As a young guy in Chicago, I played pool about 12-14 hours a day. I liked to play in different pool rooms, on both the North and South sides. I once entered a small room containing only three tables. The canvas awning over the window said, "Omar's Style Salon." I guess it was once a hair processing parlor. Anyway, it turns out I was the only white guy in the place...maybe the only white guy within five miles. Well, I sat on a stool and watched games in progress and trying to identifiy someone whose aquaintence I should make. As the only white guy, I naturally was an object of curiousity. I withstood the stares and glances of the other patrons. I was a little frightened, but knew I could not show fear, so I just stood my ground and focused on pool. Finally, a guy asked me to shoot some nine ball with him and the tension immediately eased.

Having survived this initial experience, I added "Omar's" to my list of places I would go from time-to-time. After a while, I became one of the guys and they called me White Willie, to distinguish me from other Willies I guess.

My screen name, Willieboy, is a derivative of White Willie.