The high school where I help out with the soccer team has an Alumni match against the high school varsity team at the beginning of each season. The coach from the last three seasons amended the definition of "alumni" to include past coaches so that he could play (he has passed on the torch to one of the JV coaches from last year). Since I qualify as an "Alumni Coach" I decided to take my newly fit person out and take a shot as a player. Here, hold my beer and watch this! (What was I thinking?)
The alumni team was comprised of some recent graduates, as well as at least a couple players from each decade back as far as the 80's. Of course I was by far the oldest on the field but I fared well enough that I was able to stay on the field for at least 35 of the 80 minute match. I'm generally not that fast on my daily five mile jaunt in the mornings. However, as it turns out I've still got a sprint or two left in me.
The alumni team was comprised of some recent graduates, as well as at least a couple players from each decade back as far as the 80's. Of course I was by far the oldest on the field but I fared well enough that I was able to stay on the field for at least 35 of the 80 minute match. I'm generally not that fast on my daily five mile jaunt in the mornings. However, as it turns out I've still got a sprint or two left in me.
Knowing that the skills required for any competitive sport are "perishable" and that I've not done any real practicing of my soccer skills other than the occasional filling in a gap on the field during a practice scrimmage over the past two seasons, I tucked myself away as the back left defender in our 4-4-2 and waited for the kickoff. It took me a while to get comfortable but my coaching knowledge paid off with my positioning and I was able to hold my own for the most part. Until....
About the middle of the first half the alumni defensive line was up trying to catch the varsity attackers offside when a through pass and forward beat the right center of our defense clean just past the midfield line. I know I said I was slow but that's on my morning jaunt! I took off at a full sprint angled to cut off the attacker and intercepted him about thirty yards out from the goal. I ran with him through the far corner of the penalty area forcing him wide. His shot went wide of the near post harmlessly into the side of the net (outside the goal). Now I coach defenders all the time that attackers attempting to keep control of a soccer ball can not maintain the full speed that they are capable of when running without the ball. And that any defender taking the proper angle should be able to run down almost any attacker that is trying to maintain control of a soccer ball no matter how fast that attacker might be. But in this instance, the attacker was 16 and I'm 56 so I'm going to brag about it anyway!
I also found myself one-on-one with arguably the best player on varsity. He was on a break away with our defense out of position. Realistically I had a chance to win the ball outright but when I looked up to see who would be challenging me I hesitated. Go or no go? I went, late. Because I hesitated we arrived at the ball at the same time and as luck would have it I managed to play the ball over his foot out of bounds giving my team a chance to regroup. Everyone was happy with the result...yeah, I meant to do that.
And then there was the time that I received the ball at the back left with space and time and saw one of our alumni attackers making a run to get free forward right. I wound up to deliver the fatal cross only to pop the ball up with back spin landing about twenty yards away at the feet of one of my teammates, who had room to go! Everyone was happy with the result...yeah, I meant to do that.
My best pass came when I saw an opening and went to lead my fellow alumni midfielder into space. The varsity defender read my intention perfectly and moved forward to intercept. However, I again mishit my pass and the ball went behind the defender, who's momentum carried him forward out of position, the ball traveling through the space the defender vacated arriving right at the feet of my alumni teammate. I looked like a tactical genius and the comments from my teammates indicated that they thought so as well....yeah, I meant to do that.
Looking back, the only play that started and finished as I intended was a ball crossed to my side that I set up to chest trap but noticed a teammate about ten yards away in space. So instead of trapping the ball I met the ball with some force and used my chest to pass the ball and it actually did what I wanted. That I did mean to do!
At the end of the day, everyone's perception was that I acquitted myself well enough that I'll probably be invited back next year. At least I can hope!
On a side note, Maureen was working the snack bar and was not able to see me in action. I didn't give her any details, I just told her I was brilliant. So don't let on any of that other stuff. That's just between us, OK!
Thursday, I took Liam back to school. He has moved into a new (actually old but different) house that is practially right on campus. When Liam crosses the street in front of his house he is right in the middle of campus. Althought the house is old, poorly altered to accommodate as many student/tenants as possible, and moderatly run down, it's still 4x better than the house he moved out of and you just can't beat the location without living in a dorm. And, Liam still has the illusion of being "independant"!
Like a crowded dorm room, Liam's one room in the house has very limited space for furniture and personal belongings. Maureen had purchased 8-fabric cubes that fit under Liam's bed to act as a quasi dresser in his old house where he had even less room. However, Liam indicated after a year of use that it was impractical to keep his bed far enough from the wall to access the cubes on both sides of the bed and would prefer something akin to a dresser. And me with my workshop (man cave) downstairs and no projects in progress. Here, hold my beer and watch this!
