No Time for Time

A few years ago it seemed like sleep didn't matter, you could never drink too much beer, and there was always something to do even when there was nothing to do.  Dart league starting at 7, drinking until the bar closed, get up for work the next morning, struggle your way through the day, then maybe go to a bar to watch the Blues game, drink until the bar closed, repeat.  Those were the days.  No one had any real responsibilities besides being at work.  Most of us either lived at home with our parents or had just moved out and living with roommates.  Life was simple.  It was easy.  Time meant nothing.  Those days are long gone.

Waking up to a 2 year old daughter's coughing at 3 AM can do a number on a father.  Empathy, sympathy, exhaustion, patience.....just please, don't cry.  She can make or break my whole day.  She can make me smile, make me laugh, make me angry, make me yell, make me cry.  She rocks.  And she better.  She's the reason I don't close down bars anymore.  She's the reason one night a week is usually the cap on how many times I go out.  And she's not going to be the only one doing it to me.  The wife is pregnant with number 2.  Stoked.....but there will be even less time.

There is nothing I wanted to be more when I was growing up than being a dad.  It was my thing.  Couldn't wait.  Not a professional soccer player, not an astronaut, not a fireman.....a dad.  So much for a career plan.  No goals for a professional life whatsoever.  Just survive enough to take my kids to the park, go fishing, bowling, throw a ball around.....whatever they wanted.  Lil Penny keeps me busy but she's still a bit young to do all the REALLY cool stuff.  No riding bikes, no hunting for crawdads, no walking around the woods acting like I'm not lost when in fact there's a good chance we're both going to die out there.  None of that yet....but it's coming.

Instead I sit on the floor and play puzzles, read thousands of books, make animal noises, sing songs, and eat cheese balls (Penny gets what Penny wants, or at least what I'm more than willing to give her).  She's in bed by 9.  I'm in bed by 11.  It's just the way it is.  I love my wife.  I love my kid.  I love my life.  I wouldn't change it for a second.  But that doesn't mean I quit yearning.  Yearning for those few times that arise out of either intense planning or sheer luck that for one night things will go extraordinarily crazy.  Those nights are great.  Those next mornings are not.  I struggle.  No longer young enough to just grit my teeth and struggle the day away.  I should have gone to bed earlier.  That's when reality sets in.  That's when the loves of my life take their ever permanent hold on me.  That's when it all makes sense.  That's when the dream is fulfilled.  And that's when I'm truly a happy guy.  It's Puzzle Time!

Here's Hoping

We are nearing the greatest time of the year to be a sports fan.  Football, soccer, hockey, and basketball (maybe) seasons are starting up.  Baseball playoffs are approaching.  The US Open Series is going on for those of us who enjoy a little tennis from time to time.  It's just a great time of year.

The new football season definitely draws the most attention here in the States.  It has definitely overtaken baseball for America's national pastime.  Fantasy football, already huge, grows leaps and bounds every year.  ESPN dedicates whole segments of on-air programming to it.  Its reach is unbelievable.  There's not an American alive who doesn't at least know someone who is in at least one league.  Football is all encompassing.  It's American.  There's structure to it.  You know the times of the games aren't going to change.  You know the players, even if their faces are obstructed by their helmets.  You associate a team's overall feel with that of their home city.  The fans reflect the team as much as the team reflects the fans.  It's amazing.  And it's starting.  The world feels better because of it.  You just hope you see some good games.

Soccer is on the rise but nowhere near football in this country.  But the people who look forward to the soccer season don't do it because their lives aren't complete without it.  They look forward to rivalries.  They look forward to drinking in the morning.  They look forward to an overdue Premiership title for Liverpool.  Everyone roots for Liverpool.  Well....only true soccer fans root for Liverpool.  The rest of you are pretenders.  Everyone hopes for a good season for Liverpool.  Everyone.

Hockey season brings on a different type of hope.  The hope is there to win the Cup for sure.  But it's more of a survival feeling throughout the regular season.  Make it to the playoffs and magic can happen.  Hope for no injuries, hope your kids can play, and hope you didn't overpay for any of the veteran free agents you bought over the summer.

Basketball.....no hope.  There's going to be no season this year.  People just hope that if there is a season there is playoffs.  If there's playoffs they hope there's a good guy and a bad guy to root for and against.  And there's always hope Michael Jordan will come out of retirement and throw one down for old time's sake.

MLB playoffs are always exciting, but everyone just hopes it won't interfere with the football season too much.  162 games to figure out who's going to make it to the playoffs.  Then all hell breaks loose.  Good pitchers become great, great hitters forget how to hit, terrible fielders are still terrible fielders.  And the word "clutch" becomes part of the everyday vernacular.  "Albert is due.  He's so clutch in this situation.  I hope he hits one."  Better hope you just get to see him next year.

