Ok... I fully recognize that (a) I need to post more and (b) this post will put some to sleep... but for my video game geek friends, this will stir glorious memories and make them think about their own video game exploits...
So, I was talking to a buddy today about the new Madden coming up. I'm genuinely excited about some features I read and how they are supposed to (have heard this before) fix some legacy issues that have driven us crazy... even to the point of hardly playing this year.
But, the conversation reminded me of some seriously fun times the last few years holding a controller...
Enjoy or stop now to save yourself a long read of dumb video game exploits...
1) What very well may go down as my favorite moment in gaming ever... a couple buddies and I were playing GRAW 2 (if you don't know what that means, you might as well move on to another site now.) We were basically having 10 minute death matches. We would snipe and hunt each other, looking for the ultimate in bragging rights. Well... the unwritten rule was that we didn't allow grenade launchers because they were too powerful in the setting we were playing and wanted to reward precision vs 'blast zone' luck. As I was setting up the next game, the other team we were playing against were across the street (playing online) and my partner told me to see if they'd notice me including launchers. So I do. And they don't. :) Next thing I know, the game is starting and we know the choke-point they will most likely come through. And... our strategic placement played out perfectly. We see them enter the area and just absolutely unload w/ the launchers, blowing them to where the sun doesn't even shine! All I hear in my microphone was one of the guys deadpan and indcredulously say, "Hey man... I thought there were no grenade launchers..." Oh, sorry. Guess I forgot to tell ya! :)
2) Same guy... we go over his place and play some NHL Hockey. He has a big projector and we are gathered around in bean bags and a chair. Well, he had been playing w/ the beloved Dallas Stars and run his record to 19-0. (Some of which we helped with, but he was undefeated before we joined in.) We played a few games co-op. He started making comments about going the whole season undefeated and yadda yadda yadda. Well, as we start game 20 on the schedule, just before the game starts, I swap teams. So it's me vs him and our other buddy. Well... thing is in hockey, if you are out of position, it's VERY difficult to play defense. The CPU always has their guys where they are generally supposed to be. People, on the other hand are magnetically attracted to that puck, even if it means abandoning your post. Well... long story short, the Stars started off 19-1. :)The bitterness and anger was so awesome. I think I heard blood vessels pop in his forehead on the way out. Giggle.
3) I've had lots of Madden fun. And back in '10, I would play online a lot against some friends. One guy in particular was worlds better than I expected him to be. I just never pictured him to be big into Madden, but he really was... and new what he was doing. While I've been playing Madden for years, that was really the first year I really played vs human opponents much. And it's WORLDS different than beating up on the CPU. Well... among all of us who played, just like any sport, it's all about matchups and styles. I was one of the better players, but struggled against some others who really weren't that good. They just did a few things I struggled with. Well...Chris was widely considered one of the top players, but for some reason he struggled against me more than anyone. If he won 80% of his games (or more) against the other guys, we would split our matchups 50/50... and everyone would be really close. I may have had the edge. He may have. Never really kept numerical track. Well... one 'playoff' game we had started off very poorly for me. He jumped on me 19-0 (or something close) in the first half. I'm clearly upset and I'm just spewing all sorts of 'woe is me' and 'this game is over, I'm done' as we kick off the 2nd half. I get the ball and score. I'm still playing Chicken Little as I slowly peck away, peck away, peck away. Eventually, I tie the score and we somehow head into overtime. If there's ONE player on my team he hated dealing with, it was Ray Lewis. Well... Chris gets the ball first and is slowly driving the field. He's around midfield and decides to throw a pass across the middle.... Oops. Ray Ray is sitting there, waiting on the ball. I intercept it and weave my way in and around his defenders, going in for the winning TD in overtime. Let me just say... there is no better sound than ".... .... .... (silence)... .... good game... ... ..."
