Bob Varettoni

My 2025 in images and haikus: varettoni.blogspot.com/2025/12/one-ye…

Where was I in the 90s? Working for Verizon (or Nynex or Bell Atlantic) and helping to raise two young daughters ♥️ Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. nytimes.com/2026/03/18/art…

Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. nytimes.com/2026/03/19/boo…

Local headline 🙂 N.J. family shoe store ends 43-year run, but leaves behind lasting local footprint nj.com/bergen/2026/03…

"Hello everybody and welcome to Shea Stadium in New York. I’m Lindsey Nelson." "We were going to be televising 120 games in color. Lindsey Nelson eyed a men’s clothing store on Broadway. 'Show me all the jackets that you can’t sell', he told the owner, buying seven “gaudy, awful” coats. The next month a cabbie said: 'You’re the guy who wears all those wild jackets on TV!' Lindsey told a friend, “See, he doesn’t know my name, but he knows what I do. Against the Yankees, it pays to advertise.” His radio/TV mates often scavenged jackets on the road, with Bob Murphy saying: “If we saw a wild enough jacket, we’d tell him.” Nelson claimed he owned 335 of the multi colored jackets. Once Lindsey`s oldest daughter Nancy bought a jacket in Ireland. Both were stopped at customs. The customs inspector, a Mets fan, joked: “Nobody would wear a jacket like this.” Nancy beamed: “My Daddy will.” Lindsey Nelson was the announcer during the first NFL game to feature the use of "instant replay", which Lindsey had to explain repeatedly during the game, reminding viewers that "This is not live." "He had no tolerance for mistakes. I don't think he was late once in his whole life." Bob Murphy. "He was tremendous guy, we were very close. It was more or less like family." Ralph Kiner. "The game is the important thing. The announcer should never get in the way of the game." Lindsey Nelson. Nelson, Murphy, Kiner.

Some collected poems on #worldpoetryday varettoni.blogspot.com/2026/02/my-deb…

From Edward R. Murrow’s broadcasts to today, CBS News Radio has been part of the foundation of American journalism. Murrow’s mic sits on display at the National Press Club as a reminder of that legacy. When an institution like that disappears, it’s a loss for the public & for journalism.

RIP CBS News Radio.

Recent book reviews posted on my blog: varettoni.blogspot.com/2026/03/10-cra…

3/9/1963 Ruth Roberts and Bill Katz release "Meet the Mets” as the official theme song of the Mets.

Random recent scenes. Greetings from New Jersey.

@Joseph_Fasano_ (hi)

I need to find my people again in this place—and a reason to stay and keep doing what I do. If you love poetry, resist fascism & hatred, believe in education, and just generally value tenderness and empathy and love, can you say hi? I need to get this algorithm straightened out.

Join me for the first episode of All Good Things on The Catholic Channel, SiriusXM tomorrow. We’ll talk about faith, daily life, and how to find God in the ordinary. Every Tuesday at 2:00 PM ET. I hope you’ll tune in.

@texasex9 So jealous!

@bvar Hope you're safe and warm. It's going to be 87 degrees here today.

View from the new pedestrian bridge over the Great Falls #TikTok tiktok.com/t/ZP8xh5GKj/

Hello again! Here's our piece from Sunday about Twitter. Bye! youtube.com/watch?v=p7ZG_x…

Good afternoon, New Jersey. A Cooper's Hawk snagged a meal at the bird feeders as today's snowstorm began.

The walk to the bus… and the view on the ride home

“Retirement Plan” (2026 Oscar Nominee) | The New Yorker youtu.be/2Mqa4zfJdx4?si… via @YouTube - This is very sweet.

I just published "Why Do You Write?" via @Medium medium.com/p/why-do-you-w…

Lost in New Jersey (@bvar): My Debut as a 'Featured Poet' varettoni.blogspot.com/2026/02/my-deb… A nice selection of poems. E.g.: