The OFFICIAL Unofficial Achewood Message Board
Trivial Pursuits => Sports & Leisure => Topic started by: Asherdan on May 02, 2006, 08:08:35 pm
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Awesome and lovely.
I was born with a 47 degree curve in my spine between T12 and L4 (this is why I'm not a Navy officer right now) but I played what I could even though there were all kind of reasons why I was clumsy, ran kind of funny and usually have pain. Nowadays, it's mostly the pain. The rest of the guys slowed down too.
I love playing sortball and paddling now. It's great to be out there and work toward accomplishing something with the guys, and occasionally have an opportunity to suceed on your own. It hurts and I love it.
The greatest thing about loving sports and being a dad is being able to share all kinds of experiences with your kids. I am totally looking forward to coaching soccer this fall for my 7 year-old. Of all the ways to bond with kids, the combination of playing and teaching, and learning and accomplishing you get with sports makes that the best way to me. I know Ash is an all-star dad, and I'll bet he finds this true too.
The other lesson I take from Ash's story is that it's important not to carry around regrets, especially what-might-have-been type regrets. You play the hand you got, (and if you're like me, you bluff a fair deal and get away with it)(most of the time) and with a combination of skill and luck you'll walk away from the table ahead.
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So what grabs you guys about sports, and if they just don’t, can you relate that ‘in the zone’ bit to anything applicable in your life?
‘Cause the lessons on preparation, dedication, confidence and performance I took outta sports have given as much if not more in life to me than sports did.
I've never been big on team sports (watching or playing), and I'm still not, but I get the same experience from the solitary challenge kind of things. A friend of mine signed on to train for a marathon a couple years ago (the Arthritis Society thing where they cover all the training and travel if you raise $5000 for them). She was definitely not someone who I had thought of as being much of a jock at all, so she really inspired me. I signed up for a half marathon, and in less than four months of training (I just looked up a training schedule on the internet) I managed to finish it in 2:30:30. I am not exaggerating in any way when I say I don't have an athletic background. I was the fat kid with smoking parents, and I got so short of breath whenever I exerted myself as a child they thought I might have asthma. I got sick of that situation in my early teens and walked a lot of the weight off, but I never got into cardio very heavily. When I started running, I couldn't keep it up for 10 minutes straight, but the structured training had me running for 2 1/2 hours very quickly (I was 27 when I started this). After a brief lag, I'm back into it, and will have done 3 more in this year by the end of June (next one's this Sunday!), aiming for a 2 hour finish. Watching the steady progress is pretty addictive, and it's only a matter of time before I commit to a full marathon.
When I was young, I got the impression that some people were just good at things and some weren't, and if you weren't you may as well not even bother. I never developed enough of an appreciation for how much one can improve some aspect of one's self with simple, regular training, clear and reachable goals, and well-laid plans. While so far I've mostly only applied this to other physical things (diet and strength goals), a few numerical goals have helped me stick with my unfortunate thesis and actually believe I'm making progress on it. I definitely have a greater sense of control now, less resignation. Also, medals! Yay! They give you a medal just for finishing it, I like that.
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dang.
everything in the world, right now, is telling me to start appreciating baseball. it is calling me.
did you hear about the catcher for the Bo'Sox who made it to the game at the last second? They needed him because their current catcher couldn't catch knuckleballs, apparently, and so he landed, jumped in a police cruiser which raced him to Fenway with the siren going. He sprinted out, and made it into the dugout just as the game started.
I used to run, but I am so bad at it. I think I need to build up some muscle, eat better, etc. I am basically the prototypical scrawny nerd-- and while this is gaining acceptance because of scrawny indie kids, it isn't really what I want to be my defining characteristic.
Goal for the summer: be a skinny indie kid with a near-average level of muscle.
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I was a baddass catcher in little league cause I was able to actually catch the ball, and the other catcher would just drop it all the time.
Man, there were so many passed balls, it was basically crazy.
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did you hear about the catcher for the Bo'Sox who made it to the game at the last second? They needed him because their current catcher couldn't catch knuckleballs, apparently, and so he landed, jumped in a police cruiser which raced him to Fenway with the siren going. He sprinted out, and made it into the dugout just as the game started.
I used to run, but I am so bad at it. I think I need to build up some muscle, eat better, etc. I am basically the prototypical scrawny nerd-- and while this is gaining acceptance because of scrawny indie kids, it isn't really what I want to be my defining characteristic.
