In the Shadows of Giants
Aug. 7th, 2008 11:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
penfield"Let us therefore animate and encourage each other, and show the whole world that a Freeman, contending for liberty on his own ground, is superior to any slavish mercenary on earth."
- George Washington
As I mentioned recently, it is possible that my time in Washington DC is coming to a close. Obviously there are things that I would miss about this city, to say nothing of the friends who live here.
Sometimes I think to myself that I would miss the good-natured chaos of the congressional softball league, despite the wildly divergent talent pool, last-minute wrangling for players and cutthroat competition for playing space. But you know, this being America, any city I go to ought to have its own recreational softball league with conventional rosters, manicured fields and formal beer budgets. And I think that moving on and moving up wouldn't be so bad.
And every time I start thinking that way, I play a game on the National Mall and see things like this.
I took this picture with my cell phone from a spot about ten feet from our home plate. An hour after the game had ended, a handful of my merriest teammates sat around and basked in the glow of victory by the light reflected off of the Washington Monument. It was, in its own trivial and maudlin way, deeply moving.
I guess it helps that we won our game, although we played the game as an exhibition/scrimmage -- one of the perils of softball in August, especially in DC, is that half the town leaves for vacation as soon as Congress adjourns for the summer. Consequentially it can be a real pain finding people to play. For example, we played our game today without a catcher, and the opposing team could only round up two of the requisite three women.
But I guess when you play in a setting like the monument grounds, a sacrifice to the Gods of the Standings is merely a pittance.
Softball Game: August 7, 2008
WON 22-16 (scrimmage, unofficial); record 7-3
My statistics:
AB#1: Wussy little groundout to the pitcher
AB#2: Lazy fly ball to left field
AB#3: Single to shallow left, run
AB#4: Single to center, run
AB#5: Sharp single to left, run
AB#6: Lineout to deep left
3-for-6, 3 runs
5 IP, 16 runs
Season-to-date
18 for 33(.556), 15 runs, 7 RBI, 3 HR
42 IP, 97 runs (20.79 RA/9, 16.17 RA/7)
- George Washington
As I mentioned recently, it is possible that my time in Washington DC is coming to a close. Obviously there are things that I would miss about this city, to say nothing of the friends who live here.
Sometimes I think to myself that I would miss the good-natured chaos of the congressional softball league, despite the wildly divergent talent pool, last-minute wrangling for players and cutthroat competition for playing space. But you know, this being America, any city I go to ought to have its own recreational softball league with conventional rosters, manicured fields and formal beer budgets. And I think that moving on and moving up wouldn't be so bad.
And every time I start thinking that way, I play a game on the National Mall and see things like this.
I took this picture with my cell phone from a spot about ten feet from our home plate. An hour after the game had ended, a handful of my merriest teammates sat around and basked in the glow of victory by the light reflected off of the Washington Monument. It was, in its own trivial and maudlin way, deeply moving.
I guess it helps that we won our game, although we played the game as an exhibition/scrimmage -- one of the perils of softball in August, especially in DC, is that half the town leaves for vacation as soon as Congress adjourns for the summer. Consequentially it can be a real pain finding people to play. For example, we played our game today without a catcher, and the opposing team could only round up two of the requisite three women.
But I guess when you play in a setting like the monument grounds, a sacrifice to the Gods of the Standings is merely a pittance.
Softball Game: August 7, 2008
WON 22-16 (scrimmage, unofficial); record 7-3
My statistics:
AB#1: Wussy little groundout to the pitcher
AB#2: Lazy fly ball to left field
AB#3: Single to shallow left, run
AB#4: Single to center, run
AB#5: Sharp single to left, run
AB#6: Lineout to deep left
3-for-6, 3 runs
5 IP, 16 runs
Season-to-date
18 for 33(.556), 15 runs, 7 RBI, 3 HR
42 IP, 97 runs (20.79 RA/9, 16.17 RA/7)
