"Friendlies and Tests..." Target Rich Environments

Terms of Engagement: More commonly aligned with the sports of soccer (or futbol, if you prefer) and cricket, but applicable to where and when any two or more are "facing off" (even in a debate), two terms that apply to the category of the engagement, which ostensibly influence the level of preparation, intensity, and...well, degree of "friendliness". These include "Friendlies" which are competitions between two teams (or "clubs" in soccer, cricket) that are arranged for what is at least described as a friendly meeting for the "fun!" of the sport, for the sake of competition but where nothing is at stake (except pride, perhaps), and has no bearing on the respective teams' standings in their official leagues (so why keep score?). Many times arranged for charity, fund raising, etc. In contrast a "test" is one that really counts in terms of the teams' relative standings in whatever league they are representing at the time. A true test. In my childhood and teens, even in such an unofficial setting as "You wanna' have a friendly game of...a game of pick-up...?" could easily result in as many intense disputes as one where an official referee is present between two schools, etc. Rivalries easily ignited which often carried on well after the game, off the field (or "pitch" in futbol). In our neighborhood, the terms "Friendly competition"' and "Friendly foes" seemed to be oxymoronic ("You're a moron, loser!"). More like a "Test of Friendship" all wrapped up into "WON"! Or, in the aftermath, post-game version, "With friends like this..." -- You know how it goes, how it ends up..."A grudge match!". In any case, these are the two categories that supposedly distinguish between a more formal "Test" and more informal "Friendly" (if there is such a thing). And now, on to the Game(s) at hand, the ones already in progress...and next post "Choosing Sides, Fides".