I don't like losing
I know, I know, no one likes to lose. Well there may be a few masochists out there who derive pleasure from defeat. But I hate losing more than most. I'm extremely competitive. Why? I guess because from as far back as I can remember, my father taught me that finishing first is it. Anything less was not acceptable.
Maybe it was because he missed almost all of my sporting competitions once he left my mother. But the time that sticks out in my mind was in the summer of 1985. I'd just come back from a year in South Korea, and during that time I wasn't able to do much bowling. Once I was home I bought new equipment and began practicing in earnest. A few weeks later I was back in form. There was a tournament coming up and I asked him to "sponsor" me. In return for his putting up the $35 entry fee, I'd give him 40% of anything I won.
I bowled well and made it from qualifying to the semi-finals. I did even better during the semis and would up seeded second in the "step-ladder" finals. I just had to win two matches and I'd win the tournament. Somewhere in my storage locker there is probably a videotape of the match that's hard to watch because the quality is poor. And because while I won the first match, I lost the championship match by a wide margin. Not because my opponent was more talented, this was a tournament where they used "handicaps" to equalize the talent level. And because he was incredibly lucky. His first shot missed the headpin but a pin bounced out of the pit and knocked down the three pins that had been left standing. Twice he avoided splits. I on the other hand made good shots and got little for the effort.
I guess my rambling point is I did my best. I did everything I could to win. I left it all on the playing field (such as it was). All I heard when I handed him his $200 share of the $500 prize was that if I had done better, he'd be getting twice as much and I should work harder.
Maybe his intent was to encourage me to put in the extra little effort, but that's not how it came across. It reminds me today of the scene at the opening of the original "Karate Kid II" where Johnny's second place trophy is destroyed by Sensei Kreese. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27qp189oiFo
I'm trying to think of the title of a movie. Can't come up with it for some reason. It's about winning and losing, with a patriarch who only allows 1st place trophies to be put into the family's trophy case. The son gets hurt or dies trying to win something and what he does win ends up being put into the trophy case by his sister or mother. When the father goes to remove it, the mother says she will divorce him if he does. If you know what movie is rattling around in my brain, please advise.
* * *
Ty Michael Carter received the Medal of Honor in a ceremony at the White House on Monday. From that moment further, he and the only other living recipient of this award still on active duty are entitled to a singular distinction. Every single other person in the military will almost certainly salute them first if they encounter SSgt Carter or Sergeant First Class Leroy Petry while they and these two extraordinary men are in uniform.
Normally enlisted men don't salute one another. Officers must be saluted by all enlisted men, and by officers they outrank. In theory the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff would be the one officer who would not salute any other military member first. Except for SSgt Carter or SFC Petry. It isn't required by law or regulation, but it is the tradition.
They will be special for the remainder of their military careers as well as for the rest of their lives. They begin receiving a special pension that was $1,000 per month and had risen to $1,237 when indexed for inflation, as of 2011. If they serve on active duty until reaching retirement, their retirement pay is boosted by 10%, up to the legal limit of 75% of base pay at retirement. Both of these men will receive a supplemental uniform allowance to help them deal with the numerous social engagements that Medal of Honor recipients are invited to. Their children are eligible to be admitted to a military service academy if they meet the other admission requirements, without regard to the number of nominations available. They get special entitlements to travel on military aircraft. They are invited to all future presidential inaugurations and presidential inaugural balls.
It's a lot. Then again, there aren't a lot of people receiving these special benefits. 78 current living recipients. Four of them are in their 90s. They are heroes, one and all. They deserve everything they get and more. Most of the recipients of the Medal of Honor receive that recognition posthumously.
* * *
Random Ponderings:
Who cares if Edward Snowden wound up in Moscow by accident? The point is, he's now being given asylum in Russia.
Poor people are being forced to turn to pawnshops for banking services as consolidation and branch closures eliminate banking in the poorest sections of our cities. Sad.
