One of the by-products of the killer kettlebell workout from yesterday, which was also accompanied by a couple miles of extra running up & down Disc Drive, is that I am sore. Really sore. Wake-yourself-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night-rolling-over sore. Sigh.
As the ALCS plays out in front of me, I'm realizing that this is officially the least amount of baseball I have ever watched, over the season, on TV. The plus side is that having the Aces in town meant that I got to see more games in person.
Re-discovered an early 80's movie The Philadelphia Experiment. Last saw it as a high school sophomore. Took me back in time.
Which reminds me: that may be why I love to watch old movies (old to me mostly means 40's, 50's & 60's) - watching them takes me back to the 1st time that I saw them. Almost like time travel... except safer. And without a DeLorean.
Socks have become increasingly important to me.
Fresca. Get it.
Great talks with EdieVegas yesterday. He's in grad school studying a developing branch of Historical-ness. Love that guy. He's living one of my dreams - pursuing a graduate degree in History. Heavy sigh.
Is there anything that you CAN'T put Tea Tree Oil on?
A nap is one of the best gifts that you can give yourself. Good news: I'm a giver! Perhaps tomorrow I shall nap. We shall see. We shall see.
Good night now!
Showing posts with label Baseball. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Baseball. Show all posts
Sitting at the completely clear & clean kitchen counter, coffee nearby, preparing for blog-age is one of my favorite things. Esp. on Fridays, which is my day of rest.... I love it. Along with brown paper bags, wrapped up with string of course...
I'm really, really looking forward to my first Aces game - hopefully 4/18... Preliminary weather report: High of 68F, low of 40. No rain, light wind.
So say we all!
Life is simpler without having to put up a pretense to try to impress others. It's at least less work. I want to "be comfortable in my own skin,"... I think that's how Bono put it...
As background, I occasionally have blood sugar issues - when I don't eat often enough, or don't get enough protein, my blood sugar plummets, as does my outlook, mood, demeanor... you get the picture.
On that note, kids are funny. And pretty quick learners too... we were having an interchange with theWeez about a particular series of choices she made that resulted in us needing to have a "Talk." Obviously, didn't fully appreciate how the "Talk" was going, & further, had issues with the method of Presentation that I had chosen. But rather than take it up a notch & try to argue, bluster, or complain, she just said:
"When was the last time you ate? You should eat something, & then we can talk..."
Nice.
Easter is this Sunday... I'm looking forward to it - the story of redemption never gets old. And I never want to just go on 'auto-pilot' & mail it in either, just because its Easter. May I never lose the wonder...
NOTE: No rocks were thrown during the writing of the following paragraphs...
Easter, along with Christmas Eve, seem to be times where churches are more prone to troll for newbies using the "Be Our Guest" scene from the Beauty & the Beast Disney film... where we put our best on, place our best foot forward, with the best music, best speech, & best egg hunt for the kiddies. All in the space of 70 minutes... & just in time for the next best service.
It seems to be more designed for a christian culture than for one of pre-christians... to attract christians from other churches to come & see. I ponder consumer-church... Hmmm...
END NOTE
I was asked out on a date, for tonight, by theBean. Don't know where we're going - it's a surprise. I'm going to do my best to make myself extra pretty... :)
10 April 2009
Last week, I was doing some studies on what it means to REPENT... &, as often happens, I got lost on a rabbit trail, & spent some time chasing something that was connected loosely to what I'd started with. It was the word, CONFESS - (You can read the verses I was reading HERE & HERE)
I unexpectedly discovered that I have a very, very negative association, a nasty feeling in my belly, around the word confess... maybe its because I have watched too many "cop" shows, where "getting a confession" is something that the good guys do to the bad guys, often under duress. The threat of pain &/or punishment, emotional manipulation, & even downright blackmail are all fair game in the pursuit of a confession. And when a confession is finally worked out of the "perp", they're left as a broken, weak, vulnerable mess.
