Fans

But my little girl wants to come watch me play softball tonight. That's kind of cool to have her tag along. It'll be fun to show her that her old man's not half bad even if he's not what he once was, you know?

She's in her 2nd year playing and has been progressing leaps and bounds. She's one of the better ones on the team, knows it, yet wants to practice to get even better so I'm helping her with that. She's even slightly interested in watching baseball on TV to learn more about it.

At least the weather's spectacular. Wish me luck.

Hang it Up?

Softball begins tomorrow night. I think for the first time in my life I'm not looking forward to it in the slightest. I know they're going to want me to play outfield and, frankly, my old bones and muscles can't do it anymore. Yet, I seem to be the best option they have.

My mind still harkens back to playing tournament level games where I wasn't sure I belonged and marveled at the talent levels of those around me. In retrospect, I must have belonged because I was asked to play by the team owners and its not like they didn't have choices. For the most part I played quite well. I've also played for many local, talented teams who've gone on to the championship.

Now I'm jaded. I sit and marvel at the inablility of my teamates and their general lack of baseball knowledge as a whole. I've tried ahrd and adapted a bit over the years and try to make it more fun than competitive yet I'm getting to the point where I don't feel I can be competitive. I even fear embarrassing myself out there.

I know I can't do what I could or really even come close to it. I really want to be the guy the team can depend on and I feel I have been to this point. But I'm not sure I can be in the future. Hell, I was sore after practicing with my daughter on Sunday. Practicing!

I'll be 45 this year. I've said it before but have yet to follow through on it, but I think after this year I'm done.

You Give Me Fever

Temperatures today are in the mid 40's with even warmer forecast through the weekend. Spring fever's running rampant and its all anyone can talk about. We're down to about two feet of standing snow now. Perhaps I will be golfing by Memorial Day afterall.

And I also recently received softball league information.

I Still Suck

I still suck.

In the cold, windy rain I shot 47 last night and got beat 6 1/2 to 2 1/2. I'm pretty embarrassed by my play now.

Oh well, softball starts tomorrow night.

I'm Still Here!

I've been popping in but haven't been posting much. I look at my blog and say to myself "boring!". I look at my very limited readership and say "Yep! Boring other too". So when I get an idea to blog, which seems rare lately, there's not the fire to do so.

Anyway, I've been busy. Working my two jobs. Moving the Little One's bedroom and helping make her older, smaller one, into a craft room for Mrs. N.

I went to Connecticut's other casino with Mrs. N. Wednesday as we both took the day off and The Little One spent the day with her Grammy. Mrs. N. won $70 or so. I lost about $240. We had a good time though.

I've been playing decent golf and have joined a Tuesday night golf league. Softball's around the corner too, but I'm winding down to just one team I think.

Oh, I have 4 yards of mulch to move and place this weekend but the weather will be in the 80's so it will be nice to be outside.

That's all for now. Ta ta!

Dirty Words, Sports and Beer

I need more cool words or dirty words or whatever. It seems my most common hit parameters are "funny movie quotes".

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I went to two parties over the long weekend. One I couldn't have much fun for two reasons: it was wife's work friends so it was all talk about their job, people at their job, bosses at their job, etc. (*yawn*). The second reason: I had to work at the casino that night so I couldn't drink more than a couple beers which may have made reason one more tolerable. Having said that, they were all very nice, pleasant people.

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The second party was more fun if not for the mere fact that not one, not two but three people went headfirst into the sliding door screen with one particular woman blasting clear through it in front of 10 or 15 people. That was good for a laugh since she and the screen were fine.

It was a long day of partying but the company was great, I ate like a total pig and I thought I was particularly funny, if I do say so myself.

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On Sunday I hooked up with my buddy and his friend for a round of golf that was an absolute blast! They are the best company one could ever hope for and we had so many laughs we stuck around waiting for the ranger to clear so we could sneak out for an extra nine holes, making 27 total.

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Softball season is winding down. My "main" team is not playing well at all. Our defense is horrible and our hitting is suspect. We are 2 and 10 with two games remaining. I'm so frustrated that I'm seriously considering not playing next year. I know, though, that come April I'll be changing my mind.

My co-ed team, the one that won it all last year, is 5 and 3 and sitting firm in second place. We have beaten the three best teams and lost to two of the worst. Apparently, we play to the level of our competition. Despite for a hamstring pull, resulting in me playing infield for a few games, I've played pretty well for both teams, so personally its going okay, but my competitiveness wants more to be more competitive.

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My golf game you ask? Shitty! I'm not playing much and when I do I can't stay away from the big numbers on 1 or 2 holes. I've shot 39 and 41 for nine holes recently, but that's about all I can hang my hat on on that front. I've had way more than my share of 48, 49's and 50's. Ugh!