And for you tennis fans.......Roger will not win this year's US Open.  I hope he does, but he won't.  He didn't get bigger.  He didn't get faster.  He didn't get stronger.  He could make a run, but he won't win.  I just hope he doesn't go up against Tsonga......ever again.

Soundtrack of a 28 Year Old Male

There's a ton of stuff I don't remember while I was growing up, or even yesterday for that matter.  I don't remember when I started tying my shoes, I don't remember the first day of school (for any year), and I don't remember how much I paid for my first car.  But there are many things, many many things in fact, that I do remember that are completely worthless.  I remember Mike Zangrilli's home phone number, haven't called it in at least 12 years.  I remember smacking my head on my galvanized pool and waking up in the middle of my kitchen floor when I was like 7 (explanation of that one below).  And I remember movie songs....for the most part.  There are definitely songs from movies that stand out though.  Let's go chronologically, by how I remember them not by their release dates, and try to hit the big ones that had the biggest influence on me......

Somewhere Out There - "An American Tail" - I can still hear Fievel and his sister missing notes like they were going out of style.

My Little Buttercup - "Three Amigos" - Even though this link is not of the song it's worth watching to see the comedic genius that is Steve Martin.

I'm Alright - "Caddyshack" - Cinderella Story, comes outta nowhere....

Rawhide - "The Blues Brothers" - We got both kinds of music......country AND western.

Winner Takes It All - "Over the Top" - Only the singlest greatest arm-wrestling for the custody of a child movie....ever.  You gotta take it.

Destinaton Unknown - "Top Gun" - A truly underrated song on a definitely appropriately high-rated soundtrack.  We had that whole soundtrack on repeat for what seemed like a decade.

Twist and Shout - "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" - When Cameron was in Egypt's land, let my....Cameron.....go.

No Easy Way Out - "Rocky IV" - Tough call on which one I was going to pick for this movie/pentology....but I think this one was definitely a decent choice.  There's no shortcut home.

Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In) - "The Big Lebowski" - What's a pederast, Walter?  Shut the fuck up, Donnie.

Please comment with your own favorite songs from movies past and present.

((So the galvanized pool incident.....I was using an inner tube, a big black inner tube that you use on float trips and stuff, as a pogo stick and bouncing around the back yard.  I was just getting the hang of it when it slipped under me and I went face forward into the edge of the pool, smacked my forehead, busted me open, knocked me out, and I woke up in my kitchen with blood all over the place.  Had to get stitches for sure.  Still have the scar right between my eyes.  Epic.  Didn't really do that with an inner tube after that though.))

It Ain't Prison Ball

The most electrifying day in sports entertainment is quickly approaching.  The day when the dazed and confused, the drunk and stupid, the men and the boys meet on hallowed ground to do battle.  This ritual has been going on for longer than any of us really remember.  Multiple years get remembered as one.  Every year is special though. The Day After Thanksgiving Football Game (TDATFG from now on) is the greatest day on the calendar.

I've been a part of this sacred practice for at least 12 years I'd say.  I'm not the man who started it though.  Long before my arrival the legend was born.  Sometimes in snow, usually the coldest day of the year, and rarely a nice day, TDATFG  is played with great intensity, little skill, and massive creativity.  The alcoholic beverages per capita increases and the overall fitness of the players involved diminishes exponentially every year it seems.  Over the years there have been many injuries (Chunk.....his ear!), one lifetime expulsion (sorry Luke, it's for the best), and we've even had black people (and they sucked).  TDATFG has it all.  The perfect day.

Some people poo poo the game.  They say that we're dumb/gay/retarded for still playing it.  We care not.  The true ambassadors of the game know the importance of it in the grand scheme of things.  I mentioned the booze.....that really should be enough.  But how often do you get a chance to beat the hell out of some of your best friends and them not just be okay with it but be totally stoked that you did it?  The injuries, the soreness, the drunkenness.....it's all perfect.

Last year was the first year I've missed since starting playing those many years ago.  I was crushed.  Surgery on my shoulder put me out.  Worst thing to ever happen to me.  I still showed up to the game though.  I drank a lot of beer, I cheered, I ran around talking trash.....AND I drank a lot of beer too.  It was a great day.  This year will be better.  We need the best to show up this year.  The football, as usual, will be lacking.  The creativity will be immense.  The plays will be intense. The beer will flow like wine.  And all will be right in the world.  This year let's make history.  It's the day after Thanksgiving by the way.