[BillyMac]

Forty years, never did this.

I toss jump ball to start game. Something felt unsettling, didn't feel quite right, about the toss, but I can't figure it out, so play on. Ten seconds later a foul occurs, I came up with my fist to only then discover I had no whistle. Left it in my jacket pocket at the table. Figured out what was unsettling about the toss, I didn't sound a whistle. Partner bailed me out with a very late whistle.

Luckily, after a loose ball, we had a turned around wrong way shooter to start the second half (who missed), so I wasn't alone in doing something truly embarrassing in the game. Misery loves company.

With no whistle, I once had to delay a jump ball to get a site director to open the locked locker room door so that I could get a whistle. And, of course, it was long walk.

I once started a second half with no whistle in my mouth due to discussing something with a polite coach during my partner's throwin administration (as the umpire, right in front of the coach), only discovering such seconds later when I tried to make an out of bounds call without a whistle in my mouth, also bailed out by my partner before I could get the whistle back in my mouth where it belonged.

But I've never started play without a whistle on my person.

Now, where are my car keys?