Posts Tagged ‘spectator sports’
Losing Lousy
It was an ugly weekend for my football teams with both the college Gophers and NFL Vikings losing games they could have/should have won. It’s a good thing I am mentally healthy enough to not let such trivial things spoil my outlook. Now, the embarrassing situation with our national government, in addition to the climate calamity being forced on the planet, are proving to be a little harder to shake.
Thankfully, I’m still feeling the lingering effects of joy and laughter from the overnight guests and biking adventure of the previous few days.
Also, I have the increasingly leaf-covered trails in our woods available for meandering while forest bathing. I’ll be alright.
There was one football victory worth noting. My old high school team, Eden Prairie, is now 3-0 after defeating Shakopee in EP’s Homecoming game on Friday. High school and our old community seem like such a world away to me now but allegiance to a winning football program is an easy thing to hold forever.
Here’s to not letting the lousy losses have a negative effect on us.
Happy last Monday of September! We are now on the fall side of the autumnal equinox. Enjoy!
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A Comparison
A thought experiment comparing the sports I watch on television with the shows Cyndie and I have been seeing lately:
First of all, I will admit to having a bit of an elitist attitude about the quality of scripts, casting, and acting for the dramas and drama/comedies we choose. One of our peeves is when an actor has to describe something like a crime scene to a colleague who would already know the information being shared. Presumably, this is done to inform the viewing audience but doing so by way of describing a legal detail to one’s partner detective who would already be aware of it just spoils the whole magic of imagining the scene was really happening.
It comes across as stupid and demeans the viewing audience.
Recently, we have been enjoying “Reservation Dogs.” At the same time, we happened to take in the first season of “Dark Winds,” because we are big fans of Zahn McClarnon who is acting in the role of Joe Leaphorn (in addition to “Big” in Reservation Dogs). “Dark Winds” started out strong but soon fell to some simplified storytelling that took away from the overall effect.
There was a scene where day inexplicably became night and the elapsed time is not justified in any way. It is a jolt that kicks us out of the drama on screen.
How does this compare to watching sports? I don’t know. But there are differing levels of drama in the team games I watch. Obviously, the players can easily be seen as parallel to actors in scripted shows. Speaking of scripts, there are designed plays that teams attempt to execute.
Some of the plays come across as brilliant, and plenty seem kind of stupid.
The coaches compare to directors. A well-coached team with good players who execute the designed scheme can perform a game that is a joy to watch and leaves me energized afterward. I noticed that my reaction was similar to the way we feel at the end of a great episode of “Reservation Dogs.” We want to talk about it after it ends and can’t wait to see the next episode when it becomes available.
Well, that is what happens with sports fans. After a good game (and sometimes the bad ones) we want to talk about what we saw, read news accounts of what happened, and immediately look forward to the next competition.
Sports teams have a bad game on occasion. A good television series can have a dud of an episode.
One big thing about sports that appeals to me is that the games are happening live while I watch. That easily compares to the added thrill of watching Saturday Night Live skits on television. You never know exactly what’s going to happen.
Even though I put this energy into selling the joys of watching sports by comparing it to Cyndie’s appreciation of good television series, she still does not want to watch games with me.
That’s okay. The exercise has given me a renewed zest for watching this season’s NFL games. Go Vikings! [currently 0-2]
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Fence Bit
Because I can, I turned on the US Open tennis tournament last night and caught a very entertaining first-round match between Coco Gauff and Laura Siegemund. It’s a treat to escape from thinking about what needs to be done around here for an hour or two and lose myself in a dramatic battle between two athletes.
I didn’t realize I would also find a ceremony honoring Billie Jean King on the 50th anniversary of her efforts to convince the US Open to give equal pay to women. It is easy to forget that I have lived through as many changes in the world as have occurred in my lifetime. Yet, it seems like there are still so many ways the human race falls short of ideals.
Asher is showing how to lose oneself in a nap.
Cyndie caught him in the landscape pond again. She said this time he went under her makeshift barrier and since she saw him going in, was able to stop him before he destroyed another intake filter. She also reported that he finally got shocked by the electric fence around the pasture.
He seemed pretty subdued to me the rest of the day. I hope he learns to avoid it from here on out.
Shortly after his fence incident, I had the power off while I weed-whipped around it. His timing was just a little off. I’m guessing he doesn’t sense the electric field like the horses can when the wires are “hot.”
I didn’t get bit by fence electricity but I walked into plenty of invisible spider webs yesterday.
Here is one of my phone camera shots where I couldn’t get it to jump to macro lens focus:
The web that wasn’t in focus is one of the few traps I was able to see and thus successfully avoid. The rest are all stuck to my clothes or peeled off my face.
