Now that its the "Off season" what will you do to fill your time?
Last winter I wrote a book that comes out in April but this winter I am going to train with my son Jordan as he is an aspiring baseball player.
What expression do you normally have on your face?
serene
What is guaranteed to happen tomorrow?
I will be the first one up in my home.
What television show have you strangely never seen?
x-files...melrose place...any popular show that was shown in the eighties
If you were at a garage sale, what would you look for?
always look for old LP's(record albums for our younger fans)
What is the nicest thing someone has done for you?
Tom McKenna, an old Mets trainer nursed me back when I hurt my arm in spring training with the 1988 team.
What’s the best thing about having children?
I have good things about me and bad things. They are all the good things
What is the next book you hope to read?
I promised myself that I would read the sonnets of Shakespeare this winter. I was going to take a Shakespeare class at NYU this winter but alas, playoff baseball.
What helps you heal?
My wife is the only person I have ever met that heals and never hurts.
In two words, how would you describe your day yesterday?
Surfing/Malibu
What movie deserves a sequel?
Shallow Hal (residuals!)
What is your most common expression or saying?
"C'mon guys (my sons) could you please pick up your dirty laundry and clean your rooms."
If you could be an expert on one form of dance, what
would it be?
Tango. When you get tangled up you just Tango on.
What one thing have you surprisingly never done before?
I've never watched any of the 86 World Series games in full.
If you could set your alarm clock for an ideal time,
what would that time be?
I've never set an alarm clock in my life I just wake up at the right time. Ask my friends I'm always the camp counselor waking people up to get ready.
What fruit do you always pick around in a fruit salad?
Kiwi. Hairy fruit.
If you could have a remote control for anything, what
would you choose?
I would like a remote control to stop the construction noise outside my apartment.. It doesn't bother me but I would score some serious points with my wife if I could produce a quiet morning.
What do you not eat enough of?
Vegetables, I use to love them as a child.
Where can you find the best hamburger?
Although New Haven is supposed to be the home of America's first burger, I would have to say one of my joys in the offseason is watching a football game while doing the NY Times
What healthy habit are you most proud of?
Walking/running over the Brooklyn Bridge. It is such a marvel to see Brooklyn and Manhattan from that vantage point.
When is it ok to bend the rules?
"When you are teaching your son or daughter to play golf and you kick the ball from behind the tree so they have a nice lie. "
On what tv-game show would you like to be a contestant?
"Jeopardy ."
What is your favorite time of the day?
"5:30-7:30 in the morning ."
I've never been able to _________________
"Waterski barefoot ."
What do you bring most to a friendship?
"I will listen to your problems all day long and try to help in whichever way I can. I am a good problem solver."
Rap music makes me want to? __________
"Enjoy, although my generation gap occasionally gets me. I get it though, I have anger also."
Who is your favorite comedian?
"Stephen Wright."
What one thing can you draw very well?
"Scenes from vacations......think English Patient. "
Use one adjective to describe the game of baseball
"Methodical."
Who should be this years person of the year?
"Tim Russert (he'll be missed)."
What one thing did you never get as a child?
"I could have used a different last name from grades first to third ."
Rollerblading is __________
"Rollerblading is the closest I ever get to fantasize that I am Bobby Orr."
What is the strongest bond you have with an inanimate object?
"Don't tell anyone but occasionally I pull out my old baseball glove and appreciate the smell of the leather. That glove served me well."
If you could perform one heroic act, what would it be?
"Try to be the catalyst that insures that no child ever goes to bed hungry."
What book do you frequently recommend to people?
"I'm asked all the time to recommend my favorite sports related book. I always say the same, LIFE ON THE RUN, BILL BRADLEY. "
Have you ever been on Sesame Street?
"Oh yeah, check me out with Telly and his baseball card collection... "
What is the gift that keeps on giving?
"A smile "
If you picked up a guitar right now, what would you play?
"WISH YOU WERE HERE. My son Jordan and I are playing it together while we try to harmonize the lyrics together."
What is the best thing about your mom?
"My mom's innocence ......makes me want to be a kinder person."
I'm always amused when I see people _______
"who are parents fighting like adults with their infant children. If you could only see yourself."
What favor should never be asked of someone?
"moving ( sorry Keith and Jerry)."
Growing up, what was your favorite TV show?
"My favorite TV show was the time tunnel. When you grow up in Millbury Massachusetts you are looking for an out."
Saturday or Sunday? Why?
Sunday.. New Your Times Crossword puzzle... One of life's simple joys.
On a scale of 1-10, how hard of a worker are you?
"Interesting question. I think I could do much more. I try to maximize my time and to people who don’t know me they think I work at a level ten but I feel like I work at a level three.
What one Holiday tradition would you never want to give up?
"Thanksgiving, no exchanging of presents just pure family. Love and fun."
If the statement, 'You are what you eat' was true, you would be a _______. "Carnivore, apologies to my vegan friends."
If you could read the private diary of any person in the world, whose would it be?
"RFK"
Is it easier to forgive or to forget?
"Forgive- my brain never forgets."
Which of the seven dwarfs personifies you best – Dopey, Sneezy, Sleepy, Bashful, Grumpy, Happy, or Doc?
"My inner me is Bashful by nature."
Watermelon or Cantaloupe?
"Watermelon with the seeds."
If you could rid the earth of 3 creatures, which 3 would you dispose of?
"Snakes, cockroaches and hyenas."
How many times a day do you check your email?