Goal for the summer: be a skinny indie kid with a near-average level of muscle.
Tim Wakefield is still pitching? What is he, like, 50?
I am basically the prototypical scrawny nerd-- and while this is gaining acceptance because of scrawny indie kids, it isn't really what I want to be my defining characteristic.
We used to call that "Heroin Chic".
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but... but... no!
no!
I would say it's more "sad/awkward boys who write songs about girls not liking them chic"
at least, I hope my friends do not all think I am on heroin.
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Great story, Ash. Sounds like you got all of the good stuff you could possibly get out of such an experience. I'm a bit jealous, tell the truth.
Swinehund, I totally agree with everything you say. Hated sports, never thought I was good at them, so didn't try too much (well, that's a lie, I beat myself up pretty badly when I was in about the 6th grade for sucking - though not enough to really practice).
Unfortunately, I've got some weird problem with my calves now. I was hoping to run the peachtree road race this summer, but I can't do much more than a mile without my calves cramping up and hurting for days. Any sports people know anything about that? Do I just need a new pair of shoes? I've been icing them and working on my form for months, and it just doesn't go away.
The Inevitable - Join your local Y, go and lift 3 times a week, and watch the guys (or gals) who seem to know what they're doing and copy them. They'll probably be more than happy to help you out, too. Go high weight, low reps, and lift to exhaustion (meaning you use enough weight to do 8 reps but not 9, then rest for a minute and do that 2 more times). Don't cheat and try to lift anything using your back if you're not supposed to use your back. Don't hog the equipment. You'll hurt like hell for a week, and then you'll feel awesome. God I love weightlifting.
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Tim Wakefield is still pitching? What is he, like, 50?
He just won last night. 2-4, but his ERA is good.
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For the longest time, "Sports" was me and my friends getting on our skateboards and luging down hills covered in broken glass and unidentifiable needles (well, there was glass anyway) because none of us could actually do any tricks. Ocassionally this activity was supplemented by a few half-assed attempts to recreate "Calvinball", but that didn't work too well.
Ah them good ol' days.
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Unfortunately, I've got some weird problem with my calves now. I was hoping to run the peachtree road race this summer, but I can't do much more than a mile without my calves cramping up and hurting for days. Any sports people know anything about that? Do I just need a new pair of shoes? I've been icing them and working on my form for months, and it just doesn't go away.
Proper shoes are very important, but you might have something else wrong. I am not a physiologist of any sort, I don't know. If you haven't already, go to a specialized running store (bring old shoes that you've run or at least walked in a lot), and they should be able to fit you for something that works with your gait. They should make you run down the block or something in them while they watch.
If you've already been through that and are concerned enough, a physiotherapist or RMT person should be able to help. I had all sorts of weird aches spring up and clear up (mostly hip-knee-top of foot which all seems connected), but they're mostly gone now.
You may also find that lying on a tennis ball helps (wiggle around until it's right under the spot that hurts most, sit for a minute).
Also theinevitable: don't overlook the simple power of plenty of push-ups and chin-ups. Bars to install in the doorway are pretty cheap, and together those will work most of your upper body muscles. Throw in handstand pushups (against a wall) for awesome shoulders, start with just the handstand if necessary.
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The Inevitable - Join your local Y, go and lift 3 times a week, and watch the guys (or gals) who seem to know what they're doing and copy them. They'll probably be more than happy to help you out, too. Go high weight, low reps, and lift to exhaustion (meaning you use enough weight to do 8 reps but not 9, then rest for a minute and do that 2 more times). Don't cheat and try to lift anything using your back if you're not supposed to use your back. Don't hog the equipment. You'll hurt like hell for a week, and then you'll feel awesome. God I love weightlifting.
Hi reps, low weight for tone
Low reps and high weight for bulk
Also, do not neglect the cardio portion of your workout. Circuit training is a good way to go if you can get into a class.
Mite, if you are running mostly on roads, try some path running and see if that makes much of a difference. I agree that you should for sure make sure you have good fitting shoes as well. If your insurance covers it (mine does) you might even get some orthotics made that help keep your ankes for rolling in or out. The wear on your shoes should tell you if you are pronating very much. Most people do.
Make sure you have enough potassium too, low potassium is what gives a lot of people leg cramps, especially at night. Eat a banana before you work out.