Transfer this context to the scriptures - & the instruction we're given to 'confess our sins to one another,' & that a part of repentance is the confession, the owning up to our sin, our wrongdoing. I found myself thinking, "if confession is like what I'm associating it with, it doesn't go along with what we know of God & His nature as revealed in the Scriptures & in the person of Jesus Christ - meaning, He is always, now & forever, a predictably good God - & doesn't put us through torture, torment, & blackmail in order to sweat a confession out of us.
So when I was chasing the Rabbit of Confession, I decided to take a look at what words the Bible writers used to get a better picture of the intended definition for confess in the original language.
And the definitions for confess, with the deluxe Strong's Concordance Word # next to each:
To acknowledge openly & joyfully... my sins? To celebrate... where I've blown it? How could I do that? And why would I? Hmmm.
I let what I'd read sink in, & really meditated on it for several days; still, I couldn't come to grips with what this might mean, what it would look like, lived out in the context of my life, as I would REPENT, ask God to change my thinking & to transform me...
And then today, a light bulb went on.
Confession goes hand in hand with repentance - & can be celebrated, acknowledged openly & joyfully, not because our sins are so great & legendary that they're to be celebrated. Not at all - sin ends up in death & destruction. Always. Every time. And there's nothing to celebrate about that. BUT...
There IS something to be celebrated in the freedom that comes from confessing as a part of our repenting... from bringing sin & wrongdoing into the light . When I confess to God (& to another trustworthy, faithful person) I am not being self-deprecating; I'm agreeing with God's assessment of sin. And by bringing it to the light, I also bring it to the One person who is able to forgive me of my wrongdoing, & who has promised in His Word to not only forgive me, but to purify & cleanse me from all unrighteousness.
Hmmm. So I'm starting to get it. I think. I just know that my belly doesn't hurt anymore.
And in other thoughts... in some ways, I can't wait for baseball season to start already. I can only hope that the games will provide a welcome distraction from the daily barrage of accusations/revelations/discussions about PEDs, steroids, & HGH. Still, I'm not holding my breath.
Sigh.
I unexpectedly discovered that I have a very, very negative association, a nasty feeling in my belly, around the word confess... maybe its because I have watched too many "cop" shows, where "getting a confession" is something that the good guys do to the bad guys, often under duress. The threat of pain &/or punishment, emotional manipulation, & even downright blackmail are all fair game in the pursuit of a confession. And when a confession is finally worked out of the "perp", they're left as a broken, weak, vulnerable mess.
Transfer this context to the scriptures - & the instruction we're given to 'confess our sins to one another,' & that a part of repentance is the confession, the owning up to our sin, our wrongdoing. I found myself thinking, "if confession is like what I'm associating it with, it doesn't go along with what we know of God & His nature as revealed in the Scriptures & in the person of Jesus Christ - meaning, He is always, now & forever, a predictably good God - & doesn't put us through torture, torment, & blackmail in order to sweat a confession out of us.
So when I was chasing the Rabbit of Confession, I decided to take a look at what words the Bible writers used to get a better picture of the intended definition for confess in the original language.
And the definitions for confess, with the deluxe Strong's Concordance Word # next to each:
ἐξομολογέω - exomologeō - CONFESS: G1843 - to confess, to profess; acknowledge openly and joyfully; to one’s honour: to celebrate, give praise; to profess that one will do something, to promise, agree, engage...
ὁμολογέω – homologeō – CONFESS: G3670 - to say the same thing as another; to confess, to admit or declare one’s self guilty of what one is accused of; to profess; to declare openly, speak out freely; to profess one’s self the worshipper of one; to praise, celebrate...
To acknowledge openly & joyfully... my sins? To celebrate... where I've blown it? How could I do that? And why would I? Hmmm.
I let what I'd read sink in, & really meditated on it for several days; still, I couldn't come to grips with what this might mean, what it would look like, lived out in the context of my life, as I would REPENT, ask God to change my thinking & to transform me...