I measured the space on Liam's only free wall between a closet and entry door. Then I did some rough calculations on how many shelves sized for the cubes that I could get out of a single sheet of 3/4" BC sanded plywood. With an idea in my head and nothing on paper except my math Liam and I went to work.
Except for some brad nails and glue to hold on some 3/4 round trim around the shelves and a few dowels glued into one end of select posts, the entire project is held together with 3/4" dowels hammered into 3/4" holes with a rubber mallet (all friction fit) so it can be disassembled for transport if necessary. I also attached a power strip to the bottom of the very top shelf so he could plug in the TV, alarm clock, etc... I can't say it came out perfect but the end result was pretty darn good except.....
You'll notice two white dowels poking up just under the center of the TV in the space designed for a PS4 or cable box or whatever. Those should have been cut flush with the shelf and the tips painted. I was back in Cullowhee Saturday with my sawzall, hand sander, and some black paint. Ten minutes is all I needed. I couldn't get Liam to take two minutes to clear off that shelf so it didn't get fixed. I won't see it all year but it's going to drive me nuts. I think Liam knows that and is not allowing me to fix it on purpose. I'm going to keep my tools in my truck and the next time I'm in his house and he goes to the bathroom? That'll teach him!
On a side note, instead of fixing the shelf, Liam and I went to see "The Assassin's Body Guard." OMG! That movie is hilarious! Forget whatever you read from the critics and see that movie if you can (warning, language, violence). I think I could even pass it off as a "Guy Approved Romantic Comedy" so take your wife/girlfriend.
Unless you've been holed up in your house with no contact whatsoever you can't have missed that we have a solar eclipse coming up on Monday. I for one was surprised to learn how limited the viewing area is to be able to see the Total Solar Eclipse. If the earth were a basketball the area for optimal viewing of the eclipse would be considerably smaller than a ping pong ball. The total eclipse will only be visible along a path from about the Washington/Oregon border to South Carolina.
Click this link for the path.
That path just happens to cross over Western North Carolina and one of the optimal viewing areas will be Cullowhee where Liam's school is located. Maureen was able to secure viewing glasses several weeks ago. If you're just looking for them now you're probably out of luck. Be careful about counterfeit (ineffective) viewing glasses!
For me; here, hold my beer, want to see this!
Take care!
Rick
Thursday, I took Liam back to school. He has moved into a new (actually old but different) house that is practially right on campus. When Liam crosses the street in front of his house he is right in the middle of campus. Althought the house is old, poorly altered to accommodate as many student/tenants as possible, and moderatly run down, it's still 4x better than the house he moved out of and you just can't beat the location without living in a dorm. And, Liam still has the illusion of being "independant"!
Like a crowded dorm room, Liam's one room in the house has very limited space for furniture and personal belongings. Maureen had purchased 8-fabric cubes that fit under Liam's bed to act as a quasi dresser in his old house where he had even less room. However, Liam indicated after a year of use that it was impractical to keep his bed far enough from the wall to access the cubes on both sides of the bed and would prefer something akin to a dresser. And me with my workshop (man cave) downstairs and no projects in progress. Here, hold my beer and watch this!
I measured the space on Liam's only free wall between a closet and entry door. Then I did some rough calculations on how many shelves sized for the cubes that I could get out of a single sheet of 3/4" BC sanded plywood. With an idea in my head and nothing on paper except my math Liam and I went to work.
Except for some brad nails and glue to hold on some 3/4 round trim around the shelves and a few dowels glued into one end of select posts, the entire project is held together with 3/4" dowels hammered into 3/4" holes with a rubber mallet (all friction fit) so it can be disassembled for transport if necessary. I also attached a power strip to the bottom of the very top shelf so he could plug in the TV, alarm clock, etc... I can't say it came out perfect but the end result was pretty darn good except.....
On a side note, instead of fixing the shelf, Liam and I went to see "The Assassin's Body Guard." OMG! That movie is hilarious! Forget whatever you read from the critics and see that movie if you can (warning, language, violence). I think I could even pass it off as a "Guy Approved Romantic Comedy" so take your wife/girlfriend.
Unless you've been holed up in your house with no contact whatsoever you can't have missed that we have a solar eclipse coming up on Monday. I for one was surprised to learn how limited the viewing area is to be able to see the Total Solar Eclipse. If the earth were a basketball the area for optimal viewing of the eclipse would be considerably smaller than a ping pong ball. The total eclipse will only be visible along a path from about the Washington/Oregon border to South Carolina.
Click this link for the path.
That path just happens to cross over Western North Carolina and one of the optimal viewing areas will be Cullowhee where Liam's school is located. Maureen was able to secure viewing glasses several weeks ago. If you're just looking for them now you're probably out of luck. Be careful about counterfeit (ineffective) viewing glasses!
For me; here, hold my beer, want to see this!
Take care!
Rick
