Originally I played a baseball board-game called "Longball" with a friend during my Jr. High years. I loved that game. Fast forward to the Army a few years later and that's where I met another dude that loved baseball. We went to a Cincinnati Reds home game (my Army base was Ft Benjamin Harrison in Indiana) at Riverfront Stadium in late 1981 and while there visited a hobby shop and I bought a Strat board game. I played it religiously...even when I was supposed to be studying and working on my MOS (Journalism). I didn't care. I was addicted to that board game. I literally took the game with me to various Army sites (buildings) and played solitaire while waiting for my appointments.
It was like my security blanket. I found the Army to be a bit much as I was still a little boy in so many ways.
In 2006 I noticed by accident that TSN had SOM. Those were fun years for Strat playing. I forget the name of the gentleman who ran the show for TSN but he was talented and very dedicated to making the experience a memorable one. He was excellent. Health issues made him give it up I believe.
fredpaii is the prefix of an email account I no longer use. I've already changed my screen name once so I will keep fredpaii (my name).