And then today, a light bulb went on.
Confession goes hand in hand with repentance - & can be celebrated, acknowledged openly & joyfully, not because our sins are so great & legendary that they're to be celebrated. Not at all - sin ends up in death & destruction. Always. Every time. And there's nothing to celebrate about that. BUT...
There IS something to be celebrated in the freedom that comes from confessing as a part of our repenting... from bringing sin & wrongdoing into the light . When I confess to God (& to another trustworthy, faithful person) I am not being self-deprecating; I'm agreeing with God's assessment of sin. And by bringing it to the light, I also bring it to the One person who is able to forgive me of my wrongdoing, & who has promised in His Word to not only forgive me, but to purify & cleanse me from all unrighteousness.
Hmmm. So I'm starting to get it. I think. I just know that my belly doesn't hurt anymore.
And in other thoughts... in some ways, I can't wait for baseball season to start already. I can only hope that the games will provide a welcome distraction from the daily barrage of accusations/revelations/discussions about PEDs, steroids, & HGH. Still, I'm not holding my breath.
Sigh.
Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? A nation turns its lonely eyes to you... Woo woo woo.
What’s that you say, Mrs. Robinson? ‘Joltin Joe’ has left and gone away? Hey hey hey. Hey hey hey.
17 February 2009
Started the morning with some link sausage & eggs, covered with whipped cream. Either my taste buds are wacky now, or I've discovered one of those little joys of how certain foods go well together, even when they may not be usually paired together. Went to my 1st solo appointment with Chuck - hit the ground running (ok, talking) & really enjoyed the conversation... it really was a time of 'connecting the dots' for me - esp. in light of the EHS materials that I've been going over for the last while.
Finished up & had to process - lots of processing - lucky for me, the gym was open, so I went in & ran around for about an hour, shot some hoop, & checked out the 'weight room;' decided "No Thanks!" on the weights & shot some more. It was sweltering in the gym - which is almost the perfect atmosphere for what I was doing.
After getting cleaned up, theBean & I went to WalMart to return some defective hair product, then headed back to our favorite spot that we've discovered so far: the Starbucks @ Kent Square. TheBean picked up a magazine or two from the VTU student union building, & I dove back into A Long Obedience... We hung out outside until our parking stub had to be re-validated.
By that time, we were pretty hungry; & I was craving wings - & thought that I'd seen an ad for a Buffalo Wild Wings somewhere in Blacksburg. We didn't know for sure, but were both feeling pretty adventurous - & decided to try & deduce where a Buffalo Wild Wings SHOULD be, & then go find it. We both agreed that the best place for such a business would be in close proximity to the campus in order to take advantage of the 'locusts' - kinda like you see around the UNR campus.
So, we had a plan, & a general idea, & started driving. Did a couple of switchbacks & U-Turns, & found a street that looked promising - boom. There it is. Total search time: 10 minutes. Nice. We are awesome.
The first night, we'd gone to Salem to catch a Carolina League, "High" Class A baseball game; tonight we wanted to try something different, a trip to Pulaski for a Rookie League game. Drove about 20 minutes to the I-81 exit, & then drove through town, looking for the park where the game would be held. It was only 6 p.m. but the streets were totally barren, like everyone had been raptured but us. Nothing & no one anywhere. We drove for about 30 minutes looking for the park, driving up & down insanely steep hills, through neighborhoods that made me wish I warn't so 'city-fied'. Finally, we found a service station, & a nice guy named Doug that pointed us in the direction of the park. Took 5 minutes to get there.
All I can say is that Calfree Park, home of the Pulaski Mariners, is as far from the Salem experience we had, as is the east from the west. Wow. For theBean, who loves people watching, we entered a gold mine. It was "Halloween In August" night at the game, which meant lots of people dressed up in all sorts of costumes, with a Mayberry flair (& I mean that in a good way.) Other highlights from the night:
There was 6 feet difference between the general admission seats & the box seats.
