October 10, 2021. Madison, Mississippi. Baseball.

I should have known that Chantes loved baseball because he was born and raised in Cuba. But we had never discussed baseball before today. He came over to get a letter from the homeowners Association authorizing me to replace the roof. Then he must get a building permit. When he arrived, I was watching the baseball game between Boston and Tampa Bay, which was just going into extra innings with the score ties 4 each. So I asked him if he liked baseball and if he did, I urged him to go home and watch the end of the game. All of a sudden, he became animated. And he told me that he loves baseball and proceeded to tell me all the Cuban players now in the playoffs. In fact, he and his son Michael play on a baseball team. This Fall, his team played a tournament in Panama City. But he was must excited about the fact that I liked baseball too. And we talked baseball until he finally headed off to watch the end of the game. And he intended to watch the Houston game a bit later. He told me that he likes baseball over almost everything in his life. "It is my relaxation," he said. And he keeps track of all the Cuban players on all the teams. I only knew that two players on the Tampa team were rookies who came from Cuba, so I mentioned it. He of course thought I knew a lot of other Cuban players but I was lost after a few names. But we had a good conversation about baseball. Normally, Chantes is serious and we talk about specific tasks. But today, I saw another Chantes. Who knew?