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Otherwise, not too much going on and that's why my blog sucks and I need to insert more dirty words. Boobs, penis, panties, ass, sex........hmmmmmm......maybe that's not such a good idea.....

We Will - We Will - Rock You!

....thump, thump, crash.....thump, thump crash.....thump, thump, crash.....

My "other" softball league team won the championship game last night, 6 to 3. Yours truly had a good game in left field and hit ok to help the cause. Afterwards, there was a champagne spraying moment at the field. I've won championships before, but never got doused in champagne before. Unfortunately, it was purple Cold Duck and some of our fans may need to be reimbursed for dry cleaning bills. D'oh!

Also, some on the team saw fit to celebrate by drinking a few Mohitos in the pub afterwards. I don't know, but that just doesn't seem very "championship" to me. Beer does. Tequila does. But a drink with leaves in it? Probably not. I won't hold it against them. How can "thong guy" be judgmental of that, right? Of course, I haven't made them privy to that little story.

....there's no time for losers, cuz we are the champions......of the world!!!!

4 to 3

I played softball back-to-back nights on my gimpy knee and my primary team played quite well in the playoffs after a less than stellar regular season. My other team begins the playoffs tomorrow night, but since I'm so new there I don't feel the bond I have with my "main" team. And I don't think I ever will.

But, it came to an end last night in a 4 to 3 loss. That is an incredibly low score for two reasonably talented teams, especially if our 13.8 runs per game average is taken into account. We played pretty good defense but lost to a younger, stronger, faster and, to be frank, better team. No shame in that. We went down fighting but were left in the field as they scored the winning run in the bottom of the seventh.

I get a bit sad when softball ends. April of next year seems so, so far away and since I'm 40 now the number of seasons left in me are finite. I've known most these guys for 15 to 20 years but our bond is primarily softball. We all have families and work and other commitments so I only see about 3 or 4 of them socially for a round of golf or something.

Even with my bad knee for the past 5 weeks or so, I only missed the one game after I had it drained and played when I perhaps shouldn't have. There's a certain camaraderie in the trenches of softball and I never want to be the guy to let my team down. But we lost. I could have played better too.

Aside from that, though, every year as I leave that park that last night in defeat, it hits me how much I'll miss the competition. How I'll miss the dirt, the smell of the grass, the badgering, the insults, the sweat, the action, the lights, the ping of a bat, the snap of a glove, the post-game beers, the stories, the bullshit and Sox games on the radio.

Its more than the game to us. Its about "the guys". We fight. We bicker. But in the end, we're a team. Not much unlike family.

I'll miss the guys.

Ouch!

Well, my knee was about 90% healed and I went and thought it'd be a good idea to dive for a ball in the outfield. It IS the playoffs afterall. Well, bad idea.



It didn't hurt much at the time or really affect me the rest of the game. I even awoke the next morning to nothing more than some discomfort. But as the day wore on the swelling increased as did my pain to the point where the pressure was unbearable.



At about midnight, Thursday, I went to the hospital. This time I had to sit a bit and I was dying in pain. I simply could not get comfortable. Eventually I got the doctor's attention (so not my style) and they gave me some Percocet. Wooooeeeee! That shit works!



It didn't kick in, however, until AFTER the Xrays which were devastatingly painful. There's no break and no real damage. Just swelling. So they drained me. Anyone who's had to have a fingernail drained knows the relief of that feeling. Pain went from a 10 to a 3. Night and day. Thank God!



I'm recovering quickly but think my softball year might be over.



Here's a view right before they drained me. I'm not sure it does it justice.

The New Guy

I had my first softball game last night where I am the "new guy" on the team.

Normally, I like to play for two teams but one of my teams from last year disbanded so I hooked up with this one through my brother-in-law. Team T2 we're called. I'm not sure what it means. I don't really care either.

Of course, since I'm a know-it-all about baseball, I feel the guy running the team isn't terribly baseball savvy. He's a nice guy and will listen but he doesn't appear tuned into the little things so I find myself biting my tongue about positioning and lineups and such. I don't know if I can keep it up forever but I'm going to try. Its a bit tough being the "new guy" but I certainly don't want to be "bossy guy" or "whiny guy" or "dickhead guy" or whatever. So I'll keep my mouth shut. I hope.

Anyway, I was dismayed upon arrival that I was batting 9th. Usually I'd bat second or third or perhaps 6th on a real high-level tournament team. But I understand these guys have been together a while so I will have to earn their respect and a better batting position by my play. They don't know me yet or what I'm capable of, so I'll just have to make them notice me. That's my plan, anyway.

Evidently, I'm pretty cocky when it comes to softball. For the most part, the game comes easy to me and I am confident enough in my abilities not to be too nervous even when I'm trying to impress new teammates. Having said that, I've had no practices yet this spring and only went to the batting cages once where I hit the ball pretty crappy.

