D's Notebook

Month: September 2022 (Page 2 of 2)

Reader’s Notebook, 9/13/22

September 13, 2022 /

I’ve stuck to a pretty brisk reading pace lately. Several of my latest batch of books have some common themes, so I’m going to pair them up to attempt to get through them quicker.



Suburban Dicks – Fabian Nicieza
The Damage – Caitlin Wahrer
Two mysteries from first-time authors that were both very good.

In Suburban Dicks a disgraced reporter and a one-time phenom profiler who had her career derailed by normal life stuff team up to not only solve a murder the local police don’t seem to want to solve, but also uncover a deeper conspiracy that has plagued their town for over half a century.

Nicieza’s writing is sharp, his characters are wonderfully developed, and the pacing of the story is terrific. Which made me mad because he is a comic book writer and this was his first published work of proper fiction.

The Damage takes the traditional He Said, She Said angle of a sexual assault and updates it for our times – both the attacker and victim are gay men – and then brings in some good family dynamic stuff along with a lot of interesting twists in the story. Wahrer just keeps increasing the pressure throughout the story. I enjoy books like this that make it tough to breath at times. Apparently she’s an attorney, so this book made me mad, too. I need to do something with all this time I have and all these ideas in my head.



US MACV-SOG Reconnaissance Team in Vietnam – Gordon L. Rottman
Rogue Heroes – Ben MacIntyre
The video I watched last month about the Green Beret who returned to Vietnam got me searching for info on MACV-SOG. I found this small book at the library. It’s more of a technical guide, going into great detail on how MACV-SOG units were formed, what kind of training they did, what kind of gear they carried, and then an example of a typical mission.

MacIntyre’s book is about the development of the British Special Air Service during World War II, a unit credited for being the first, modern special forces outfit. If you’re old enough to remember The Rat Patrol TV show, it was based on SAS exploits.



Election – Tom Perrotta
Tracy Flick Can’t Win – Tom Perrotta
I wanted to read Perrotta’s sequel to his classic, but since I had only seen the movie for Election and never read the book, I figured I should knock it out first.

These two books took maybe a combined six hours to read. The sequel is very much an update on the concept of the original, from format to narrative arc. I greatly preferred the original to the sequel, but the sequel was worth the few hours that went into knocking it out.

Perrotta has generally written about people roughly my age. It was a bit sobering for his characters to be hitting the stage of life where they reflect on where they are and how they got there.

Weekend Notes

September 12, 2022 /

The first full football weekend of the year. I have some notes.

Friday

We had the big 6A #3 Cathedral at 3A #1 Bishop Chatard game Friday. Or the girls did. S and I knew it was going to be an absolute shit show; BC has a tiny stadium in the middle of a packed neighborhood and it seemed like every Indianpolis Northside Catholic was going to go. So we went to dinner with friends while the girls enjoyed the game.

Although it wasn’t much of a game. I checked my phone at about 7:45 and CHS was up 21–0. They got it to 35–0 before half, had a running clock for the second half, and won 38–0. I watched the highlights Saturday, and pretty much every score was a long pass, or set up by a long pass. When you have four receivers who are 6’3”+ and your opponent is small, you have to take advantage.

Of course, Chatard has a better chance of winning state than Cathedral, so not sure the BC fans were smarting too much afterward.

I got home in time to watch the end of the Tiafoe-Alcaraz US Open semifinal. Frances gave it his all, but Carlos Alcaraz is just too damn good. We’ve been waiting for years for the next superstar to come along in mens tennis. Alcaraz might be that dude.

Saturday

Lots of sports.

Alabama-Texas was interesting, surprising, and entertaining. Not the game I expected at all, although I really didn’t think ‘Bama would blow them out.

I caught the end of the Marshall-Notre Dame game. What a disaster for the Irish! Marcus Freeman seems like a really good guy but he’s feeling the heat already about whether he was the right hire.

L had a basketball game Saturday evening. They played a team made up of lacrosse players. These girls were big, athletic, and had this really good offense that kept getting them open looks. But they were not basketball players. L’s team ran them off the floor, at least in terms of the score, winning 47–23.

