As a boy I dreamed of the places I would go and things I would do, from riding the giant turtles in the Galapagos Islands to herding tiny reindeer with the Laplanders in the Arctic Circle.
Nearly 50 years later, I'll settle for a few days off from work with less stress and far less travel. So, I'm throwing down the sports pages and picking up the pace with a little boot scootin' and sight-seeing in Nashville.
That'll be in Tennessee, not Arkansas. In the meantime, here's some topics to consider in my absence.
PEYTON'S (NEW) PLACE
Siloam Springs football coach Bryan Ross thought he was being pranked when someone claiming to be Peyton Hillis called his office phone and asked to help coach the Panthers this season.
"At first, I thought it was a joke because it came out of the blue," Ross said. "I didn't know he wasn't playing anymore."
The call indeed came from Hillis, and he'll join Siloam Springs as a volunteer coach while working to earn his degree at Arkansas. Hillis and his wife sold their house in Tennessee and moved to Maysville after he was released by the New York Giants in February.
"It's not too often you can get a guy who's played at the highest level in football wanting to help," Ross said of Hillis, who played seven years in the NFL. "It's a win-win situation for us."
TRIPLE THREAT
I still have the 2007 Arkansas football media guide which featured running backs Hillis, Felix Jones and Darren McFadden on the cover along with wide receiver Marcus Monk. Shortly after the season, I remember asking some people to predict which of those would last the longest in the NFL.
Most said McFadden, who'll begin his eighth year in the league. I said Hillis, but not for the reason I expected. I thought Hillis would outlast the others because of his ability to play special teams.
But Hillis far exceeded expectations, especially in 2010 when he rushed for 1,177 yards and 11 touchdowns with the Cleveland Browns. I could argue Hillis has had a better NFL career than McFadden, especially considering Hillis was a seventh-round draft pick and McFadden a first-round selection after he twice finished as the Heisman Trophy runnerup. In seven years, both have rushed for a 4.1 average in yards per carry, although McFadden has more attempts (4,274 yards on 1,038 carries) than Hillis (2,832 yards on 696 carries). As pass-catchers, McFadden has 211 receptions for 1,769 yards (8.4 average) while Hillis has 134 receptions for 1,050 yards (7.8 yards).
Although some of the statistics are similar, I'll wait for a final evaluation until McFadden gets a chance with his new team, the Dallas Cowboys. No one these days should be judged solely on their career with the gosh-awful Oakland Raiders.
MIDGETS TAKE A STAND
The Midget mascot will stay at Freeburg High School in Freeburg, Ill.
"Once a Midget, always a Midget," School Board Secretary Kim Towers said after a unanimous vote by the board to keep the mascot.
Freeburg resisted a complaint by the Little People of America, an organization of people born with dwarfism who considers the mascot offensive. Their action came on the heels of the Confederate flag being removed from the state capitol grounds in Columbia, S.C., after nine black church-goers were murdered by a Confederate sympathizer.
That issue is serious; this one is not.
Still, Freeburg should consider changing the mascot, not because it is offensive, but because it's dumb. Something more modern like minions, gremlins or even ant men, would be an improvement over a goofy mascot adopted 82 years ago.
REMEMBER THE DRAGONS
The Indiana Pacers announced they would celebrate the 30th anniversary of the motion picture "Hoosiers" by wearing Hickory Huskers jerseys in a few games this season.
The 1986 movie was inspired by the 1954 high school team from Milan, which beat much larger schools to win the state basketball championship when Indiana had only one classification.
So, what if Arkansas had an NBA team and wanted to honor a colossal underdog?
That would be Parkdale (pop. 377), the tiny school near the Louisiana border that won the boys Overall State basketball championship in 1979. The Dragons beat much larger schools after rolling to the state championship in Class B. Parkdale High School no longer exists after consolidating with Hamburg in 1993.
The Arkansas Activities Association discontinued the Overall Tournament after the 1992 season because coaches didn't like their teams going home as losers after winning championships in their respective classifications.
Still, Parkdale stands in Arkansas as a reminder that the biggest and baddest don't always prevail.
Sports on 07/26/2015