One of the "Reserved Box Seats" was called the "No Red Sox" Box. No fans of the Sox were allowed inside it.
The ball game seemed to be a social highlight, so there was all kinds of strutting going on, from the teen girl squad, to the pseudo-jock crowd, to the good old boys, to the 'looking back at the glory days' group - pretty amazing. (Again, a gold mine.)
The announcer (& press box crew) took every opportunity to show off their ability to use technology (sound effects, including some from movies, & music) to poke fun at the other team - the Bluefield Orioles. For example, one of the guys (the oldest players are 21 & 22; some are 17 & 18) had a Giambi-like mustache; whenever he came to the plate, the announcer would play the Magnum PI theme song. Priceless. And for a strike out? Wayne & Garth saying "Schwing!"
The two 10-12 year old boys behind us had a running commentary going on - think Opie meets the Dukes of Hazzard. Then they got onto the topic of which one of them was "sexier" than the other. Finally, one of them said, "I am soooo sexy, that I've got two middle names. Sexy & sexy." I lost it when they then fought over which one had the sexiest mother.
TheBean, in her people watching, had a couple of gems as well; she asked, "Are these people all related? Because they all look alike. Especially the small noses..."
Good times. The home team lost a pitchers duel (2-0) but it was a great experience. Again. We'll probably catch at least one more game while we're here... probably in Salem.
Ended the night with Double Cheeseburgers, 47 Pound Rooster, & the Office. And some deep talks. Very nice. Here's some pics.
Finished up & had to process - lots of processing - lucky for me, the gym was open, so I went in & ran around for about an hour, shot some hoop, & checked out the 'weight room;' decided "No Thanks!" on the weights & shot some more. It was sweltering in the gym - which is almost the perfect atmosphere for what I was doing.
After getting cleaned up, theBean & I went to WalMart to return some defective hair product, then headed back to our favorite spot that we've discovered so far: the Starbucks @ Kent Square. TheBean picked up a magazine or two from the VTU student union building, & I dove back into A Long Obedience... We hung out outside until our parking stub had to be re-validated.
By that time, we were pretty hungry; & I was craving wings - & thought that I'd seen an ad for a Buffalo Wild Wings somewhere in Blacksburg. We didn't know for sure, but were both feeling pretty adventurous - & decided to try & deduce where a Buffalo Wild Wings SHOULD be, & then go find it. We both agreed that the best place for such a business would be in close proximity to the campus in order to take advantage of the 'locusts' - kinda like you see around the UNR campus.
So, we had a plan, & a general idea, & started driving. Did a couple of switchbacks & U-Turns, & found a street that looked promising - boom. There it is. Total search time: 10 minutes. Nice. We are awesome.
The first night, we'd gone to Salem to catch a Carolina League, "High" Class A baseball game; tonight we wanted to try something different, a trip to Pulaski for a Rookie League game. Drove about 20 minutes to the I-81 exit, & then drove through town, looking for the park where the game would be held. It was only 6 p.m. but the streets were totally barren, like everyone had been raptured but us. Nothing & no one anywhere. We drove for about 30 minutes looking for the park, driving up & down insanely steep hills, through neighborhoods that made me wish I warn't so 'city-fied'. Finally, we found a service station, & a nice guy named Doug that pointed us in the direction of the park. Took 5 minutes to get there.
All I can say is that Calfree Park, home of the Pulaski Mariners, is as far from the Salem experience we had, as is the east from the west. Wow. For theBean, who loves people watching, we entered a gold mine. It was "Halloween In August" night at the game, which meant lots of people dressed up in all sorts of costumes, with a Mayberry flair (& I mean that in a good way.) Other highlights from the night:
Good times. The home team lost a pitchers duel (2-0) but it was a great experience. Again. We'll probably catch at least one more game while we're here... probably in Salem.
Ended the night with Double Cheeseburgers, 47 Pound Rooster, & the Office. And some deep talks. Very nice. Here's some pics.
