sports

Should Politics Be On The Playing Field? . Why has just about everything within our lives become political including sports. Should athletes use this form to be political or should they do it off the athletic field and on their own time?

Why you should try pickleball. If you haven't tried pickleball yet - by all means, give it a shot.

If you're older:
1. Racquet sports are scientifically proven to be one of the best ways to ward off cognitive decline.
2. You'll get more exercise playing than you would think.
3. You'll make a ton of new friends - cause it's one of the most social sports ever.

If you're younger:
1. There are more and more young players picking up the sport.  It's super fun, easy to get started - tricky to master.
2. With so much more isolation from our devices - anything that gets you out of the house and interacting with others is a huge win.

When I started in my late 40s - I was the youngest guy on the court... but now - there are 14-15 year olds ripping the ball and taking home medals.  There are also 70-80 year olds still competing and redefining what growing old looks like.

Pickleball is one of the only sports that people of all ages - and sexes - can compete together at the same time.  It really is fun - and having played all over the country - almost every court is welcoming and helpful.

I have found a sport I will enjoy through retirement - but better yet - I've found friends that I love and created a new family with.

If you haven't tried it - look up courts in your area and give it a shot... You'll be  so glad you did...

A Love Letter to NFL Football. The Super Bowl is happening this weekend and with it, the end of the football season.  It seems a fitting time for me to reflect on the little love affair I’ve had with NFL football for the past six years.  It is a bit odd that I picked up football later in life. But like many strange love stories, it started during the Covid shutdown. 

I was living alone in Dallas, feeling isolated.  My friends there were fearful about contracting the virus, so I found myself spending long stretches of time without human company. Football entered my world simply because it was one of the few places where real humans were doing a real thing, live, in front of me.  I watched casually, at first, not caring who won, but eventually I found myself rooting for players and their teams simply because I’d learned their stories:  the traded-too-many-times guy who finally thrived, the rookie wide receiver who shocked everyone with a miracle catch, the gifted quarterback who’d spent most of his career buried on a loser team where quarterbacks go to die, only to suddenly be traded to a team where he could thrive.  The beauty was that I didn’t pull for just one team…I had several favorites!  Watching live football on TV gave me some flavor of the aliveness I valued and was missing.  

Recently, my brother, who has watched football his entire life, and understands the game on a much deeper level, has been teaching me about the formations, the strategies, the “chess” behind what can look, at first glance, like guys just crashing into each other. It’s been fun to talk or text with him during games. I noticed we always seemed to pull for the same teams and there’s something touching about that.  What is it about these specific teams and players that we both value?  My roommates started watching with me and learning football.  Then other non-football friends started joining us to watch and experience the “People magazine” version of football through my live commentary.  It has become a kind of communal celebratory activity and so much fun.

And now the Super Bowl is here. I’m excited, of course, but instead of feeling the familiar sadness as the season ends, I feel kind of excited about all the time I’ll have available in the off-season. Maybe I’m just a little tired, but it has me wondering whether my love affair with football is more permanently on the wane, making way for new experiences.  

I want to be in the aliveness of this beautiful existence and there are many places to find that.  And regardless of where that aliveness goes from here, I have loved the world of NFL football.

Anything that you, gentle readers, have committed significant time to that you are considering stepping back from or have recently dropped?

A Love Letter to NFL Football. The Super Bowl is happening this weekend and with it, the end of the football season.  It seems a fitting time for me to reflect on the little love affair I’ve had with NFL football for the past six years.  It is a bit odd that I picked up football later in life. But like many strange love stories, it started during the Covid shutdown. 

I was living alone in Dallas, feeling isolated.  My friends there were fearful about contracting the virus, so I found myself spending long stretches of time without human company. Football entered my world simply because it was one of the few places where real humans were doing a real thing, live, in front of me.  I watched casually, at first, not caring who won, but eventually I found myself rooting for players and their teams simply because I’d learned their stories:  the traded-too-many-times guy who finally thrived, the rookie wide receiver who shocked everyone with a miracle catch, the gifted quarterback who’d spent most of his career buried on a loser team where quarterbacks go to die, only to suddenly be traded to a team where he could thrive.  The beauty was that I didn’t pull for just one team…I had several favorites!  Watching live football on TV gave me some flavor of the aliveness I valued and was missing.  

Recently, my brother, who has watched football his entire life, and understands the game on a much deeper level, has been teaching me about the formations, the strategies, the “chess” behind what can look, at first glance, like guys just crashing into each other. It’s been fun to talk or text with him during games. I noticed we always seemed to pull for the same teams and there’s something touching about that.  What is it about these specific teams and players that we both value?  My roommates started watching with me and learning football.  Then other non-football friends started joining us to watch and experience the “People magazine” version of football through my live commentary.  It has become a kind of communal celebratory activity and so much fun.

