- All I knew of you back in those days was that my high school pal had gone on a road trip with your brother (whom I knew only vaguely –we had met once or twice and each thought the other was gay, but that’s another story) and that HIS brother, (Josh Wilker), a quiet, reflective, spiritual sort, referred to in passing as “Krishna,” was joining them for a leg of the journey.

It was related to me that on occasion the three of you would be driving in near-silence, somewhere-in-the-middle-of-nowhere, listening to Bob Dylan’s ‘Biograph’ as the sun set over a the empty mesas, when your brother would soundlessly pull the car over to the side of the empty highway.

“It’s 7:30,” he would say.

And that meant one thing, which was accepted ambiviently by all… A piss break and a chance to stretch the ol’ legs perhaps, but more specifically, “Krishna” had to meditate.

In my mind’s eye I see you chanting on a rock 50 yards away; eventually your brother or my friend would gaze at their watches, look at each other, nod, and gently herd you into the backseat as dusk approached.

A legend in the making, you was.

And that’s to say nothing of the yarns I could spin about Dock Ellis….

I find that this is a general pattern in relationships between men of our generation (and probably before). Men seem to want to talk to each other about things that happen to other people (sports), or other common interests that any third party could ostensibly be interested in, too (music, movies, technology, science, finance, cars, etc.).

And that seems to be the connective tissue…

but dock’s an all-time favorite of mine. his battles against real racism (I only need qualify this because gary sheffield keeps cheapening what it really is) are unfortunately overshadowed by the LSD no-hitter. but what wouldn’t be overshadowed by that?

considering how similarly wild he was in his own no-hitter bid, I’d say we’ll find out a few years from now that a.j. burnett was on hillbilly heroin or somesuchshit during his no-hitter. just saying.

Perhaps because of the democracy of the Net, it is so much harder to find the true gems, because the Powers That Be still say, “Well, lots of people write on the Web. So what?”

Josh deserves success more than a lot of memoirists I’ve encountered.

Throw that frisbee.

I realize you were using “self-absorbed” in a complimentary way, and I really appreciate it, but it’s funny that you put it that way because I was already worrying that I took my usual self-absorption to a whole new level in this meandering wordspew that barely even mentions it’s “subject” Dock Ellis.

I hope Dock Ellis fans can forgive me. I figured there was already plenty out there in the universe about Dock. The article I link to has some pretty good stuff about the no-hitter and about Dock in general, but people who are interested in learning more about one of the great characters (and a damn good pitcher, too) of the Cardboard God era should check out Donald Hall’s book Dock Ellis in the Country of Baseball. It’s a beauty.