L had six points on 3–7 shooting, including two sweet drives for layups. On one she got hammered and threw it up-and-in off the backboard as she tumbled to the ground. Her teammates went nuts and she came up with a look like “THAT WENT IN?!?!” Then she missed the free throw… Not sure what’s up with her at the line lately. Her jumpers look good but her free throw form is awful.

I was glad it was not a close game. The refs were ones who never call fouls unless they are hard fouls at the rim. And these lacrosse girls were mega-physical and handsy. Once L was leading the break and a girl was tugging on her off arm the entire time, slowing L down, and the refs didn’t call anything. Need to teach her how to flop.

AND HOW ABOUT THOSE JAYHAWKS!?!?!?! Two-and-oh! Highest scoring team in the country!

We listened to the beginning of the game on our way to basketball and I was regretting finding the Sirius broadcast when West Virginia scored on a 59 yard TD pass, KU had four penalties on their first possession, and then WVU scored again. I checked the score at halftime of L’s game and saw it was 21–7. I was glad I was watching hoops.

When we got back into the car it was 28-all and I was all-in. We heard KU take the lead as we drove home in an intense storm, and then watched the fourth quarter and overtime from home.

What a great win. This was a game pretty much every KU squad for the past decade would lose by 40+. But the Jayhawks settled down after the bad start, hung in there, and dominated for a long stretch. Then they not only won, but got the ultra-rare, double-digit overtime win thanks to Jacobee Bryant’s pick-six.

There was some whooping it up in our living room, and some questions from the girls upstairs about what the hell was going on.

It looks like after getting it wrong four-straight times, KU finally hired the right coach. It was bound to happen eventually. The Jayhawks are disciplined, more talented than in recent years, put that talent in the right spots, are prepared for their opponents, and don’t fall apart the moment they face adversity. A long way to go but things finally seem like they are trending up.

Naturally Nebraska lost about 30 minutes later, Scott Frost was fired Sunday, and Lance Leipold is reportedly high on the list of potential replacements.

I think that bloom will fade, as Nebraska is not going to hire a guy who goes 4–10 this year.

Unless KU wins eight, nine, ten games this year, right?

Sunday

The first NFL Sunday of the year. I missed most of the Colts game as L had to go do her team photographer duties for her CYO football classmates. It was pouring rain so I decided to sit in my car and read in case she wanted to bail early. She ended up staying the entire time so I read a ton and didn’t see much football.

I did listen on the radio long enough to hear the Colts go down 20–3 but then turned it off to focus on my book. We got home in time to see the Colts tie it, then blow a chance in win in overtime. This franchise just does not do opening day well. I believe this is nine-straight opening weeks without a win. So maybe a tie is progress?

Still a super-disappointing beginning to a season in which the Colts were, allegedly, poised to be a player in the AFC title race. At least no one else in the AFC South won. You figure there will be growing pains as Matt Ryan settles in, but he wasn’t the problem on Sunday. At least when I was watching.

I forgot about the US Open final until late and caught the last four games of Alcaraz’s win. The first of many, I would bet.

I half-watched much of the SNF Buccaneers-Cowboys game. That old fucker Brady can still sling it.

Friday Playlist

September 9, 2022 /

“The Queen Is Dead” – The Smiths
I’m sorry, but if you think I’m not playing this song today you don’t know me very well. I’m not here to dance on graves but rather shout to the heavens, for the thousandth time, about the genius of Johnny Marr. “Has the world changed or have I changed?”

“Be Careful With Yourself” – Julia Jacklin
As usual Jacklin’s new album, to my ears, is filled with slow, precious songs that are a little too slow and precious. But, also as usual, the tracks that break that mold are the ones that I love.

“Gumball Garden” – GIFT
Found this via Keith Law’s monthly playlist. I totally agree with him: I would have thought it a Tame Impala song if not told otherwise.

“HaHaHome” – Twen
This song is nearly a year old but I just heard it in the past couple weeks. I like how it brushes up against a 1960s, psychedelic vibe but never fully commits.

“God Save The Queen” – Sex Pistols
I’m sorry, but if you think I’m not playing this song today…

“Hold You Tight” – Tara Kemp
I heard this song last Friday on SiriusXM for the first time in – checks calendar – 30 years or so. It wasn’t a bad little jam, certainly typical of its time in the R&B world. I had forgotten it made it all the way to #3 on the pop chart. As brother in music E-Bro said, the video kind of sums up everything 1991 was about. After listening/watching to these I did some research and found this interesting video about what happened to Kemp after her brief moment in the spotlight. The music business is a cold, heartless place.