And now the Super Bowl is here. I’m excited, of course, but instead of feeling the familiar sadness as the season ends, I feel kind of excited about all the time I’ll have available in the off-season. Maybe I’m just a little tired, but it has me wondering whether my love affair with football is more permanently on the wane, making way for new experiences.  

I want to be in the aliveness of this beautiful existence and there are many places to find that.  And regardless of where that aliveness goes from here, I have loved the world of NFL football.

Anything that you, gentle readers, have committed significant time to that you are considering stepping back from or have recently dropped?

A Love Letter to NFL Football. The Super Bowl is happening this weekend and with it, the end of the football season.  It seems a fitting time for me to reflect on the little love affair I’ve had with NFL football for the past six years.  It is a bit odd that I picked up football later in life. But like many strange love stories, it started during the Covid shutdown. 

I was living alone in Dallas, feeling isolated.  My friends there were fearful about contracting the virus, so I found myself spending long stretches of time without human company. Football entered my world simply because it was one of the few places where real humans were doing a real thing, live, in front of me.  I watched casually, at first, not caring who won, but eventually I found myself rooting for players and their teams simply because I’d learned their stories:  the traded-too-many-times guy who finally thrived, the rookie wide receiver who shocked everyone with a miracle catch, the gifted quarterback who’d spent most of his career buried on a loser team where quarterbacks go to die, only to suddenly be traded to a team where he could thrive.  The beauty was that I didn’t pull for just one team…I had several favorites!  Watching live football on TV gave me some flavor of the aliveness I valued and was missing.  

Recently, my brother, who has watched football his entire life, and understands the game on a much deeper level, has been teaching me about the formations, the strategies, the “chess” behind what can look, at first glance, like guys just crashing into each other. It’s been fun to talk or text with him during games. I noticed we always seemed to pull for the same teams and there’s something touching about that.  What is it about these specific teams and players that we both value?  My roommates started watching with me and learning football.  Then other non-football friends started joining us to watch and experience the “People magazine” version of football through my live commentary.  It has become a kind of communal celebratory activity and so much fun.

And now the Super Bowl is here. I’m excited, of course, but instead of feeling the familiar sadness as the season ends, I feel kind of excited about all the time I’ll have available in the off-season. Maybe I’m just a little tired, but it has me wondering whether my love affair with football is more permanently on the wane, making way for new experiences.  

I want to be in the aliveness of this beautiful existence and there are many places to find that.  And regardless of where that aliveness goes from here, I have loved the world of NFL football.

Anything that you, gentle readers, have committed significant time to that you are considering stepping back from or have recently dropped?

A Love Letter to NFL Football. The Super Bowl is happening this weekend and with it, the end of the football season.  It seems a fitting time for me to reflect on the little love affair I’ve had with NFL football for the past six years.  It is a bit odd that I picked up football later in life. But like many strange love stories, it started during the Covid shutdown. 

I was living alone in Dallas, feeling isolated.  My friends there were fearful about contracting the virus, so I found myself spending long stretches of time without human company. Football entered my world simply because it was one of the few places where real humans were doing a real thing, live, in front of me.  I watched casually, at first, not caring who won, but eventually I found myself rooting for players and their teams simply because I’d learned their stories:  the traded-too-many-times guy who finally thrived, the rookie wide receiver who shocked everyone with a miracle catch, the gifted quarterback who’d spent most of his career buried on a loser team where quarterbacks go to die, only to suddenly be traded to a team where he could thrive.  The beauty was that I didn’t pull for just one team…I had several favorites!  Watching live football on TV gave me some flavor of the aliveness I valued and was missing.  

Recently, my brother, who has watched football his entire life, and understands the game on a much deeper level, has been teaching me about the formations, the strategies, the “chess” behind what can look, at first glance, like guys just crashing into each other. It’s been fun to talk or text with him during games. I noticed we always seemed to pull for the same teams and there’s something touching about that.  What is it about these specific teams and players that we both value?  My roommates started watching with me and learning football.  Then other non-football friends started joining us to watch and experience the “People magazine” version of football through my live commentary.  It has become a kind of communal celebratory activity and so much fun.

And now the Super Bowl is here. I’m excited, of course, but instead of feeling the familiar sadness as the season ends, I feel kind of excited about all the time I’ll have available in the off-season. Maybe I’m just a little tired, but it has me wondering whether my love affair with football is more permanently on the wane, making way for new experiences.  

I want to be in the aliveness of this beautiful existence and there are many places to find that.  And regardless of where that aliveness goes from here, I have loved the world of NFL football.

Anything that you, gentle readers, have committed significant time to that you are considering stepping back from or have recently dropped?

Any other sports people on this?

Big on writing.  See my web page.  Love sports, especially football.  Retired accountant.  Love animals more than most people.