WHAT WE LOSE WHEN THERE'S NO LOSING

Since COVID hit, sports of all kinds - professional, kids, adult recreational - have all been shut down. Given the challenges we face in public health and the economy, this may seem like a small thing. However, sports are more than a part of many of our lives. For me, sports are about suffering, adversity, resilience, community, common cause, triumph, and never giving up. Simply put, sports are life.

This American Life, one of the pre-eminent podcasts of our time, broadcast en episode about sports this week entitled, "Time Out." It might just be my favorite episode from them and features four stories about sports and what they meant to different people's lives. I will let you guess which is my favorite (Hint: it involves a father's and son's shared love for a game with a round ball)! After you listen to the podcast, check out a short video about segment number three and a father's passion for soccer, even if only "imaginary soccer."

These stories felt like a salve on a wound or a burn where healing and recovery seem very far off in the distance. I will relish these stories and memories of sports events that have moved me until sports are back in full.

That the German Bundesliga is back in action and that European soccer is set to resume soon gives me hope that it might be safe to begin some of our normal routines. I pray that things go smoothly for these players and for all of us who want to get back to life and sports.

UNSOCIAL DISTANCING

This week we navigated a new issue in the COVID era - how to interact with friends while staying safe.

Cate is very close friends with three boys in a family across the street, including one of her classmates. In normal times, they spend most days playing together outside. However, COVID put a dramatic end to those activities.

In recent weeks, the kids had been doing social distancing bike rides. Slowly, we noticed that the distance was shrinking and that the kids were often right next to each other. We talked with Cate about this, but she assured us that they would be more careful.

However, we noticed that the physicial proximity continued to be a "problem." I put that last word in quotes because these children were doing nothing abnormal, but they were behaving in a pre-COVID way. Ultimately, we talked to Cate about the need to wear a mask outside around them. This upset her quite a bit understandably. Despite trying to reason with her, Cate remained quite upset. Kathleen decided to talk to the other family, and they, too, expressed their concerns about the lack of social distancing. Ultimately, we decided that the kids could only play together for now if they were on opposite sides of the street.

Today, there was lots of remote control car racing with kids stationed in camp chairs across the street. Though there were a few crashes, there were no complaints.

I cannot wait for this pandemic to end. Things like being close to others, touching, being physical may not be necessary, but they sure are sustaining. We'll get there. Until then, we'll be safe.

FOOTBALL's BACK!

Ten years ago, I became a "born-again" soccer fan. Though I came to the game late in life in my mid-thirties, I quickly fell in love. So much so that I began to watch the game religiously and even began to play it.

I have always loved sports, but there was something special about soccer - its fluidity, its beauty, and the fact that only teams that are well-connected and cohesive on the pitch succeed. In many ways, soccer is like life. Because of that, soccer - like many other "non-essential" activities - took a hiatus when COVID hit. Leagues throughout the world quickly shut down, and there appeared to be no end in sight.

That dread and uncertainty made today's restart of the German Bundesliga - the first top league to restart - such a momentous occasion. Nicholas and I woke early to watch the game together, like we used to do pre-COVID and when I first fell in love with the game. While the stands were empty and the players walked in separately donning masks, the game was as beautiful as ever - perhaps more so despite the players being a little out of practice.

We watched Borussia Dortmund take on Schalke 04 in a rivalry match known as the Ruhr Derby. Four goals were put in the net - all by Dortmund - and some were truly magnificent. I hope that this restart is successful and that other top leagues like La Liga, where Barca plays, will soon follow.

They say you do not know what you have until it is gone. I certainly appreciate that phrase much more and am so glad to see football return!

RUNNING THROUGH THE VIRUS

I have enjoyed running for the past 22 years. During that time, I have always run several times per week with the exception of periods of injury. However, my running has stepped up since the COVID pandemic shut down my gym, and I have been running every morning.

My route is the same most mornings - a 2.8 mile out and back that includes a loop around Gallup Park and the Huron River near our neighborhood. Most mornings, I see the same people, who - like me - are probably just trying to get in their exercise early and clear their heads. Indeed, the main reason I run is to unwind and just focus on putting one foot in front of the other - generally as fast as I can!

Running has meant so much to me, and it feels like a form of resistance to the imposition this virus has placed on our lives. I do not wear a mask when I run, but I do go out of my way, literally, to avoid other people so that I will not infect them or become infected by them. That etiquette is generally reciprocal as we each pound out one step after another.

The New York Times had a nice article about Running Toward a New World complete with illustrations by Elisha Cooper - some of which are shown below. COVID notwithstanding, I will continue to run in this new world.

