After the falls

One month ago, I decided against driving an hour plus to a course out of state and played the nearest one to my apartment. After my final drive on the third time through the nine, I decided to walk the shorter sidehill path around a pond and on a cement part, the shoe lost traction and I fell on my right leg that buckled under me. After 30 nervous seconds collecting myself, was happy leg supported weight and I went home.

I tried to work the day after and ended up taking the Tuesday off where my doctor confirmed no broken bones, told me I was lucky that was the case, and wrote a note allowing me to take the rest of the week off work which as usual, was thrown out. I realized there was no way I could play the one round event the following weekend.

A couple weeks later, the trauma from the fall was gone but everything still did not feel what has become the "normal". I realized that with the fall the Tuesday before Thanksgiving where two days later I had one of the best rounds of my life with a bruise covering 1/3 of my left foot, and another one at work in December, there is a pattern. 

Though I could still throw a golf disc mostly well continuing the success from late 2023, the legs were really unhappy during and especially after. Actually had a coworker show concern to my supervisor about me after watching me get out of the car on the way back from my last one round event. My doctor more directly last month told me what I should do and not do.

Her biggest concern was the scale. I am 12 pounds heavier than I was in November and am at my highest point which is way above what I consider the heaviest I should play tournament disc golf. Between the stress from work and the injuries and knowing I am still playing real well, not eating responsibly made sense but no one is forcing me to do what I did.

The body is also responding to my eating. Problems in late 2023 can be attributed to Waffle House, company luncheons, and unexpected mushrooms but those in 2024 are not. On the average, once per week have ended up with bloating, cramps, continuous gas, and/or multiple bathroom trips after paying $10-20 for ready made food at various places. One of those occasions I was very fortunate I was twenty feet from a grocery store bathroom when it kicked in.

Since not eating at those places has led to weight loss, there is a second reason to avoid those places and this will be tested to, in, and from Minnesota next week which is why I don't want to be counted on to volunteer for anything in case the body says "no" up there and there is a need to stay in the hotel room.

Last Sunday, I did not play a desired two round event and there are multiple ones with current or upcoming registration that I can't do at this time since I am not confident that I can not only finish the event but be able to function the following day.

Two of the following three Sundays have a one round event which I feel comfortable playing since I was ok following a club round a few weeks ago but won't register for a two or more round event until my legs and mostly weight recovers from the previous 3-4 months of neglect.

I am registered for a two round event in early April which is the weekend before I would register for the world's and it would be unfair for me and potential other MA55+ players at the world's to register unless my situation significantly improves by then.

The Swift and the Furious

Other than seeing people throw golf discs, the largest topic of videos I've seen on Facebook involve one specific musician be it past interviews, interactions with fans, reactions from fans, concert footage, or at the NFL Championship Game playing a game involving herself by chugging a beer upon seeing herself on the video board.

The grade school version of me who had a unique combination of being born on the 13th and having a bad luck cartoon character with all eight letters of the last name almost in the same order really would have appreciated someone that famous flaunting 13 as their lucky number and find the non concert clips enjoyable knowing her opinion of the man who attempted to overthrow the government is the same as mine. 

The music and on stage are something different. Though I understand the point of view of the songs, there is very little for me to relate and the on stage performances remind me of the ones in the late 20th century featuring people who in my mind replaced the music I enjoyed.

Many of the replies remind me of how I used to feel about people like Madonna and Janet Jackson with how ignorant and hateful they are while criticizing everything they did off stage as well as on.

Today, I am well aware that her music is not for me and I am ok with it and if people want to spend a couple thousand dollars to watch her on stage, that is their choice and they will likely enjoy it. Even the person who has the most tracks on my Spotify play list has stated he is his own target audience.

Personally, I find money others spent on the Eras Tour more useful to charter a bus and get my daughter to co drive it to watch people whose name are on my contact list perform music and afterwards drink alcohol and if things go exceptionally well... nah.

Non championship sports part 1 continued.

In part due to questionable coaching decisions, the Detroit Lions recently lost an opportunity to make their first Super Bowl and continued their streak of being the only one of 23 teams that have played all the past 58 seasons to not make it to the game.

How I determined the mathematical odds of that happening: I figured out the probability of the Lions not winning the NFL Championship each season from 1966 to 1969 and of not winning the NFC Championship each season from 1970 to 2023 and multiplied them.

Due to addition of more teams and division realignments, the odds of the Lions from 1970 through 1994 (except for 1982) were not reflective the number of NFC teams since the NFC Central had a different number of teams than the NFC West and or NFC East.

After crunching the numbers, the odds of Detroit failing to make the Super Bowl for 58 consecutive years is 57.6-1.

