Lows, lows, and more lows

Morning! This is going to be a quickie, since I am on my way to Hoagie-fest at BP Grandmom's house. You see every Sunday after the guys return from their weekend retreat, BP Gmom has hoagies. Since I LOVE hoagies, hence my oh so doughy shape, I will be there in full force trying to ignore the tasty sandwiches but eventually give in....



The big guy returned to campus yesterday after I begged him not to since there was snow in the forecast. You see, the Czar threatened to have practice early in the morning if they lost all three games in NC. True to his word, there is practice this morning after the guys get off the bus after 3 am.

It was a blood bath and the team gave up 30 runs in 3 games. Again, can anyone say 'pitching'? The big lefty did  not take delight in the losses. Instead he was solemn and felt bad for his team mates. This is a good thing.

Anyway, before he left, he went to the sporting goods store to buy a  net to place in his apartment to catch his weighted balls. He is going back to them and cannot throw outside at the pizza shop since his fingers freeze in the cold weather. He sent a photo to me to see the new set up.

He also saw Yoda yesterday and brought him a cake to once again thank him. Yoda no longer charges the big guy since they are now friends and we have 'paid enough' according to the  kindly, wise gentleman.

Yoda  bashed the university system and warned the big lefty that lifting and throwing are prohibited. He also said that he probably could have pitched this weekend, but the kid really needed some of ma's homemade chicken Parmesan and Yoda's advice that he was not permanently injured.

And now, my friends, here is what happens.....This is my prediction based upon logic....although, logic has never been a factor with this team. The Czar makes his own decisions based upon his vision of a winning team....

Here is what will happen:

As they return to the practice field, he will scream at them for two hours and tell them that they are mentally soft.
He will say that they can be replaced and since he has a five year contract, he will still be there.
They will run, be humiliated, vomit from too much running, and  threatened.

They will fly to Texas and be shelled.
The big kid will come out of the bullpen during Sunday's game after the team loses the first two in a very ugly manner. He will shut down the rally and be told that he was still not mentally tough.
He will sit in the bullpen for another few weeks until the Czar becomes desperate, then he will be a mid week starter. Once he succeeds at mid week, he will throw on Sundays only.
By the end of the season, he will be the Friday starter, much to the Czar's chagrin.

What should happen:

The Czar realizes that lifting and pitching should not go hand in hand
He will respect the kid's work ethic
He will allow him to use his Pitching Doctor's flexibility protocols
He will send the big boy to the mound on Friday nights
They will win one game per weekend.

That's it, folks....the lows and the lows...there were no highs this weekend, but more interesting baseball to come.

Gotta run!

peace!

Mean Girls?

Good morning! It's my long day as I go from morning until 10 pm tonight. No worries....I got it covered...done it before...not crazy about the schedule but I created it to be free in the spring. So, not wanting to complain about it, I move forward and do my job.

Yesterday, something interesting happened on the tennis court. I subbed in for a friend who was working out of town. As we played, the usual banter and dopey play was evident as we hit some great balls and hit more balls out. All in all, playing morning tennis does what it is supposed to do...give me an outlet for my stress, a little aerobic action, and fun with the girls. That's it. When we finish after 90 minutes, we go our separate ways and run to work.

Until yesterday.....

S mentioned that the ladies on the next court (and I now use the term 'ladies' with my tongue in my cheek) commented to her friend that they were surprised that she was playing with the 'mean girls.'

Huh? I did not play last year because of elbow issues and played twice this season. I am not sure which mean girls they were referring to, but I was shocked by the comment. Looking at the ladies in our contract time, I can't think of one mean girl, 'cause I don't roll with a group that is nasty to others, especially when they have the privilege of not working on a Monday morning and can afford indoor tennis. The courts are not cheap and we pay up front for a season. The gals are professionals or housewives who are active in the community. Who is a mean girl?

Odd? Was it me? Am I a mean girl? What does a mean girl mean? When I was in high school, there were mean girls. Looking back, they were the most insecure of the bunch. So, they acted as if they were better than anyone else and excluded the nerdy types (uh, that would be moi). And so, I was never included in the mean girl clique in high school.

College...let's see...college....perhaps my head was in a book too much to know any mean girls. I work mostly in a female dominated profession....yes, there are some mean girls there, but there are mean guys too. Really mean...nasty....this is just their personalities. I have to work with them, not party with them. Like college, I focused on the work and not someone's personality. However, I recall the time when an upper class man asked me how I could wear my shorts and ripped sneakers to tennis practice. After all, the cute guys were on the court next to us. Oops...my bad....sorry, I did not have the money for new sneakers and the old Pumas worked pretty well.

On to today...mean housewives....Interesting television show concept, The Mean Housewives of the Tennis Court. Who are they? Well, some of them are the ladies who took up tennis after the kids were in pre school since they had a few hours to kill each day. They were never on a competitive team before and do not know how to act in a sportsmanlike manner. I know a few and stay away from them unless I have to play against them.