Kickball Wrap Up (Forever)

September 8, 2022 /

Well, it’s over.

L’s team went out with a whimper in their final two kickball games, losing 21–7 on Tuesday then getting run-ruled 42–13 on Wednesday, ending the season at 2–5. I believe that was the first time they had a losing record.[1]

These two games were more of the same. We couldn’t kick or field, and it killed us. In the Tuesday game, against the team we beat to start the season, we were up 4–0 after one then gave up eight runs in the second and were dead after that. L went 1–3 with just a double. They against the division champs Wednesday we were never in it, down 9–1 after the first inning.

At least we closed out the game strong. As we came up for our last kicks in the bottom of the fifth our coach told the girls we needed home runs from everyone. The first girl kicked one. The next girl kicked one. The next girl got on base with a single. And then L came up.

Again, she had zero home runs on the season. Only once had she really been close. So far in this game she was 1–2 with a triple. This time she crushed the ball, her best kick of the year, sending it to deep center, between the fielders. But, as I’ve shared many times, outfielders get the ball in much quicker at this level. Didn’t matter. She was on her horse, as they say. The girl in front of her is super fast and L had almost caught her by the time they got to second. She was a step behind her at third and I could tell there was no way she was stopping. A good throw might have gotten her but the relay was off line and the girls scored right on top of each other.

Finally the elusive home run. And in the final kick of her career!

Three of the next four girls made outs and the season was mercifully over.

Although the results sucked I really enjoyed most of the games this season because I got to keep score with some good people. One mom has a son who is in C’s grade and they’ve socialized a bit, so we had some common ground. I had kept score with one dad before and he is more chill than me, so pleasant to work with. A second dad has three daughters the same ages as my three, and we’ve come across each other several times over the years. We had two games this season and great conversations while we watched our youngest square off. And a second mom I had two games with has been both the kickball and volleyball coordinator at her school, so we shared stories of all that comes with that. Wednesday she had another mom sit with us so she could teach her how to keep score (I assume this new mom has younger girls). When she introduced us, she said, “He’s the best scorekeeper I’ve ever worked with. He’ll explain everything and you’ll never get lost.”

Awwww, in my last game I got the best compliment of my life!

If you saw my Facebook post last night, I crunched the numbers for our family. Since M began playing in the spring of her third grade year, our girls played a combined 29 seasons of kickball. That works out to somewhere between 200–210 games. I figure I kept score or coached for 90% of those games, most misses either coming that first season before I was handed the scorebook or because I was coaching one girl while another played somewhere else. That’s a lot of kickball!

To be honest, I’m a little bummed I didn’t keep better records and know exactly how many total games we played and what the family’s overall record is. Alas…

I do know the girls combined to play in two division playoffs, two City semifinals, and five City championship games. M’s team was the only one to win a championship, and that was a shared title after a week of rainouts. C’s team was the only one never to make it to any kind of playoff, something she took personally for awhile.[2] Blame her assistant coach (me) for that. And I do know that our overall record, as a family, was well over .500. That was mostly thanks to an elite athlete on M’s team and then all those home runs from L for five years.

Folks who know us well will recall that my kickball story began the night S and I went on our first date. While making small talk as we waited for our table at dinner, I asked if she played any sports growing up. When she said CYO volleyball and kickball, I laughed in her face. Next thing I knew she was jabbing a finger in my chest and telling me that kickball was a real sport. Pretty sure I laughed some more.

And, famously, the real joke was on me. I married that Catholic girl from Indianapolis, moved here, had three daughters who went to Catholic school, and spent the bulk of their grade and middle school years representing St P’s on the kickball diamonds of Indy.

The first game of M’s fourth grade year, her coach walked over to me and said, “I hear you’re a sports writer. Can you keep score?” Soon I was reading up on the rules so I could understand what the hell was going on. About a year later when the kickball coordinator job came open, that same coach told me she thought I would be great at it. I made the mistake of sending one email asking the out-going coordinator what all was involved in the position. All it ever takes is one email to volunteer yourself for any school role, and for the next four years I ran the program. I helped coach L’s team their first year, although the moms who had all played kickball in their CYO days did most of the work. I helped coach C’s team for five seasons over three years.

