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Berger’s Burg: Real, live Super Bowl ring visited Whitestone


I am sorry for myself. I am sorry for all the other grieving fans. And, in particular, I…

By Alex Berger

I was very disappointed when my beloved New York Football Giants failed to win the Super Bowl on Jan. 28. It has taken me all this time for my handkerchiefs to dry.

I am sorry for myself. I am sorry for all the other grieving fans. And, in particular, I am sorry for the gallant Giants players who won’t be getting Super Bowl rings. And to think, the Baltimore Ravens will all receive the much-treasured and coveted Super Bowl rings. Ugh! This is like giving Saddam Hussein the keys to the executive bathroom at the Times-Ledger.

Many of you probably have seen pictures, or read about, the renowned Super Bowl rings — those glittering, golden, circular pieces of metal that adorn the fingers of the victorious Super Bowl players. Although my Giants won’t be sporting them this year, did you know that one special and wondrous bejeweled Super Bowl ring once made a brief stopover in Whitestone? Yes, Whitestone.

The story began several years ago, when a Whitestone resident (me) was busy pulling his hair out trying to figure out how he was going to pay the college expenses for his high-school senior son, Jon, who would be college-bound the following year. Between strands of falling hair, this particular Whitestone resident was approached by that very same college-bound son who said, “Dad, I got a summer job in the New York Giants training camp in Pleasantville as a crowd-control guard. You are a great Giants fan, so come visit me as often as possible.”

Naturally, I was thrilled. My own flesh and blood working for my favorite football team! But why couldn’t he have been a tight-end instead? Hey, don’t complain, I kept telling myself. After all, two wallets contributing to Jon’s college expenses gotta be better than one slim one.

Well, Jon did work that summer and I did visit many times, and, at summer's end, Jon was off to college to study computer science.

“Dad, the Giants offered me a college internship. It involves working in public relations and it is a great opportunity for me. What do you think?” Jon inquired.

“That’s fine, son,” I answered, but I secretly was still preferring that he be a tight-end instead.

“Dad, now that I have graduated from college, the Giants want me to set up a computer program for them. They knew that their arch-enemy, the Dallas Cowboys, had already set up a sophisticated system and the Giants don’t want to be left behind.”

“That’s wonderful, Son,” I replied, inwardly thinking that a silly-old computer could never replace a good tight-end for the Giants.

“Dad, only the players and coaches get Super Bowl rings,” Jon told me in 1986, following the Giants’ victory in Super Bowl XXI. I knew that. No one is going to give a Super Bowl ring to a computer.

“Dad, I am getting a Super Bowl ring this time,” gushed Jon, my now-married son who was living in Staten Island. “They said that I was an important member of the team and my computer helped win Super Bowl XXV in 1990.”

A Super Bowl ring! A Super Bowl ring! This is really heaven without dying, I thought as I kept pinching my unbelieving self. I yelled to Gloria who was busy in the kitchen preparing dinner: “Drop your apron and grab your coat, my Love. We are going out to celebrate Jon’s Super Bowl ring.”

“Dad, I just got my ring and I am coming over to show it to you,” my son told me on the phone. My heart would not stop pounding.

An eternity later, the doorbell finally rang. There it was — tenderly hugging and gently embracing Jon’s finger. It was a gorgeous mix of jewels and gold and I stared at it in complete admiration for several minutes, drinking it in. I never thought I would ever see the day when a Super Bowl ring visited Whitestone.

“I am proud of you, Jon,” I said. “You convinced me. A computer is worth more than two tight-ends.”

Earthy Gloria then chimed in, “Yes, but can your computer get me a grandchild?”

Let’s compare: Jon’s Super Bowl ring — a l0-karat gold band with a value of more than $8,000, containing 16 diamonds and two marquis diamond footballs. The gold band has an image of Giants Stadium. There’s the final Super Bowl XXV score (20-19), and Jon’s name on it. The ring weighs 32 pennyweight.

Grandchildren — They come in shades of blue for a boy and shades of pink for a girl. They usually weigh between 6 and 8 pounds in childweight. Their eyes are diamonds, their teeth (when they pop in) are pearls, and their love is 24K pure gold. A grandchild is delivered with an estimated value greater than all the wealth in the world.

Yes, Jon and his wife, Alicia, finally presented us with a pair of grandchildren – Justin, a blue-shaded one in 1994 and Keri, a pink-shaded one, in 1999.

Do you know, I think that I like them better than the Super Bowl ring.