Did Bobby Riggs throw the "Battle of the Sexes" match 40 years ago? Someone says he did it to pay debts owed to the Mafia. Do you believe it? (I don't)
Then again I also don't believe Serena Williams when she says she'd lose 6-0, 6-0 to Andy Murray if they ever played. She would lose, but it wouldn't be as bad a beating as she's claiming it would be.
How funny is it that both Hilary Swank and Helen Mirren had burgers right after winning Oscar gold? Swank at Astro Burger and Mirren some In-and-Out served up at an after-party.
When Keith Olberman returns to ESPN he says he won't miss politics? Will politics miss him?? (no)
Not only can Brooke Shields make a career out of modeling and acting, she can tie a knot in a cherry stem with her tongue, and she can open beer bottles with one hand using her forearm to hold the cap.
* * *
This Date In History:
On this date in 1498, Michelangelo is commissioned to carve the "Pieta".
On this date in 1748, the first Lutheran denomination in North America is established in Pennsylvania.
On this date in 1789, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen is approved in France.
On this date in 1821, the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina is officially founded.
On this date in 1920, the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution takes effect, giving women the right to vote (and yet men who apparently don't think much of women continue to get elected).
On this date in 1944, Charles de Gaulle enters Paris.
On this date in 1978, John Paul I is elected Pope.
Famous Folk Born On This Date:
Robert Walpole
Joseph-Michel Montgolfier
Peggy Guggenheim
Albert Sabin
Ben Bradlee
Tom Heinsohn
Geraldine Ferraro (I was unaware she had died in 2011, RIP)
Don La Fointaine
Barbet Schroeder
Tom Ridge
Leon Redbone
Wanda De Jesus
Branford Marsalis
Shirley Manson
Elaine Irwin Mellencamp
Melissa McCarthy
Macauly Caulkin
Chris Pine
Movie quotes today come from "Bridesmaids" in honor of the extremely talented Melissa McCarthy's birthday:
Gil: Before you make those kinds of demands you should put a note on your door that says, "Do not come into my room and read my diary and wear my clothes."
#2
Ted: This is so awkward. I really want you to leave, but I don't know how to say it without sounding like a dick.
#3
Helen's Stepson: I've seen better tennis playing in a tampon commercial.
Maybe it was because he missed almost all of my sporting competitions once he left my mother. But the time that sticks out in my mind was in the summer of 1985. I'd just come back from a year in South Korea, and during that time I wasn't able to do much bowling. Once I was home I bought new equipment and began practicing in earnest. A few weeks later I was back in form. There was a tournament coming up and I asked him to "sponsor" me. In return for his putting up the $35 entry fee, I'd give him 40% of anything I won.
I bowled well and made it from qualifying to the semi-finals. I did even better during the semis and would up seeded second in the "step-ladder" finals. I just had to win two matches and I'd win the tournament. Somewhere in my storage locker there is probably a videotape of the match that's hard to watch because the quality is poor. And because while I won the first match, I lost the championship match by a wide margin. Not because my opponent was more talented, this was a tournament where they used "handicaps" to equalize the talent level. And because he was incredibly lucky. His first shot missed the headpin but a pin bounced out of the pit and knocked down the three pins that had been left standing. Twice he avoided splits. I on the other hand made good shots and got little for the effort.
I guess my rambling point is I did my best. I did everything I could to win. I left it all on the playing field (such as it was). All I heard when I handed him his $200 share of the $500 prize was that if I had done better, he'd be getting twice as much and I should work harder.
Maybe his intent was to encourage me to put in the extra little effort, but that's not how it came across. It reminds me today of the scene at the opening of the original "Karate Kid II" where Johnny's second place trophy is destroyed by Sensei Kreese. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27qp189oiFo
I'm trying to think of the title of a movie. Can't come up with it for some reason. It's about winning and losing, with a patriarch who only allows 1st place trophies to be put into the family's trophy case. The son gets hurt or dies trying to win something and what he does win ends up being put into the trophy case by his sister or mother. When the father goes to remove it, the mother says she will divorce him if he does. If you know what movie is rattling around in my brain, please advise.
