Making It Up As I Go Along #378

Why Play
Joints and muscles
Swollen inflamed and throbbing.
Getting into a car can be so painful.

Climbing from the bed becomes a chore.
Tying a pair of shoes seems to be a daunting task.
Stairs are as mountains and a handshake gives way to a wave.

Years of abuse brings on such bodily nicknames as
Weather knee, popping shoulder, and clicking wrist.
Body parts become as a native tribe in the world of the name.

The price for glory.
Championships are obvious and not the reason for the love.

What makes one endure is the feeling of a smooth swing
driving a ball into that perfect place.

The smell of a glove as it molds to your hand,
slowly becoming a part of you as your days together grow.

There is the wrist shot, burying puck or ball just off the edge of a post
as it glangs from there into the whoosh of the net.

Diving snags followed by a perfect roll and throw,
Getting the out and done so well, not a mark remains after the controlled tumble.

Making those plays, even once a season
That the pros make almost daily. You watch the play of the day on TV and remember when you did that too, not so long ago.

The pain is often there,
But the reason for risk is obvious...
For any who have done it... even just once.


FRIDAY...
— Work is backwards today. Busy in the morning and quiet in the afternoon. A normal day, lately, has been quiet until around 2:00 and then it gets nuts until about 5:30. Today it was busy from about 7:30 to lunch and then settled. You just never know.
— Halladay remains a Jay after the trade deadline goes by. I’m glad. I find I’ve reverted back to a kid in regards to the Halladay trade talk. I’ve heard lots of reasons why it’d make sense to do... but, in the end, I just wanted my favourite player to stay on my favourite team. How much longer it’ll go for, I don’t know... but I’ll appreciate the starts he has left in Toronto.

SATURDAY...
— Slow day at work. The time drags on pretty heavy. The nice day outside and our wall of windows showing it doesn’t help speed the time in the office.
— Sleep a few hours in the early evening. I was really tired by the time work ends. But have to stay up after I wake... night shift approaches.

SUNDAY...
— Sleepy day... quiet night at work... Greek food with Melissa and Phil is about the only noteworthy thing that went on all day.

MONDAY...
— Work is pretty quiet. A 2:00 AM walk in set of prints from Gatineau being the only unusual thing, or amount of real action.

TUESDAY...
— Slowpitch for the RCMP is rained out. Typical Ottawa... perfectly nice until game time when the thunder and lightning blast the place. Louis and I go to Tim Horton’s for a talk... and I get a sandwich for supper... so the trip out wasn’t a total waste.

WEDNESDAY...
— Walking day. I go for a half hour walk around the pond in the afternoon... and go for an hour and a half in the neighbourhood at night.

THURSDAY...
— Beat up my thumb at ball. I can swing the bat still but catching the ball is tough right now.
— Jeremy Roenick retires. I’ll miss the guy... a fun interview for the NHL.

FRIDAY...
— Doctor appointment. I’m in a splint for a week and we’ll see what’s up then. It’s either the thumb is badly hyper-extended, broken, or has tendon damage. I’m guessing summer ball is over for me but I’ll get a better read next Friday.