Out of the Wilderness

A controversial play at the plate, you decide!

The summer season of softball has me taking the mound for the CMT Swingers. I usually play outfield but I’ve really enjoyed pitching, and didn’t know I would like it so much. I’ve even worked on a knuckle ball. Whether the knuckle helps at all is up for debate because a few batters had solid hits off of it. But I’ve also struck out a few that surprised me. Another “trick” I like to do is pitch the ball quickly when the batter gets in the box. My philosophy as a pitcher and a batter is when you’re in the batter’s box, you’re in the game. But a lot of times the batter will stand in the box, get their feet set, look down as they wave the bat around a bit. Then the moment they look towards the mound for the first pitch, it’s falling over the plate for a strike. Boom, got ’em! I like it when I can get a strike called. So in the game I played recently, one of the batters commented to the plate umpire about the pitch coming before he was ready. I overheard the umpire say that it’s legal, but it’s dirty. His reply stuck with me the rest of the game because there are a few things I know about myself when it comes to sports: 1. I love competing. 2. I want the ball and 3. I hate cheating.

So when the umpire said the quick pitch was “dirty,” I was immediately affected. Whether it was called a strike or not, it felt like a strike against my character, and directly opposed to the aforementioned thing I hate (cheating). I didn’t do it again the rest of the game.

We lost.

I’m not saying the two are related, but looking back, I think after the umpires comment I loosened my grip and lost the mental control I had over the batters. It proved true in the last inning when we were winning 9-7 and I walked 2 of their worst batters. The next guy up to bat became the winning run.

Could the controversy for me be playing to win vs. playing so people like me?

Is it no holds barred vs. having class?

Kind vs. competition?

These things I will wrestle with for the next few days because this coming Wednesday? It’s playoffs. My spirit and body will give 110% on the field, but it’s my mind that needs to be made up by then.

Wild manta rays off Florida coast

The “Salt Life” stickers I often see are a good reminder of how much I love the ocean. We all need a little salt water therapy now and again, right? I recently spent time on the coast and I’m always amazed by what I see there. This particualar trip, it was this:
I can’t think of anything better than paddleboarding in the bay and seeing wild manta rays cruising by. I’ve been going to this beach since I was zero days old and now, 35 years later, I still get to experience a first. Awesome. I hope when I die and go to Heaven my room has an ocean view… or better yet, it’s at St. Teresa Beach, Florida.

16 Hours

One day here, two there. Days off of work that come and go, and are forgotten. But it’s those 16 hours that I wish were never needed.

US Men’s Soccer: The eagle soars today in Brazil!

I’m pumped for the men’s soccer game today. We face Belgium, who I’ve read is better than Ghana was 4 years ago (when they defeated the U.S.). So we have our work cut out for us… but hey, bald eagles have very few predators! Skwaaaawwwk!

Kayaking in Nashville: the Cumberland River

It felt like Christmas morning yesterday as my friend and I met up to kayak starting at the Percy Priest Lake dam, down the Stones River to the Cumberland River, and finishing downtown. It was pretty amazing. With sun-burned arms, sore backs, and sore legs, we stepped on shore and practically kissed the dry land, 8 hours and 21 miles later (tracked through the awesome MapMyRun app)! Here’s where we started and finished (plus a gallery of pictures below)…The highlights:
1. Watching a deer by the river bank. We floated upon it as it was eating, wagging it’s tail, and slowly making it’s way through the woods. Amazing to see it in it’s natural environment, virtually unaffected by any human disturbance.
2. Seeing a couple of bright yellow birds fly over the river.
3. Horses drinking water from the river.

4. 50-year-old women on a pontoon boat twerking as they motored past us. Actually, the visual that’s burned into my mind is a lowlight, but the odd experience is a highlight.
5. Finding a little spillway that looked like a place you’d find in Ireland (in the gallery below).
6. a view of downtown Nashville I’ve never seen before.