Monthly Statement:
May 2006

OBJECT # 34
DATE SENT: May 31, 2006
SENT TO: Steve Maricic
SENT VIA: US Postal Service

DESCRIPTION OF OBJECT: “Official” size and weight Wiffle Ball. Approximately 9” in diameter and about 2-3 ounces in weight. Ball is made of white plastic, which has had considerable scuffing, scratches, and slight peeling. Ball is dirty; some of the dirt is ground into the ball. The ball has a seam, which is visible slightly and runs around the exact middle of the ball where the two halves have been joined. On the top of the ball there are eight (8) oval openings, each 7/8” x 1/4”. The ball is hollow. On the bottom of the ball is an etched circle. Inside the circle are the raised words ‘WIFFLE BALL’, running across the top curve of the circle. The bottom part of the circle has smaller words, which read ‘MADE IN…’ and the remainder is unreadable due to wear. There is also what appears to be a series of numbers, which are also unreadable due to wear.

ORIGIN AND APPROXIMATE DATE OF POSSESSION OF OBJECT: Found in the street near my former home at 24 W. Hamilton Place, Jersey City. Date unknown, though at least 12-15 years ago.

MOST RECENT LOCATION OF OBJECT: In a cardboard box along with many other objects and materials. Box is located on a freestanding metal shelving unit. The shelves are to the immediate left of the door to my studio, which is in the north east corner of my studio, located at 300 Observer Highway, in Hoboken, NJ.

RELATION OF OBJECT TO RECIPIENT: The Wiffle Ball is a cultural icon, part of many American boys’ childhood. It allowed for innumerable hours of fun and was generally not as dangerous as playing with a standard baseball. Because of the oval holes and its being hollow, the ball would dip and curve and spin when it was thrown in ways most youngster could not achieve with other balls. The Wiffle Ball also came with a yellow plastic bat, very thin, with black tape spiraling around the lower end, the grip of the bat. For many years during grammar and high school, Wiffle Ball, which was the way the game was referred to, as well as the object itself, was part of my and my friends’ daily lives. We played almost exclusively in the driveway/alleyway between Steve Maricic’s house and his neighbor to the west, located on 72nd street between Park Avenue and Broadway in North Bergen, NJ. The alleyway was probably 6-7 feet wide, just enough for a 60’s version, American made, standard sedan or station wagon to drive through. Stevie had garages in the back of his house and his neighbor did as well, so the driveway was therefore shared. But after school and on Saturdays and during the summer, the spot was our domain, at least until a car had to pass through, interrupting our game. Though we played many different types of games (stickball, football, punchball, ring-a-lario, basketball, etc) Wiffle Ball was one of the most frequently played. There would be two to three players to a side, one a pitcher and the others fielders, who positioned themselves along the approximately 50- 60 foot length of the driveway. There were agreed upon distances for singles, doubles, triples, and home runs, and particular criteria, most of which I forget, which had to be met in order to be awarded a hit. But the clearest memory I have is the prowess of Steve’s pitching, both real and in his own imagination. Whenever we played, Stevie would pitch for one side. He alone among us had a repertoire of pitches – a curve, a sinker, a knuckle ball, and a change up. He mixed up his pitching quite a bit, keeping us guessing as to what was next. He also invented his own variations on the above themes. While Stevie was adept at this assortment of pitches, he did not stop most of us from hitting the ball, so the games were never devoid of a fair amount of run scoring. However, none of the rest of us: myself, Anthony Luzzi, David Eichamer, Robert Harley, George Pillepich, Walter Murawinski, and various others, had the élan and verve Steve exhibited when he was ‘on the mound’ (NB).

I have known Steve Maricic since 1959, when we entered kindergarten at the Immaculate Heart of Mary grammar school in North Bergen, NJ. We were in the same schools through 12th grade, receiving a Catholic, and in instances, very fine education, particularly during our high school years. We have a long history, as our friendship has lasted nearly fifty years and there are many shared experiences. I see Steve once or perhaps twice a year, at a card game hosted by Damian Testa (see d-acum 11 jew’s harp). Those games immediately enjoy the same tenor as our childhood, filled with teasing, sarcasm, bad jokes, references to our past, and a reversion to the camaraderie we have always known. The only difference is that we now talk politics. Despite his academic brilliance, wide ranging knowledge, and wit, Stevie has unfortunately been duped by the right wing (I suspect it may even be a case of brain-washing) and thus we are now on differing sides of most political issues. Notwithstanding his obvious mistakes in this arena, Stevie is a renowned screenwriter, filmmaker, librarian, and most recently author of the widely read and essential “Mr. Lucky’s Favorite Poker Games” available through amazon.com or wherever fine books are sold. To my recollection, there is no poker game that incorporates the Wiffle Ball strategy or culture thereof.

This particular Wiffle ball is not one of ours, nor one that I ever actually used in a game. It most likely belonged to some child who in the future, if he or she is lucky enough, will be able to look back on a time in their life with fondness and remember the leisure of endless afternoons playing any number of games with his or her very good friends. It might be with a modicum of sadness that this time has passed away like much else. But if that person has had some benefits in life in terms of education and proper guidance, he or she might be able to communicate with some of the friends and perhaps find an old or even new Wiffle ball and an appropriate alleyway where the game might be reconstituted once again.

RESPONSE OF RECIPIENT:

DATE OF RESPONSE:
NB: No actual ‘mound’ existed, as it was a flat, unaltered driveway.

Process: My plan is to de-accumulate objects I now own during the course of the exhibition year. I will photograph the selected object then send the object with a letter to a person who has some relationship to the object or whom I think might be interested in the object. The letter will discuss the project and tell the receiver they can keep the object, destroy it, give it away, recycle it or anything else they choose. I will ask them to document it in the place they now have it and send their image and/or written description back to me of what they did with it and where it is. I plan on de-accumulating an average of one object per week. The new images/descriptions will be placed in a plastic folder and exhibited along with a photograph of the object as it was in my possession.