Tricks and Treats

Well, much to my disappointment and chagrin, while I was out PLAYING basketball on Monday night, our local town meeting was busy voting DOWN the RecCom's recommendation to build new outdoor basketball courts at the elementary school across the street from my house. And not by much either, which makes me feel all the more stupid for not having attended the meeting myself. There were plenty of other things in the RecCom proposal: new tennis courts, new baseball diamonds, a multi-use athletic field with artificial turf, an outdoor pavilion (for Seniors) and new hiking trails. But it's the outdoor courts that I'm going to miss most. I was really looking forward to hearing that magnificent sound of a ball hitting chain nets. Not that my little suburban New England town would have probably gone for the chain nets either. But there's really nothing else like it. Except maybe the crack of a well-hit baseball on a wooden bat....

So that was the trick. The treat, I guess, was another satisfying run last night. Very different from Monday though -- more players (despite it being the Celtics home opener) and a lot rougher play -- sometimes as many as eight players packed down into the paint hammering on each other. Tempers get short when nobody really gets enough PT to wear themselves out. And I was probably no exception. Don't think I made a single basket all night (didn't take that many shots either), but I did feel pretty good when my teammates tried to set me up for a good look at what would have been a game-winning three off a high screen. Missed it though (although not by much). And I could tell by the look in my defender's eyes that he knew that he'd dodged a dagger.

Have to confess also that I really was one of the more aggressive defenders. Got an early steal and a couple of clean help-side blocks and suddenly I was feeling like the Enforcer. Not a role I generally play these days. Certainly nothing I'd be type-cast for. And now this morning my knees are really paying the price of my indiscretion. But at least now I have a few days off to recover. And maybe to work on that jump shot...but not at the court across the street....