Viral Vicissitudes

Hip, Hip Hooray....Yip, Yip, Boohoo... Tripped, Yipped, all Twisted Up; Even if you're just a WA (weekend athlete) or, recovering from injury suffered from tripping over your own two feet, you find yourself an AA (armchair athlete) relegated to getting vicarious fulfillment from watching the feats, feets, followed by tweets (#a pro just wiped out; I don't feel so bad"), you/we can all identify with what is generally, globally referred to as "The Yips" 😞Which, in sports, refers to the sudden, unexplained loss of control and/or skills previously mastered to such a degree it's been almost automatic. Ranging from a momentary, subtle Yip which is only detected by the athlete and not the gallery or TV viewers, to more dramatic loss of control which can result in injury. In gymnastics, where it's referred to as "The Twisties" (to become a common reference, excuse to be sure), we had a vivid illustration in the form of Simone Biles, Ms. Consistency, a ...

CAUTION: Contents Under Pressure "Too Much; enough already!": Once again feeling obliged to comment, after intending on taking a break from this post, to ease some pressure I have been placing on myself to keep you abreast of the Olympics, all the psychological 'gymnastics' already witnessed from afar, a few dramatic events unfolded right before our eyes (whether live or taped), when a few heavily favored athletes either buckled under, or withdrew from, competition, with "too much pressure" cited as the common denominator. Juxtaposed, we also witnessed and heard from athletes who talked about embracing the pressure, crediting difficult events in their lives, their journey to Tokyo, for steeling themselves, being able to better endure such acute pressure as that experienced in an Olympic event. Then there's the weight lifter from the Philippines (Hidilyn Diaz) who, while feeling the weight of history, given that this country's 97-year drought at the O...

Ad-indum, Ad-outdum...More to the Point(s) Breathless(?) If you hadn't noticed, I have hardly taken a breather since yesterday's second part of the "Don't" series, after which I thought I would at least get a chance to cool down, take some deep breaths, and get some sustenance to sustain me for the rest of the fortnight in Tokyo. But NO ! The same types of unexpected pitfalls I talked with you about awaited me, as the last 24 hours of news from Tokyo (and elsewhere in athletics, as you'll see) have compelled me to write this addendum(s), to share with you additional 'sports illustrated', examples of the five 'don'ts' of aspiring champs: In-fa mericial: Also known as "Typhoon Fabian", Olympic officials as well as athletes have had to prepare, adjust for this tropical storm, which is soon due to hit parts of Japan, a perfect, unchoreographed example of "weather and other external factors" -- as competitors keep one eye on ...

Don'ts and Do's, Champs Among US, Part Two...which reminds me Conversation starters, small talk:  Psychologist: "Tell me why you're here" Respondent: "I'd rather not, let me instead..." Interviewer: "Tell me why you're qualified for this job" Applicant: "Let me start with my shortcomings" Waiter: "What looks good on the menu tonight?" Customer: "There's a lot here that does not appeal..." Reporter: "To what and whom do you credit your success?" Champ: "Not gonna answer this; instead..."        Now, these  would indeed be at least offbeat, if not refreshing interviews, moreover unique responses to the typical, expected, banal questions commonly asked. While all wanna know what this successful individual did to succeed, we don't often get to hear (or bother, take time to ask) about the pitfalls they avoided on the way to success...who wants to hear negative stuff? As I mentioned in...

🎜WE are the CHAMPIONS🎝!! What we  didn't   do...It reminds me... - Part One (of Two) Mindset - Negative, Positive: Yep, you already sense it, don't ya, as I put negative ahead of positive...an awkward, negative way to start a conversation, post, you say...what good can follow if you start out so negative...hold on, let me explain, stay with me just for a few and I'll demonstrate...        In my office, whether discussing a broad, long term goal like career planning (aka "occupational guidance and counseling"), or a more specific, topic like a short term, focused diet and nutrition in order to fit into that dress, sleep/wake, exercise regimen designed to set the person up for success in an event in the near future (whether athletic, academic, or preparing for a specific career move), it's actually not  unusual, as counterintuitive as it seems, for the individual I am attempting to support, to start with something like, "Well, you probably don't  ...

