The Tender Bar

Moehringer begins Chapter 32 by recounting how his Uncle Charlie, after losing his girlfriend, Pat, to cancer, gambled more recklessly and had an air of carelessness about him. Even after he was arrested and interrogated for the names of his various associates in the mob, Uncle Charlie did not waver. While Moehringer felt great pride in his uncle’s resolve, he privately was concerned for him. He knew he was tens of thousands of dollars in debt due to his constant gambling on sports games and his penchant for betting on the underdogs.

Moehringer explains that, while all sports were a subject of great interest at the bar, boxing was the most sacred and the most discussed. The men at the bar watched the Leonard versus Hagler boxing match and were overjoyed when Leonard, whom Uncle Charlie had betted on, won. Moehringer, now in his early twenties, moved out of his grandfather’s house and into his own small Manhasset apartment located above a diner. Moehringer writes about his first crush since dating Sidney. He pursued an equally aloof “copygirl” who also worked for the Times. To prepare for their date at a museum, Moehringer studiously read everything he could about the exhibition, only to find that his date was unimpressed with his bookish showing off and ended the date early.