It was a pretty good run. I hope the girls have as many great memories from their kickball years as I do.

  1. L didn’t play in the spring of fourth grade, when she decided she didn’t like kickball, and the team may have been under .500 that season.  ↩

  2. Their best shot was having a lead in the last game of the season going into the seventh inning against the team they were tied for first with, and then having a total meltdown and giving up 25 runs to lose. Ugh.  ↩

Reaching for the Stars, Vol. 77

September 7, 2022 /

Chart Week: August 30, 1986
Song: “Heaven In Your Eyes” – Loverboy
Chart Position: #33, 5th week on the chart. Peaked at #12 for two weeks in October.

A quick entry this time, based on a cultural nugget that shows how much the world has changed since 1986.

Casey shared that Loverboy keyboard player Doug Johnson refused to appear in the video for “Heaven In Your Eyes.” Why? Because the song was on the soundtrack for Top Gun, and Johnson was a pacifist. He felt that the movie glamorized war and military service.

Think about that for a minute.

A musician taking a stand against the troops. Can you imagine if that happened today?!?!

Even the most anti-war artists during the Iraq War were careful to say that they were “against the war but for the troops.” Or used some other similar language to make it clear their issues were with policymakers and not those who volunteered to serve.

That stance still caused problems in the 2000s, since a vocal minority of this country believes that if you question the political motives behind military action, you are somehow also “against the troops.”

Hell, the (Dixie) Chicks were basically run out of the country music world because Natalie Maines said she was ashamed to be from the same state as President Bush a year into the Iraq War.

But I don’t remember any real blowback about Johnson’s stance in 1986. Maybe it was because he was Canadian and Loverboy was on the backside of their career.[1] Maybe it was because people who would normally get fired up by similar statements were distracted by the bright, shiny thing that was Top Gun. Or maybe it was just because in 1986 people weren’t so reflexive about defending the idea that only one view of the world can be patriotic.

Last week I heard a countdown from 1987 in which Casey opened the show by thanking a guest host who had sat in for him a week earlier while he attended an anti-nuclear weapons march in New York. I can’t imagine Ryan Seacrest or any of the people who host the various countdowns on SiriusXM making a similar statement today. I don’t think it was an accident that Casey chose to share Doug Johnson’s story.

I guess things were indeed just different in 1986.

As for the song, it sucks. Loverboy carved out an awesome and unique niche in the corporate rock world of the early ‘80s. This song has none of the stuff that made them cool. A cheesy electric piano intro starts things off poorly. Mike Reno sounds bored delivering his vocals. In general, the song comes across as a cheap knockoff of his sappy duet with Ann Wilson, “Almost Paradise,” which had been on the Footloose soundtrack a year earlier.

The Top Gun soundtrack had two songs that will be played forever, a super-cool instrumental theme, and then a bunch of forgettable tracks. This, though, was the turd in the punchbowl. Maybe Johnson was more ashamed of the song than trying to make a political point when he chose to skip the video shoot. 2/10

  1. Worth noting that Canadian Bryan Adams also refused to appear on the soundtrack because he, too, believed the film glorified violence. He was the second choice to perform “Danger Zone,” after Toto, who were unable to because of legal issues between their management and the film’s producers. Crazy how the signature song of Kenny Loggins’ career went through two other artists before he got a crack at it.  ↩

Holiday Weekend Notes

September 6, 2022 /

I’m guessing this was our last ever four-day Labor Day weekend, at least on the academic side of things. St P’s generally (but not always) gives the kids Friday and Monday off, while CHS just takes the actual Monday holiday off. Who knows what M’s schedule will be this time next year, but she won’t be here, so that means the remaining girls will be on the same schedule for the final holiday weekend of summer in 2023.

L took advantage of her extra day by doing some work for us and family members to earn some money. She’s been drafted as the St P’s football team videographer/photographer and has been saving up for a camera. With a final push over the weekend she was able to order it.

Her first project of the weekend was mowing her aunt’s yard, which she has done a few times. I followed her around with the trimmer, which is too big and too temperamental for her to use. As I was trimming I felt a white-hot heat on my right forearm. I dropped the trimmer, thinking it was in the process of blowing up or something. But I didn’t see any smoke and it started right back up.

