August 17, 2008
You Can Not Be Serious!
Today I did something I haven’t done in at least five years, maybe more. I played tennis. Harper and I took on the number one seeded Bobby and Dan. Dan played in high school and Bobby is about a decade younger than me, so we had our work cut out for us. So we began. It was difficult to get that little ball to land in the court, but apparently those are the rules.
We served first and, somehow, won game one. Then, we won game two. I think all four of us were kind of confused. This wasn’t the way it was supposed to go. It’s at this point the match went more the way we all expected it to go. They won a game. Then another and another and they kept on winning, taking the first set six games to two. We then played another set and son of a gun if the Harper and Ed super team didn’t manage to squeak out four games this time. We had a long rally to win our final game and I think at this point, I turned to Harper and said, “Yeah, I’m happy with the number of games we won.” He agreed. Good for us. So the final score was 6-2, 6-4.
Overall, this was much more enjoyable than I thought it would be. Tennis doesn’t sound that fun to me and it sucks almost as much as golf does to watch on TV. But then again, when is the last time I did something even remotely related to physical competition? Other than the annual teachers versus students basketball game, I honestly can’t remember. And this is coming from a former gym rat, who played for hours at a time on average five times a week for most of my career at the nation’s oldest public university.
And doubles tennis hid Harper’s poor forehand and my atrocious backhand. It also gave me a small area in which to move which helped to save my knees. Dan told me doubles is old man tennis and I don’t think I can argue. My knees are sore now, and I couldn’t play again tomorrow, but I could do it again – soon. If I was playing singles, besides becoming more frustrated and not enjoying myself, I would have really done a number on the old leg benders. Going side to side and front to back is not the best recipe for Ed’s success. But if you can let me sneak up to the net, it’s a little challenging because I still have quicker reflexes than one might think and this lets me cover ground without moving a lot. Score!
Posted by ed at 18:25 | Comments (1) | Trackbacks (0)
August 11, 2008
Olympic Madness!
America! Hell yeah!
I’ve watched more Olympics in the past 72 hours than I have in the last four years. Wait for it. Ha! OK, I’ve watched more Olympics in the past 72 hours than I have in the past twelve years. My HD television doesn’t mind me watching a lot of sports and this is my first time being able to use my digital cable to watch more than swimming, gymnastics, and track and field. Over the weekend, I watched some fencing, handball, badminton, men’s cycling, rowing, boxing, and soccer. Oh, and beach volleyball. Sigh. That’s nice.
I really want to see a little kayaking – that seems interesting. And I watched some equestrian crap. If I wanted stupid sports, I would have tried to find ballroom dancing. And I find myself really interested in the men’s basketball team. I watched all of the opening game against China and pulled for everyone (I think this includes Kobe Bryant as well). I like the story of the Americans reclaiming their title as best basketball nation. And I like the story of 41 year old swimmer Dara Torres going up against the young stars. Kristin did not like when I asked her if she was going to look like Ms. Torres when she turns 40. Actually, I believe she asked if I would look like her. Touché.
At this point, I’d like to share random thoughts about the Olympics. Not to sound too much like a woman, but the opening ceremonies were awesome. Also, I learned that after cyclists figure out that they aren’t going to win the event, they just drop out. They just quit. Does this seem odd to anyone else? You’ve trained your entire life for this event. You fall to fourth place. Oh well, I’ve got other things to do. There’s a sale at Pennies. I’m out.
Also, to be more equal, I think men’s beach volleyball should show as much skin as the women do. It’s just giving people what they want. Of course, beach volleyball is only there to show beautiful women in bikinis jumping and sweating just for me. Mission accomplished. It seems to me that women (and some men) should be able to leer at their favorite men on the beach too. I’m not going to make this my personal cause, but I’ll sign the petition should anyone pass it around.
Dan recently told me I was more naïve than most when it comes to athletes and their use of performance enhancing drugs. I say this because he was floored that I was really surprised that Roger Clemens was accused of performance-enhancement. As I was when Barry Bonds was named as a druggy. As I was when my two favorite players on the Dodgers (former favorites that is), Paul Lo Duca and Eric Gagne, were on the list of stupid baseball rule-breakers. I say this because I’m really excited about Dara Torres winning medals and being an inspiration to everyone who’s not 18. Yay oldies! You don’t think she’s doing anything illegal, do you? Me either. It would be so stupid to do that on an international stage. USA! USA! USA!