2023 by the numbers

Total courses played: 53

States played: 5

New courses played: 12

Tournaments completed: 22

Desired tournaments not played: 14

Tournaments not finished: 1

League rounds played: 4

Unrated club rounds played: 3

Total rated rounds played: 42

Event wins: 2

Lifetime IOS events played without a win: 35

IOS events played in 2023: 4

Other players to play 4 or more of the seven 2023 IOS events required to win series title in MA50: 0

Total players in MA50 and MA55 at Illinois State Championship: 23

Number of those who took more shots than me in round one: 22

Number of shots better than me a player in FA1 was for that round: 7

Among the 53 B tier or higher lifetime events played previously or since did I have a solo lead at the end of a round: 0

Years before that I was tied for first after round one of a B tier: 6

People who were listed on the lead card in round two above me: 1

Other rated events where pairings are redone I have seen where the first place player does not get the honor to tee off first on the lead card: 0

Dollars I will pay to that TD in the future unless I get a satisfactory explanation or apology: 0

Of top five rated rounds from 2023, number that occurred among last five played: 4

Number of those among 11 highest lifetime rated rounds played: 3

High temp in F° for those days: 54, 47, 41

Of my eleven highest lifetime rated rounds, at 50 Acre: 4

At Fairfield White: 3

At Dellwood: 2

At Lemon Lake: 1

At Red Fox: 1

Of those 11 rounds at league/flex start/MP50/major/non major MA50: 3/1/1/1/5

People who claim you can't get a high rated round at 50 Acre: dozens

Different holes birdied in 2023: 304

Of those, on a hole I had never done before 2023: 137

Lifetime unique birdies: 725

Metal hits: 8

Dollars won on only ace of the year: 260

Age Steve Goodie became on the day I got the ace: 58

Age Weird Al became on the day I got previous ace: 62

Times in 2023 seeing Steve Goodie do his act with "weird Al and Daniel Radcliffe" (who played Weird Al in his "bio pic"): 2

Different discs used to get a birdie: 55

Different companies from those discs: 9

Discs lost in water: 5

Discs lost in trees: 4

Discs lost in leaves: 1

Times the lost disc was a DX Leopardo: 5

Lost discs found and returned to me: 1

Shots in 2023 I considered better than the ace: 2

Number of times since 2017 a shot on #13 at 50 Acre was considered shot of the year: 3

Times I had more "deuces" at the course than 2s on the scorecard in a tournament: 2

"Deuces" on course playing by myself: 2

Articles of clothing thrown in garbage due to them: 3

FuMPFeST by the numbers

Total music artists there: 16

Artists with full main stage show: 10

Artists with short set in FuMP Showcase: 4

Artists who were there to work the convention rather than perform: 2

Artists who had to cancel due to COVID: 2

Artists I saw perform for the first time there: 2

Trading cards with a FuMP artist: 35

Cards in goodie bag along with bonus 2021 CD, sticker, ribbon, and a piece of tile: 8

People who asked why there was TILE in the bag: 2

Artists there who had merch at Table 27: 12

People looking for new Worm Quartet album Carpe Tedium which will be available soon: 3

People who made at least three purchases at Table 27 after hearing about raffle or wanting to get a CD after seeing a performance: 4

Artists who made purchase at table 27: 10

People who asked me if I needed assistance on Thursday evening since I was struggling to walk after playing 63 holes in 24 hours: 4

Times I needed to walk up or down a flight of stairs at hotel: 20

Times right knee was a serious issue with the stairs: 0

Things at hotel closed for the convention: 3

Animals who were snuggled by Bonnie Gordon: 4

Items gifted to table 27 workers by artists: 3

Worm Quartet parodies performed during Dumb Parody Ideas: 3

Total words in my dumb parody idea that qualified for round two: 10

Seconds after not making the final two I realized upon seeing Bonnie I should have shouted "SQUIRREL!" as she was holding one: 5

Logan Awards finalist songs performed by artist there: 3

Logan Awards finalist songs covered by other artist there: 5

Logan Awards parody finalist songs which I am not familiar with the original: 3

Logan Awards video finalists I have seen before event: 1

Logan Awards winners I have seen or heard before event: 2

Years ago my dumb parody idea was performed about the same topic the Logan Awards video winner was: 5

Seconds in hotel room bathroom it took on Saturday evening to get door handle back in and turn handle so I could get out: 45

Different people I ate breakfast with: 8

People I ate other meals with: 0

Food trucks that were in parking lot: 4

Total shirts obtained: 3

Total CDs obtained: 6

Purchases made for other people: 2

Drawings made of artists made by one fan there: 4

People who signed the golden spatula given to the dumb parody idea winner: 12

People doing interviews for FuMP documentary: 4

People I recommended them interview for this: 3

People I saw react with surprise hearing Marscon 2024 GOH: 5

People who had same reaction after telling them I could rent a bus to have my daughter drive many to Marscon: 6

People playing Boob tree Saturday night: 16

Convention awards handed out after last music performance: 20

Minutes after music ended I was able to head home: 120

Hours between meals on Sunday forcing me to stop and eat before getting on the road: 9

Hours before my workday was starting I finally made it home: 5

Hours worked on Monday np when I realized it was too dangerous for me to continue: 5

Days after con ended I had enough mental energy to write this: 4

By default

While attempting to pay my electric bill with my replacement debit card which the site kept rejecting since it had the same number as the old one but with a different expiration date and code...

