{"id":4088,"date":"2005-09-16T15:58:04","date_gmt":"2005-09-16T19:58:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/formerlyknownas\/2005\/09\/16\/bocce-advocacy\/"},"modified":"2011-08-05T14:57:24","modified_gmt":"2011-08-05T18:57:24","slug":"bocce-advocacy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/2005\/09\/16\/bocce-advocacy\/","title":{"rendered":"bocce advocacy"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a><\/p>\n

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Long before your Editor became a Haiku Advocate, or <\/span>even a <\/span><\/p>\n

Consumer Advocate, I was a Bocce<\/a> Advocate — or, perhaps<\/span><\/p>\n

more accurately, a Bocce Missionary, bringing the message <\/span><\/p>\n

of its joys and benefits to my non-Italian-American friends. <\/span><\/p>\n

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In <\/span>fact, as a summer playground director almost forty \"bocce
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years ago, <\/span>while still in high school, I dragged a set<\/a> of <\/span><\/p>\n

bocce balls to our <\/span>playground in Rochester, NY, and <\/span><\/p>\n

taught a group of <\/span>African-, Hispanic- and Italo-<\/span>American <\/span><\/p>\n

youths how to <\/span>play. They all loved it and we immediately <\/span><\/p>\n

started an intramural <\/span>league. I’ve also introduced the game<\/span><\/p>\n

to all of my adult friends, and virtually all of them — and their<\/span><\/p>\n

children and dogs — instantly love the game. <\/span>I’ve given bocce <\/span><\/p>\n

ball sets <\/span>to a <\/span>few close friends for special events, such as <\/span><\/p>\n

marriages <\/span>(the family that <\/span>bocces together stays together! <\/span><\/p>\n

usually).<\/span><\/p>\n

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greatgrandpa’s <\/span><\/p>\n

bocce balls —<\/span><\/p>\n

three generations choose sides <\/span><\/p>\n

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dagosan<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"tiny For me, the best thing about bocce is that it is easy to <\/span><\/p>\n

learn, yet <\/span>takes skills that can be nurtured and improved <\/span><\/p>\n

for a lifetime, while having <\/span>a good, <\/span>competitive, usually <\/span><\/p>\n

jocular <\/span>time.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Dictionaries<\/span><\/a> tell you that bocce is “A game of Italian origin similar <\/span><\/p>\n

to lawn bowling<\/em> that is played with wooden balls on a long narrow <\/span><\/p>\n

court covered with fine gravel.” And the U. S. Bocce Federation<\/a> <\/span><\/p>\n

promotes an “official” brand of bocce played on such courts, with <\/span><\/p>\n

leagues and championships that follow very strict rules. Regulation<\/span><\/p>\n

bocce courts can be found all over the Northeast and wherever there<\/span><\/p>\n

are enclaves of Italo-Americans.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Nonetheless, the Giacalones — and most pisano familes that I <\/span><\/p>\n

know — put the lawn<\/em> back into bocce. We play on grass in <\/span><\/p>\n

backyards or parks, and sometimes on beaches. As the <\/span><\/p>\n

USBF history page<\/a> notes:<\/span><\/p>\n

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“Throughout history innumerable Bocce games have <\/span><\/p>\n

been played in the streets, alleys, squares and country <\/span><\/p>\n

greens of every European country and in North and <\/span><\/p>\n

South America. Lovers of Bocce will play wherever <\/span><\/p>\n

there is adequate space available.”<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"USBFLogoN\"<\/span><\/p>\n

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If you do not already know, I hope you’re curious and are asking, <\/span><\/p>\n

“What is Bocce?” <\/span>The USBF intro<\/a> states:<\/span><\/p>\n

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The purpose of the game is to roll the bocce, a 4- inch <\/span><\/p>\n

ball weighing about three pounds, as close as possible <\/span><\/p>\n

to the pallino, a 1- inch ball which is rolled down the <\/span><\/p>\n

alley first. The bocce coming closest to the pallino scores. <\/span><\/p>\n

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. . . The game requires: good judgement of distance, the <\/span><\/p>\n

ability to size up a situation immediately, a good eye to <\/span><\/p>\n

spot contours and rough spots in the alley, and the proper <\/span><\/p>\n

psychological frame of mind.” <\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