Posted by ed at 16:21 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)
August 07, 2008
Summer Reflections
Is this the end of Summer Ed?
I have this week left in my summer vacation as well as next week. I’m reflecting on the latest Summer of Ed and getting ready to spring back into my normal life. Overall it has been quite successful. I’ve run and worked out regularly, worked my cushy summer job, read, gone whitewater rafting, set up my retirement account, booked an anniversary trip to Las Vegas, watched a ton of baseball, and stayed out late with my friends. Hanging out with my friends is something I miss during the school year when I’m getting up at 6:00 and going to bed at 9:30. I’m going to have to find a way to work this into my normal school life.
One of the things I’ve been constantly bombarding Kristin about is my running. She is running as much or more than I am, but brags far less. So it seems like I’m running more. For example, today I ran on an elliptical machine for 45 minutes. I ran 6.2 miles which I believe is a 10K. Now I’m not sure how elliptical running translates to real running, but I am proud of this accomplishment. I started the summer wanting to run a 5K to get back in shape and I’ve moved past that and into new territory. I don’t think I’ve ever run that far ever so today, August 7th, 2008, I’m at my peak of cardiovascular fitness. I’m sure in high school while playing soccer I could do that while playing with my Rubric’s Cube, but I think it’s fair to say that I’m in the best shape since I was 25 (ten years ago).
I say that because the next month is a critical one for me. As school starts back, will I renew my gym membership? Will I run at least three times a week or will I fall back into my normal life? I don’t want to be less of a teacher, and continuing to go to the gym would make me feel better about myself, reduce my stress at school, and give me a social outlet. The good thing is this year should be easier than the last two – two years ago I had the stress of my wedding and last year I was working on my national boards. With me being somewhat of a veteran teacher now, I should be working smarter now and have the ability to handle more extracurricular activities.
Hopefully this won’t just end with running, but could spill over into other parts of my life. I’d enjoy seeing a football or basketball game with my friends or going out on a random Wednesday to have a drink with folks. I know I wouldn’t be able to do these things super late, but maybe I could stay out until 10:00 once or twice a week. I don’t need to go crazy, but once every week or two might be nice. Overall, I want Real Ed to more closely mimic Summer Ed. Will it happen? I don’t know.
Posted by ed at 12:59 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)
July 31, 2008
Mark Your Calendars
Seriously? Another beer post? Sigh.
Tickets for the World Beer Festival go on sale to the general public on August 20th. $40 a ticket gets you all the beer samples you can keep down of over 300 beers. And this year’s beer fest will take place at the new Durham Bulls stadium – yep, the DBAP, not the old stadium.
Just like usual, there is an afternoon session and an evening session on October 4th. Obviously, everyone by now knows that Kristin and I always hit the afternoon session. It’s seems more about the beer and actual tasting while the evening session has more or a fraternity party feel, although I will admit to really enjoying the chorus of “whoos” every time the sound of glass bottles being poured into a recycling bin echoed across the park during the evening.
Tickets are available at Milltown, and last time they sold out before I could procure a pair for me. So after a one year hiatus, I am ready to hit the ground running and drinking. If you’re interested in the afternoon session, let me know and I’ll try to get a ticket for you when I’m at Milltown. To ensure I get my ticket, I will be there on the 20th. Oh, and give me your cash. What? Am I made out of money?
I enjoy the chance to try beers I would never try, even the ones I will never try again (Big Foot brutal hop experiment, whatever mead crap my brother gave me). I enjoyed green apple beer and blueberry, some made with maple syrup, and many that aren’t available in this area. I really enjoy Sweetwater beers, but unless I go to Asheville or Boone, I’m out of luck on all days except for the beer fest.
I will say the crowd gets to me a little more every year, but it’s mostly OK. The Durham crowd doesn’t annoy me like the Raleigh crowd did. I can’t explain this, other than maybe I was more relaxed near my home in familiar surroundings than in Capital City. And the weather can factor into one’s enjoyment – a couple years back it rained prior to us going and basically created a twelve inch layer of mud on the ground. My brother was wearing flip flops, took two steps and never saw his shoes again. They were permanently a part of the muddy terrain, and he enjoyed the rest of the tasting in bare feet.
All in all, it’s a fun experience and I’d wanted to drum up a little interest in this year’s fun. With any luck, I’ll see you at the DBAP drinking an array of alcoholic goodness. I’ll be the tall, awesome guy. Stop by and say hello.
Posted by ed at 08:25 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)
State Of Fear