* * *
Ty Michael Carter received the Medal of Honor in a ceremony at the White House on Monday. From that moment further, he and the only other living recipient of this award still on active duty are entitled to a singular distinction. Every single other person in the military will almost certainly salute them first if they encounter SSgt Carter or Sergeant First Class Leroy Petry while they and these two extraordinary men are in uniform.
Normally enlisted men don't salute one another. Officers must be saluted by all enlisted men, and by officers they outrank. In theory the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff would be the one officer who would not salute any other military member first. Except for SSgt Carter or SFC Petry. It isn't required by law or regulation, but it is the tradition.
They will be special for the remainder of their military careers as well as for the rest of their lives. They begin receiving a special pension that was $1,000 per month and had risen to $1,237 when indexed for inflation, as of 2011. If they serve on active duty until reaching retirement, their retirement pay is boosted by 10%, up to the legal limit of 75% of base pay at retirement. Both of these men will receive a supplemental uniform allowance to help them deal with the numerous social engagements that Medal of Honor recipients are invited to. Their children are eligible to be admitted to a military service academy if they meet the other admission requirements, without regard to the number of nominations available. They get special entitlements to travel on military aircraft. They are invited to all future presidential inaugurations and presidential inaugural balls.
It's a lot. Then again, there aren't a lot of people receiving these special benefits. 78 current living recipients. Four of them are in their 90s. They are heroes, one and all. They deserve everything they get and more. Most of the recipients of the Medal of Honor receive that recognition posthumously.
* * *
Random Ponderings:
Who cares if Edward Snowden wound up in Moscow by accident? The point is, he's now being given asylum in Russia.
Poor people are being forced to turn to pawnshops for banking services as consolidation and branch closures eliminate banking in the poorest sections of our cities. Sad.
Did Bobby Riggs throw the "Battle of the Sexes" match 40 years ago? Someone says he did it to pay debts owed to the Mafia. Do you believe it? (I don't)
Then again I also don't believe Serena Williams when she says she'd lose 6-0, 6-0 to Andy Murray if they ever played. She would lose, but it wouldn't be as bad a beating as she's claiming it would be.
How funny is it that both Hilary Swank and Helen Mirren had burgers right after winning Oscar gold? Swank at Astro Burger and Mirren some In-and-Out served up at an after-party.
When Keith Olberman returns to ESPN he says he won't miss politics? Will politics miss him?? (no)
Not only can Brooke Shields make a career out of modeling and acting, she can tie a knot in a cherry stem with her tongue, and she can open beer bottles with one hand using her forearm to hold the cap.
* * *
This Date In History:
On this date in 1498, Michelangelo is commissioned to carve the "Pieta".
On this date in 1748, the first Lutheran denomination in North America is established in Pennsylvania.
On this date in 1789, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen is approved in France.
On this date in 1821, the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina is officially founded.
On this date in 1920, the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution takes effect, giving women the right to vote (and yet men who apparently don't think much of women continue to get elected).
On this date in 1944, Charles de Gaulle enters Paris.
On this date in 1978, John Paul I is elected Pope.
Famous Folk Born On This Date:
Robert Walpole
Joseph-Michel Montgolfier
Peggy Guggenheim
Albert Sabin
Ben Bradlee
Tom Heinsohn
Geraldine Ferraro (I was unaware she had died in 2011, RIP)
Don La Fointaine
Barbet Schroeder
Tom Ridge
Leon Redbone
Wanda De Jesus
Branford Marsalis
Shirley Manson
Elaine Irwin Mellencamp
Melissa McCarthy
Macauly Caulkin
Chris Pine
Movie quotes today come from "Bridesmaids" in honor of the extremely talented Melissa McCarthy's birthday:
Gil: Before you make those kinds of demands you should put a note on your door that says, "Do not come into my room and read my diary and wear my clothes."
#2
Ted: This is so awkward. I really want you to leave, but I don't know how to say it without sounding like a dick.
#3
Helen's Stepson: I've seen better tennis playing in a tampon commercial.
posted by me at 7:00 PM
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