4) Madden '11. To me, this is my all time favorite Madden... I played so many games and got REALLY good. My two buddies and I started a couple of online leagues to play and just have a good time. I don't know how many GAMES we played, against the CPU or each other, but we were all in the same division to ensure we'd play each other as much as possible. We'd spend Friday and/or Saturday nights (and nights during the week) playing. We'd pop on the headsets and talk. If we played each other, it got really funny. We would all whoop up on the CPU pretty handily. A 'tight' game may be something like 49-14. Most games, we would score 70+... and this as against the hardest setting. So, needless to say, the only competition came when we played each other. But, we'd still have headsets on while playing the CPU just so we could talk. Few things are funnier than listening to people gripe about how the CPU is screwing them over when you're winning 84-7. "Oh, yeah... like they're REALLLLLY going to catch that?!" Giggle. My favorite is when we'd play each other and one of the guys would gripe about his QB sucking. Uh, dude... you're controlling the QB... Good times.
5) I've got a book's worth of Madden moments... but the last video game moment I'll talk about is my first experience playing Rainbow Six Vegas. I went over my buddies' place and he's very good at shooters. I've gotten worlds better, but this was probably the 3rd time I'd ever really played one. Well... we are making it through the first level, which is actually pretty tough for me. Rainbow Six isn't the kind of game where you can just spray and pray, mowing people down and hoping to survive. You have to be fairly deliberate and strategic in your actions. Well... we make our way to the very end. We clear all enemies and reach our objective: Heading down a man-hole to an underground area. We died a few times along the way and had to restart... so, we probably spent close to an hour making it through this one mission. JUUUUUUST as he leads the way to to head down the ladder, I just as a simple question: "Is this the end of the mission?" Eric says, "Yes." Quick thinking like I am, I was wondering if friendly fire mattered in this game. So... as he mounts the ladder, I unload a clip into him. Yep. Friendly fire matters. We failed the mission. :)
I could talk forever about my video game exploits and this won't be the last gaming post I make. I'm 37 years old and have been playing video games since the Commodore VIC 20. I'll probably be playing on my death bed if they let me. The why's and all that may be a topic for another blog, but for now, if you've read this far.... congrats. You're a geek. Welcome to the club.
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
It's for the Kids...
Lots of frustration this morning on a number of different levels.
Our first (and only) 10U softball season is winding down and this has been an interesting season to say the least. While I won't document it all with a novel, I will talk about our game last night.
In a tight game against a team that barely beat us before, the focus is supposed to be on each side of girls playing their hearts out. Nice defensive plays. Back and forth scoring. All the things you want your kid to experience and learn how to (a) deal with and (b) teach them how to deal with and enjoy.
Instead...
Oh geez, instead...
Instead, there are coaches who think it's ok to transfer their competitive spirit (term used loosely) onto 9 and 10 year old girls. And by transfer, I mean screaming until their heads turn tomato red and the girls look at you wondering if you're turning into The Hulk. These girls are not meant to be a portal to live your own competitive nature through. These coaches aren't there to show how good of a coach they are.
Coaches are there to teach the girls the game, sportsmanship and what it means to be a team. You build the girls up. You teach them. You get onto them when necessary, but make sure they know you are there for THEM. Once you turn it away from that, you've no longer made the game about them... you've made it about yourself.
So, tied 4-4 (one out) with time running out, we load the bases. By this time, the game has less than five minutes remaining. That's critical. In 10U Girls softball, you cannot start a new inning if less than five minutes are on the clock. We were home team. There would either be a tie or we would win 5-4. No exceptions.
We get the hit and knock in the 5th run. Game over. Right? RIGHT?!? Well, yes... but the umps make a poor decision to keep the game rolling just so our girls can hit and play out the final 3 minutes or so. (Bad decision b/c this seems to be at their discretion. We've had a similar situation where the game was called because it was technically 'over'.) It was clear the other coaches were trying to get a 3rd out before time expired so we could start a new inning. Rules say that's just not possible. (Sadly, this is one rule it seems few people think of until they are surprised when we can't continue the game...)