“Well, shit,” I thought, “I think I just got stung!”

But I hadn’t seen/felt anything on me or seen anything fly away. I looked around and then noticed, on my nephews’ swingset/playhouse, the biggest wasp I had ever seen crawling around. I got a fly swatter from inside the house and nailed it. Seconds later several more Big Ass Wasps emerged from under the decking and I fled before they could get me.

Fortunately my sister-in-law had a couple cans of wasp/hornet killer. I unloaded one on the nest I could see poking through the frame and left her instructions to hit it again when the wasps returned for the evening.

Not going to lie: the sting hurt like hell. I don’t know if I’ve ever been hit by a wasp before, but this fucking hurt. Even today, Tuesday morning, the area is all swollen, red, and itchy. I’m not sure what flavor of wasps these were, but I’m just going to call them Murder Hornets because they were so big and the sting was so painful. Still, happy to take one for the team rather than one of my nephews.

IMG 5531

Don’t fuck with the Murder Hornets

Friday night was one of the more interesting sports following nights in my recent history.

I had the US Open up on the TV, watching Serena Williams’ final match that began at 7:00. At 7:30 the Cathedral game began, and I pulled up the audio on my phone. And at 8:00 KU kicked off their season on ESPN+, which I had on my MacBook Air.

Super Sports Fan #1 here!

It was a bit chaotic keeping track of everything, but I managed, selectively muting as conditions warranted.

I should probably write more about Serena’s loss. I think of my life not really hitting adulthood until right around 1999–2000. That made Serena the last athlete from my extended childhood or adolescence or whatever who was still active. Just another sign that we are getting older.

Props to her for such an amazing career, for coming back after having an insanely difficult pregnancy and childbirth experience, and for going out on her terms. I couldn’t believe she was still playing doubles with her sister Venus on Thursday. I think that effort clearly affected her in Friday’s match. Then I realized that she just wanted to play with her sister one more time and was willing to sacrifice her singles match for that opportunity. When you’ve won everything there is to win, you get to pick how you say goodbye.

Cathedral fell behind 13–0 but then ripped off 35-straight points for a 35–21 win. The game was three hours away so none of the girls went. The Irish had a ton of injuries going into the game, so played a number of kids who had not played the first two weeks. This week they play their big-time rivals BC, who are ranked #1 in 3A and just lost the the #1 4A school on the final play of the game.

KU rolled Tennessee Tech. Which should be expected, and I know non-KU fans are making fun of us Jayhawks for being excited about the win. Never forget this is KU football, a program that has found a way to do the un-doable for decades. Pounding an overmatched opponent is never a given for Kansas, and while one or two more wins is likely the max we can hope for this year, at least we checked off the easy win.

The team looked better, with more playmakers on defense than I can recall. But they still lack depth and things will be very different this week against West Virginia and pretty much every week for the rest of the year and the competition keeps getting tougher and tougher. But this game was the baby step we needed.

Saturday we headed up to S’s aunt and uncle’s in the morning. They live on a lake and offered to take the girls out to ski. M took a brief run and had no issues. L tried but could not get up. C was annoyed about having to wake up early on a holiday weekend and stayed in the boat. We took a nice trip around the lake and got off the water just before rain moved in.

Later in the day L had a basketball game. They were playing a team they’ve played many times. That team plays and practices all year, and added another good player since our last meeting. We were down 13–0 to start then went something like 5–22 from the free throw line and lost by 15. L alone was 1–6 from the line. She was 0–4 from the floor but had three rebounds, three assists, and three steals. She hit one shot that came after a foul was called away from the ball and was super annoyed by that. I was super annoyed she was missing so many free throws after all the practice shots she put up over the summer.

Sunday we had the local family over for our annual Labor Day gathering. It never got too hot or humid and the rain held off, so it was a pleasant day around the pool. I stay the hell out of the pool when the nephews take over. It’s more fun to drink and watch than constantly babysit your kids so they don’t sink.

Monday was your standard, lazy Labor Day. I watched some tennis – Frances Tiafoe upsetting Rafa Nadal was obviously the highlight, a truly enjoyable match. I was bummed Danielle Collins lost, but we don’t need to go into details about that.

