the dreaming tree

i’ve been cleaning my apartment. and i’m talking to whole works (at least for a guy): scrubbing, mopping, dusting, scrubbing more, vacuuming…i’ve also done four loads of laundry tonight, including sheets, towels and bath mats. yes, it’s a lot of work, but i’m finding it oddly satisfying and not that annoying. i don’t know what that means, or why i’m writing it on the internet, but i just thought, you know, do that.

in other news, the texas rangers (my team) got no-hit tonight by mark buehrle of the chicago white sox. i love baseball, even when my team is on the wrong side of a no-hitter. i surely miss playing it. my former school, ouachita baptist, is currently ranked #2 in division ii baseball, with a record of 44-4, a feat which is intensely incredible. while i was there we averaged about 12-15 wins a season. in just two years, a new coach has completely and utterly turned the program around. amazing. and i really wish i were there to enjoy it. of course, the arkansas razorbacks aren’t too shabby, either, but i never played baseball for them like i did for ouachita. by the way, the hogs are ranked in the top 10 in all the major polls, so that’s awesome. i could go on and on, because baseball makes me swoon.

this weekend i’m going to baton rouge for mardi gras. ok…the real reason is for a frisbee tournament, but it will also be mardi gras weekend, so it should be a lot of fun. i’m kinda anxious about playing because we’ve only had one real practice this entire semester due to rain and snow, but i’m sure it’ll be ok. i’m really ready for some real competition, though…and winning.

well dangit…

this is the most disappointed i’ve been with an arkansas loss since the 2004 texas game. i think we’ll be good against florida, though. and now i kinda want usc to win so we won’t look bad…but that really stings to type that…i think i’ll be happy with notre dame winning, but i really don’t want michigan to go to the national championship game cause that would just be stupid. ahh…

in other news, i’ve been helping my parents move to the new house over break. it’s a little sad…actually it’s a lot sad to be leaving the house they’ve lived in since i was 4, but i guess i’ll get over it. the new house does have a basketball goal in in the backyard, so that’s pretty awesome. it’ll give me plenty of chances to practice so i can be sure to beat my sister’s finacé, who played basketball in college. he’s also as tall as me, so i basically have no advantage…just my desire.

this past weekend i went to st. louis for an ultimate frisbee tournament (glory days). as far as the tourney went, well, it was pretty miserable. we lost all 5 of the games we played, and none of them were even close. our best one we went up 3-0, only to lose 13-4. also in the last game i nearly broke my ankle…in fact, i might still get it checked out, cause it’s swelling up quite nicely and turning all kinds of nice colors. anyway, it wasn’t a pleasant weekend for ultimate, but it was my first collegiate tournament and i learned some things playing against other teams. i just hope our next experience will be a little nicer. however, the weekend wasn’t all a wash. saturday night joan was gracious enough to drive to st. louis from peoria, il so we could hang out for a couple of hours saturday night. it was really great to see her again after 2 years, and we had a good time eating and roaming around a couple of record stores. here’s a picture of us that i stole from her:

and on monday night was the university orchestra’s concert, where we played beethoven’s fifth (along with “royal hunt and storm” by berlioz and the hummel trumpet concerto). i’ve never been so emotional during a single piece as i was during the beethoven. i seriously almost lost it a couple of times throughout, and especially at the beginning of the fourth mvt. and then the audience gave us the most enthusiastic response any ensemble i’ve been in has received…our conductor was called back four times. it was really an amazing experience.

i’m kind of annoyed by the fact that i don’t care as much about baseball as i used to. i don’t really understand why, either. oh well. i also didn’t make the a team in ultimate, which means i’m on the b team for the fall (sorta like varsity/junior varsity). that made me a little unhappy, especially since i missed the official tryout practice because of a father maple show. i mean, i’m not sure if that was the only reason, but surely it played a part. and i wouldn’t be so upset about it if there weren’t guys who made the a team that i’m better than. or at least i believe i am. anyway, the good news is that i can still be on a team for the spring, which is when the real season is…i just have to be committed to working hard and showing that i can dominate. cause i can. and i will.

well, the hogs got the win, but it wasn’t all pretty. i mean, we did pitch a shutout, but still, there are many things that still need some work before we start sec play next week against vandy. however, darren mcfadden showed once again how much of a beast he is, running for 184 yds. on 20 carries–that’s 9.2 per. and he had a 50+ yard run called back on a (bogus) holding call. and for those that don’t know, mcfadden severely dislocated his left big toe a month ago, so the fact that he’s even playing is remarkable. also, mitch mustain looked…ok. he did some good things, and i think he’ll be really good for us eventually. anyway, it’s exciting to have a win. go hogs!

