Updated

The post from Saturday was all about frustration.

Played better and as a team on Sunday for 1st W. Some of the boys even stepped it up. Now we have to keep momentum and attitude going.

Clock is ticking for some...

AAARRRGGGGHHHHH

PLAYING BASEBALL LIKE A BUNCH OF PETULANT BRATS AND BABIES CANNOT BE TOLERATED!

The Day Off Post

Took a day off today from the J-O-B...needed the long weekend. Spent the AM trimming the bushes along the driveway. Not a pro, but it's better than shelling out the dough.

Going to OSSS' MS Baseball game (away) in an hour or so. The team is made up of a few kids who can play and most who cannot. Everybody struggling at plate. Fielding is C- at best. And they are playing teams of men. No kidding. I wish I was the size of some of these 8th graders.

Anyway, got a lot of travel baseball on tap this weekend. Looking to turn around our 13U team's season. Game Saturday and DH Sunday. Hope my pitching holds up.

Stay tuned...

The Speculator

Attended an end-of-season basketball meeting last night, about 10 of us or so. Lot's of "what do you want to do next season" conversations. During the rec league discussion, the guy who runs things (let's call him Wizard) asked the guy (hereafter known as Fester)who ran the Kindergarten/1st Grade Clinic how things went.

"Good. Ran smooth. Lot of talent there!" says Fester.

"Huh? There 5 years old!, are you kidding me?" says SoulSlam.

"no, I think that will be some age group moving forward" replies Fester.

Now, I may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer but I do know this: judging talent at the age of 5 is one heck of a skill.

Futile Until It's Not

So the rains have come, can't remember the last Sunday I could just hang and sit around. Cooking some Irish meatballs though. And I was "batboy" for our 14U team this morning; went down to watch game, and I can't stand on side apparently.

Played a scrimmage with my 13U team yesterday...whole point was mainly to get a couple of newbies on mound to see what they got. "Big John" started (cause the other guy didn't show until one hour into game) - threw 3 innings, not bad either. Gave up 4 runs, but overall he was pretty good. "BF" threw one inning. He throws a moving, heavy ball. But I had a feeling that once he's got baserunners it's a different game. I was right (no pat on the back there).

In between these two I put one of my vets who isn't pitching well right now. Doesn't help that we give away outs when he's on the mound. Did it again.

Gotta right the ship...but I'm running out of ideas.

Rain?

Forecast calling for rain here this weekend, which will put a damper on Sunday baseball, but is much needed. Dry as a Bone right now.

Which leads me to the butt-heads. Do you insidious smoking fools know that, particularly when we are in a drought-like condition, that throwing your smoked-down-to-the-filter butts is dangerous? But you don't care. That's why we hate you. All of you.

DEATH TO SMOKERS!

The Conundrum

Baseball. Love it. For the life of me, I don't know why anyone would say different.

13U Baseball. For some a new experience. Get on the bigger field and compete. For others, a hard lesson. One that may say "you don't belong here!"

So my 13U team plays yesterday afternoon. We actually had a a 3-1 lead at one point. Then the wheels fell off. One of my better pitchers gave up back-to-back home runs (!). Four errors were pretty costly as well. Final score 8-3.

Losing is part of the game, I accept that. The indifference and inability to grow with the game is what troubles SoulSlam. And except for OSSS and maybe one more kid, I am troubled.

The Hard Part

Let me start this with a quote:

"It's supposed to be hard. If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. The hard... is what makes it great." -
Jimmy Dugan (A League of Their Own)

So to my reason to post - Last night we played an 11U game in another town. I was dog-dead tired but looking forward to the game. We played the best we had (we lost 20-6 the week before while YSSS and I were away); but we lost. Final was 12-7. We were actually leading 7-5 when we had a bit of a meltdown in the field. An out that should have been wasn't. And then the kid playing 3B basically hung his head, made another bad play and decided crying was his defense mechanism. Which got him a benching. Which leads me to another quote (actually an exchange):
Jimmy Dugan: Evelyn, could you come here for a second? Which team do you play for?
Evelyn Gardner: Well, I'm a Peach.
Jimmy Dugan: Well I was just wonderin' why you would throw home when we got a two-run lead. You let the tying run get on second base and we lost the lead because of you. Start using your head. That's the lump that's three feet above your ass.
[Evelyn starts to cry]
Jimmy Dugan: Are you crying? Are you crying? ARE YOU CRYING? There's no crying! THERE'S NO CRYING IN BASEBALL!
Doris Murphy: Why don't you give her a break, Jimmy...
Jimmy Dugan: Oh, you zip it, Doris! Rogers Hornsby was my manager, and he called me a talking pile of pigshit.
And that was when my parents drove all the way down from Michigan to see me play the game. And did I cry?
Evelyn Gardner: No, no, no.
Jimmy Dugan: Yeah! NO. And do you know why?
Evelyn Gardner: No...
Jimmy Dugan: Because there's no crying in baseball. THERE'S NO CRYING IN BASEBALL! No crying!

Words to live by Jimmy.

The United Sucks Post

In case you did not know, United merged/bought/swallowed Continental, the go-to airline out of NJ. My experience with United was this: about 7 years ago I flew United to Minneapolis for a business trip. They lost my luggage. Actually, somebody took my luggage. When the person found out, they called United they picked up wrong bag. United "couldn't go get the bag that late", it was about 10PM. So I had to deal with idiots and finaly got my bag about 16 hours later.

Monday I fly out of EWR. I was of Elite status (thought I was not). Sweet. Four days later, I am not elite. As a mater of fact I was basically made to feel like I was barely a customer.

Instead of boarding back of plane first after the upper crust gets on, they use "zones" I was about 1/3 of the way back, but in the last zone. Needless to say it took forever to get on. I would say boarding took an additional 20 minutes this way.

Since everybody carries on their bags (except me), they all use the overhead compartment. I had my laptop bag. The flight attendant/waiter told me to "put it under my seat". I would, but I can't fly five hours with my knees to my chest, Sparky.

I got the priveledge of being in a row in front of an exit row. Which means my seat can't recline. But the dolt in front of me could, with their headrest basically in my lap.

OK - since most people no longer check their luggage; then why does it take 40 minutes to get my bags at baggage claim?

Enough for now.

Airport Waiting

Here I sit at McCarron, awaiting my redeye. It's 7:25PM Vegas time...got another 3 hrs until takeoff.

Can't wait to get home and see my family. Hopefully I land early so I can drive the 25 miles or so and get home before the Sons of SoulSlam go to school.

How about those Mets?

Sin City

That's what they call it...to me it's little more than being an indoor prisoner. Breathing the air of a million nicotine-addled creatures. I need to get outside!


Did find a sweet 'Alan from the Hangover' bobble head in a gift shop. Saw it as two women were screaming FU at each other. They looked happy.

Three Hours Behind

I'm in Vegas...for the job.

Been up for hours. Can't sleep.

Thanks a lot, Bin Laden.

Happy Easter

Have a Happy Easter townsfolk.

Heading to Vegas for work this week. I'll try to update.

Gonna use every line from The Hangover I can remember.

April

Is here. Whoa.