"I check my e-mail once a day."
Do you read the blogs?
"I do read the Metsblog.com and I think Matthew Cerrone does a nice job. What a dream job, writing for the team you love and getting paid for it. "
What do you do for exercise?
"I dream to excercise more but I wish I could get all my SNY teammates to play hoops more often. "
Other than Shea, which ballpark is your favorite? Why?
"My favorite ballpark is Fenway Park because I am from Boston but I enjoyed pitching in Wrigley Field. "
What would people be surprised to learn about you?
"That I quietly pull for the Mets and the players to make very few mistakes and to have great success, as a team and individually."
Why is there fuzz on a tennis ball?
"I'm not sure but I think that Abbie Hoffman or someone on Haight-Ashbury was using the term fuzz loosely and it stuck."
What are you most proud of?
"The most proud I am is always when I make my wife and children proud. That I can occasionally become a beacon for their futures. "
Who has impacted you most in your career ?
"I've been so lucky to have many people impact the many careers I have had. The foundation has always been Ron Sr. and Luciana Mikina who are my parents but more importantly the nicest people on this planet."
How many licks does it take to get to the middle of a Tootsie pop?
"Maybe five and then a complete caveman-like gnawing at the candy and chocolate."
Are you named after anyone? If so- who?
"Ronald Maurice Darling Jr."
What’s your biggest pet peeve?
"I won't address this seriously because I have so many pet peeves because of our societies new attachment to rudeness. Casual calls on the airplane. Talking to your children in baby talk. Treating waiters and waitresses poorly. Asking me, "I don't know who you are but my girlfriend would like your autograph." Radio talk shows calling my hotel room at 5 am. Fans wanting to shake my hand in the rest room. People who are late.......................I got more..........PEACE!"
Day or Night? Why?
"I love day games."
East or West? Why?
"the killer awoke before dawn, he had his boots on....."the west is the best".....DOORS...THE END....."
Odd or Even? Why?
"I love the eccentric, I'll go with odd...."
Lucy or Ethel? Why?
"Lucy and Desi almost sounds cartoonish, now Ethel and Fred are Americana..."
Sonny or Cher? Why?
"Cher believed that there was life after love and it is hard to root for the cuckold..."
Batman or Robin? Why?
"Batman and Robin are nice but give me Frank Gorshin(riddler) any day....Batman if I have to choose.. Green Hornet was my show for obvious reasons.."
Open or Close? Why?
"open in baseball means I"m covering, closed means your covering...I'm not an alpha male but I'll take open..."
Straight or Crooked? Why?
"I just got off Lombard Street with my son driving, I'll take crooked..."
Right or Left? Why?
"BARACK..."
Buy or Sell? Why?
"can I start with my stuff in storage....yard sale in nyc."
What was the happiest day of your life?
"My happiest moments have been witnessing the birth of my two sons, and getting married to my wife Joanna."
Most embarrassing moment of your life.
"My parents drove all the way to Florida to see me pitch in an instructional league game. When they got there I had been scratched from starting the game and my duties that day with my parents watching was to be the bat boy for the day."
If you knew the world would end in a day- what would you do?
"A full day of boating and barbecuing with my wife and my children. My parents and brothers would all play ball together one more time."
Do you have any Superstitions now? Did you as a player? If so, what?
"I don't have any superstitions now but on opening day at Shea every season my friend's Mom would send me a pair of red socks (for us Asians red is good luck....ask Tiger) The gesture meant a lot to me and I regret that I didn't get to tell her that."
One word to describe Gary?
" Passionate"
One word to describe Keith?
"Irreplaceable"
One word to describe yourself?
"Introspective"
One word to describe the Gary, Keith and Ron team?
"Prepared"
If you were not a baseball player what would you have done?
"Maybe be an expatriate living in Italy or the South of France."
What do you do during the off-season?
"I read, travel and spend time with my children."
Who were your heroes growing up?
"My father, Martin Luther King Jr., Bobby Kennedy and Bobby Orr."
Do you have a favorite food?
"If I was stranded on an island, I would eat Italian food everyday."
Do you have a favorite book?
"The last book I’ve read usually."
What is your favorite movie?
"Once Upon a Time in New York"
Do you have a favorite actor?
"Paul Newman"
Who is your favorite author?
"I enjoy the playwrights..Shakespeare, Ibsen, Chekhov."
How do you get ready for the baseball season?
"Try to stay current while blocking out all the nonsense"
How do you prepare for each game?
"The preparation for the next game starts after that night's game. I over-transcribe the game's scorecard to a more elaborate one and I read and decipher what the athletes are trying to say. "
What is your favorite thing to do while on the road?
"Dinner with the SNY crew, reading and
discovering all the little gems in each city."
Do you have any hobbies?
"Fly-fishing, golf and chess."
Do you watch the games if you have a day off
during the season?
"I attempt to, but sometimes I need a break from the game and the players...
just like they need a break from me. "
Do you watch baseball games other than the Mets games?
"Always, I think you can always learn from other broadcasts-what
to do and sometimes what not to do."
Any favorite sports teams re: football, basketball?
"I grew up a Boston fan but now root for the teams my sons enjoy.
I will say that rooting for the Mets is allowed because when they win it makes our job so much easier."
Why did you choose "Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation"?
"I chose 'JDRF' as my charity because of its dedication to finding a cure for juvenile diabetes. Since my youngest son was stricken with JD at the age of 11, one of my goals is to make his life and lifestyle as promising as any other child's."
