Where I Want to Go

Here is something interesting. I haven't played power soccer for over a week. That is kind of depressing. However, it just means that I am getting more pumped up for Saturday when we hit the floor again. I also need to at some point get my turn speed turned up a little bit more to continue my incremental ascent. However, this is all within the area of improvement. I know that one of the most important parts of improvement is actually wanting to improve. It is very difficult to get better at something without work and thought. The reason that I include thought is because work without a purpose really won't do much good. You need to know what you are working towards in order to actually have a chance of getting there. So, where am I heading? Individually, I want to become a player who is able to compete with players at the national level. I don't necessarily mean I am looking at the national team yet because I am nowhere and I repeat nowhere near good enough. However, what I mean is that I would like to be able to play against very good teams and even though I might get beat by some really good players, I would like to be able to hold my own. I don't need to be the best (although if that ever happened after many years of work I wouldn't object), but I want to be a solid, dependable player who is able to execute when needed and always contribute to the betterment of the team.

Alternatives Exist

I think that power soccer is pretty awesome as you all know. I love playing, and I think it is a great competitive outlet. Also, I think that it is a very interesting commentary on disability in general. Recently, at least since the Americans with Disabilities Act, there has been more equality for people with disabilities. I think that that is awesome of course. However, I feel that the best part is that alternatives exist. Take power soccer for example. Somebody like me could never play normal soccer just because the logistics of the game just wouldn't work. However, now we have a game called power soccer, and it allows people like me the ability to compete in our own game. That is the point. Power soccer is different than normal soccer because logistically people with disabilities like me could never play regular soccer. It's an alternative that is ever increasingly growing. Obviously, we are nowhere near the popularity of normal soccer, but the point is that there is an alternative that allows people in wheelchairs to compete. I believe that disability is a difference, but everyone is different honestly. Incidentally, I really don't like the cliché "differently-abled" because I feel like it is simply a play on words that it needlessly redundant since no two people are identical in nature. People with disabilities simply live in a slightly alternative way just like power soccer is an alternative sport. Both can be enjoyed, and they both can make a difference.

Looking Forward

Well, apparently Brett Favre is retiring for real this time. Of course, we have heard this before, but he isn't getting any younger so it probably will be true this time. Nevertheless, the playoffs are coming, so that will be a lot of fun, and it will of course be capped off by the Super Bowl featuring the two best teams in the NFL and the Black Eyed Peas at halftime. Then, after that we have March Madness and baseball season, two of my favorite times of the year. Interspersed with this will be a few more dunks by Blake Griffin I'm sure simply because he does something highlight reel worthy almost every night. That guy is ridiculous! Baseball season will be fun because there's no reason that the Phillies should not dominate this year. They now have the best rotation in baseball to go with the offense that is still one of the best even though it is not quite as strong as it was in right field. Maybe Dominic Brown will surprise us all! How nice would that be? Either way, we have a lot to look forward to in the next few months, so enjoy your fantasy that your team might win the World Series this year because once the season starts, we all know who's going all the way.

Photo by nightthree on Flickr

Napoleon Dynamite and Power Soccer?

Okay, does anyone remember the amazing scene at the end of Napoleon Dynamite where he is playing tetherball with the girl whose name I am forgetting right now? Well, I now have found the power soccer version that would allow me to recreate the scene. The Power Soccer Shop sells a device which is essentially a metal pole that rotates 360° just like a tetherball would. I know that the Kick It Shop also had something like that except with a chain instead of pole. Either way, I now feel like watching that movie or playing that game or preferably both at the same time. I think it looks like a lot of fun and also allows you to develop a better spin kick. I also think of the slight adaptations that could be made to create a game very similar to tetherball in that one player would be on each side and whoever cannot return the spin kick loses a point. Competition is great! The only potential downside to the device is that it takes up quite a bit of room, but that is no different than normal power soccer. Maybe I will have to try one out!

Photo from http://dollface-is-candysweet.blogspot.com/2008/10/something-for-weekend.html

Sports Abound

Happy New Year to all of my readers! 2011 is now here, and today must be one of the best days ever because it is 1/1/11! How cool is that? Anyway, today would be resolution day for millions of people around the country and world. That leads me to wonder, what should my resolution be? I'm not sure somebody because I am not that much different than most other people. I have a great idea for a resolution, but it lasts about five days before I don't worry about it anymore. New Year's Day is also a big day in the sports world. Of course, football is huge today with probably the second most popular football game of the year, the Rose Bowl which is second only to the Super Bowl of course. Also, we have outdoor hockey in Boston. That seems pretty cool, but I might only enjoy it this year because it is warm outside. I really have little love of freezing or being cold in general, so watching people skate on ice while sitting outside would not be my ideal day. However, the weather is beautiful and pretty warm today in New England, so I hope everything goes off well!

Photo by dsearles on Flickr