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In my home town, there was a high school sports and academic hero named Ray Stein. Me and my grade school friends just idolized him and followed closely his basketball action at state tournaments. One morning at 5:00, my dad awakened me and said, "Do you want to have breakfast with Ray Stein?" I went and sat at the table in my PJs eating Fruit Loops, sitting across from Ray Stein, staring at him through blurry eyes. He was going hunting that morning with his dad and mine, who were friends from work.
At school, I told my friends, but they didn't believe it. It sounded so far out to them, that I gave up trying to convince them. My reputation was sullied.
A few weeks (or months) later, my friends and I were at the local high school gym to shoot baskets on a Saturday morning. We went into the locker room and saw Ray Stein. He looked up, saw me, and said, "Aren't you Larry F? I had breakfast at your house a few weeks ago." I didn't even have to say, "I told you so."
Ray may not be an international star, but he was a like one of the Beatles in our town. His sister used to sell original sheets of his old homework with his name on it.
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