For example, a few years ago, I played with a woman who is a bit socially challenged...like me, another book nerd. She is very nice and thoughtful...and anxious about her tennis. Anyway, I played with her against women that I have known for years. One of my pseudo-friends asked me why I was playing with her and said that her social group called my partner "Encyclopedia Brown."

Knowing that this was a major 'dis, I walked away and got pretty angry over the comment. First, they were gossiping about a nice woman. Second, they had a name for her....kind of like the other nicknames that I have heard players use for other women.

This made me sit back and think about who I hang out with and avoid a friendship with women who have nothing better to do than gossip.

Are all of these women 'mean girls'? Absolutely not. Most are the kindest, nicest, sweetest individuals a person could meet. They would help in a flash and are often the people who volunteer in community activities when the rest of us are working. They are the pillars of society and do not brag or boast about their volunteerism. 

Now, my new tennis group has been identified as mean girls. Startled, I think that they are wrong. The Monday morning ladies have life in perspective as their families and communities are first in their lives. A competitive tennis match is 9th on the top ten list.



And so, gossip does not end in high school or college. It stays in our society as women and men who have nothing else to do with their time manufacture identities and personalities to people that they do not know. Sad, I wish them well and a life to focus on rather than my little group of Monday morning misfits.

Peace!

Spinach salad

Good morning! It's a beautiful day and time to get going.
I apologize for not posting more but school has started and I am pressed for time as I scramble to catch up with work. Part of my job has been to interview prospective students, therefore I have had to resort to SKYPE and use it at different times of day and night. The applicants like it because they do not have to go to campus. I am not crazy about it because I could be online with them any time of the day based on their schedule.....The good part about it, is that I can wear pajama bottoms and a nice top as I try to look uber-professional. OK, that is my only issue of the week....not so bad....although....

I spent 10 hours trying to get to South Carolina yesterday. Let me tell you....I was not pleased as I sat in Philly airport for 4 hours watching lots of planes leave for Atlanta, yet mine sat on the runway waiting for a part....then as I ran through Atlanta airport trying to catch my connection (I already missed 2), I made a mental note to start running again. As I arrived at the gate after weaving through countless travelers, I watched my gate close without me in the plane. Asking for another flight, I had the dubious honor of sitting between two large gentlemen as we flew to Savannah. Midway through the flight, I thought that I was perspiring because the two guys were in my space and I had no room, but the pilot announced that there was a problem with a plane generator and we did not have air conditioning. Ahh...that explains it.

No A/C....hot....between 2 big guys....no arm or leg room.....yoga breathing....in and out....Oh, by the way, we flew lower and slower so that we did not overheat the left over generator.....in and out.....Hail Mary.....



How is the big guy? Well, he has his semi annual cold. Yep, he overdoes it....does not take care of himself...gets sick...is salty.....finally feels better. He claims that he is still throwing well, which is good. But he complains that the trainer has them lifting weights twice a day then he throws. When I suggested that this may be due to current research in athletics and best practice models, he said something that I cannot repeat "%$($$$*$@)&!!.


'Nuff said.....I asked about the sofa....





"working on it...."


I asked about the internship...





"working on it...."


I asked about the post grade point averages in the locker room as the shortstop continues to look at his 2.1....


"still there...."





Yep...the Czar continues to humiliate the guys thinking that he is motivating them through this tactic. Uh huh...yeah, I definitely wanted my senior year gpa posted too....not! I worked all four years plus played on the tennis team twice a year leaving a little time for studying PLUS I had an incredibly hard major. During my senior year, I got sick of the juggling and left the team. I could not handle it any more and it was time to grow up.


These guys have a commitment to stay, yet the Czar is making it difficult. As I explained in class this week, a leader does not yell or embarrass to motivate. Motivation is intrinsic...within each of us. Therefore, it is up to the leader to find out what motivates each person. In my son's case, he wants to excel and get to the next level. Therefore, yelling, humiliating, benching, and so on have little effect except to anger him.

By the way, the Czar loved his essay on Evan Longoria which means that the lefty has finally figured out how to play the coach's game of 'love me...fear me....respect me...honor me...worship me....' Yep, he got it. Now all he has to do is to keep his head down, mouth shut, and throw the darn ball....that's it.


OK, I have a mountain of things to do starting with returning a zillion calls on my cell phone...


By the way, Sparky and the Baker are getting married on Sunday.

I have the honor of making 175-200 portions of spinach salad. I have to get my head around the math as I try to figure out the number of cups of spinach...oil....lemons....mangoes....apple cider vinegar....oh yeah...the secret ingredient.....honey! Sunday morning should be fun in the BP mom house as I put BP Grandmom, Grandpop, Tink, and anyone else who wants to chop mangoes and zest lemons....any takers? Frank Sinatra will be singing in the background.....love chopping veggies to the smooth sounds of the Chairman of the Board....