(Another quick aside about tennis: Nick Kyrgios beating Daniil Medvedev Sunday was also entertaining. Not sure I’ve ever switched my opinion on an athlete as quickly as I have about Kyrgios. I thought he was a lunatic who needed to be shut down at Wimbledon. Now I think he’s one of the most entertaining, compelling, and interesting players on the tour. Not sure I necessarily love him, but I do root for him to stay in tournaments because they are a lot more fun with him on the court.)

I read a lot, we did some shopping as we prep for our next big trip, and we did some cleaning around the house.

Otherwise a pretty chill holiday weekend.

This morning we were socked in by low, thick clouds. When my alarm went off at 6:50 and it was still pitch black my first thought was, “Did I sleep through a month and it’s October 6?” Just a tangible reminder that summer is over.

August Media

September 5, 2022 /

Movies, Series, Shows

Better Call Saul, season six
I wrote about this here.

A for the season, A+ for the series.

The Queen’s Gambit
It took me awhile, but I finally got to this. Not sure if it was better or worse to watch it well after its initial buzz had faded. While I enjoyed the story, I felt it had some big holes and ended a little too cutesy. But Anya Taylor-Joy was dazzling and delightful in the lead role. I could watch her in about anything.

B+

Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner
Of the food/travel shows I’ve sampled, this comes the closest to Anthony Bourdain’s oeuvre. But it still falls short. David Chang, who was a close friend of Bourdain’s, doesn’t appear to have the same touch with people, or at least it doesn’t come across on video. There are moments in each episode where I wondered if there was any true chemistry between him and his guests. But that often seemed to be a result of decisions the producers made more than their interactions.

B

The Gray Man
The near non-stop action was nice. The story seemed like a bunch of bits picked up from other movies. I’m always happy to watch Ana de Armas. Chris Evans was a great villain. But Ryan Gosling brought zero charisma to the lead role.

B-

Untold: The Girlfriend Who Didn’t Exist
Oh man, the Manti Te’o story gets the two-hour, documentary treatment! And it’s even crazier than I remembered. Although clearly set up as a Te’o rehab piece – it focuses a little too much on his desire to help others and forgive those who wronged him – it is still an absolutely enthralling watch.

A-

Pearl Jam – 2022–05–12, Oakland Arena, Oakland, CA
I don’t want to speak ill of a member of my favorite band, but I’ve never been a huge Matt Cameron fan. He is a great drummer, technically precise as any drummer of his generation. But he is so locked in that he can come across as boring. While he may be a great match for the band in terms of personality – he is the longest tenured drummer in the band’s history – I think the band also lost some of their edge when he joined them. When he was laid out with Covid last spring, the band pulled in some friends to fill Cameron’s seat so their shows could go on. This was one of those shows. This is a great performance, fueled, I think, by the presence of drummers who are a little less precise yet more wild than Cameron. There is a terrific energy that harkens to the band’s earlier days.

A

Shorts, Etc

Bad River
This month’s Beau Miles joint. I think this may be the most impactful of his videos that I’ve watched. The moment when he arrives at the point where hundreds (thousands?) of plastic bottles, balls, and general trash are blocking the river really struck me. Mostly because I know there are dozens of locations just like that in every major urban area. Pick your shit up and recycle it, fools.

Eddie Vedder in Conversation with Bruce Springsteen
What a fun chat. Eddie is so interesting to listen to, especially in settings like this when he is relaxed and comfortable.

Adventures of A+K
Alaska looks pretty dope.

Return to Vietnam, 45 Years Later
An American Special Forces officer back in Vietnam for the first time since his tours during the war. Some powerful moments for sure. I enjoyed his perspective, especially at the end when he encounters the local family at the Hanoi Hilton about no matter what our history is, we are all sharing the same planet.

DJI Mavic 3 – Flying Over Mount Everest
While basically a commercial, this footage is stunning.

Friday Playlist

September 2, 2022 /

The new music faucet finally seems to have been turned down a notch. My Latest Songs playlist is as light as it has been in months. Hopefully just a brief respite before things pick back up again for the fall.

“Paradise” – Briston Maroney
One of my favorite artists of 2020 is back with his next phase of music. Not sure this matches those ’20 highs, but this isn’t anything to complain about, either.

