New Basketball Team

I played my first game with a new basketball team this evening. It's in Ryde Acquatic & Leisure Centre. James actually played one game for a team in the same competition once.

I found myself on the second worst team in the competition, and luck would have it we faced the second best team. Needless to say we got smashed (45 - 19). I didn't have my best game - at one point missing consecutive fast break lay up opportunities - but then at other times I showed the team glimpses of what I could do; including connecting a 3 quarter court pass to a team mate for an easy basket immediately after our opposition scored.

The guys were very laid back. I'd say three of the six (myself included) knew what they were doing. The rest were kinda just tag a alongs in it for the exercise.

The team captain seemed keen to have me back for a second game. I gave him my mobile number, so he said he'll let me know.

I look forward to developing some new basketball connections. We'll see what happens.


Ricky.
rick26j@gmail.com

An Unexpected Guest

So the other day, Johanna and I were walking home from another day at the office on our usual path.. On the way home, we noticed a stray dog wondering about. Johanna - ever the friendly one - suggested we stop to say hello.

I kneeled down and beckoned the dog to my side, which she did quite obediently. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that she was a beautifully healthy Border Collie. She was clean, well-groomed, young, of a healthy weight and (most importantly) dimeanor.

After having our brief greeting Joh and I decided to part our ways (we had melting ice cream in hand) and left. Our new friend had other ideas though, as she decided to follow us to my apartment. Being wanted certainly is an endearing quality, and the dog's loyalty & interest in us had won both our hearts. During the walk home, we bumped into my room-mate, Gareth.

Gareth himself is a lover of all things friendly; animals included. He decided as it dark outside and the dark coat covering the dog it was not safe for him to be roaming the streets freely. And so it was decided, we had an extra tennant for the night.

We got home and couldn't find any indicator that she was formally owned (i.e. a labelled collar), however she was clearly well-kept and obedient. Johanna affectionately and respectfully named her Ive II. Cute.

And so that was the activity of interest for the evening. Discussing the dog, playing with the dog, preparing food, trying to find his home. (In the end Gareth took her to the vet the following day, apparently the fourth time this year the dog had been caught roaming.. some people don't deserve dogs) etc. A fun night. She was most kind, and when Gareth prepared her bed in the corner she intuitively knew what was going on and acted accordingly by settling in for the night. So nice to observe.

Similar to her predecessor, Ive II hadn't quite cotton'd-on to the concept of 'fetch'. She did well up until the point of returning the ball. She seemed to think it her duty to hold-on and protect her 'treasure' rather than playing the game again. Humph!

Anyway, for your viewing pleasure I have included two pictures which Ive 2 happily posed for. Those of you who know Ive 1 may realise why I took such a quick liking to the girl. She certainly reminded me of an old friend.

Let me know your thoughts, please.



Ricky.
rick26j@gmail.com

Champs.... Again !

Gee, a quarter of a year since a post. Any readers I did are probably long gone.

You may have noticed two posts ago, on 8 June, (one of)my basketball team[s] - the White Wolves - won its competition. Well, we repeated the feat, folks. After winning division 6, they considered us worthy of moving up a grade. We were placed into div 5; the premiere grade for this venue and time of week.

The premiere division is definitely a step-up in terms of the competition and the difficulty. This was apparent to our team early, as we began the season on a three-game losing streak and our season looking bleak. At the end of any season, the bottom two teams in the premiere are downgraded to the lower division, and it looked for a time as though we may be going back to our roots.

Fortunately though, our team founds it rhythim and streak, and we then won three consecutive games.

From this point, we had three games remaining and were tied with our rivals the Los Amigos (see 8th June post, we beat them last seasons finals).

We lost back-to-back games to the same team! Fortunately, the Amigos did as well, meaning the final game of the season would determine who had the fourth and final spot.

The schedule showed that we play the Amigos. We won more convincingly against them than we ever had in the past.

We won the semi's.

The Grand Final was obviously an important game. I arrived at the stadium 90 minutes early to warm up. I was worried from the start, not from my nerves, but because during my practice beforehand, I barely made a single shot. Some days you just don't feel confident about your shot this was one of them for me.

Fortunately, I am not the only person on the team. Our centre, Bob played aggressively on defense and was throughout the course of the game accumulated seven blocked shots. Along with our forward Marty, they consistently out rebounded our opponents on both ends of the floor.

Within the opening five minutes, the game was 8 - 2, with us losing. With our two highest scorers (myself and James) unable to make any baskets, we were fortunate that Aaron and Bob raised the game when the team needed them. They each scored six points in the first quarter and lead our team in front.

The entire game was close. James really picked up the slack in the final 10 minutes where he scored (I believe) 9 points. The final score was 46 - 45. After the first five minutes, it was neck and neck the entire game. A brilliant game and a satisfying win.

Our season is back on again, and the White Wolves look to repeat as champs.

I will post a recap of our first game. Be sure to tune in.

