KickBall!

Yup. The sport that we all played during recess in our elementary school days has made a come-back.
 
My buddy Jason at work has created a great group for people that want to change their ways. Basically it is a group dedicated to weight loss, with the goal of finishing the 2010 Great Race. It seems to have gone beyond that and I think its the nebulous for something very special and inspirational. www.at-our-pace.com is the groups website. He is looking to organize monthly outings for the group of a physical nature. A means of team-building and a great way to have fun and exercise. So the first event was a kick-ball game, and why not. Everyone knows how to play kickball and it doesn't take much skill, but it can kick your ass a bit. As it did to me today.

The band had a great gig last night. Lately I have been able to put allot of energy into performing due to being consistent with running. I dont tire like I used to during the second set. The problem was that I went to bed like a rock star and woke up like a farmer. 4:00am bedtime and 7:00 am awake with absolutely no chance of sleeping again. When I woke for the day the previous nights rain had not abated and was continuing and would continue throughout the day. I told myself I was playing kickball no matter what.  Eventually we grabbed some breakfast at Kostas. Well it was more like I was eating breakfast, Heather was playing with her food. You see she had a couple last night and well wasn't feeling well. Despite her best efforts she would not make the kickball game.

At 1 pm I made my way down to Clifford field. It was a pretty amazing sight. Had to be 15 or so people there, but the amazing part were the outfits. Everyone was dressed like they were taking part in a weird psychedelic experiment. Different colored socks and pants. Headbands. Tights. Jason made his own shirt complete with "Under Armer" ( yes .. his spelling ) on the neck. I felt out of place, so decided to adorn my head with my hiking bandanna. When in Rome I guess.....

We assembled teams and started to play. I haven't laughed this hard in a while. Everyone was full of it, running and sliding on the soaked field. The rain was still falling at this point and the temp was rather low but spirits were high and not one person complained about the rain. Definitely my type of group.

I was rather amazed how much effort went into playing. Playing the outfield, I ran for quite a few of the long balls, especially when Jason was up to the plate. You see when we do our daily runs, we run in a straight line most of the time, at a controlled pace for a set amount of time. When you tell someone that you are a runner they think you are automatically in great shape. Sure you have better lung capacity then non-cardio types, but as far as being an athlete, in my opinion it doesn't qualify. Playing today proved to me that I need to get more variety in my workouts. My legs were screaming from the fast sprints around the bases and in the outfield. Part of this may be due to last nights gigs and the jumping and "rock-star" lunges, who knows. What I do know is that I am sitting here quite sore, yet happy that I could participate in a team sport.

The next outing for the group will be paintball. I have wanted to play this for years, but never made any effort to assemble a group. For the next month Ill be watching Chuck Norris and Steven Seagal movies for pointers.

A Wedding To Remember

      Ive been to my share of weddings. My idea of a wedding has been shaped from them. Arrive at Church. Music. Bride walks in. Stand. Exchange vows. Say congrats. Goto reception. Socialize. Wedding party walks in. First dance. Mother dance. Father dance. Eat Chicken. Dollar Dance. Chicken Dance. Macarena. Garter. Cake. Bouquet. Leave. Another wedding in the books.
     When I received the invitation to my friend Jeff's wedding I was delighted. I knew I would be in for something special and different and I was not disappointed. 
      A little background is in order here.

I met Jeff through a mutual friend in the summer of '89. We were playing B.B. Gun Wars ( yes we were nuts ) and I got a lucky shot off ( could have been not so lucky )and hit him right between the eyes, knocking his "safety glasses" off. I thought he was going to beat me up, but instead, we laughed and a friendship was born. Throughout the next year Jeff and I got very close, he taught me the ways of the jock, and I taught him the ways of the musician. Since Jeff was a year ahead of me, he went off to Colgate my senior year on a football scholarship. We stayed in contact and I got an early taste of college life when I went for frequent visits. After that year life took over and we went our separate ways.
      Flash forward to June 2nd 2007 when my band played at an out of the way bar in Jordan NY. Jeff and my friend Chris decided to come out and see the band. It was good to reconnect with him, and even though he has had a ton of life experiences, ups and downs, I could see he was still the lively full of life character that he always was. From there Jeff and I started contacting each other and here we are today.
      During our meeting Jeff spoke of a wonderful girl that he had met ( his wife to be, Elizabeth ) and how outgoing and adventurous she was. Little did I know that prior to us hanging out, they applied for a reality tv show in Alaska and were accepted. This was exciting news and right up my alley, since at the time I was rediscovering my love of nature and the outdoors.
      Heather and I attended the wedding last Saturday in rural Wallkill, NY, which was a perfect setting for Jeff and Elizabeth. Following the TomTom with blinders on, I drove right past a sign that read "Celebration". That had to be it. We turned around and drove down a long stone driveway to be greeted by Jeff's younger brother, Craig who was helping with the parking.
      The setting was beautiful and quaint on a farm complete with a pond and some beautiful willow trees. It was under these trees, adorned with candles, that the couple exchanged their wedding vows. I was most impressed with the priest, who delivered a heart-warming sermon. The kind that makes you think and reflect on your own life and the love you feel. I only needed to look to my left for confirmation of this. Its easy to get caught up in all the raw emotions that are floating around during a wedding. Something so personal and deep can bring out the best in all of us.
      What made this wedding different from the myriad of other weddings I have been to? Well there was the first dance and the announcements of the wedding party. However after that we were treated to an amazing BBQ style dinner. We drank beer from canning jars. We enjoyed fresh pies. We danced to some old 80's music and socialized. Enjoyed cake that the bride made herself. From the description here it almost sounds like this could be featured on Redneck Weddings. But it was elegant and done with class. It made the whole day a wonderful relaxing affair full of good friends and happiness.
       Late that night after many beers and other adult beverages the temperature started to plummet. We left the tent and looked to the sky to be treated to the most spectacular night sky I have ever seen. The milky way was vivid. The constellations painted the sky. And Venus was bright to the South. It was a fitting end to a great day, to have the roman goddess of love shining as the brightest light in the night sky.

A Revival

So its been quite a while since the last time I have blogged. Having read through my blog history, I got a great sense of the trips that Heather and I have taken. The attention to detail brought back vivid images and feelings of those adventures. Since then we have gone on many more adventures, and I wish I had documented these. So I am resurrecting this blog( still have a hard time grasping that word ) and I will try to keep up with this on a consistent basis.