Hoops

So, some guys at work started a weekly b-ball game at one of the local rec centers. Through word of mouth, I got invited, and played four 4-on-4 games last Wednesday during lunch. Though I was able to keep my lunch down through sheer force of will, after the first 5 minutes, my lungs felt like they were on fire, and my legs felt as if the bones had been removed from them. To top it off, I stupidly go too caught up in the moment and threw myself off the court in an attempt to save an errant ball (which I did), but landed sideways on my ankle.

Now, the injury was hardly anything (I was able to continue to play 2 more games afterward) and it's hardly sore now, but I realized something - it was the first sort of non-chronic-injury-related pain I'd felt in a long time, and it felt *good*. Not saying I'm masochistic or anything, but it's a lot like how after you lift weights for the first time in years and your muscles are sore to the very core of your being, but you feel good about it. It's that sort of good. Back in middle school, high school, and college, I was spraining fingers or pulling muscles at least once or twice a month from some sort of sport. I just shook it off and kept going. I noticed that as I got older, and more out of shape, I became more and more afraid of injury. Rightfully so, since it's harder to bounce back from those injuries, but it's good to know that I can still "hang."

We played again today, since there was a truckload of trashtalk being thrown around the office after Wednesday, but this time it was full court (we played full court last time, but they were only about 3/4 the size of regulation courts), and it was on asphalt this time. Knees and ankles are definitely more sore from the lack of cushioning, but I'm not gasping for air like an asthmatic stuck in the smoking car on a bullet train to Tokyo.