Category: Sports

  • ODDS and ENDS: Chicken Stock, Breakfast Tacos, and Tottenham

    (Till I stop coming back to you…)

    There are many things that make it feel like Autumn to me. I skip all the easy ones, like leaves and pumpkins. For me, one of the best things that make me feel all warm and Autumn-like, is chicken stock simmering on the stove. It usually starts a couple days before, when I roast a whole chicken for a Sunday dinner. I’ll take all the leftover bones, throw it in an old weathered stockpot – carrots, celery, onion, garlic, fresh thyme, bay leaves, salt and pepper – and just let it simmer away for a couple of hours. The smell fills the apartment, throwing shade at the cold outside, and making the idea of a warm blanket on the couch sound like a friendly “How do you do!” as dreams of soups and stews dance in my head as I drink a cup of coffee. The simple act of stock making is a life affirming exercise of epic proportional steps.

    Beware you in the world of simple breakfasts. I have come down from on high to explain to you the joy and wonder that is the simple and honest Texas Breakfast Taco. A creation of Tex-Mex joy and wonder, as how can something so simple be so gratifying and satisfying. The flour tortilla, the scrambled egg, bacon. If one were to get wild and throw a starch in it, like maybe some tater-tots or fries, or one weekend I tried some leftover mashed potatoes. They have to be wrapped in foil, which allows the warm taco to steam the tortilla, keeping it soft and a little spongy. They can keep for a little while that way, but the pleasure really comes in the unwrapping and dipping in a salsa. An experience that can be savored, or rushed, depending on what the demands of your day might be.

    Hey! They won a match on Monday! They might win another this Sunday! Things are changing! I can feel it! #COYS

  • Running with My Kid

    I am not a fan of working out, but I understand the need. As a person with a wife and child, I want to spend as much time with them as possible, hence why I try to work out. Not that I am good at it, or even good with keeping the schedule of working out, which leads me to say that, though I may not be “in” shape, I most certainly am not “out” of shape.

    My daughter used to play soccer, which would practice three days a week, and play one game on the weekend. Sadly, she got burned out on the sport, and has been without a physical activity since June. Not one to sit around and do nothing, the kid asked me if we could take up jogging together.

    I am not one to discourage my child, and feel that one of my primary responsibilities is to support my child on whatever endeavor she wishes to pursue. So, of course, I said yes to her request, and we planned on jogging around our local park, two days a week to start with. You know, see how we feel about it.

    The kid loves it.

    It’s been painful for me.

    My knees have been hurting, along with my left foot, and I have been waking up in the morning with a sore right hip. But the worst part, by far, is how clearly running with my kid has shown that I might, in fact, be closer to “out” of shape, rather than “in.” I can only run so long before my lungs start burning, and my muscles feel weak and rubbery. I even noticed that the kid is slightly annoyed at how slow I run, and has started just running way in front of me, and waiting for me to catch up with her.

    I keep telling her that I will get up to her speed, but it’s just going to take me some time. I gotta practice and get my old body back into the swing of running.

    “Sure, dad.” She says to me. “Sure.”

  • ODDS and ENDS: Political Ads, Sports, and Apple Picking

    (You’re good, so good…)

    We are now under 30 days from the Midterm elections, and if you are like me, you’ve had your fill of the political ads. There is no way to avoid them, as they seem to have invaded every for and medium out there. This time around, the kid has started paying attention, and asking questions, which is good. Her game is trying to figure out which political party a candidate is with, being that in almost all the ads, no one specifies anymore. All of these additional conversations with my daughter have been great but lead me to ask her a very important question; “Are you excited to vote when you turn 18?” Which she quickly answered, “No.”

    The Dallas Cowboys suck this season. And the Cubs got swept outta the playoffs, super quick. I don’t have high hopes that Tottenham will have righted the ship after this International break. So… I’m not having a good sports month. It’s an October Slog. In fact, when I was out shopping last week, a store clerk asked me why I was out in public with a Tottenham hat on. “Why are you announcing your shame to everyone?” he asked. I didn’t take it personal, he was an Arsenal fan.

    That’s right, I’m again doing the very cheesy and cliché thing! I’m going up the Hudson Valley to take my family apple picking. Oh, I love how silly, and over crowed, and just basic this tradition is. But you know what I really love? Apple Cider Donuts! Eating apples off a tree! Putting on a flannel shirt, and walking around in mud! It’s my Rites of Autumn! May it live forever!

  • ODDS and ENDS: Getting Started, Oh Tottenham, and Bloody Mary Brunch

    (Forgetting her’s the nature of my flight…)

    Boy, do I suck and starting something new. And I also suck at just getting back to good habits. I say this because I have found a way to completely, and in the most air-tight form of rationalization, not go to the gym for a month. Even this morning, I was ready to not go to the gym, and I made sure that I did not go. Do I feel good about this decision? Absolutely not. Will I go to the gym on Monday? Odds are that I will not. Yes, indeed; I have found a way to squander the entire month of September. To a degree, I have impressed myself. You may think that this is easy to do, but it is not. Okay, okay, okay… Tuesday of next week; I’m going to the gym.

    Wow! Tottenham Hotspur sucks this season. Really sucks. They suck in a way I thought was impossible to suck. There was no way they could get worse than last season. No, no, they found a way. And they spent a shit ton of money, and somehow they suck even more! They are at the bottom. Completely at the bottom of the Premiere League table. Sitting at #20, with two points. Incidentally, their two points is equal to as many goals they have scored this season. Just… wow. Now, as a Cubs fan (and the Cubbies did get eliminated from the playoffs recently) I know what it’s like for your team to be at the bottom. And normally I would say that there is only one direction, and that’s up! But in the Premiere League, there is relegation, so we might not have hit bottom yet.

    Saturday, I have brunch plans, which sounds fancy, and a little pretentious… All of that is true. But it also means morning/day drinking in a very socially acceptable way. Happy weekend to all, and to all a good drunken afternoon nap.

  • ODDS and ENDS: Unexpected Conversation with My Kid, Other People’s Stuff, and Tottenham

    (It’s just another day)

    I tried to explain the “Juice Era” of baseball to my daughter this morning. Talk about a subject that I never thought I would have to get into with her. It all started when she asked me what I thought was the most important position in baseball, pitcher, followed by catcher. Then I told her some stories about Pudge Rodriguez, the greatest catcher of all time, and how I got to watch him play back in Texas. With all I was saying, I mentioned the “Juice Era” and that lead her to asking questions about cheating and players using steroids. You know, normal breakfast conversations.

    We might drive up the Hudson Valley this weekend and take a look at antique stores. It is Labor Day weekend, and getting out of the City seems like a good idea. Sometimes when we head up the Hudson with no real plan to do anything, that’s when we wander into some old antique store that is just crammed full of stuff. Most of it is pretty cool, and a little more expensive than we are willing to spend. But now and then, we do come across a gem of an odd piece of something. We have a wall mounted thermometer from Maine that’s in our kitchen, and the last time we headed out, my wife found some odd drawings of cats. I’m curious to find old vinyl to mount on the wall, and the wife would like a large piece of art to put up in the living room. It’s like treasure hunting for us.

    If they lose this weekend, Lord help us all. #COYS