I quickly learned my new team hits pretty well, so I was actually able to get up in the first inning. I was concerned I hadn't found my stroke yet but liked how their pitcher tossed the ball and felt I could hit him well. I swung at the second pitch and smacked a hard one hopper right back at him. Tournament teams frown on "shooting the pitcher" and would usually retaliate by hitting a few back at your pitcher so I would never intentionally do that, but my swing was a bit anxious. And this ain't no tournament team. Nobody even noticed. In any event, he bobbled it so I was cruising as quickly as my once-fast 40-year-old legs would allow me to try to reach first. That never happened. I caught my toe in the kitty-litter like sand on the baseline and fell! I fucking fell face first half way to first base. Great!

I have no idea how I pulled that one off, but I think my cleat might have been coming apart as upon inspection later it was split. Guess who will be shopping for sporting goods soon?

Anyway, they are really a bunch of nice guys who were sincerely concerned that I was okay. I was except for my sprained ego. I also got a couple "nice hustles". Oh brother! That's all I need; sympathy encouragement. I thanked them but I was peeved at myself inside. Fucktard!

When it was our turn to go into the field I trotted out to my new position: right field. Yeah, the position where most teams try to hide a shitty player. Naturally, I was slightly miffed about that too but kept my mouth shut. I aimed to show them the best right fielder that league has ever known.

So the other team proceeds to get a few dinky hits and the third batter hits a short pop my way. As I ran in I peeked at the first baseman to see if he had it and when it looked like he might not, I called him off. "Mine, mine, mine." Good player that he was, he peeled off so I could cruise in and make the catch. Except, I missed the ball. I fucking missed the ball completely! Was it the wind? The uneven ground? Do I suck all of a sudden? I don't know, but a run scored and I felt like total shit.

"Good try! Good hustle." Terrific! Double rat-farts!

Now I know they're all thinking "who's the retard in right?" I should have just given them the name Corky or something, except I think he'd play better than I had so far.

Things progress and my next time up I hit a triple to right, then later a double to left center, then a double to right center and finally another triple to right. I think I drove in like 7 runs and scored 4. I even made a catch on the next ball hit to me. Later I moved to left and made a nice catch on a liner at the foul line. Things had to get better, didn't they?

We all hit well and won something like 34-3. This is a team that has a chance to do good things in this league. As long as Corky doesn't make another appearance.

I think I redeemed myself and will be allowed back.

Dont Get Old

There's tons of bitching blogs out there so please indulge me as I bitch too.

I pulled my calf, yet again, last night on the treadmill. I just can't maintain any kind of continuous exercise without injury. What was I thinking when I toyed with the idea of running a marathon in the fall? Sheesh!

I suppose for many, the lack of being as fit as they could be is time or motivation. For me, its pain. My 40-year-old body is running ragged after years of sports-related physical abuse --

Tackle football, unpadded, into my 20's while getting hit by guys 100 lbs heavier? Sure! No problem. I'll hold my breath tight and ward off the blow.

Running into a fence in centerfield to catch a friggin' softball? Its chain-link and has some give....long as I don't hit a pole. Besides, we're only down 12 runs, this could be a game-breaker.

Rollerblading at night up and down stairs, off walls, over fire hydrants? That's dangerous? Oh, that unusually bent wrist? It can be fixed by an Advil. Or an Orthopedist.

Skiing bumps through the trees on legs that can barely support me in the lift line? Oh, certainly that's not dangerous. In any event, there's an ice cold Bud Lite waiting on me in the lodge!

Ok, I have an even better idea. How about skiing behind a 4x4 with a tow-rope on newly snow-covered streets? Surely, there's minimal inherent risk in that, isn't there? Was that a cop?

Alas, I remember that difficult descent on my sparkling new mountain bike that I hadn't even rode around the block. My confidence bolstered by the cool suspension and my sweet new colorful biker shirt. Piece of cake. Sorta.

Anyway, its no wonder I just can't seem to stay healthy, especially cardio-wise.

After skiing on Sunday, my knees, left big toe and back ached. Now I have this tight spot in my left calf. Goes nicely with my achey right wrist. Same one I broke years ago. Its been bothering me for months and I think I jambed it skiing too. Hmmm...then there's the wicked case of tendinitis in my left elbow. Don't know how that came about, but it hurst like hell lately. Those take forever to get better. And don't get me started on my shoulders. I can't even swim anymore as any kind of pulling motion, especially with my arms away from my body, is painful. Or when The Little One wants to use daddy as a jungle-gym.

Of course, I'm thankful that there's nothing life-threatening or even life-altering But damn! It sure get annoying.

Don't get old.

**Sigh**