At this point, the umps should have seen what was happening and just called the game instead of letting the other side think they had a chance to prolong the game. I'll spare the rest of the details, but the game ended and the opposing coach comes over and lambasts the ump for some pitching calls he made. He's thrown out of the game (after it's over). But, the point is how disrespectful he was of the ump... and the lessons he was teaching his girls. (I'll give the ump credit... he stayed fairly calm during this whole thing.)
Not only did he not know/remember the rule about the final inning... not only was he yelling at his own girls in a way I'd have issue with if I was one of their fathers (and I'm not always the coddling type :)... not only was he extremely disrespectful to the umps... by his actions he showed how little sportsmanship matters when you don't get your way. That's a horrible lesson to teach.
To his credit, he didn't blame the umps for costing them the game. He gave us proper credit. But, by his actions, he showed the girls it's ok to throw a fit if you don't like something... instead of calling time (or whatever) and discussing it as a grown man.
Coaches are not there to win. If that's your goal as a coach in 10U Rec League softball, you do not need to be out there. You're not doing yourself or your girls any favors.
To make matters worse, these coaches are in positions of leadership in the community. Man, if you can't check your ego at the door, you should not be coaching in a Rec League. None of that was competitiveness... that was immaturity.
Funny thing is... I know one of the guys in question and I don't think he's a bad guy. I really don't. I think he's a good guy who lets a bad side out of him. I'd know b/c I've done the same thing! He never disrespected our team (which I do appreciate). But, dangit... it's about teaching the girls about softball, teamwork, handling adversity, accountability and sportsmanship.
Look... I know about having a bad temper when competitive. In a high school CHURCH basketball league, I led the league in fouls, foul outs, technicals and ejections. I coached one team in the same league when I was in college... and I led the league in technicals and ejections. I've been ejected from more softball games as a player than I care to admit. Heck, I got ejected once for LOOKING at an ump. I KNOW what it's like to have a temper out there. But... eventually the truth set in. And before I was in my 40s.
I'm just frustrated/sick when the emphasis shifts from the girls. I have no question he's out there to help them. None at all. All things start from good intentions. But, you just can't lose focus like that. Competitiveness is not an excuse. If this was high school/college? While it may be a bit overboard, it would at least be understandable because there's more at stake than just a Rec League.
I'm the most competitive person I know. And I'll challenge you to prove me wrong. (See what I did there?) I used to have 'that screaming guy' in me. Heck, trust me... he's still there. When I act(ed) like that, I only embarrassed myself and taught those around me that that behavior is ok. Bottom line: If I saw any one of my kids acting like what I saw last night (and have seen with many, MANY other coaches... don't want to say this guy is the only one... or even the worst), I'd have pulled them into the dugout and whooped their butts right then and there.
This is our last season of softball. Jordyn is moving onto vocal lessons and while I think she'll really enjoy that, I do wish she had the 'fire' to continue with softball too. I've really enjoyed coaching the girls. I'll miss it... and them... But, I can't exactly help coach a team w/o a kid in the league. That's a little creepy. :)
But, if anyone reads this... and there's actually the possibility of the person in question reading this... please don't forget... it's about the kids. We had our glory days. Let's let them have theirs and teach them how adults should act.
Our first (and only) 10U softball season is winding down and this has been an interesting season to say the least. While I won't document it all with a novel, I will talk about our game last night.
In a tight game against a team that barely beat us before, the focus is supposed to be on each side of girls playing their hearts out. Nice defensive plays. Back and forth scoring. All the things you want your kid to experience and learn how to (a) deal with and (b) teach them how to deal with and enjoy.
Instead...
Oh geez, instead...
Instead, there are coaches who think it's ok to transfer their competitive spirit (term used loosely) onto 9 and 10 year old girls. And by transfer, I mean screaming until their heads turn tomato red and the girls look at you wondering if you're turning into The Hulk. These girls are not meant to be a portal to live your own competitive nature through. These coaches aren't there to show how good of a coach they are.
Coaches are there to teach the girls the game, sportsmanship and what it means to be a team. You build the girls up. You teach them. You get onto them when necessary, but make sure they know you are there for THEM. Once you turn it away from that, you've no longer made the game about them... you've made it about yourself.