Pitching 'Soft'balls (?) Think, Look Again! Beyond the Obvious... Idiomatic:  Partially covered before here, the almost endless applications of baseball slogans, sayings, idioms to our daily lives, experiences off the field..."You really knocked it out of the park!" versus "You're really out in left field!"..."I didn't even make it to first base on our first date"..."seventh inning stretch"...etc., etc., etc....You have your own favorites, I imagine. This is to partially celebrate the 'official' beginning of the Tokyo Olympics, as women's softball got under way yesterday (actually two days ago now, as I began this post yesterday and got up to stretch myself), in front of empty stands, well, 'barely', as an Asian black bear was seen trying to crash the party, perhaps thinking a team was missing its mascot, bounding away ("and he's outta here!" yelled the ump) before security could formally eject hi...

Baby, What a Workout! Are you fitter than a two-year-old? Just Strolling (?) Having nearly completed the biking portion of my workout on a Sunday morning, I had already encountered umpteen numbers of young adults pushing strollers (which were presumably occupied), some a fast-paced walk while others at speeds that the occupants apparently called for ("faster daddy!"), presumably after checking their seatbelts. An increasing trend the past several years (neither prompted nor limited by the pandemic), reflected in part by the types of strollers being marketed to parents (as well as grands trying to stay in shape, come to think of it), so parents are able to sustain fitness and simultaneously feel like they are spending time with their youngsters (who can at least see them in their rearview or back-up mirrors, if well equipped)..."If I don't have time to work out and my kid needs a walk or nap, why not enjoy pushing them in a stroller while they can see the world whizz ...

  "I'm Qualified!" Well, let me qualify   that... In My/Your Dreams: Perhaps prompted by all the pre-Olympic coverage, an email I received that invited me to participate in an upcoming athletic event because I "qualified" due to my participation in a related event within the past few years (which meant I paid the money, managed to finish...), a few nights ago I dreamt I had actually qualified for the Olympics...only in my dreams! But how cool, if only for a few minutes in the depth of R.E.M. sleep, only to be dashed by reality a few hours later...it's as if I had, at the last minute, been dis qualified by a technicality...totally dissed, totally p_ _ _ _ _! But, of course, I had to make use of this microcosm of emotions, a self-analysis on your behalf, to provoke you, yourself to think of your own experiences in this world of "qualifications" (how utterly thoughtful, selfless, eh?)... Opposites attract, repel (?): Qualifying for something, while ha...

Stumble, fall -- from IOC to...OUCH! Mis-step, tough start - Bached, Botched:   I already covered the issues related to 'false starts', a runner, swimmer, etc. dashing out ahead of the competition prematurely, before the starter fires the gun, sounds the horn, which results, as you have no doubt witnessed if you watched any of the Olympic Trials, in the sounding of another alarm, which brings the field back to start ("do not pass go..."). Another athletic phenomenon we/you have experienced if you are an avid sports fan, is an experienced athlete stumbling and falling...over their own two feet! Sometimes this is immediately followed by the injured looking around as if looking for a gremlin that might have stuck out a foot, whereas others they simply get up and shrug, walk it off, and finally others search for a rock or another such object under which to crawl. I witnessed such displays during these past U.S. trials, especially on the track, where a hurdler tripped over...

  "Are we almost there?" "When will we...?" "Are we...?" Questions Without Answers: Or, some not worth answering, after doing so five minutes ago and five minutes before that. The ones that 'plague' us, asked repeatedly, incessantly it seems, especially when we are in the car with children (e.g., family 'vacation'). Doesn't matter whether we are coming or going; they always want to know -- haven't they been viewing their own GPS on their personal iPad; can't they just ask Alexa?!  Keeping Count, Closing In: Well, at least I'm  keeping count (well, this blog does it for me as a customer courtesy) and I'm closing in on 200 -- 200 posts on this blog, that is. Some readers (whose intent is unclear to me) have been asking, "Just how long are you going to keep this up, this blog about CV-19 and all the attendant vicissitudes?" Good question; worth answering. Been asking myself this, especially as we seem to be closin...

e-cigs, e-sigs, e-gads! I b4 e, eb4 ME...return of the Signet!   ITTOYA: Nope, not a mis-spelling of the now popular import, Toyota. Yep, in long hand, spelled out, "It's That Time Of Year Again" (almost always abbreviated these days), as well as a time in our COVID calendar driven lives, as the number of cases, at least in our part of the world, have thankfully started to ebb due to a number of convergent assiduous efforts, which has in turn led to an inverse, reciprocal number of invitations to weddings, baby showers, birthday parties, and other celebrations (including 'celebrations of life', funerals), which can now be held IP (do I have to spell it out for ya?!). And. of course, you have probably already received ( i before e, except after...) more than your fair share of graduation announcements -- invitations and announcements which were probably received via... Paperless e-invites: "Your friends won't believe your DIY..." or so says the add, l...

