Are we certain that you want the gamin' control board eyeballing your record and your gangster pals like Nicky Santoro?

What a great weekend... really. I mean, could I have asked for a better one? Let's recap, shall we??

Friday -

Friday night was basketball practice. My daughters Birthday as well, and since they went to the pool for a party, the girls weren't quite up to going to a basketball clinic. They weren't even finished the party by the time I had to leave, so , no girls. Except one. One which I had to pick up because her parents were still working. So I did. When we got there, the boys (about 20), where all over the place, being their non-disciplined selves, running around doing nothing. Their coach, who helps me run the clinic came up to me and suggested that he was going to take the 10 boys on his team, go to the other gym, and just hold a formal practice because their season was starting on Monday. I told him no way, because this was after all and open clinic, and there were at least another 12 bouys, and by that time another 5 girls who showed up to participate. I told him if he wanted to have a formal practice that the gym would be available after the clinic. I start the clinic and he says that there are some drills he wants to do. Specific drills including some rebounding techniques and such.... So I say sure, no problem.

He explains the drills to the kids, and puts the lines where they are suppposed to be. It was actually a good drill, but the problem was he was teaching the technique incorrectly. I corrected him, and not personally, but rather instructing the kids. These are 10-11 year old kids, and to learn something wrong at this age just sets them back eons, and is doing the kid, and the parents a disservice. So he gets a little excited, and steps in and says, "no, thats not the way I want them to do it".

So I asked another parent to set them up in some shooting drills and I asked him to go outside. There is no way that two coaches should be airing out differences in technique in front of the kids, and parents for that matter. It just wreaks of incompetence and no one wins. So we go outside the gym and I say to him... "you can't teach something you don't understand"

Now let that sink in for a second. How would you repond, regardless of the situation? You can't tell a kid to leave his man unattended when the ball goes up and just rush the basket. Especially if you are already underneath it. There are boxing out techniques and other things that they have to learn. Must haves at that age really. These are fundamentals of all players that must be learned in order to build upon as the progress in their careers. He didnt even know what boxing out meant. Anyway he starts getting all hurtful and loud, and I just stood there looking at him letting him vent. I finally asked him if he was finished, to which he said he was, I looked at him and said, just follow my lead, and started to walk back into the gym. He asked "who the hell do oyu think you are?", and I stated, the guy who is going to teach these kids the right thing to do for them, and not for me. He asked if I was serious, and I simply stated , dont't be ridiculous, I'm always serious.

We go back into the gym and the little bitch sits down like a two year old in the bleachers with the rest of the parents. I run out the clinic, and afterwards had some good comments from some of the parents with thanks, and well wishes, and some of the others just acknowledged with a goodbye and a head nod. I tell you, its really hard to deal with things like that on the level that we are coaching on. Parents, volunteer coaches, etc. all pose issues that are normally dealable, but things like this suck the fun out of all of it. So I go home, play the donkament, bubble, and go to bed.

Saturday -

Saturday was golf with the brothers in the am, and then a huge party at my parents for my nephew (1) and my daughter (10), as well as other family being in town. I sucked on the course, although I did drive a par 4 (323yds) and birdied it. There was a group in front of us who was comprised of 2 women (30's) and their boyfriends. Neither woman had ever picked up a club before. They would stand in the fairway and take lessons from their boyfriends and hit the ball 10 yards, and then laugh like children, throwing their arms around like some in the audience at the apollo when a funny joke was made.

It started getting old. The ranger had said a few things and then it was just time to take action. they were up the fairway a bit on the 12th hole. I got up and let fired one off. I didnt' think it would reach them, but it did. The one girl jumped a little as it rolled between her legs. They all looked back, and and eventually went on their way. When I got to the ball, it was obviously stamped into the ground. and I laughed a little. These fuckers no the 'ole custom of stepping on someone's ball if they hit into you, but they have no idea when it comes to course etiquette?!?
They were hitting two and three balls, and just being douches. The next several holes, they visibly were intentionally holding us up. Gathering in the fairway and just standing there, looking up at us. On the green they would huddle aroung the pin and just grab ass. So I decided to have more fun.

On the 16th hole the teebox is elevated and there are trees on either side. One group was in the their cart facing away from us in the middle of the fairway. The other two dolts walked over into the trees. As they walked, they looked back at us, and I had already tee'd up and addressed the ball. They walked into the woods ever so slowly and as they entered I took a swing. Now, I wasn't hitting the ball, but from a distance it looked like I was. One of my brothers let out a resounding "FORE", and the two in the cart just about dove out of it, and the other two in the woods ran for cover near a bigger tree. We laughed and giggled and just basically had fun with it. Of course it cost us about 30 minutes to finish the last two holes, but I didnt care. They had left a pitching wedge on the 17th green. (GOLD!) I picked it up and they wouldn't come down to get it. We waved it at them, letting them know we had it, but they wouldn't come. My brother turned it in to the clubhouse, and we left. Along with the birdie and some pars I also had a couple of doubles, so my brother took the round by 2 strokes, and we headed to the party.

Party was the party, but near the end we started playing poker. The game of choice was heart, hand, diamond. Everyone antes into 3 pots. One each for Heart, Hand, and Diamond.
Then you are dealt 3 cards, with an extra deck hand dealt as well. utg gets to choose first...

He can state that he wants to play for one two or three pots, or he can fold. If anyone else chooses the same pot, those two go against each other, and the loser pays the winner the equivalent of whats in the corresponding pot. So I get KdKhx dealt to me. I say all three. I get called by Dad, who just so happens to be holding AhAcQd. So I win the diamond pot, but lose the other two. Just a cooler.

This is how insane the game gets. Every round you re-ante. We were playing with quarters. There was a hand pot with $40 dollars in it at one point, and the other pots were as big as $15 at least two times. Just gold. If you state that you are going to play for Hearts, and no one challenges you then you go against the deck hand. If you beat the deck hand, you win the pot and it empties back to zero until everyone antes again.

Sick game, and I lost about $20 bucks. But I can see it shortly becoming a favorite for when we just want to gamble around.

Sunday -

Nothing of interest really. Oh wait, it was Mothers Day :) One of the kids had a bunch of school work to do, and we had to run out and buy thing for a science project. Her project is about building an electric generator. Really simple stuff. Just making nothing more than a stator really and producing an electrical current strong enough to light a lamp bulb. I look forwad to the calls home from school about how she blew up the class room. I hope you all had a lovely Mothers Day, and I look forward to Fathers Day! :)