badger_14

My friend from New Mexico has come to visit before he jets off for a year in Russia. Since I'm a bad influence he started playing hockey, so now we can skate together!

Oh, yes, the Pike is ... things are happening with the Pike (I-90) right now. And like Chippa said, you're right near all the interchanges. Construction at the former toll plazas, plus the Comm. Ave bridge replacement... plan ahead carefully when you head into the city. Depending on what you have to do in town, I'd advise parking at a commuter rail station and taking the train in.

Good idea! There's at least one place around here I know of. I think most of the gear is fine, but I may have permanently stained my favorite jersey. :(

Welcome! I hope you both enjoy the area. Hopefully it is not too miserably hot & sticky on your trip.

Due mainly to the trauma of cardiology finals, I forgot to air out my gear last week, causing a near-hazmat event in my hockey bag. Gear is being disinfected and dessicated, jerseys are being given a thorough wash, but I'm afraid I might have damaged my favorite jersey, and I also need to trash the bag for sure. (luckily I have a spare) Unfortunately I also only realized this last night as I was getting ready for a training session. Gross. x___x

Went to the ortho yesterday and got some long overdue cortisone shots. I always think it feels weird afterward and worry, but then I realize this is just how normal people feel without chronic pain. It's a grand thing. I do wish this (arthritis) had been caught earlier (ortho's opinion is that this has probably been going on since childhood) but I'll roll with what I have, stay active, and hope for some other nonsurgical treatment options as time goes on. For now, I'm enjoying a respite.

Tried a different painkiller today, and a knee-strap (which generally is just whistling in the dark), and on the whole felt much better. It's still pear-shaped (not literally) and I need to see the ortho (Tuesday can't come soon enough) but it was fine for an hour-and-change of hockey. Aside from that, I played much better than the past few weeks. I let in some stupid goals (etc, etc.) but a few different people remarked on improved quickness - I was all over the puck and tracking it, I thought, very well. There were situations where previously I would have lost track but I didn't this time. I've been working very hard (or at least, dutifully) on hand-eye coordination with a tennis ball, a wall, and any spare minutes I have. I try to do like 5-10 minutes a day (on average - gym days it's more, school days I have to squeeze it in during breaks). Just variations on a theme - throw, catch, repeat, throw with one hand, catch with the other, throw-catch with one hand, do all of it on one leg, do it on the other leg, etc. Surprising what a difference that's made. I'm looking forward to scheduling a lesson for this week after seeing the ortho. It's probably just flaring arthritis and I'm due for a couple of cortisone shots. Fingers crossed.

I'd like to hope (depending on the counselor to camper ratio - I will assume you're all in a group of your own with no kids) that the head coach would be okay with having your drills modified a bit, since that's what should be happening with a broad range of skill levels anyway. It's absolutely worth a shot, especially if the other guys are having trouble, too. I've found there's an irksome emphasis on speed-speed-speed in a lot of youth stuff, even at the beginner level - there's a push to keep kids from bumbling around in line, sure, but some folks take it as "do absolutely everything as fast as you can, even if you don't actually know how to do it", so that may just be the nature of this camp and the attitude of the organizers. Hopefully, it works out. :)

That sounds like a great opportunity! Enjoy.

I think I played poorly, but I will blame it on my knee being well overdue for a cortisone shot. When the adrenaline kicked in and I didn't hurt, it was fine. I have been doing a lot of wall-ball and hand eye stuff, and I think my reactions are much quicker. I got a 5-pack of goalie lessons for my birthday, which I intend to parcel out after the ortho checks me over week after next. Looking forward to it.

It's a complicated situation. (The hospice, the dying, for everyone) I didn't say much to him beyond asking if he'd thrown out the books. I know he has a lot going on. (I currently live at home.)

They really, really like going glove-side on you, don't they? You definitely seem stronger on the left side (I think so, but I could be seeing it all backwards).

Alas, he knew what they were. His excuse was that he was just really into the cleaning blitz. He says he is sorry.

I am sure this only makes sense to people with an artistic bent, but my dad (in his cleaning frenzy - the hospice agency insists we need a hospital bed for my mom, so we have to do some weeding) threw out all of my old (high school, college) sketchbooks. Easily a couple dozen. Without asking me, letting me know, or even inquiring what I wanted to do with them. I probably would have been ok recycling them, if I had gotten the chance to scan them first, and keep anything really important as a hardcopy. I'm so angry. For me, as an artist, it's like having someone take out an essential chunk of myself ("oh, this kidney?") and throw it in the garbage. It's a history of me and my artistic development. The books went to the hospital with me many times. The work won awards. Did he throw out the stupid participation trophies from the soccer and baseball I played when I was 5? No, no, those he kept.

Was told I played very, very well today. I didn't feel like it, honestly. Slowly recuperating from my lung infection, I've managed to swim and work out a tiny bit this week, but hockey is a whole 'nother ball game, and I feel like I'm going to regret playing later. I also thought my counterpart was getting hailed, while I saw far fewer shots. I did feel like I did better on the angling thing, after watching a couple of good videos on youtube to get a better visual sense of landmarks, etc. I also got my skates sharpened on Monday, which might have helped. (I'm one of those folks who gets their skates done about twice a year, maybe 3 times). Thirdly, at the same time I got my chest protector, I bought a set of Flex-Toe ties to try. It just about took an act of God to get them on my pads, but they were pretty easy to use and they stayed in place. I don't know if I feel a great and glorious miracle has occurred by wearing them, and I need to do a bit of strap-adjusting to account for them, but I like them so far. They certainly aren't inhibiting my play. I'll consider their impact over the next few weeks in game-play. So far, so good.