“After You (Samantha’s Song)” – Snarls
Another of my favorite bands of 2020 – they placed second on my favorite songs of the year list – is back. Sounds like they’ve been listening to The Cure.

“Black Obsidian” – Caitlin Rose
Caitlin Rose is one of those artists who often falls on the far side of that mysterious line between country and alt-country in my brain. This song, though, is just fine. Probably the poppiest thing I’ve ever heard from her.

“Minutes to Memories” – John Mellencamp
You might wonder why JM showed up in my Stats post yesterday. When we were in Kansas City a month ago and had dinner with my aunt and uncle, he asked if I had ever listened to this song. I had not and it only took me three weeks to remember to look it up. I listened to most of the Scarecrow album a couple times through. I think that’s my favorite version of Mellencamp, when he was politically charged and absolutely locked in musically. “Scarecrow” itself is an underrated classic. This song treads similar territory, but isn’t as amped up. At least until the end. While listening to the album I realized a ton of the Heartland Rock of the modern era that I’ve loved has its roots deep as deep in this album as any of the other touchtones critics often suggest.

“Summer Soft” – Stevie Wonder
“Suddenly Last Summer” – The Motels
The calendar never lies.

“All The Good Times” – Angel Olsen
Speaking of that alt-country/country line…Olsen jumped right over to the far side with her latest album, Big Time. I gave it a listen and it was just too Patsy Cline for me. Then I saw this performance, which might be the greatest thing that’s been on TV this year. The payoff at 2:44 – when the drums kick in, the harmony vocal gets added, and Olsen starts grooving – makes the slow burn intro totally worth it. Then Olsen’s throwback, cornball ending is absolutely perfect. Shame she did it on Fallon and not a different show.

Kickball Notes

September 1, 2022 /

This season was supposed to be L and her team’s final run to kickball glory. Even with a tough schedule we figured they would be battling in every game and, because of the strength of their division, remain in the mix for a City championship berth right up until the end of the season.

Instead it’s been a bit of a mess.

Things started well; they won their first two games. They beat a solid team by one, scoring six runs in the bottom of the 7th to comeback for the W on opening day. Next they run-ruled a perennially bad team. Then everything went to shit.

They’ve had three straight run-rule losses. They’ve lost by 26, 31, and 27 in four-and-a-half innings each time. In the last two games we’ve been behind 14–0 and 13–1 after one inning. What we used to do to other teams is now being done to us. Paybacks, etc…

Our coach, who is perpetually sunny and upbeat, looked at me after last night’s beatdown and asked, “What is wrong with us?”

The answer is pretty simple: the three teams that have beaten us all have players that look like young women while ours still look like kids. Last night we had a right fielder playing literally in the bushes that bordered the field and St J was still kicking the ball over her head. The three teams that have crushed us all had 4–5 girls who could not only blast the ball, but place it in the right spot. They either found the holes between our outfielders, or knew which of our girls had zero chance to catch anything kicked at her and sent balls her way. I think we’ve given up more home runs in those three games than we’ve given up in two or three seasons combined.

We also make a lot of small defensive errors that turn innings into bad ones. Last night in one inning L over-ran a ball and allowed it to drop, another girl dropped an easy fly ball, and two other girls ran into each other and allowed a ball to drop. Instead of only giving up 4–5 runs, we gave up the limit of 14. That’s been the story in every big inning this year.

Meanwhile we have no one who can kick anymore. L gets on base consistently (she’s 15–19 so far) but hasn’t kicked a home run all year. Or really been close to one. This is the same kid who had 22 home runs in a season 18 months ago. She can’t kick as far as she used to and the outfielders are better at this age, so on the rare occasion she gets ahold of one, they still hold her to a double or triple. None of our other girls who used to boot the ball are doing any better. I think we’ve had only two or three home runs all season, and have only had one 14-run inning.

There are two games left in their season. We play St B’s, the team we beat by one, on Tuesday and then the team that waxed us last night on Wednesday. I would like to hope that St J’s would take it easy on us in our final home game, but they have a one-game lead for the division and can’t afford to slip up. We are just hoping we can beat St B’s on Tuesday to get one more win before the girls hang up their kickball visors for the last time.

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