Bonus Time

Just a quick & small update. At Optus, along with the close of the financial year, its the time when the company hands out bonuses to its loyal employees. This includes me. on 15th June at 3:48am I received my bonus payment in full, and while I am not going to publicly disclose how much I received, I was very thankful for what I did get.

I gave some to the relatives. Got rid of the credit card (the debt, not the actual card, that things too convenient!) Bought a gift (or two), paid some annoying bills .. I wasn't able to splurge any of the money, which in some ways was a little disapointing, but I have cleared the necessities in life and am able to use the money to move forward.

Excellent!

Thanks for reading.


Ricky.
rick26j@gmail.com

We are the Champions!

The title says it all, really. This publication is a little delayed, but it's in writing all the same; last Sunday, my basketball team - The White Wolves - won our grand final basketball game. This marks the second time in three seasons that the squad has won the final game. It's a good acheivement for our core (the guys that have been together since the teams inception, brothers James & Aaron, and mate Olx). It shows how far as a team we've come, from barely being able to win, to a decent team, and now to the best in the competiton.

The Grand Finale itself was a close, intense game. Our opponents, the Los Amigos are a bit older and less athletic than we are, they play a slow game, which focuses on excellent passing and ball movement to wear down their defenders, and also taking high percentage shots. Our team, the Wolves were younger, and so we tried to run as often as we could, and use our youth to advantage in tiring our opponents.

The game was close from start to finish, with our opponents making their first three 3 point attempts, and we trailed as a team 24 - 19 at halftime. During the intermission we decided as a team to attack them on defense. We would guard the Amigos for the complete length of the court from start to finish, as opposed to our normal strategy where we guard them from half-court onward. The defense paid off, as we took them out of there rhythim and they fought for every point from there onward.

I personally didn't have my best game, but with less than two minutes remaining, I made a 3 pointer which gave our team the lead for good at 49 - 47. From that point onward, we did not look back.

The photo above is of our team, from left to right: James, Aaron, myself, Bobby, Marty and Olx.

Bring on the next season!

Ricky.
rick26j@gmail.com

Gambling Hand

So lately James has been getting me into this Poker thing. I flirted with the game a little in '06. I went to some friends places, hosted a Poker evening, even went to a couple of tournaments, but I never really played seriously. I never played for money. And, James being James was probably the most likely person I know to actually back the game up with his finances. He's been playing pretty consistently over the past month or so. How successful he is, I am not too sure. I know he's definitely had his good streaks and he's definitely had his cold ones.

This weekend was a little different. I had a few loose dollars in an old savings account which I hadn't touched for a solid six months. I decided that it was just sitting there, and, while I wasn't keen on loosing it, I wanted to see what I could make of it. So, James and I sat down in front of the computer, two beers each and $150 (of my money) to lose.

Because you're smart, you've probably realised that had I not gone so well I probably wouldn't be publicly admitting to you all about how foolish I was to throw away my money. So yes, you're right. I won. In about two hours the $150 had jumped to $410 ($260 winnings!) Having taken a few nerve-wracking (not to mention fortunate) hands, I decided the last thing I wanted was to lose what I had. So I asked James to withdraw our winnings, which we would split, and we played on with $150 remaining. Within an hour, we had lost that amount.


Despite wanting to win some more money, I decided to call it a day as I didn't want to lay my secured winnings on the line. So that was that. I held onto my initial $150, and James and I split the surplas two-ways. We could have done better, we could have done worse. It is what it is. Overall, I earned more than a day's honest wages in three hours total. Not too shabby.

Anyway, it's getting late in the afternoon now. Johanna's coming over and we're going to a Filipino Restaurant in Sydney's West. We haven't been there for a while, so it should be a good one.

Thanks for reading.


Ricky.
rick26j@gmail.com

No Ball

Last Thursday, I was playing basketball, and, less than one minute into the game some bloke on the opposition connected his elbow with my face. The results were not pretty. My front tooth (which has previously had a filling) was knocked several centremetres inward; not a good look. I left the game (after my huge impact and everything) and Johanna was kind enough to take me to the dentist, despite the fact we had prior plans to go and see Spiderman 3 on opening night with her two brothers (Thank you, Jo).

$500, a bit of pain, and a set of braces (for the next eight weeks) later, and I am back to normal.. Well, at least my tooth has been placed in its correct alignment, anyway.

So that's it. No more basketball for the next week. I don't know how I'll go, I will concede it's going to be tough, and I don't even know if I'll hold out, but at this stage, I am determined. I want an opportunity to relax a little and let my tooth get a bit better. Following that, we'll see how we go and if I feel comfortable to get back out on the court. Of course, the last thing I want is to head out there and take another shot to the face. A) because - with braces - it'll hurt like a mother and B) because if my fragile tooth were to be re-arranged, then it would take me a while to forgive myself.



Then again ... I wouldn't mind taking a couple of shots....


Ricky.
rick26j@gmail.com