I got a text congratulating me on winning the disc golf 2023 Illinois Open Series Season championship in the MA50 division.

A look at the standings confirmed I won since I was the only player who played four of the seven events in MA50. However, this win is tainted.

Two of those four events I barely finished due to my right knee which has been an issue since May before it got worse in late July. 

Had to miss the final event due to the knee and someone who had played three events 39 shots better than me over eight tournament rounds (7 in my group) switched from MA50 to MP50 in that final eveent as no one else registered. Had I been able to play, he wouldn't have switched and would have qualified.

I also know in the one IOS event I played that he didn't, he missed due to "life" and the only time I played a round better than he did among the ten we both were at was at the state championship when I played one of the best rounds of my life the week before the knee went real bad which is similar to what happened with me the week before my left leg gave out in my last ever bowling league against the best in Chicago in the summer of 1994.

I believe there is a season trophy involved which if I get will rightfully give it to him the next time I see him.

Pre FuMPFeST by the numbers

Dollars withdrawn from ATM on Tuesday: 100 

Hours worked on Wednesday before hitting road: 6.5

Miles from work to Con on the Cob which hosts FuMPFeST: 363

Toll charges to drive directly from work to COTC: $31.76

Miles driven on road before discovering debit card no longer works: 90

Miles driven off Indiana Toll Road into Michigan to confirm card was deactivated at ATM to be replaced by one still at my house and to get extra cash: 5

Average cents gas is cheaper in Ohio (not on tollway) compared to where I live: 40

In dollars, how much more a 4pc Popeye's combo meal costs at Ohio Turnpike rest stop than at the one where I live: 3 (At least no sales tax was charged)

Times needing UDisc to find either basket or next tee on nine in West Union, OH: 4

Birdies on course: 6

Birdies on putts that were 50/50 throws that stayed in: 3

Birdie putts missed on a double-doink: 1

Time starting at Perrysville, OH course: 632PM

Sunset in city that day: 715PM

Time to finish round in minutes: 48

Deuces in round: 5

Holes I got a three which were listed as a par four that I changed on app to reflect how they play: 2

People who arrived at Waffle House as I was by car changing out of a very sweaty shirt: 5

Hours two people there had been working as the second shift called off: 15

Extra cash to leave as deposit for hotel room: 60

Phone calls, texts and FB messages trying to figure out how to get and or use replacement debit card: 20

Pairs of socks in bag that originally held six and were the only ones I packed for a four night trip: 3

Miles driven along US 20 Thursday morning to get to next course in Fremont: 25

Signage supporting man who has been indicted almost 100 times: 3

Signage opposing vote designed to protect female reproductive rights: 6

Holes at Walsh Park where my drive left me between 40 and 100 feet: 12

Times I couldn't easily figure out where to go even with UDisc App: 3

Birdies: 1

Discs lost trying to throw a shot I shouldn't: 1

Discs found and posted to OH lost discs group: 1

Miles driven past COTC hotel to get to course in Norton: 15

Holes from short tee (to be used by MA50 in tournament) where on a shot that avoided trees, can get within 30 feet: 18

Different quotes from a book based on a non plausible concept that are listed on tee signs: 36

Deuces on course: 6

Long birdie attempts smited by edge of cage: 3

Deuces "on course" no doubt related to previous nights Waffle House dinner: 1

Items thrown in garbage due to that incident: 2

Dollars left at course entrance found disc drop off box along with apology note: 5

Minutes arriving at hotel to getting checked in due to resolving issue with card: 30

Minutes in hotel room to find bathroom light which was not found until after I took a shower using light from my phone: 15

People I did not know who offered help after watching me struggle walking after playing 63 holes in less than 24 hours and sitting down too long: 4

Times someone forgot it was Thursday since cons generally start on a Friday: 10

People who had filled out their Luke Ski Top 50 poll previously while I was filling out the poll while listening to him talk about his top 50 poll: 13

Minutes it took paramedics to arrive after person attempted to use "heelys" and ended up with an ankle bent 90 degrees in the wrong direction: 25

Times I had to remind myself to ask other people how they are and/or someone important to them are doing because I generally forget to do that and then wonder after how they are: 10

FuMPFeST swag bags helped to assemble: 55

Minutes listening to three performers discuss what songs they could and could not perform during their concert due to the SAG strike: 15

Time returning back to room: 1:15 EDT