i’ve been trying not to cry for the last 5 hours at work. and for most of you, this will a) mean nothing, and b) seem really strange. paul eells, who has been the voice of the razorbacks for the past 28 years, died last night in a car wreck. the sports talk radio station here in town spent all morning devoted to talking about paul, who had a reputation as one of the nicest men of all time. many many people called in to tell stories of how he treated them with dignity and respect and kindness in their everyday meetings with him, with no cameras or publicity around. governor mike huckabee said, “The reason that Paul Eells was so beloved in this state was not only for his unmatched professional skills … but for his authentic optimism, kindness, and thoughtfulness.” i mean, the guy really was an arkansas icon. and i usually tear up a little bit when i hear paul’s signature “touchdown arkansas,” but this morning as they’ve been playing back some of his greatest calls, i’ve just wanted to weep, and have had a few tears drop. and then finally i got what i had been hoping for, and that was a testimony from someone who attended church with paul, who spoke of God’s role in paul’s life being quite evident, and not that he was just a nice guy. he truly reflected Christ everyday, and that was really what caused the most emotion to spring forth from me, even now as i’m typing this. i could type for quite awhile longer about paul eells’ affect on me and thousands of others in the state, even though many of us never met him. maybe it is ludicrous to have such an attachment to a radio/tv sports broadcaster, but for razorbacks fans, he has literally been what you think of when you think of razorback football for nearly 30 years. which means for me it’s the only voice i’ve ever heard calling razorback games, so i have no idea what i’m going to do when i hear someone else’s voice doing it. probably cry some more. and i can’t wait to be in the stadium for the first game when they show a tribute on the screen and 70.000+ rabid fans stand and salute the man whose voice captured razorback excitement.

yesterday was the 2006 ummer leagu memorial summer league tournament (ultimate). we started out as the 6th seed out of six teams and ended up making it to the championship game, where we lost, ironically, to the only team we beat all season; we had actually beaten them twice, their only losses and our only wins during the regular season. we kept up with them for the first half, but then we just couldn’t keep up our level of play as we all started cramping up and feeling the effects of the brutal brutal heat, so that was a little disappointing, knowing we could have beaten them if we weren’t so wiped out. oh well, that’s part of the game.

the most interesting thing, though, was that a guy actually wanted to fight me. i was basically dominating them (hey, it’s true), and i had spiked the frisbee after catching a touchdown, which is considered bad sportsmanship by a lot of ultimate players. me, i’m just into the game and excited, so…whatever. on the second score i caught on this guy, i basically leaped up behind him and caught the disc, with a little incidental contact, which he didn’t think too highly of. pretty much all i said was, i don’t think so, and turned around. next thing i know he’s being held back by his captain…i just kinda looked at him like, are you kidding me? and walked away. so that was weird. at least i didn’t get head-butted. i guess he ended up with the last word since they won. plus it was kind of annoying because for whatever reason the sideline didn’t like me and decided they’d heckle me, which doesn’t really bother me that much during the game, but i’d certainly prefer to be cheered than jeered. but still, it was a fun day of about 5 hours worth of playing ultimate in the hot hot heat.

they just did a story on the local news about the ouachita baseball team, who at 30 wins has won more games this year then in the past 7 combined, and set a school record for wins in a season (and decade?). i was there for a few of those down years, and man it sucked. they have a new coach now (this is his second season) and he seems like a pretty good coach, especially after watching the brief interview on tv (and oh, the record thing, too). i’m glad they’re doing so well. in fact, with a sweep of delta state this weekend, they could win a division title. that’s a little bit of a stretch (delta is consistently one of the top 15 or so div. ii programs in the nation), but at least obu is already in the playoffs. so, good job guys…i wish i could be a part of it.

i messed up my left hand playing ultimate tuesday night. i dove to try to d a pass (which i missed), and then landed somehow fingers first. i heard a loud pop and let loose a yelp. then i got queasy and headed to the sideline, not to play again that night. i’ve been nursing it ever since. the top of my hand, right behind the knuckles, is swollen, but none of my actual fingers are. however, anytime i move either of the two inside fingers, they kinda pop…so i think perhaps i dislocated one or both fingers. they both seem to be back where they belong, except online slightly off, and hence the popping. i can make a fist, but not very tightly, and i can’t really grip or turn things. i’m also typing all of this with one hand, which i’m actually able to do fairly quickly, though i’ve made some mistakes. perhaps i have a stress fracture somewhere in the metacarpals (i feel so doctorly giving such a diagnosis, though i truly have barely a slight idea of what happened, and i probably said that all wrong, anyway.) at least my fingers aren’t broken. one of the guys from ultimate showed me how his pinky could bend at a right angle perpendicular to the knuckle, cause it’d been broken so many times. i hope my hand heals fast, cause i need to play guitar for ruf wednesday night. and besides, i like being able to play at all (hey michael, i started a new song).

i’m listening to the brahms violin concerto, which is making me happy…cause it’s a really great recording. it’s hilary hahn, and she’s ridiculously, fabulously stupid good (and young…25! so she’s my age…and cute…hmm. but i’m not even close to as good as she is, and she’s only been playing a year longer than i have. that’s what i get for not practicing. now i’ll have to try to make it in a rock band. maybe that’ll impress her…). by the way, she won a grammy for this album. her website: www.hilaryhahn.com

the stravinsky violin concerto is on the same disc. it’s a really cool piece, and relatively short at 21 minutes (just the first movement of the brahms is 23 minutes). one interesting thing about it is that each movement begins with the same chord, scored in the same way, and it appears throughout the 4 mvt. piece. of course, each movement takes its own course and character. oh, and one other morsel of information: the piece has been choreographed (by george balanchine, if that means anything to you) and performed as a ballet numerous times. anyway, it’s really a great piece and example of stravinsky’s neo-classicism.

and i just finished watching martin scorsese’s recent film about bob dylan…which was amazing. watch it.

what a ludicrously long post…typed out with only one hand.

