Ah, thinking back to the days when I truly was a player . . .(The Orlando Sentinel)

Byline: Ed Hayes

Saturday morning in bed. I hear the boys and girls calling me to come out and play.

Ah, the boys and girls of my childhood.

Boys mostly, to be candid about it. Occasionally a girl appeared in one of our games, but there just weren't that many girls yearning to join our gang.

And that was copacetic with me. I was a little afraid of girls, you see.

Gloriously, I overthrew this phobia, if that's what it was, although I can't pinpoint at what age this ecstatic conversion occurred. Upon returning home after World War II, more than likely.

Now, with your consent, I'm interjecting a relevant anecdote here, a …