PULLING IN

Cate has never been one for co-sleeping, or pulling into our bed. However, in the past few weeks since quarantine, she has become a frequent flier in our bed, which is thankfully a king.

I cannot explain what motivates this change. Perhaps it is the increasing number of movies - some of which are suspenseful - that we have been watching. Another more plausible explanation is that she - like all of us - is just a little unsettled by what has happened to the world and our lives during COVID. Fortunately, she does not kick like she used to, and she does keep the bed warm.

We have also taken this as an opporunity to read together, an activity that has been reserved for her and Kathleen. We finished "Tex" by S.E. Hinton, and we've moved on to "The Plague" by Camus.  I will miss this little snuggler when she decides to eventually pull out of bed. Until then, the middle spot is hers!

CATE THE CRITIC

As I mentioned, Cate and I have become movie buddies. What I didn't know was that she has also turned into a little movie critic. Here is her first review for one of her favorites, "Knives Out"!

The 2 hour 10 minute movie Knives Out is a brilliant mystery that takes you through lots of plot twists and turns. The well known director Rian Johnson the director of Star Wars The Last Jedi selected an allstar cast for Knives Out including Ana De Armas as Marta Cabrera, Daniel Craig as investigator Benoit Blanc, and Chris Evans as Hugh Ransom Thrombey.

Overall I would give the film 98 on the tomatometer, and that’s as close to a hundred it’s going to get for me! The plot is one of the best I have ever seen and it keeps you on the edge of your seat. The only thing that I would change a bit is the start. Although there is an unexpected death early on, the subsequent detective interviews can be a bit of a sleeper. It is very important to the plot so you should listen carefully because the rest of the movie won’t make sense if you don’t. After that there is no more leaning back in your chair and relaxing because things will start to happen and they will boost you out of your seat.

For a bit of background the movie takes place in the mansion of a famous writer named Harlan Thrombey(Christophor Plummer) .We learn about a big extended family. He has two living, grown children named Linda Drysdale(Jamie Lee Curtis) and Walt Thrombey(Micheal Shannon). His 3rd son Neil Thrombey died but Neil’s wife Joni Thrombey(Toni Collete) still lives with the family.

Linda is the oldest of the two children and is a self made businesswoman-though with a little help from her dad. She is married to Richard Drysdale(Don Johnson) and he works for Linda's company. Their child Hugh Ransom Drysdale is best known to the family by his middle name Ransom. Almost no one in the family likes him because he never takes any responsibility and just wants to live a life of wealth and pleasure.

Walt Thrombey runs his father's publishing company. Harlan wishes that Walt would become more self reliant and start his own business. Walt is married to Donna Thrombey(Riki Lindhome) and Donna is very uptight and afraid of lots of things in the world. Walt and Donna have a son named Jacob Thrombey(Jaeden Martell) who is a strange boy and his family is worried about him becoming a member of the alt-right.

The wife of Harlan's dead son, Neil’s, is Joni. She is an instagram influencer who mostly lives off of Harlan’s money. Joni has a daughter named Meg Thrombey(Katherine Langford) who goes to a very good private school paid for-ofcourse Harlan.

Also at the house of Harlan Thrombey is his close friend and nurse named Marta. Although she doesn’t live with them, she usually stays late before Harlan goes to bed to give him his pills. The Thrombeys call Marta family even though almost none of them can remember what country her family is from. One thing about Marta is she has a very hard time lying. Also the Thrombey’s housekeeper, Fran(Edi Patterson),  plays a crucial role in the film and is at the house quite a lot. 

Investigating the case for the local police are Lieutenant Elliot(Lakeith Stanfield) and Trooper Wagner(Noah Segan). Most importantly a private investigator named Benoit Blanc is also on the case. Benoit, being in a New Yorker article that almost everyone in the family had seen, was sent an envelope of money and a note saying that the mysterious sender wanted him to investigate Harlan’s death.

Finally there is Harlan’s elderly grandmother(K Callan) who can barely walk but plays an important role also in the plot.

I am sure you will enjoy this brilliant, entertaining, film. It was like being on a plot roller coaster and never being able to get off.

Cate

BOURNE AGAIN!

We have been watching a lot of movies during the coronavirus pandemic, and Cate has been my little movie buddy.

We watched all the Jason Bourne movies over the course of a weekend. This led to a Matt Damon fascination and Good Will Hunting last night. The trend might continue with a detour to Minnie Driver and Circle of Friends. Such is the life of the quarantined movie watcher!

Ordinarily, we all retire to our own corners of the house to watch our own screens. Therefore, communal TV watching has been a pleasant surprise. I will miss this togetherness when this pandemic ends!