It rained for a few seconds last night, despite the weather radar failing to depict any precipitation overhead. It was too brief to even get anything wet.
I called for an update on the schedule for getting our driveway shoulders professionally finished and was finally given a date.
“Wednesday,” he said.
I assumed he meant next week but, no, he told me it would be this week. I’m not going to hold my breath for that to actually happen.
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Congratulations Earned
I doff my hat to two football teams that have accomplished tournament wins in the last 24 hours. Congratulations to Inter Miami for their Leagues Cup championship and to Spain for the Women’s World Cup victory.
I was able to view both games even though we are on a stay-cation with our friends, the Wilkuses in Mound, MN, and the entertainment value was top-notch –both the football and hanging out with friends on Lake Minnetonka.
The high heat and lake atmosphere combined with the fabulous lunch offerings made for a quintessential picnic meal yesterday.
I’m a little sleep deprived this morning due to the late finish of the Leagues Cup match that went to penalties and went through all eleven players of each team and then the early start of the England v. Spain World Cup match.
It will be hard to top the excitement of the games and yesterday’s feasting and swimming but we’ll give it a decent effort today before returning to Wintervale tonight. I may try to talk Cyndie into driving so I can take a little snooze to the hum of tires speeding along the pavement.
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Evening Thunder
In that cabin 3 bedroom, just inches from the open window, the peals of rumbling thunder were an almost spiritual meditation lulling us into slumber last night.
After a brilliant day of pickleball and swimming followed by a nap and a fabulous dinner out, we finished the night with five of us around the table in the porch for a card game.
I had no inkling that a mellow thunderstorm was coming until a notice appeared on my phone. Cyndie had already made her way over to the little cabin and was almost asleep when I shuffled over before the rain arrived.
It didn’t show signs of getting windy so we left all the windows open wide and let the symphony of rain and thunder serenade us to sleep.
My Tour de France entertainment is over for another year, freeing up my morning hours for a return to normal routines, except for days when the Women’s World Cup soccer tournament games of primary interest happen in Australia and New Zealand during the wee hours of our local time.
Being a sports fan can be demanding sometimes. [play tiny fiddle of sympathy here.]
Company’s coming today! Our friends, Barb & Mike Wilkus are due to arrive this morning, launching a few days of added lake place bliss for us. Blessings abound and we humbly revel in the friends, family, and experiences we are able to enjoy this week.
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More Spectating
Different sport, similar passion. USMNT (U.S. men’s national soccer team) was up against Canada last night in the CONCACAF Gold Cup Tournament quarterfinals (The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football).
I watched the whole spectacle on television. The quality of the U.S. team’s play in the first half was rather embarrassing. The score was 0-0 at the break. Things picked up a bit in the second half and then got wild in the final minutes. 1-1 at the end of regulation.
2-2 at the end of overtime.
In the deciding penalty shootout, the U.S. goalkeeper, Matt Turner made two saves.
The final shot by Canada hit the crossbar and bounced out.
The U.S. won on penalties, 3-2.
Canada deserved better but I’ll take the win so I can watch the U.S. team play again in a couple of days.
Today, I get a break from watching sports. The Tour de France is on the first of two rest days so there is no racing. I will be driving home with Cyndie’s mom this morning and Cyndie and Asher will stay at the lake with friends for a few more days.
I suspect there are some compost piles that need to be turned and a few areas that could use some mowing after a week and a half away. I’m feeling ready to be back home, despite the time at the lake being nothing short of ideal.
Home is where I wanna be.
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Watching France
For the ninth day in a row, I find myself mesmerized by the broadcast of the Tour de France bicycle race and their excellent helicopter views of the greater countryside beyond the roads of the race. I am of the mind that the vantage point of watching the riders fly past from the side of the road can’t hold a candle to the ability to see the many angles provided by the camera operators riding on motorcycles.
Combined with the overhead views from helicopters, which pan across 13th-century architecture and fascinating chateaus, I am left feeling like I have not only been watching racers but I have been watching the fabulous scenes of the country of France.
This morning’s rockin’ climb finish with a (currently as I am writing this) breakaway group over 10 minutes ahead that appears to be threatening the yellow jersey-wearing Jonas Vingegaard’s chance at a stage win on the brutal final ascent.
Jonas was looking all business as they paced along the official car toward the approach of the starting point.
