The Tender Bar

Moehringer begins Chapter 35 by reflecting on reuniting with his cousin McGraw, who had moved to Nebraska to pursue a professional baseball career. McGraw now physically dwarfed Moehringer, which startled Moehringer, since he regarded himself as McGraw’s elder brother.

He was soon after noticed by an editor who gave him the opportunity to begin writing small columns on local incidents. Moehringer explains that while he did not want to admit that the bar could be a distraction to him, he forbade himself from visiting it during his trial month writing for the times, dedicating himself to his work instead. Moehringer found that by focusing on telling the truth and not worrying how it would sound, he greatly improved his writing and attracted the attention of a top editor at the Times. He also recalls a painful mistake he made when reporting the shooting death of an elderly man by the police in which he spelled the man’s name incorrectly in his article. Moehringer remembers being consumed with guilt and self-loathing for his mistake and its effect on the victim’s family.

While still self-conscious about his work, he felt his confidence growing and hoped that soon he would be making enough money to support his mother and her dream of going to college.