(listening to the stravinsky now)

:sigh:

arkansas football…how long will you torment me? tonight’s game really disappointed me. for the first half we were playing at least as well as them, probably even better, and led 10-6 at the half. but then, auburn came out in the second half and completely dominated us. arkansas lost 34-17. the thing is, i really don’t think houston nutt is all to blame. robert johnson, our quarterback, doesn’t leave him with much option in play-calling because he is just not a good quarterback. he throws behind receivers, at their feet, over their heads…when they were open, which means there were opportunities, and the players didn’t execute. some of that is coaches, but i hate the people that call into the radio shows and just crucify the coaches and don’t really get to the matter that the players are not executing what the coaches ask of them. so…anyway, while i’m really disappointed, i will continue to support the hogs and hold out hope for a better team one day.

also, people driving home from the game are asses.

last night father maple played a battle of the bands in jonesboro, at the powerhouse. and, well…it didn’t turn out like we had hoped. i’m not sure what exactly the judges didn’t like about us. we had technical problems during the first song as michael’s amp refused to emit any sound, but the rest of the set went pretty well. the frustrating thing is that i honestly thought we were among the top three bands that played that night. oh well. we’ll get over it and press on towards our goal of…being really awesome and loved by everyone.

last night arkansas played defending national champion usc…and got manhandled. 70-17. i might need counseling after that disaster. but here’s where i differ from a lot of arkansas fans…i still like houston nutt and hope he stays. and besides, it’s only three games into the season. with the right adjustments, i believe we can be back in a bowl game come december. go hogs!

i’m the new song leader at ruf (reformed university fellowship). i’m liking doing that a lot. i guess that’s all i have to say about that.

i’m playing intramural flag football for the first time in several years, so i’m excited about that. i play for F. i think we’ll have a pretty decent team, especially for not being super-serious about it and all. i’m playing wide receiver, which makes me happy, and free safety, which also makes me happy. tonight i jammed my pinky finger on my left hand pretty bad. it happens to be the finger that i broke a few years ago playing football on new year’s day (the only time i have ever broken a bone). it hurts, but i think i’ll be ok. that’s all i’ve got tonight. i’m boring myself.

yesterday was the fayetteville ultimate summer league tournament. the first game went pretty well for us overall, and we won 11-8, if i remember right. however the next game did not go quite so well. at halftime, we were down 7-0, and then 9-0 before we finally scored. we ended up losing the game 13-5, so i guess we had a little dignity in the second half. i scored once in that one and threw one score. i also was told i played really well (by both teams), even though i didn’t really feel that way, mostly because of the terrible loss we suffered. however, i was awarded the spirit award on my team (which is given by the opposing team) for the game, so that was kinda nice. (i forgot to mention, but i also won it last tuesday after losing my contact in the game.) after the loss, we stayed around to watch the championship game, which was won by the team that beat us, by a final score of 13-9. and it was quite a good game, too. all-in-all i had a fun day, and even got a little bit of sunburn. i also got asked to play with the fayetteville traveling team in a few weeks at a labor day tournament, so that made me feel kinda awesome. and to top off this entry, you should all be happy to know that i once again have a walrus moustache.

tuesday is ultimate frisbee summer league day. (by the way, if you don’t know what ultimate is, check this link: what is ultimate?) ok, so the actual story won’t take long to tell, so sorry for the big build-up. early in the game i’m thrown a pass in the endzone, and it was one that floated for awhile. i had position on the guy guarding me, and so when he jumped for the disc, he had to reach around me to get near it. when he did this, one of his fingers found my eyeball and raked across it, effectively popping my contact lens out of my eye. oh, and then i caught the frisbee and scored (which means i skied him, took him to school, etc.). the bad news is that we’re on grass, which means there’s virtually no hope of retaining my lens. besides having to play the rest of the night with good vision in only one eye (and my un-corrected vision is terrible), you may be wondering why this is a concern. well, you see, i have gas permeable lenses, which are permanent, not disposable, and cost a lot more money to replace. i’m looking at about $40 for just the one. and in the meantime i have to wear my glasses…which i absolutely hate. i can never get comfortable when i’m wearing glasses (not even sunglasses), and i think these that i have are an old prescription, so my vision isn’t as sharp as it was yesterday and that’s driving me insane. so that’s the “story.” sorry i don’t have anything deep or significant to add to the end. maybe later tonight i will think of some more brilliant things to say.