We got a brand new pediatric airway sim - a "syndaver" or synthetic cadaver - at medic school, and it is ABSOLUTELY REPULSIVE and the stuff of nightmares but it's also amazing and the most realistic mannikin I've ever seen. (airway just means it's the head and shoulders/upper torso). It has tastebuds for pete's sake. It smells weird. I love it.

Usually I'm not this bad, even after a couple of weeks off. I just feel like everything is going by me. It will do me some good to have a lesson anyway, I think. I can call it an early birthday present. Eh- yes and no. Not in terms of movement (because moving in sneakers on court/concrete is a whole lot different than being in skates on ice). But yes in terms of reaction and alertness, things like tracking the ball/puck. Yes also in the sense that it's good to shake things up and try something different - sometimes I find a different pickup to go to as well, just because it's new people and I don't know how they operate, so it shakes up my brain. Same with playing on the small ice (3v3 or 4v4) vs. the large ice. Inline I think is better than street (on foot) because in street (foot) hockey it's a lot of slapshots and not much else. Inline behaves a little bit more like ice. (even with a ball).

Go to the doctor for a TB test (school requirement), come back with a diagnosis of probable pneumonia. That explains a lot. >(

While I didn't play as badly this Saturday as I did the week before, I still played badly. I am annoyed that I was off for three weeks, returned home, and now everything has gone all pear-shaped. Luckily it's that time of year that there's plenty of open spots for lessons with the folks down the street, so I plan on scheduling a couple over the coming weeks. It's high time to work on some fundamentals. The Brian's c/a is lighter than it appears at first glance. It was still quite stiff the first time out, but more mobile than expected. Good coverage over the belly. Nearly got stuck trying to get it on, and get the jersey on over it. Protective, fits well, just needs to break in a bit so I can wriggle into it more easily (and without flailing for help from my teammates). This morning I played street hockey - technically roller hockey, but the goalies were in sneakers. This was actually a super nice change - 3v3 on a smaller surface, with a ball, on court, presented an unusual challenge. We played games til 5 - that is, until one or the other goalie let in five - and managed to get in six of those, which meant about 2.5 hours, and I had the better record. Lost the first two, but won the next four. In fairness, the other guy hadn't played goal at all in a while, and it was also quite hot. We took a lot of breaks, and I think eventually it broke down to three teams: light, dark, and goalies. (Because you can't help rooting for the other guy who is suffering under the same ridiculous quantity of equipment as you are). I had to take off my jersey and just go with a chest protector, and ended up sunburned on top of being overheated (and then went and played softball, because I don't make good life choices). I am 90% certain I lost about 6lbs of sweat, and I am still trying to cool off as best I can. However, it was a lot of fun and a good confidence builder, a good change of pace. Next up to schedule a couple of lessons and get my brain in order for ice.

It's not quite as bulky as it looks, but definitely more solid than the last one. No so sure about stat improvement, but I'll accept fewer stings.

Did not play well today. :( My brain is still lagging from the Germany trip (aside from the time shift, got used to a routine of food/tourism/rehearsal/food/perform/tourism/sleep) and I couldn't track for beans. There was a little lack of defence but a lot of the goals were just plainly me being slow or out of sorts. However, I bit the bullet and went out and got a new chest protector. It took some discussion and perusal, because I have a senior-size torso and intermediate-size arms. Tried a warrior ritual classic and liked the fit, but the arms were too long. Tried a Bauer, same problem. Another CCM and a warrior, both felt too bulky. Vaughn, not quite sufficient in the torso and arms too long. Finally, finally we arrived at a Brian's SubZero 3. Pretty mobile even off the rack, confident it'll loosen up nicely, and stunningly, the arms fit. As an added bonus, within my price range, although on the high side. The very top of the arm is soft, it velcros into the body, if I really wanted I could have it tailored up permanently, but it works well as-is. Looking forward to giving it a go soon, although the first skate I might need some help struggling into it.

Sitting in a hotel in Frankfurt... it's been an absolutely wild ten days, nothing like I've ever experienced before. Halfway across the world to perform in four cities, trains and buses and trams, a new language to navigate and hotels and restaurants. And we did pretty well, for being an amateur - non-auditioned - church choir. Someone even asked if we had a CD out! A lot of work, and more singing and rehearsing than I've ever done, but well worth it. Immensely grateful for the opportunity.

It's finally kicking in for me that I'm flying out to Germany tomorrow, to perform in concerts that people will pay actual money to attend. Also, we're going to hang out with a bunch of European Unitarians at a conference. My director has promised to record at least one of the concerts, so my mother will be able to hear us sing at least once.

For better or worse, my mom is upgraded to "probably will not die in the next 10 days" but "almost certainly will die within 6 months."

My mother is dying. MRSA pneumonia, aspiration pneumonia. My dad and I are spending much of our days at the hospital. All is waiting and despair.