Booing is bought and paid for, but it doesn’t mean it’s always right. 

Whoever coined the phrase, “you never forget your first time,” was both a prophet and a genius.

That cliche certainly describes how l felt back in 1969 when attending Indiana Pacers games at the Fairgrounds Coliseum with my wonderful mother who was, without question, a rabid fan.

She’d take her hard-earned money from her job at the now defunct L.S. Ayres department store and buy us two tickets to watch some of the hoops being played locally in the upstart ABA, before capacity crowds that were both enthusiastic and loud.

She was a hard-working woman from a blue-collar background and, while she loved being in attendance, there was no doubt about her ability to communicate with both the opposition as well as those officiating the contests.

I should point out that this was a woman who was