Wednesday Nights

Wednesday nights

I’ve been really busy lately and I’ll blog some thoughts from that sometime soon but one of the things I’ve really enjoyed since coming to Whitehall is Wednesday nights. I’ve said before that the people here are close and have fun together. Wednesday night Travis (the School Resource Officer) gets the gym at the local elementary and we play basketball on 7’6” rims. I need the exercise especially since Dena hasn’t found a job yet.

So let me explain. I’ve been spoiled like the only child of a rich family and now I’m getting to be half of the duo on “CHiPS”...Paunch. Dena gets up with me in the morning and makes me breakfast. I come home at lunch to a fresh hot lunch and when I get out of work Dena has dinner ready and on the table. Hopefully Dena will get a job before I’m the size of both “CHiPS” stars together. Until then (and probably after) I’ll play basketball on Wednesdays.

Before any of you start thinking I’m too old for this, you’re right but be quiet anyway. When I show up at the court I can see the fear in the other player’s eyes. I’m the tallest player on the court and when I make a move for the basket....they know I could trip and fall and take them out without mercy.

Case in point. Just two weeks ago I was standing under the basket ready to gobble up the rebound like a dog on what the cat threw up. Being a giant among men I was able to reach up and do a reverse slam dunk...right into my own face. Tell me that story doesn’t do something to you. Ha! You can’t! There is also a certain karma to that.

Not that I’m a big believer in karma but you gotta wonder. Months ago I bought nice new glasses and at the same time bought a cheap pair for sports so the new glasses would have a better chance at survival than my old glasses. When I started Wednesday night basketball I forgot my “sports” glasses and went without. While this made my vision as fuzzy as a cheap stuffed animal I never took a hand, elbow, basketball or my own knee to my face. (this is where I could tell the story of breaking my own nose with my own knee but maybe some other time)

Weeks went by where I would either remember my sports glasses or go without and nary a face shot. Then the fateful week I decided to wear my good glasses. That was when I slam dunked into my own face. Just a short time later my hands functioned as a deflector shield...the deflected a basketball pass right into my face. This one knocked off my glasses, cut my nose and gave me a black eye. So now with the other players again looking like teddy bears I finished the night with my glasses intact but not so my dignity.

What the heck, I’ll still play basketball and hopefully I’ll remember my sport glasses.