LE BOCCE

[Drew]

In northeast Baltimore, in a park named Birdic, a group of elder Italian men would gather every weekend to play Bocce, until.....they got robbed at gunpoint. This location has the best Bocce court in the city, even better than Little Italy in the downtown section. The court was meticulously groomed, very level and fast. Well, the men wouldn’t play as long in the park as they were scared that they would be robbed again so I started showing up on weekends, in plainclothes with a marked police vehicle and would sit, watch and joke with them. After several weeks they invited me to play, had no idea of the rules and no talent...well we had lots of fun. Soon I learned the rules and I beat them once, never again, and had to return off duty as they always brought homemade wine to drink as they play, and they won't take no for an answer, and always with real wine glasses, you know the small ones that grace most Italian tables. The wine was great and I still show up on some weekends and the experience is wonderful.

Drew