Freddogg Off The Chain

The summer of 1964, I have just graduated from high school on my way to Temple University on a full basketball scholarship. I am at a center city testing center with my mother. I am eligible for Veterans benefits as the child of a disabled now deceased father who fought World War Two in Seattle. But a battery of tests were required to see if I was college ready. I could have told them I wasn’t even high school ready. I left my best game in third grade.

After all the tests were completed it was some ‘Great Garlu” Test and Measurement Psychologist along with my mother and me sitting down to discuss tests and inventory results.

“Your son has an I.Q. that is way above average which is amazing considering the lack of input of any significant or appropriate information in his life, "the Psychologist said. But I have many concerns. Like here on this study habits and study skills survey. I’ve never seen this before but he doesn’t have any. And it gets worse. He’s never read a book, written a paper, pursued an intellectual interest and yet somehow here he is.”

The he turned to me. “Young man, how did you get here and who do you think you are right now?”
“I am the virtual Tabula Rasa, fresh out of high school, ”I told the guy. “I am the “react to acts” guy. The “response to the stimulus” man. I know nothing. I am the "consequence of the antecedent. The effect of the cause.”

“Whose theory—I interrupted, “John Locke but stolen from Aristotle. I am the blank slate of education. I am the nails being dragged across the black board of formalized knowledge.”

My mother who was brilliant, comedic and a non working nurse, looked at me and asked, ’Who are you? How do you know this stuff?” The she looked back at the perplexed and perspiring psychologist.

“He is telling you the truth about the blank slate stuff but the freighting thing is there is no explanation for the knowledge that he does possess. I have even considered that he is possessed.

I explained: “ Plato said some people just show up having pre existed somewhere in the heavens and come down to reunite with a physical body here on earth, in my case, one that can dunk a basketball. I mean, how lucky am I?

My senior year in high school, myself and another student from my high school, got the only perfect scores in the Philadelphia Area Diocesan Standardized Physics exam. He was on his way to MIT while I was on my way to basketball practice.

I was yanked into an office and there was the physics priest, a monsignor from Philly and the basketball coach who was about to lose his best player.

“Mr. Frederick. I am going to ask you two questions and if you answer no to the first one and satisfactorily answer the second you can go.”

I knew these amateurs had no business in my league and there was no fear in my personality because I am a person who is not afraid to lose.

“Did you cheat of the Physics midterm?” The cheater of course responds in predictable fashion.

“No!”

“Then perhaps you could give us all a working definition of kinetic energy?”

“It’s minute particles of matter in motion. Can I go now?”

I walked out the door and down the hall, looked up towards the heavens and said, ”Thanks Plato. Thank You God!”

Peace Freddogg