So, tied 4-4 (one out) with time running out, we load the bases. By this time, the game has less than five minutes remaining. That's critical. In 10U Girls softball, you cannot start a new inning if less than five minutes are on the clock. We were home team. There would either be a tie or we would win 5-4. No exceptions.
We get the hit and knock in the 5th run. Game over. Right? RIGHT?!? Well, yes... but the umps make a poor decision to keep the game rolling just so our girls can hit and play out the final 3 minutes or so. (Bad decision b/c this seems to be at their discretion. We've had a similar situation where the game was called because it was technically 'over'.) It was clear the other coaches were trying to get a 3rd out before time expired so we could start a new inning. Rules say that's just not possible. (Sadly, this is one rule it seems few people think of until they are surprised when we can't continue the game...)
At this point, the umps should have seen what was happening and just called the game instead of letting the other side think they had a chance to prolong the game. I'll spare the rest of the details, but the game ended and the opposing coach comes over and lambasts the ump for some pitching calls he made. He's thrown out of the game (after it's over). But, the point is how disrespectful he was of the ump... and the lessons he was teaching his girls. (I'll give the ump credit... he stayed fairly calm during this whole thing.)
Not only did he not know/remember the rule about the final inning... not only was he yelling at his own girls in a way I'd have issue with if I was one of their fathers (and I'm not always the coddling type :)... not only was he extremely disrespectful to the umps... by his actions he showed how little sportsmanship matters when you don't get your way. That's a horrible lesson to teach.
To his credit, he didn't blame the umps for costing them the game. He gave us proper credit. But, by his actions, he showed the girls it's ok to throw a fit if you don't like something... instead of calling time (or whatever) and discussing it as a grown man.
Coaches are not there to win. If that's your goal as a coach in 10U Rec League softball, you do not need to be out there. You're not doing yourself or your girls any favors.
To make matters worse, these coaches are in positions of leadership in the community. Man, if you can't check your ego at the door, you should not be coaching in a Rec League. None of that was competitiveness... that was immaturity.
Funny thing is... I know one of the guys in question and I don't think he's a bad guy. I really don't. I think he's a good guy who lets a bad side out of him. I'd know b/c I've done the same thing! He never disrespected our team (which I do appreciate). But, dangit... it's about teaching the girls about softball, teamwork, handling adversity, accountability and sportsmanship.
Look... I know about having a bad temper when competitive. In a high school CHURCH basketball league, I led the league in fouls, foul outs, technicals and ejections. I coached one team in the same league when I was in college... and I led the league in technicals and ejections. I've been ejected from more softball games as a player than I care to admit. Heck, I got ejected once for LOOKING at an ump. I KNOW what it's like to have a temper out there. But... eventually the truth set in. And before I was in my 40s.
I'm just frustrated/sick when the emphasis shifts from the girls. I have no question he's out there to help them. None at all. All things start from good intentions. But, you just can't lose focus like that. Competitiveness is not an excuse. If this was high school/college? While it may be a bit overboard, it would at least be understandable because there's more at stake than just a Rec League.
I'm the most competitive person I know. And I'll challenge you to prove me wrong. (See what I did there?) I used to have 'that screaming guy' in me. Heck, trust me... he's still there. When I act(ed) like that, I only embarrassed myself and taught those around me that that behavior is ok. Bottom line: If I saw any one of my kids acting like what I saw last night (and have seen with many, MANY other coaches... don't want to say this guy is the only one... or even the worst), I'd have pulled them into the dugout and whooped their butts right then and there.
This is our last season of softball. Jordyn is moving onto vocal lessons and while I think she'll really enjoy that, I do wish she had the 'fire' to continue with softball too. I've really enjoyed coaching the girls. I'll miss it... and them... But, I can't exactly help coach a team w/o a kid in the league. That's a little creepy. :)
But, if anyone reads this... and there's actually the possibility of the person in question reading this... please don't forget... it's about the kids. We had our glory days. Let's let them have theirs and teach them how adults should act.
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