Tough Being Number One, Movie Reviews, Book Review

For the past six weeks my bowling team has been in first place in league play and now the pressure is beginning to mount. Since this is a two person team league my team consists of me, one other and a substitute. So when we have rah rah get togethers, which amounts to a bucket of bottle beer prior to bowling, plus maybe some popcorn or pizza as the pre-game meal, and then the 15 minute warm up, the crowd is quite small. We practice our high fives but no fist bumps(bowling is the only sport where the fist bump is not a good thing, since it means you rolled an open frame and did not strike or spare, consequently you do not mark, which is a bad thing). Since most of us don’t actually practice or even see the bowling alley between bowling night(Wednesday in our case) this precious 15 minutes is very critical and offers the competitors the time to get their mark down and make adjustments. My adjustments usually depend on what kind of swim, bike and run work out I have done prior to bowling. Some times a long bicycle ride or run can affect my approach since my legs may be a little stiff, or if I swim then my arms tend to get a little tired and I have trouble controlling the ball. So, as anyone can see this bowling is not as easy as one might think. But then again when you reach the top of the league as my team has we find that staying number one is much harder than the journey to get there. In the first place no one figured a team made up of an old man(me) and a fellow who has had many health problems over the years, but probably 20 years younger than me, could possibly muster up enough marks to be in the lead at the halfway point. But with consistency and tenacity we have carved away some niches for ourselves and have a nice lead going into the holidays. The big problem now is the teams that think they should be in the lead really try to take it out on us and won’t even speak to us during the three game series. Fact is if this was football it would be like helmet tackles to the head, gouging the eyeballs, and kicking you in the privates. Yes folks this game of bowling can be a real tough form of exercise and competition. One thing they did this past week is throw one of their baseball caps out into the lane while I was starting my approach. Man, that is real dirty stuff and then when they get a big laugh when you don’t mark and they do it becomes almost unbearable. But, my partner and I just keep on bowling and winning, winning and then winning some more. We took lessons from Brett Favre and just continue to roll those balls down the lane and knock over those obnoxious fat bottomed pins. After the three games this past Wednesday our opponents never high fived us, never said great game or great strike or anything of those things that are called good sportsmanship. In spite of this we came away with our victories and remained in first place. The guys were sure they were going to blow our balls(pardon the pun) out of the building, but we maintained our cool and sent them home still in third place. Next week we will be bowling another team that will treat us the same way so on Christmas week we will have to put our most focused game face on and beat their butts. Some times we draw a female only team and they are usually nicer than the men, that is if they are winning. If they aren’t winning they can become very hostile and say real bad things, like “you have a real old looking butt, or your aging has really been noticeable since your birthday last week, or maybe your bowling really sucks most of the time, or “ladies first” so get out of our way, or if they are so endowed they will do the cleavage thing to screw up our concentration, or if they happen to have a nice butt they will wear extra, extra tight jeans that looks like they were born in them, or some other kind of uncanny, catty type thing. As I mentioned in the beginning, “being number one is a bitch, much easier to get there than stay there”, but I promise my partner and I will bowl as hard as we can and knock as many pins down as possible(the results being a higher score) and hopefully walk away with the number one trophy in the spring. The last time I won a first place bowling trophy was in 1964 and I was a 24 year old 2nd Lt. in the active US Army. Now I am heading towards my second first place trophy as a 72 year old, retired Lt. Col. 48 years later. Go figure!!

Movie Reviews: “The Fighter”, ****, This is a true story about boxer Mickey Ward who struggled with mediocracy and then became the World Boxing Champion. Mickey is played by Mark Wahlberg and his older half brother Dicky Ward is played by Christian Bale. Dicky(Bale’s) is a former boxing legend himself who squandered his talents and one shot of greatness. He became a crack addick very young in life and was obcessed with this addiction. He was also the trainer for Mickey but couldn’t leave the crack alone long enough to really train his brother. Then all hell pops loose within the family and Mickey’s new girl friend played by Amy Adams helps him see the light that if they don’t seek better managing Mickey will never win the championship. Against all odds they did come together and win. Very good movie, if the Oscars are looking closely I am sure Christian Bale will be nominated. Rated R for language through out(record number of f... bombs), drug content, some violence and sexuality.

“The Tourist”, ***, This is a good movie with an interesting twist. Anyone who likes to look at Angelia Jolie(and who doesn’t?) will most certainly not miss this movie. Since it is a criminal mystery it starts out that way and then tests your who done it and why they done it abilities through out. With the backdrop of Paris and Venice it provides a tremendous atmosphere. Johnny Depp plays the part of Angelia’s stranger(or is he?) boyfriend and they strike up some very good chemistry. It does turn out to be a deadly game of cat and mouse and someone must die. So, there are villians and good guys and guess who dies? Go see, well worth the ticket and popcorn. Rated PG-13 for violence and brief strong language. NOTE: No nudity, Angelia keeps all of her garments on during this one, SHUCKS!!

Book Review: “George W. Bush--Decision Points,” *****, Just finished this book on my last trip and I can say it is a very good book. It really opened my eyes to a lot of “decision points” concerning this eight year presidency. It also opens up some interesting points considering the many aspects of making presidential decisions. Without a doubt the details and explanations of how major decisions were made is outstanding. The former president does not shy away from his mistakes, or his successes. Whether you have any desire to read about former presidents or this one in particular, I believe it would be enjoyed by all, especially people that are interested in presidential history.

Okay SH, what you think?

greerman