I’m going to stop writing and focus on today’s race excitement for the next hour…
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Stage One
It’s baaaaack! The Le Tour de France bicycle race is grabbing my attention for another year. Too bad broadcast marketing geniuses have their coverage primarily hidden behind a pay-to-view provider to which I am not subscribed. At least the opening stage was teased out for free this morning on NBC.
Yesterday, I gave Asher an extended car ride for his first trip up to the lake. Cyndie came up a couple of hours later with her mom. We face the challenge of introducing Asher to the many other dogs that run loose around the six-family compound.
Fingers crossed that we achieve a comfortable normalcy without incident. I walked Asher down to the lake where he demonstrated a profound disinterest in getting wet. It will be interesting to see how long he maintains that behavior.
I’d say we are at stage one of familiarizing the pup with our lake life. It would be nice if we had a team of 8 to help guide us like the cyclists racing in the Tour de France. In those terms, I suppose Asher would be the leader and we are his domestiques.
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Successful Foal
We learned yesterday that three of Mia’s nine foals are still racing and the last-born filly just won a race at Churchill Downs on Friday.
“Shes a Secret” is a three-year-old who ran to victory, making us all proud for Mia and her last baby. Mia’s former owners stopped by to see her and express their appreciation for This Old Horse taking care of their retired broodmare. They told us that Mia was a very good mamma.
It was hot and muggy with miserable air quality due to smoke from Canadian wildfires and the horses were standing by our fans, stomping their legs to knock off biting flies. Not ideal conditions for hanging with the horses under the overhang. Cyndie noticed that Mia was really sweaty and wanted her to be looking her best when company arrived so she choreographed an opportunity for Mia to have better access to one of the fans.
Worked like a charm.
Mia posed for a few pictures and the visitors served up cool baby carrots for all the horses to celebrate the occasion.
I ducked out to check on Asher up at the house where Cyndie had left him with a bone to occupy him. He was doing fine but wouldn’t let that bone out of his mouth for nothin’. I put his vest on over the bone and we went out for a little walk. When he found a spot he liked, he dug a hole and dropped the bone in it. Then came the classic exercise of nosing dirt and leaves over the precious snack to save it for who knows when in the future.
He appears to have that natural instinct down perfectly well.
I am impressed with his ability to cope with the heat outside lately. He is such a hot bod and his dark color must really grab those sun rays fast, yet he soldiers on without complaint. Asher is quick to drink from our landscape pond, passing up perfectly good bowls of water to get there. He shows no hesitation about going back into the house where the floors are cool to lie on for naps.
There was no napping for me yesterday afternoon. I mowed grass around the barn to spruce up the place before our visitors arrived and failed miserably at avoiding the heat and bad air. I cooled off later by watching Game 2 of the Stanley Cup finals on television.
With no prior favorite between the two non-hockey geographic location teams, I find myself leaning toward Vegas over Florida.
I won’t be placing any bets on it, though.
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No Accumulation
The following are random snippets of no particular relation beyond being composed in the last hour…
When it snows in April, two of the best words to hear are “No accumulation.” Thank goodness we are not being subjected to a return of the white blanket covering everything outside today. In fact, the precipitation of the last two days has turned our fields much more decidedly green. After so many days in a row last week where it was downright HOT outside, switching back to snow would be a tough pill to swallow. It’s hard not to feel like I’m just getting too old for this.
The horses didn’t seem very happy with the weather this morning, pacing back and forth around the overhang grumpily while I tried to take care of the housekeeping before setting out feed pans.
My spring primping of our landscape is happening in fits and starts. The last trimming I did of bushes and trees is all laying on the ground pretty much where it fell Friday, waiting to be hauled off to some bush pile out of sight. I guess, the truth is there is a significant accumulation of trimmed branches piling up outside.
we are not allowed
to know exactly why
the simple wink of an eye
from someone who is incredibly shy
fails to overtly imply
the end of a sentence
that never got properly finished
In the last few days, there has been news of swift justice demonstrated for a person who leaked top secret documents. Arrest him! Lock him up! Press charges! Why does it take so much longer for some crimes than others?
As much as I enjoy local spectator sports, I have had a difficult time catching our MLS team, the MNUFC Loons, in one of their glory moments. I saw last night’s broadcast of their home game against Orlando City where the Loons scored the first goal. YAY!! Then they allow a tying goal and in the last few minutes of game time, a go-ahead goal to lose. That’s not a spectacle I enjoy so much.
It feels a bit like a cold and drizzly Sunday after a warm and sunny week. However, on the bright side, NO ACCUMULATION of snow!
Thus far.
Afternoon Update:
The snow has gained enough momentum it has turned the surface of our deck furniture white but we are fighting snow with fire to cope.
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Relative Something 