On limits

Defying Gravity- Wicked (Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlMBcTGJ4YM

On losing

One Art- Elizabeth Bishop

"The art of losing isn't hard to master;
so many things seem filled with the intent
to be lost that their loss is no disaster,

Lose something every day. Accept the fluster
of lost door keys, the hour badly spent.
The art of losing isn't hard to master.

Then practice losing farther, losing faster:
places, and names, and where it was you meant
to travel. None of these will bring disaster.

I lost my mother's watch. And look! my last, or
next-to-last, of three beloved houses went.
The art of losing isn't hard to master.

I lost two cities, lovely ones. And, vaster,
some realms I owned, two rivers, a continent.
I miss them, but it wasn't a disaster.

-- Even losing you (the joking voice, a gesture
I love) I shan't have lied. It's evident
the art of losing's not too hard to master
though it may look like (Write it!) a disaster."

I hate sore losers- they're the worst. I would know, because I used to be one of them. Sore winners suck also- I was one of those too. I was just too intense about it all. You know, what they say is true: you need to learn how to lose before you can truly learn how to win. Unfortunately, some people never learn; it's really sad, and in fact quite embarrassing. A bit of humility here and there is always good for the soul.

I've always been super competitive- even to this day- in sports, in school, and in life. I'm a lot more relaxed about everything now though because, like in Ms. Bishop's poem, I'm learning to master the art of losing. Now this may sound pessimistic, but that's not my intent. I'm just saying that as I have become more mature, I've learned that losing is simply part of life, and knowing how to deal with that makes all the wins so much sweeter.

I think that what she's really trying to say is that as we experience loss in our lives, we learn from it (whatever it may be) and become stronger.

On twitter

@scottiewun: Ever since I met up with @SashieBoosh in Boston, and then subsequently downloaded the twitter app on my Blackberry and started following tons of people, my tweeting activity has increased exponentially. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. Either way, it's her fault lol.

On fear and courage

"Courage is the mastery of fear, not the absence of fear."

It's fairly easy to avoid (or back down from) the things that scare us, and quite frankly it's totally understandable. If you deem yourself fearless, then congratulations I guess. Now what? To acknowledge what you're truly afraid of, and then proceed to stand up to it- stare it right in the face- now that's real courage. I'd like to think that most of us become more courageous as we get older.

You ready? You might surprise yourself.

On baseball

Baseball truly is the best sport- that's why it's called America's national pastime. However, it doesn't generate as much interest as it deserves, and if you ask me, it's really a shame. It's such an amazing game, and has been one of my greatest passions for as long as I can remember- so many great memories out there on that field.

To most, "baseball is boring- it's too slow." I can understand where they're coming from, but don't agree one bit. That's the thing about the sport- many don't understand the intricacies of the game, the wonderful aspects that make it unique, and are quick to dismiss it. For me, there really isn't much that needs to be changed.

There is no time limit on baseball, and that's so awesome. You can't have the clock help you win a game- you gotta earn every out. The mental aspect of the sport is unlike any other. Hall of Famer Catcher Yogi Berra once said that "baseball is 90% mental, and the other half, physical." So true. You can't just be athletic to be a good baseball player- you gotta have all the tools. A complete, five tool player has to be able to hit for power and hit for average. He also needs to be able to run fast, throw hard and accurate, and field with minimal errors. Not easy things to accomplish. A few years ago, Guinness Book of World Records stated that hitting a baseball is the hardest thing to do in all of sports. Think about a guy standing on a mound sixty feet, six inches away from you, throwing 85-95 mph. That's about 1/1,000 of a second reaction time. Pretty crazy, huh?

I basically grew up on a baseball diamond; it was like my second home. I remember getting up on Saturdays and immediately throwing on my uniform. It didn't matter if my game was at 8am or 6pm; I was always ready to play. Doubleheaders were my favorite- getting to play twice in a day was awesome- I never got tired of it (we even had a couple tripleheaders over the years). For a few years, I played almost year round- Spring, Summer, and Fall- three different teams, three different leagues. I also umpired for about six years and somedays were comprised of playing two games and umping one- I was at the field from basically dawn to dusk.

Our Burlingame Summer All-Star Tournament Team was the best. Those guys were basically my brothers- Merch, Schmitty, Dommy, Neeley, Simpson, EZ, Hahn, and Sully (and more)- our core group played together for like seven years. Our 12 year old A Team was the best year- winning the tourney in Santa Clara and playing in Cooperstown, NY. Unforgettable.

I got to play during my sophomore year of high school and hit .333, so that was good. Unfortunately, that was pretty much the extent of it because of my broken legs. And towards the end, things got kinda political and I wasn't respected because of my size, which led to less playing time (that, I didn't like). It was tough, but I eventually proved myself and won them over. I'll never forget my last hit- last inning of an elimination game, tied at six, bases loaded with two outs- went with the outside pitch and drove it to right- brought in what ended up being the winning run. I still have that game ball, among others. You don't forget stuff like that- your first homer, hitting a ball 340+ feet with your Omaha Classic, stealing home for the first time, talking to that college scout, having Krukow say you pitched well.

Growing up, baseball was my life- it was the most fun game in the world, and I was good at it. It's pretty cool when you come to bat and the other coach calls timeout to back up his outfielders. To this day, I miss it so much. When I was on that field (fresh cut grass, cleanly dragged infield, nicely chalked baselines), diving in the outfield, sliding headfirst into second, or throwing people out as catcher, it just felt right. And it's always fun to get out to the Oakland Coliseum or AT&T. Watching games on TV is chill, but it's really not the same. I hope to coach one day- teach them everything I know. Can't wait to come home.

2004 Burlingame "A" Team

On meltdowns

meltdown [melt-doun]; noun: 1) the process or state of irreversible breakdown or decline 2) the Los Angeles Lakers 2010-2011 season

- related terms: classless, immature, cheap-shot, lame, embarrassment, Lamar Odom, Andrew Bynum, loser, inferiority, tantrum, failure

On mothers

"A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts." -Washington Irving

Happy Mother's Day to my mom and grandma (and to all moms and grandmas)! I hope you understand how much we truly appreciate everything you do for us.