Later!

Looking for a tall, left handed pitcher...Have you seen him?

Good morning! It's a hot one today and I am looking forward to a little yoga and tennis today. Now that I am finished with my grades, I put a "gone fishing" sign on my work email.....Although...I hate fishing....ew.



How is the big guy? Well, except for his cracked toenail and 'dead arm', he is fine....until I get a hold of him then he will find a plastic surgeon to change his looks to prevent me from finding his exact location....although, I know how to find him, so he can run but he cannot hide. He leaves an American Express trail that I look at online and see exactly what he is up to, what he has eaten, and where he is located. Oh boy, when he starts to pay the bills, will he be in for a shock or twenty!



Today is July 21st. He has ten days to take care of the sofa. He also has no where to live in September and is still registered for yoga....oh yeah, let's chat about the internship....shall we? Let's not, my blood pressure is about to hit an abnormally high level.



He is avoiding me since I am going to go down the list of what he has not done in the three months. Is it a guy thing? Dunno....don't care. He has everything handed to him except for his talent and arm speed, so......hmmmmm.....

I don't ask for much....a safe place for the sofa....a class schedule that will challenge and not babysit the student....a life free from the fear of gaining weight when sniffing a coconut macaroon.....

And so....he has gone underground (so to say) but I will find him.....he can run......but momma is trailing him like a wildebeest.....I can sniff out a tall left handed pitcher with a ten year old dented Cadillac and American Express card....Look out....I am on the case....

Peace!

Hold on! I'm coming!

Good morning! It's a little soupy today so it was an early morning workout with the iPod shuffle that Betty gave to me. Boy, what a difference music makes with a work out. I had my own tunes and was bopping around the track singing songs and looking like an out of shape, middle aged weirdo....ah, now that I am of a certain age....I don't care!

 Actually, Tink looked me up on some rate-a-professor site on the internet. Guess what? I got a 'hot' rating. That's right....I said 'hot'....before I go and puff up my ego, let's consider this hotness.....could it be that I had multiple hot flashes during a given class?

Could it be that I have a little portable fan that I bought in Target that I attach to my laptop before these classes to keep me cool? In other words, the hot rating is probably because they watch me perspire....



With that said, speaking of hotness, my boy went to the ER today and his BP mamma is not too happy....yesterday, he stopped at an urgent care and they correctly diagnosed strept throat. They also gave him 10 mg prednisone for his incredibly large tonsils. Well, if you know my boy, you know that he is a giant. Ten mg is more or less...how to say this....nothing....it's nothing. His body laughed at the low dose...not even enough to burst a pimple.... and as a result, it did not work. Therefore, I got a 5 am text telling me that he was much worse and added the four letter word...."HELP!"



Nice, just what a ma wants at 7 am on a Sunday when she is 18 hours away by car....I can't physically help, so I sent him to the ER with the notion that I would catch a very expensive plane to St. Louis and drive 2 and 1/2 hours to find him in a sweat ball somewhere.....talk about 'hot'......As Sam and Dave sing: "Hold on.....I'm coming!"

And thus, our hero drove himself to the ER, parked, and was seen my a doctor who said several things...sorry to those of you who have queasy stomachs....his tonsils are two times the normal size with a great deal of pus on them, and a strept rash on his left arm.

They also laughed at the ten mg prednisone dose and gave him the correct dose. Now, he should feel a bit better and be able to beat this....however, this means that he probably will not pitch this week.

Huh? What is the deal? This guy cannot catch a break! Once again, as he is ready to return to the mound after having the arm strain, he is sidelined with pus-y tonsils.



The only thing that I can say is that he will get his chance when the time is right. Be patient.....stay calm.....drink orange juice and take your meds.....and if you don't feel better......



Hold on....I'm coming! Sing it Sam and Dave!

Don't you ever feel sad
Lean on me when times are bad
When the day comes and you're down
In a river of trouble and about to drown

Just hold on, I'm comin'
Hold on, I'm comin'

I'm goin' my way, your lover
If you get cold, I will be your cover
Don't have to worry 'cause I'm here
No need to suffer baby, 'cause I'm here

'Cause hold on, I'm comin'
Hold on, I'm comin'
Hold on, I'm comin'
Hold on, I'm comin'

Reach out to me for satisfaction
Call my name now for quick reaction

Now don't you ever feel sad
Lean on me when the times are bad
When the day comes and you're down, baby
In a river of trouble and about to drown

Just hold on, I'm comin'
Hold on, I'm comin'

Just hold on, I'm comin'
Hold on, I'm comin'

Just hold on, I'm comin'
Hold on, I'm comin'