Our Price: $259.97. During the Great Depression, many men …

'For general-interest sports consumers, this is an esoteric activity. What is it about racewalking that captured you?" Curt Clausen says, "Random chance. It was the summer between my seventh and eighth grade. I was a …

Regulars may recall an April 7 column about Tampa Bay Devil Rays outfielder Alex Sanchez. Sanchez, 28, was the first major league ballplayer to be suspended under Major League Baseball's steroid-policy-of-the-month; in this instance, the …

'I didn't know baseball started so early on the West Coast. You have a reference to it being played in California during the late 1850s." I'm talking to Bill Swank, 64, about his latest book, …

Does it seem to you, that at some obscure hour, sometime during the past five years, the NBA season went year-round? We were never told, no one reported it, but now the merciless truth lies …

Golden Baseball League (GBL) is a new, independent, eight-team, class-A baseball league with a franchise in San Diego. The league reminds me of what a friend said when talking about her favorite restaurant. "I like …

"Careful, Ma; don't spill your soup," I warned. "First time you spill, that's it — you're going to the home.” Mom's reply was immediate. "I know. I've picked out what I want to take with me."

She was the hardest-working human being I've ever known. The first of her four children was born in 1940, the last, 4 years later. For the next 20-plus years she did what mothers did back …

Haruko Crawford says, "I started taking ikebana lessons when I was 13 years old. I'm 80 now." I lean back into my chair, close my eyes, and wonder how I got here, on the telephone …

Brian Aguon, an Oregon fishing guide, is describing the benefits of spey casting. "First, you don't need to have a lot of room behind you to throw an 85-foot cast. Secondarily, it's easier for the …

Doodling along the Internet and come across, "Bobileff Motorcar Company is internationally known for their expertise in fine automobiles and their ability to restore cars to the highest state of perfection." Then I espy the …

'Don't think they'd let you do that anymore." I take a moment and silently replay what I've just said, add, "I think they'd track you down and arrest your ass." The foregoing is spoken halfway …

It sounds so Baseball, the sneak-sneak, slip-one-past-the-stupid-public-while-they're-looking-the-other-way latest steroid deception. I'm talking about the bust of not-a-household-name and Tampa Bay Devil Rays outfielder Alex Sanchez. Sanchez got to go first; got to be the first …

"Everybody I know, once in their life, has gone out to watch grunion run, but I don't recall anyone actually seeing grunion. What, exactly, is your connection to the beast?" I'm on the phone with …

Yes, news consumers have moved on. The televised congressional hearing produced 48 hours of press/video roar; it was a crossover story, headlined on the front page and sports page, but then it was back to …

Head out the door, find a freeway, and drive to Lindbergh Field. Get on a plane and fly to Des Moines, Iowa. Rent a car, motor north on I-35, turn right on Highway 20, turn …

I bounce over to www.iditarod.com, click on "Race Updates," watch the page load, let loose a sincere but muted, "This is good," pick up the phone, and dial a number in Fairbanks. The receiver clicks, …

In the spring of 1903, Wyatt Earp was working as a special assistant to the Los Angeles Police Department and the Chicago Cubs were in town for spring training. The Cubs finished third in the …

There are senior tours for golf, tennis, billiards, and bowling -- sports that are normally not identified with broken clavicles, necks, and spines. In other words, sports that have nothing to do with rodeos. On …

Carlisle Pryce is a naturalist. Old school. He reserves for himself one day every week and hikes seven, eight, nine miles. He paints and takes photographs. He knows the names and characteristics of all the …

It's been 12 months since I wrote a column about taking up Tai Chi Ch'aun. I promised to report back after a year. The teacher, Sifu Yee Yuen, is somewhere between 75 and 100. He's …

Here's the guts of it. Super Bowl XXXIX is hours away, and Janet Jackson's right breast is unaccounted for. I have warned the NFL by fax and by phone. I have called the Jacksonville police, …

'What seems most remarkable in all this is that you're hosting a network TV show." Conway Bowman says, "Yeah, tomorrow morning is the first show of the season." Bowman, 38, a San Diego native, is …

There's a reason why Marty is 5-12 in playoff games. Defense, an excellent quarterback, and a good front line can get you into the postseason, but once in, you need to take risks; be assured, …

I've stepped out of the darkened cave — or, more precisely, have exited the animal den known in another life as my living room, to stroll in fresh air and reconnect my chakra with living …

'Son-of-a-bitch! Son-of-a-bitchin' jackhammers!" This is December 24, 1980, in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. I'm working off a class-B hangover and getting my ass kicked by an 80-pound jackhammer. Self, hangover, and jackhammer are struggling at the …

'As it is, probably about $1700," says Norman Aguon. "It" is a Martin Cougar III Magnum archery bow, which, according to the manufacturer, comes with "14-inch straight glass composite limbs... measures 42 inches between the …

'They misnamed the sport; they should have called it paddling instead of surfing." "Is that what a lot of it is, paddling around the ocean, looking for the next wave?" "Absolutely." I'm speaking to Pat …

RE: Pistons/Pacers Hoedown. What they didn't tell you after broadcasting the riot video 10,000 times. It was black players and white fans. And it was an ongoing fight. When Pacers Ron Artest and Stephen Jackson …

'You are bidding on an early-1980s San Diego Chargers Huddles pin. Features the throwback Chargers mascot in a rare pin. Pin measures approximately 1.5 inches tall and condition is very good, no scratches or marks." …

I've developed a feeling of revulsion for the L.A. Lakers. I hate their arrogance, hate the gaggle of 25-year-old millionaires who refuse to play hard -- or play as a team -- until the last …