Take the Maps and Run

Another long weekend...It's a gorgeous day out. Nice and dry, temps approaching 70. Got out for a strong 15-miler this morning. I felt good, but it helps when there isn't 90% humidity. We're chilling out right now before heading to a 40th birthday party for a friend of Deb's. No big plans for the weekend, which is fine by me.

I skated in Lynn on Wednesday night and had the advantage of being the only one who skated all summer. We didn't have many subs, so some of the other guys were really sucking wind. My team won two of three and I popped a couple of goals in, so it was a good night all around.

On Thursday, I did some speedwork at the middle school track near my office. It was a hot day, approaching 80, even though there was a steady breeze. The Marblehead High soccer team was practicing on the field inside the track oval while I was running. I was thinking about my high school days and doing double sessions in August and all that fun stuff. Although a lot of that is really fuzzy in my memory at this point. I just remember running a lot and hating every second of it. Our coach was big on us being in shape, which was smart because we weren't that good. We had a small school, so it wasn't like there were tryouts or anything. I had transferred to the school before my junior year and hadn't played soccer in two years because my previous school in Washington State didn't have a soccer team. As it was, I didn't get to play much; guess the coach didn't really trust me in game situations. I played JV my junior year and scored a goal; senior year, I was on the varsity but played sporadically. I played intramurals in college, but a few years after graduation started playing indoor soccer. I ended up playing for about 10 years and also played on an outdoor team for three or four years. Probably the biggest difference between me now and in high school is that I actually have some muscle on my body; I was a 130-pound twerp back then. I stopped playing soccer not long after Hannah was born because of the time commitment and also because it conflicted with the marathon training I had just started doing. Maybe I'll get back to it again someday.

Up the irons:

• Deb and I watched the first two Bourne movies this week (although we saw the first one a couple of years ago) and were way into them. Unlike his buddy Ben, Matt Damon has always impressed me as an actor. And the Bourne films are just ridiculously good, suspenseful thrillers. Deb and I are half considering venturing out to catch the new Bourne film in the theaters this weekend. Maybe.
• Hey, remember on Family Ties when the Keatons suddenly had a baby (lamest ratings stunt ever) and then the next season, he was five years old (second lamest ratings stunt ever, except for maybe evil twins)? Well, that kid, Brian Bonsall, is all grown up now and smacking his girlfriend around. He pleaded guilty to third-degree assault and was placed on probation this week. He's out of the biz now and working construction; after Family Ties, he also played Worf's son on Star Trek: The Next Generation.
• I'm preparing this weekend for my fantasy football draft Monday. I'm actually the defending champ in our league, which is made more impressive by the fact that I'm no football expert. I'm also getting psyched for the upcoming NHL season (hey, somebody has to be), which starts at the end of the month. So I was surprised to see an article in Pitchfork this week about Boyd Devereaux of the Leafs, who has started a noise rock label with a guy who used to be in the Dirtbombs. Pretty cool.
• Speaking of cool, I'm loving this site I came across courtesy of Uni Watch (another awesome blog that geeks out on sports gear): GoalieCards.com. It's basically just a guy posting photos of hockey goalie cards, but it's fascinating, especially for someone like me who used to collect cards religiously. As you were.
• Came across an excellent podcast this week that I'm totally digging: The Scott Ford Show on Little Radio. He's the bassist of the Twilight Singers (featuring the great Greg Dulli of Afghan Whigs fame) and he hosts this three-hour radio show each week and posts it online later. He and a few co-hosts and the occasional special guest like Dulli play great music, jibba-jab about interesting shiznitt (not for the young'uns), and play interesting games like guessing Beatles songs played in reverse and figuring out anagrams of rock band names. Great shite.