Pritchard Picked a Peck of Pickled Pre-Pandemic People; how many Pickled Pre-Pandemic People...?

Necessity, the Father of...As I worked out this morning while listening to "World News", it included a discussion on another form of exercise that has increased in popularity throughout the world throughout the pandemic, partly owing to its ability to distance, and to being able to play the sport 'Inside, Out' (this time nothing to do with the movie!)--the latter includes my neighbor's driveway, and finally the nominal costs involved...namely, "Pickle Ball!". While many of us have only heard of this surging sport (enough so that there is even talk of it making into the Olympics!), the article this morning reminds us it has been around for more than a half century now. That is, in 1965, Joel Pritchard (who served in the U.S. Congress and as lieutenant governor in the state of Washington) and a few buddies, having arrived home after golf and finding their families in a state of boredom (sound familiar around here lately?), attempted to engage them in a game of badminton but found the shuttlecock was missing--shucks, no shuttlecock! So they improvised by using a perforated plastic ball, lowered the badminton net (and perhaps their expectations), and fabricated some paddles of plywood from a nearby shed. And the game of "Pickle Ball" was born! 

What's in a Name? The name itself continues to be a subject of friendly debate, sometimes a topic while having a beverage and well, of course, a few pickles following a grueling a match...while one popular version has the game named after the family's dog, "Pickles", it is more likely related to the term derived from rowing, "Pickle Boat", referring to the last boat in, frequently whose crew were oarsmen chosen from the leftovers from other boats (ever been the last one chosen in any given sport, it's definitely not sweet, more like the 'dill' type). Thus, the association from utilizing leftover plywood, etc. In modern times we would more likely refer to this as 'repurposing' and find it on "Pinterest". Speaking of repurposing, have you noticed how many shuffleboard courts have yielded the 'right of way' to this new sport, and how many bocce ball courts seem to have been paved over in deference to this surge? Which brings to mind the Joni Mitchell song, "Big Yellow Taxi":

"...They paved paradise

And put up a parking lot..." (or, "pickle ball court")

A Premodern Mashup: As the article went on to explain, this hybrid of sports was a sort of mash-up of badminton, table tennis, and tennis, way before the movies "Pitch Perfect" and the TV series "Glee" made musical mash-ups highly popular. Which in turn requires a 'mash-up' of athleticism, the range of which is partly represented by the number of braces, wraps, and inhalers you see competitors taking out with their paddles prior to a match, and the number of ice packs post game. You'd think it IS the Olympics -- don't try telling them otherwise!

Not Your Father's, Grandfather's Pickle Ball: As this morning's article and Wiki informs us, the game was  not originally intended for just the AARP card carrying folks, but invented for the whole family who was suffering from boredom, including those of the video game age group. And, if you've taken a glance at the courts where the game is being enjoyed, you'll no doubt notice the increase in youngsters playing, even alongside or across the net from the AARP'ers...if it does make it to the Olympics, it is likely there will be an 'open' competition as well as a division for 'age groupers' (those on Social Security wouldn't want to take advantage of those young and inexperienced, with less time on their hands, would they?).

Come to Think of It: We were playing games of "Pickle" prior to 1965, which only depended on three of us, a ball, and two baseball gloves, where the runner tries to reach one base or the other without getting tagged (kind of like what happens in professional baseball when a runner gets caught off base, but they make it look more difficult than it really is). We played it a lot, especially when we could only muster up three kids to play.

Come to Think of It: We were playing another game before "Pickle", which didn't even need a ball or gloves...it was called "Tag"! The 2018 movie of the same name reminds us it's not just a game for kids, but also grownups, at least grownups who are still acting like kids...TG there's a few around who still know how to play AND have the courage to let their inner child out...we are NEVER too old!

Pre-Post- Pandemic: GAME ON!