13 August 2008
Bean & I started our trek into Blacksburg with a stop at Starbucks, a beautiful brick building on the edge of campus - interesting to see the area almost totally empty, knowing that in about 3 days, all of that is going to change as students descend on the campus for the Fall semester. A person we talked to described it as the 'coming of the locusts.' I hope to see it... from a safe distance of course. From there it was on to the Campus Store, where one can purchase all things Hokie, (no pun intended). All I could see was wave after wave of orange & brown. I picked up a couple of hats & a shirt for the kids. Don't tell them, as it's a surprise.
We walked the area around the campus entrance for a few minutes & took the requisite pictures in front of the sign at the entrance.
Actually, we took more than a few pictures, but with the combo of our camera, the time of day (about 4:30 which isn't late, no, no, it's early, early...) & my technical expertise, we didn't manage to get any usable ones. Which, for fans of digital cameras, you can know is quite the accomplishment. Yay me.
Suffice it to say: lots of rolling green grass, row upon row of trees... a really nice place... & almost completely devoid of people. Except a couple of over-achiever early arrivals (probably engineering students...)
Baseball is beautiful.
We left for Salem, VA to catch the Avalanche game with the Braves affiliate from Myrtle Beach - the Pelicans (who wore a baby blue ensemble that would have made Stacy & Clinton cringe.) Bought box seats ($8/each) in the 4th row behind the home dugout. Turns out the Avs are in last place. There was a lack of energy in the place, (dugout included) that even theBean noticed. Throughout the game the 'energy lack' showed up with uninspired play at times, a few defensive miscues, 3 separate baserunning (or base-coaching) issues, 3 times having the bases loaded, 3 times not scoring. Ouch.
No matter. We were at a baseball game. The weather was beautiful, the setting was next to perfect. No one was around for 3 or 4 rows, though Annie Savoy was in the front row, greeting all the players (& coaches) every time they ran off of the field. Living out the local version of Bull Durham... Weird.
By the 6th inning beer goggles & beer muscles were in full-effect. TheBean & I laughed constantly, esp. because the Appalachian accent gets more pronounced in proportion to the amount of beer consumed. Very nice.
All kidding aside - there were many, many highlights from the night - one of which was watching the 'community' - people who attend the games with season tickets - interacting with each other, catching up, being in each others lives. Made me long for next year when Reno gets our own team (actually Tucson's team. Thanks Tucson!) To be able to hang with family & friends is something that I'm really looking forward to.
Again, baseball is beautiful. I took some pictures of the field, & got a semi-closeup of Koby Clemens, catcher for the Avs - he didn't play, but...
After the game (stayed through the last out, baby!) we exited the parking lot without any trouble - & drove the 25 minutes 'home' to CSR, with only a stop by McDonald's for dinner. I needed to get my 5 Double Cheeseburgers for $5. In our living room, theBean ate leftover scallops from Outback, while I scarfed my burgers. We shared some Gnarly Head Cab & watch a couple episodes of "The Office" - Season 3, w/the deleted scenes. The Diwali episode was priceless.
Ahhh. All in all, a very nice day.
And now the pics - enjoy!
We walked the area around the campus entrance for a few minutes & took the requisite pictures in front of the sign at the entrance.
Actually, we took more than a few pictures, but with the combo of our camera, the time of day (about 4:30 which isn't late, no, no, it's early, early...) & my technical expertise, we didn't manage to get any usable ones. Which, for fans of digital cameras, you can know is quite the accomplishment. Yay me.
Suffice it to say: lots of rolling green grass, row upon row of trees... a really nice place... & almost completely devoid of people. Except a couple of over-achiever early arrivals (probably engineering students...)
Baseball is beautiful.