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See, I dunno, I don't know the workings of your life and experiences but... simply having your name down in some record book somewhere as having played pro ball, that's... that's a tell-your-grandkids kinda thing to me.
But I grew up addicted to minor league baseball (as I've laid out at great length) both in Little Falls and in Utica and... I grew up a half hour north of Cooperstown as well so the whole "legend" of even getting to play a half inning in the outfield of the Appilachian League as a Huge Accomplishment... I just can't get the idea out of my head.
It just seems so awesome. Suffice to say, a series of strange growth spurts in my teens rendered me completely unathletic, even if I was occasionally begged to be a football linebacker (but the coach was a child molester and I'd rather write for the school paper anyway) or the tall guy who stands under the basket, gets rebounds and doesn't run much.
My current equivalent dream in my life right now would be making a song that got decent play on Dr. Demento but... that only bespeaks how far down the nerdhole I've fallen.
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Thank you for the story Ash. I'm happy you've made it to a place where you aren't consumed with regrets. I'll bet those kids eyes really light up when you blaze a speedball in there. I pick you for my side when we have the great TOUAMB softball match at TOUAMBcon '07.
~Paul
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I can see it now:
"you got Ash? Fine! You have to take theinevitable, too!"
"oh come on man, seriously? I don't want him."
"yeah dude. OK fine, you can play one man short, if you'd rather do that."
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I'll play deep right field, just like when I was the only girl in little league! I had little to do put pick dandelions, and that was fine with me.
*Envisions Touambies in the uniforms designed by Buddy in that kids in the hall sketch, shudders*
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Oh man.. teams?
I'll just be.. uh.. I'll be in the refreshment booth.. serving drinks... laced with drugs.
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Football was great, I got to play on TV (Cable, really) in places like Auburn, Pittsburgh, Arizona, Cal, Arkansas, Tennessee, Hawaii.
What year would this have been? I might have been at that game in Auburn*.
Though I never played sports at all, and in fact hated them almost through high school, I know exactly that feeling you speak of when things are just working. It's even better when you get that feeling along with someone else and suddenly you feel like you're on this plane together and you're unstoppable. I imagine that the better offensive and defensive lines feel like this quite a bit.
*I hope you didn't play for Fresno State if this is true.
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I'll play deep right field, just like when I was the only girl in little league! I had little to do put pick dandelions, and that was fine with me.
I'll fight you for it. (You'll probably win; I am tiny, and you mentioned that you enjoy weightlifting.)
But, yes, I played softball for five years. Clearly this is why I dig both ladies and fellows, and attend a single-sex school. I shudder to think what would have happened if I had stuck with the sport!
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'89 and we got whacked badly. I think Auburn finished in the top 5 that year and we...didn't. I sacked Reggie Slack once and pressured him into a pick another time, also stuffed James Joseph for a two yard loss on the goal line, so it was fun for me personally.
That was before my time, though my sister was in school then. I know those names. Just feel glad that you weren't on the Fresno State team that played the first home game I was there for a few years later -- they were beaten 63-3. By the end even the student section kind of felt bad about cheering.
We were in the first home game after the stadium remodel and expansion to ~93k seats. It was neat to play there 'cause the house was packed. We had to land in Atlanta and bus 2 hrs. down to a Best Western hotel. Seemed like there was nothing out there but trees and red clay ponds, until we bussed into the stadium on game day and the parking lot was a sea of campers and RV's, all flag draped with people standing on 'em, every one with a beverage in one hand and the other making a rude gesture at us while they all screamed. It was no different in the house, little kids ran down to the endzone to mock us during warmups and tell us what wussies we were. During the game the fans would get so spun up the place would throb with sound. It was really cool when you'd do something like I mentioned above and the whole place would go ssshhhhhh for a beat or two before winding up again.
God damn. EXACTLY. That is EXACTLY what I miss about gamedays. Those campers and RVs would start getting to campus for the "prime" spots on Wednesday, and we'd walk through retirees and vacationers cooking out on our way to and from class. A thousand grills cooking a thousand meals after the game, because the smart people knew better than to try to drive anywhere. The energy people had on any given game day... it was palpable. Wow.
And yeah, because the college came before the interstate and the major roads leading to it, those roads almost by definition bypass anything interesting. I think there's a Wal-Mart and a car dealership there now, which kind of proves that point.
