Agent Palmer

Pete Conrad’s biography is not a cookie-cutter story. Then again, there was nothing cookie-cutter about him. He was, as his headstone implies, “An Original.” Co-written by his second wife Nancy Conrad and Howard A. Klausner, the writer of Space Cowboys, this biography is presented cinematically, but it would have been a thrilling ride anyway.

Honestly, if ever you needed proof that you can have fun and enjoy a serious job with a smile on your face, then Pete Conrad is exhibit A for astronauts.

184 riders took off from Brest on June 26th to start the 2021 edition of the Tour de France. Three weeks later, 141 riders took the start to complete the Tour in Paris on the Champs-Elysees.

What took place during the stages in-between, may not have been unprecedented, but it certainly was compelling. Here is my recap of the 5 most important takeaways from this year’s race.

Is the summer of 2021 the greatest Summer of Soccer the world has ever known? I believe it might be, despite not being a World Cup year, it is jam-packed with international tournaments that are unlikely to ever coincide again.

The EUROs (postponed from 2020), the COPA, the Gold Cup, and the Olympics (also postponed to this year), have created a buzz around international soccer, the likes of which we only usually experience during a world cup year, and that is only a fraction of the number of participant nations.

Baseball is a Funny Game by Joe Garagiola is not about a baseball star. It’s hardly about the fundamentals of the game or its many statistics. It is simply the story of baseball told by an average catcher who bounced around the National League for a while who can tell stories with the best of them.

This book is baseball as it was and as it is, because the more things change the more they stay the same. America’s game is no exception.

Max is my friend. It was unforeseen and evolved in a way that has baffled my partner Stef since he took a strong liking to me, especially since she would love to have that connection with him.

How did this happen? I have some ideas, but it’s probably a combination of many things – some are worth sharing while some are still unknown.