That proper “frame of mind” should include a willingness to play <\/span><\/p>\n

by the rules — while<\/em> complaining that your opponents are cheating <\/span><\/p>\n

— and the ability to enjoy playful razzing and being razzed. Although <\/span><\/p>\n

most of my female friends normally find “male” sarcasm intolerable <\/span><\/p>\n

in all but the smallest doses, they seem to become instant experts <\/span><\/p>\n

in it when playing bocce, giving even better than they get and<\/em> very <\/span><\/p>\n

often winning the game, too. <\/span><\/p>\n

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backyard bocce –<\/span><\/p>\n

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tonight we’re <\/span><\/p>\n

the noisy neighbors<\/span><\/p>\n

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girls against guys — <\/span><\/p>\n

who knew<\/span><\/p>\n

white wine improves your aim?<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/span><\/span>dagosan<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"USBFLogoF\"<\/span><\/p>\n

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Even in parts of the country where winter brings snow, there is still <\/span><\/p>\n

plenty of time for playing bocce. When you <\/span>purchase a set<\/span><\/a>, you’ll<\/span><\/p>\n

only get a copy of the “official rules.” So, I have dug up and posted <\/span><\/p>\n

a copy of my Official Giacalone Family Informal<\/em> Bocce Rules<\/a>. [click<\/span><\/p>\n

on the tab at the lower righthand corner of the document to enlarge it]<\/span><\/p>\n

Although filled with lame attempts at humor, the rules are fairly clearly <\/span><\/p>\n

spelled out.<\/span><\/p>\n

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\"bocci\" When buying a set<\/a>, please don’t get balls <\/span><\/p>\n

smaller <\/span>than 109 mm, unless your kids need the <\/span><\/p>\n

smaller <\/span>ones to fit their little hands. It’s worth the <\/span><\/p>\n

extra <\/span>price to have “real” full-sized balls for the adults.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n<\/blockquote>\n

You may contest my politics or religious beliefs, but I don’t think <\/span><\/p>\n

you’ll disagree with my faith in the healing power of bocce.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"BaciLogo\"<\/a> My Grandpa <\/span>Bart and the other old Italian <\/span>guys often <\/span>said \u201ckissa the palino,\u201d when a bocce ball<\/span> rolled up <\/span>slowly and nestled right up against the<\/span> palino (the small ball that is the target; sometimes called a jack). I did <\/span>not know as a kid, that they were<\/span> making <\/span>a translingual pun \u2014 the Italian word for<\/span> kiss is bacio<\/em>, and the plural is baci<\/a><\/em>.<\/span> Click here<\/a><\/span> for the very romantic story of the first chocolate<\/span> kisses \u2014 Baci from Perugina\/Nestle.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"tiny Sad to say, none of my Honored Guest Poets seems to have<\/span><\/p>\n

written any bocce haiku or senryu. Barry George has, however,<\/span><\/p>\n

penned poems featuring a number of other ball games:<\/span><\/p>\n

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fall twilight–<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

my brother going out<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

long<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

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\n<\/span><\/p>\n


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rainy playground–
\na patch of new grass
\nhides the softball
\n<\/span><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\"quarterback\"<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

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\n<\/span><\/p>\n

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\n<\/span><\/p>\n

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fall’s first chill —<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

the football<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

bounces louder<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

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\n<\/span><\/p>\n

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\n<\/span><\/p>\n

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\n<\/span><\/p>\n

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\n<\/span><\/p>\n

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dribbling a ball<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


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to the rim’s lure–<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

April twilight<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/em> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

by<\/em> <\/span><\/span>Barry George<\/strong><\/span><\/a> from <\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

“fall’s first chill” – <\/span>A New Resonance 2<\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/a>; Haiku Happens 1998<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n


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“fall twilight” – <\/span>A New Resonance 2<\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/a>; Snapshots #8<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n


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“dribbling a ball” – Snapshots #10<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

“<\/span>rainy playground<\/span><\/a>” – tiny words (April 8, 2002)<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/em> <\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n