  BANG! And they're off...BANG! they're back, false start...an ongoing 2020 Olympic saga... Fortnight: Double Bang! Signaling my own false start here, just a day premature, given the "2020 Olympics" are due to actually start in fifteen, not the fourteen days associated with a fortnight. False starts, we've all had our share, but in this case we've had more than our share of false as well as delayed starts. That is, while I am out from the starting blocks unfairly, which now feature the technology "ReacTime", detects an athletes attempt to get the edge on their competition, if you are an athlete or spectator waiting for the starter pistol, buzzer, strobe light, or any combination that might be used to signal it's OK to start running or swimming...at the originally scheduled 2020 Tokyo Olympics, you'd be waiting for 364 days, plus ??? hours and minutes...talk about tight calf muscles, hamstrings, lower back (or sore gluteus maximus, for those w...

The Day After, and the day after that...the days to come: Our Inheritance, Your Legacy Inheritance = a thing inherited, received from predecessors, progenitors; the genetic characteristic(s) transmitted from parents to offspring, progeny... Legacy = amount of money or property left in a will; something handed down from an ancestor or predecessor (including nonrelative), or from the past (e.g., "freedom of speech"); an individual who is either an applicant to an educational institution or a matriculated student who is the child of an alumnus/alumna...  Born on the 4th: A great nation, celebrations of which included many parades, flag waving, fireworks (apparently not all used up, based on the sounds in my neighborhood last night) and, of course, consuming LOTS of hot dogs (76 in the span of 10 minutes in one case). As well as this post, represented by "Coming soon: Our Inheritance, Legacy" . Two concepts, constructs that we hear almost daily, many times in tandem but...

"We, the People..."- Ascending, Descending, Order  - Inter/Intra-Dependence Day, 2021... Framers, Frame of Mind, Preambling: When we, here in the 50 states, united by a famous statute, hear the word "preamble", the first three words of today's post (should) come to mind, a statement of purpose, intention, and justification made on behalf of all of us descendants  by the 55 framers, the ascendants  of what was to become a brand new nation, divided  by opinion and lively debate, while united  in purpose, representing all  current/future citizens. While a focus of continuing debate themselves, these three words are generally accepted by scholars of U.S. history in general and the Constitution itself, as referring to the cornerstones, of self  - government , popular   sovereignty , and consent  of the governed . In other words (see, here I am already interpreting their intent myself), it is to represent "Us" and it will be "We" who will confer va...

"You can't make Me; You can't stop Me!" An Age of Independence..."Make good choices!" A HUGE Psychological Step... "Be careful what you wish for..."   It's about time, 'Exit Us': While I already wrote to you about the general idea of reaching the "Age of Majority" and its strong connection to "Measures of Maturity" (see April 10th), on the eve (morning where I sit relative to the rising sun) of our collective Independence Day, I felt it timely to once again to at least briefly touch on the key concepts of both individual and collective independence  that we will be celebrating in whatever style suits us, "thank you very much", tomorrow, but how many of us will actually take time out and appreciate what it took to get here...what sacrifices were made hundreds of years ago now, to make an exodus from the 'protection' of the king after already making a HUGE voyage across a GREAT expanse...a brand new j...

Past the Torrent, A Flood of Emotions: Could have/not been worse...   Virtual Rainfall: "Water always wins..." Universally acclaimed, personally experienced, also a frequent topic here...too little too much, when is it just "all right" (read on and you'll soon see)? Following a torrential rainfall around here (est. 7" in just a few hours), following an initial day of cleanup in our basement, following another, albeit mini-torrent the next day and yet another mini-cleanup, and after I finally stopped grumbling about this major inconvenience which precluded vacation plans by a day or two...I started looking around, outside and outside myself, and lo and behold, I quickly realized that, "It could have been so much worse", that we were actually one of the 'lucky' ones. For just a few zip codes over there were photos being posted of a virtual tour of a lifetime of memories being kicked to the curb, ruined by either the rainwater, sludge and, in...