Ball 3: injuries and appeals
May. 11th, 2006 12:46 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
penfieldMaybe I'm getting old. Sure, we are all getting older, but I am getting old. After last week's two consecutive nights of softball, my body staged an indignant protest in the form of balky knees, a noodly shoulder and twingy groin. I consider myself a physically active guy, but my regular workouts simply do not simulate softball's requisite fast-twich muscle responses punctuated by 20 minutes of standing around. So the first week of the season was bound to catch me by surprise.
Compounding my consternation was my intention to play in a Sunday touch football game – which would normally be on hiatus in the spring/summer except for the crew's collective offseason itch. The knee and the shoulder would be fine, but I have always been excessively protective of my groin ever since reading this quote by oft-injured Jacksonville Jaguars running back Fred Taylor, who pulled his groin in 2001:
"The feeling was like taking a sling blade down the middle of your body, almost like you're splitting yourself in half. It felt like that, if you can imagine what whacking yourself with a sling blade would feel like."
Ouch.
So over the next few days, I took care to stretch the muscle whenever possible, to keep it warm and rested. But by Friday night, it was not progressing as quickly as I would have liked. I returned home late that evening, and decided that I would treat the area with Icy Hot, a common analgesic heating rub.
"Apply liberally to affected area and rub in deeply," It said. And at first it felt fine, like applying sunscreen, and I curled comfortably into bed. But gradually, then quickly, I realized that not only had I applied too liberally, I had applied too liberally outside of the affected area, thereby crossing over into an unsuspecting and much more delicate area.
The rest of my evening was like a Tom and Jerry cartoon, with me bouncing around the room in agony, smoke emanating from my pajama bottoms, until I finally submitted to a cold shower and some thorough scrubbing.
The good news is, I was able to suit up on Sunday. The bad news is, I still wasn't 100%, and it showed on the field. The good news is, I felt 100% for yesterday's softball game. The bad news is, I have no excuse for the following stat line:
May 10, 2006
Blue Team
LOSS, 11-19
BATTING: 4 AB, 0 singles, 0 runs scored, 0 RBI
PITCHING: 2 innings, 4 runs
FIELDING (P/LF): 3 chances, no errors
I did get on base in the last inning, but only because it was so dark that the left fielder dropped my fly ball. I hit only one really good ball all day, and the left fielder decided to catch that one.
Season-to-Date
BATTING: 12 AB, 5 hits (.416 AVG) 2 doubles, 1 HR (.833 SLG) 5 runs, 5 RBI
PITCHING: 11 innings, 39 runs (24.82 RA, per 7 innings; 31.91 RA, per 9)
FIELDING: 18 innings, 1.000 FPCT
But there's more good news. Or, at least, fun and interesting news. My blue team has decided to bring some stereo equipment to the next game and has suggested that everyone choose a song (30-to-60 second clip) to play as they come to the plate. This one of those moments of which I have been fantasizing ever since I started playing sports, up there with "making out with a cheerleader" and "pleading no contest in return for community service." Having narrowed it down to five choices, I open the debate for your opinion.
Each of the following songs is linked to an edited mp3 file, cued to the appropriate section. I'm looking for something that will get me and the team pumped up, something high-energy, something that builds, but also with a sense of doom and foreboding for the other team. (Please do not download more than once; these files have a 25-download limit. I will readily e-mail them upon request.)
- The Distance (Cake)
- Superstition (Stevie Wonder)
- You Could Be Mine (Guns N' Roses)
- Adventures in Failure (MC 900 ft. Jesus)
- Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (Santa Esmerelda)
Tell me what you think.
Compounding my consternation was my intention to play in a Sunday touch football game – which would normally be on hiatus in the spring/summer except for the crew's collective offseason itch. The knee and the shoulder would be fine, but I have always been excessively protective of my groin ever since reading this quote by oft-injured Jacksonville Jaguars running back Fred Taylor, who pulled his groin in 2001:
"The feeling was like taking a sling blade down the middle of your body, almost like you're splitting yourself in half. It felt like that, if you can imagine what whacking yourself with a sling blade would feel like."
Ouch.
So over the next few days, I took care to stretch the muscle whenever possible, to keep it warm and rested. But by Friday night, it was not progressing as quickly as I would have liked. I returned home late that evening, and decided that I would treat the area with Icy Hot, a common analgesic heating rub.
"Apply liberally to affected area and rub in deeply," It said. And at first it felt fine, like applying sunscreen, and I curled comfortably into bed. But gradually, then quickly, I realized that not only had I applied too liberally, I had applied too liberally outside of the affected area, thereby crossing over into an unsuspecting and much more delicate area.
The rest of my evening was like a Tom and Jerry cartoon, with me bouncing around the room in agony, smoke emanating from my pajama bottoms, until I finally submitted to a cold shower and some thorough scrubbing.
The good news is, I was able to suit up on Sunday. The bad news is, I still wasn't 100%, and it showed on the field. The good news is, I felt 100% for yesterday's softball game. The bad news is, I have no excuse for the following stat line:
May 10, 2006
Blue Team
LOSS, 11-19
BATTING: 4 AB, 0 singles, 0 runs scored, 0 RBI
PITCHING: 2 innings, 4 runs
FIELDING (P/LF): 3 chances, no errors
I did get on base in the last inning, but only because it was so dark that the left fielder dropped my fly ball. I hit only one really good ball all day, and the left fielder decided to catch that one.
Season-to-Date
BATTING: 12 AB, 5 hits (.416 AVG) 2 doubles, 1 HR (.833 SLG) 5 runs, 5 RBI
PITCHING: 11 innings, 39 runs (24.82 RA, per 7 innings; 31.91 RA, per 9)
FIELDING: 18 innings, 1.000 FPCT
But there's more good news. Or, at least, fun and interesting news. My blue team has decided to bring some stereo equipment to the next game and has suggested that everyone choose a song (30-to-60 second clip) to play as they come to the plate. This one of those moments of which I have been fantasizing ever since I started playing sports, up there with "making out with a cheerleader" and "pleading no contest in return for community service." Having narrowed it down to five choices, I open the debate for your opinion.
Each of the following songs is linked to an edited mp3 file, cued to the appropriate section. I'm looking for something that will get me and the team pumped up, something high-energy, something that builds, but also with a sense of doom and foreboding for the other team. (Please do not download more than once; these files have a 25-download limit. I will readily e-mail them upon request.)
- The Distance (Cake)
- Superstition (Stevie Wonder)
- You Could Be Mine (Guns N' Roses)
- Adventures in Failure (MC 900 ft. Jesus)
- Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (Santa Esmerelda)
Tell me what you think.
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Re: A-hem
Date: 2006-05-11 08:26 pm (UTC)Bring it on.
Re: A-hem
Date: 2006-05-11 09:20 pm (UTC)Prove me wrong, chump.
Re: A-hem
Date: 2006-05-12 01:08 pm (UTC)Since you're more unpredictable, your co-workers can't start playing it until you've already settled in the room.
Thus, it doesn't count.