Rounding Yourself Out

One of my challenges in life to become a well-rounded individual.  One trick pony’s don’t survive.  Darwin’s theory of evolution stems from adapting and having many different skills.  As such, I try to learn as many different ways of testing myself as possible.  Here are a few of the new ones I’ve picked up and old ones I maintain.

Jack of All Trades

Sudoku – I picked up this number puzzle game and get increasingly frustrated playing.  I’ve beaten a medium board in under 9 minutes which is my current best but I often sit for minutes making 0 moves and then turning it off.  It seems to stimulate the mind but gets tiresome because the game isn’t very dynamic.  It’s also a puzzle that no one gives a shit about.

Bowling – I got my first personal bowling bowl this past Monday which is the first step to becoming a better bowler.  Bowling with house balls is fine but you don’t clean a house ball.  I explained this to the Shee but using a towel on a house ball is ruining a rag.  Your own ball that’s weighted for better back end action into the pocket is the way to go.  I’ve only bowled in one league and finished with a 150 average but I think I could get around 180 with some work.  Plus I enjoy the laid back nature of the game.

Golf – I actually find golf to be the most fun game to play.  Being outside and testing shots where the swing stays the same but the landscape changes is fun.  Hand eye coordination is key and your game can always improve.  My biggest problem, completely personal, is that I mostly play golf on weekends.  Most weekend nights I spend drinking alcohol and when I wake up hung over, I’m not going to play my best golf.  So I’m in a constant struggle to play golf feeling my best and it doesn’t happen as often as it should.  By far my favorite game to relax too while drinking some cold ones.

Chess – I will not rise up the chess rankings.  I’ve stalled at a 1200 ranking about 3 times in my life and have no desire to improve.  Slight work like learning a few more openings and knowing when to play a certain one against another is all it takes.  My creativity with the game is pretty high but it gets me in trouble often.  I honestly can find about 0 people who would play me in a game of chess aside from strangers.

Basketball – I enjoy the game because of the physical nature.  I’ve been playing basketball since I was in kindergarten and know the subtleties to boxing out and PASSING which is a lost art.  Being in good shape is also a huge advantage because the game involves constant motion.  I’ve lost my touch for the game because I don’t play that often but can still play D and rebound effectively.

Beer Pong – A game that gets very little love as a skill game.  I get a charge from being on a team that ends the game on 2 back to back cups.  Any dope can’t just fire at the last cup.  I’m not a fan of 10 cup, “he’s on fire”, more than 1 re-rack, sidecar, or any part of the game that is straight up stupid.   This is a fun game though as long as people drink their beer.  Try making cups after winning 10 games straight.  The bell curve is 100% in effect for beer pong.

Poker – I’ll still play some 1-2 and the occasional tournament but the bottom line is I’m rusty.  I have no intention of grinding out cash games to make a few hundred bucks and my tournament game is such a far cry from where I was when I’d play 100 tournys a week online.   My feel for the game is better than your average player and I’m not afraid to stick my money in the middle but I usually drink when I play and that leads to volatility which I’ve been on the wrong end of in recent memory.

Baseball – I’m putting baseball last because I’m fine if I never play it ever again.  This sport is on the decline because it sucks.  The hitting aspect is ordinary and fielding really isn’t that much fun.  I also hate when you make a mistake in the field and everyone knows it was you and you just cost your team the entire game for messing up one simple play.