We left for Salem, VA to catch the Avalanche game with the Braves affiliate from Myrtle Beach - the Pelicans (who wore a baby blue ensemble that would have made Stacy & Clinton cringe.) Bought box seats ($8/each) in the 4th row behind the home dugout. Turns out the Avs are in last place. There was a lack of energy in the place, (dugout included) that even theBean noticed. Throughout the game the 'energy lack' showed up with uninspired play at times, a few defensive miscues, 3 separate baserunning (or base-coaching) issues, 3 times having the bases loaded, 3 times not scoring. Ouch.
No matter. We were at a baseball game. The weather was beautiful, the setting was next to perfect. No one was around for 3 or 4 rows, though Annie Savoy was in the front row, greeting all the players (& coaches) every time they ran off of the field. Living out the local version of Bull Durham... Weird.
By the 6th inning beer goggles & beer muscles were in full-effect. TheBean & I laughed constantly, esp. because the Appalachian accent gets more pronounced in proportion to the amount of beer consumed. Very nice.
All kidding aside - there were many, many highlights from the night - one of which was watching the 'community' - people who attend the games with season tickets - interacting with each other, catching up, being in each others lives. Made me long for next year when Reno gets our own team (actually Tucson's team. Thanks Tucson!) To be able to hang with family & friends is something that I'm really looking forward to.
Again, baseball is beautiful. I took some pictures of the field, & got a semi-closeup of Koby Clemens, catcher for the Avs - he didn't play, but...
After the game (stayed through the last out, baby!) we exited the parking lot without any trouble - & drove the 25 minutes 'home' to CSR, with only a stop by McDonald's for dinner. I needed to get my 5 Double Cheeseburgers for $5. In our living room, theBean ate leftover scallops from Outback, while I scarfed my burgers. We shared some Gnarly Head Cab & watch a couple episodes of "The Office" - Season 3, w/the deleted scenes. The Diwali episode was priceless.
Ahhh. All in all, a very nice day.
And now the pics - enjoy!
12 August 2008
Baseball season - the first full weekend of games. I played the sport for years, & love the familiarity of baseball. This year, we get to suffer through a pitiably bad San Francisco Giants team.
Hooray. Just like the old days.
Go Giants!
Hooray. Just like the old days.
Go Giants!
05 April 2008
After 18 years, Dan Patrick is leaving ESPN. My heart is downcast.
Read more about Dan Patrick Leaving ESPN
Sigh.
10 July 2007
Bonds ESPN Article
I love baseball - watching a game in person, the sights, smells, & sounds, accompanied by the PacBell/SBC/AT&T food & beverages menu (nachos, garlic fries, quesadilla, dogs, Gordon Biersch) is at the top of my list of favorite experiences. My next favorite way to experience baseball is listening on the radio - some of my earliest memories are hiding under the covers with a transistor radio (btw: the size of 3 iPods stacked together,) listening to the play-by-play of some really terrible Giants teams in the 70's & 80's.
So, I'm pondering the most recent news out of baseball... as if the 'allegations' of steroid & HGH use were not enough, now it has been revealed that sometime last year, Barry Bonds tested positive for amphetamines. Using speed is illegal, even in baseball, though the usage of greenies had long been winked at by MLB, with the understanding being that with the travel & game schedule being what it is, the only way for players to be able to be physically 'up' for the games was to use artificial means. Baseball passed a rule against the use of greenies, & has included the drug on a list of banned substances that they test for. Greenies Story
One of the things that is not supposed to happen is the release of the name of the accused in the event of the 1st failed drug test. But, because its Barry Bonds, the info is leaked. Kind of like the 'sealed' grand jury testimony that leaked containing the revelations that Bonds had been using 2 substances, The Cream & The Clear given to him by his trainer, Greg Anderson.
Why the incoherent ramblings this Friday morning? I'm in mourning. Mourning, because it ticks me off that with only about a month until pitchers & catchers report, that baseball has been reduced to sensationalistic sound-bites full of allegations & accusations, with the press playing the protagonist... the same press that trumpeted McGwire & Sosa's chasing of the Maris record as "the salvation of the game." Too bad.
12 January 2007
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