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You know my ex boss, not the mullethead one, the other one, the engineer that called me incompetent (http://touamb.com/index.php/topic,2264.msg47789.html#msg47789). The one that thinks Texas isn't in the south. Yeah, that one, she went to Auburn. She was especially insufferable when they won a couple of years ago. I developed a deep seated hatred of Auburn because of that fuck*ng cunt.
Also, aside from my bitching and moaning, that was a pretty cool thread. We got to meet the Inevitible.
~Paul
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yeah, I remember being so confused. so confused.
swinehund-- I'm glad that you clarified with "against the wall."At first reading, I became slightly worried that maybe it wasn't normal that I couldn't do a handstand.
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Oh man.. teams?
I'll just be.. uh.. I'll be in the refreshment booth.. serving drinks... laced with drugs.
yeah um can I help?
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Sure.. you can handle the drinks... I'll take the drugs.
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swinehund-- I'm glad that you clarified with "against the wall."At first reading, I became slightly worried that maybe it wasn't normal that I couldn't do a handstand.
I think it's normal. At least, I hope so. I just figured out how to do them last week, in the hallway (having a second wall close by is very helpful).
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I am For Real imagining someone kind of bouncing back and forth, upside down, in a hallway. After a few minutes of loud thumping noises-- "*pant pant* Honey, come here! look! *thump* Damnit!"
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I am For Real imagining someone kind of bouncing back and forth, upside down, in a hallway. After a few minutes of loud thumping noises-- "*pant pant* Honey, come here! look! *thump* Damnit!"
I don't know where you planted that hidden camera, but I want it out of my apartment NOW.
You... didn't see any of that swiss ball stuff, did you?
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those are those things for working out, right?
I don't know. I'll check the tapes later.
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Sure.. you can handle the drinks... I'll take the drugs.
Quit taking all the drugs!
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those are those things for working out, right?
I don't know. I'll check the tapes later.
Yes, for working out. Definitely for working out.
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yeah, I initially thought "sex? maybe for sex?" but I can't really think of a way to do that that wouldn't be really precarious and a bad idea. unless you're one of those people who gets off on either:
-the apprehension of hitting your head on a hardwood floor, while having sex
-the act of hitting your head on a hardwood floor, while having sex
-hitting someone's head on a hardwood floor, while having sex.
also: my official plan is currently pushups. that seems to be a good place to start. I did as many as I could yesterday, and I'm going to add 1 a day. I figure it's a modest goal, and one that I will be able to meet every day. Maybe even if I'm feeling good, I'll add more than 1.
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yeah, I initially thought "sex? maybe for sex?" but I can't really think of a way to do that that wouldn't be really precarious and a bad idea. unless you're one of those people who gets off on either:
-the apprehension of hitting your head on a hardwood floor, while having sex
-the act of hitting your head on a hardwood floor, while having sex
-hitting someone's head on a hardwood floor, while having sex.
also: my official plan is currently pushups. that seems to be a good place to start. I did as many as I could yesterday, and I'm going to add 1 a day. I figure it's a modest goal, and one that I will be able to meet every day. Maybe even if I'm feeling good, I'll add more than 1.
Okay honestly it's that we have a really oversized ball, and I once did a full backwards tumble off of it, knocked the coffee table over etc. Of course we tried it for sex, but it's just too ridiculous (and we even have carpet).
You should see some progress if you stick to that. Sticking to it is the main thing, but also the hardest thing.
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'89 and we got whacked badly. I think Auburn finished in the top 5 that year and we...didn't. I sacked Reggie Slack once and pressured him into a pick another time, also stuffed James Joseph for a two yard loss on the goal line, so it was fun for me personally.
We were in the first home game after the stadium remodel and expansion to ~93k seats. It was neat to play there 'cause the house was packed. We had to land in Atlanta and bus 2 hrs. down to a Best Western hotel. Seemed like there was nothing out there but trees and red clay ponds, until we bussed into the stadium on game day and the parking lot was a sea of campers and RV's, all flag draped with people standing on 'em, every one with a beverage in one hand and the other making a rude gesture at us while they all screamed. It was no different in the house, little kids ran down to the endzone to mock us during warmups and tell us what wussies we were. During the game the fans would get so spun up the place would throb with sound. It was really cool when you'd do something like I mentioned above and the whole place would go ssshhhhhh for a beat or two before winding up again.
I'm not sure if this means you played against Frank Thomas or not (!!!!)