Tuesday, September 2, 2003

THE BITCH IS BACK
Elton John

I was the Bitch today. Not just a bitch, but the Queen. One might have thought that I had mistaken early September for late April. Yesterday it (practice) was ugly and I didn’t say much, and I felt horrible about myself as a coach after it was over. After today, they all probably hate me, but I feel much happier and soul-satisfied personally. Not screaming at yesterday’s practice was like witnessing a crime and doing nothing about it. Probably there was nothing to be done, however, when all was said and done. I was dealing with much larger elements, like a holiday (Labor Day/no class). People were throwing up, and it was 4:00 in the afternoon. This was not happening due to my rigorous training program, but more likely from "family" wrist curls the night before. Come to think of it, it could have been from breakfast Bloody Mary’s for all I know. Oh, wait. I'm sorry. I forgot. College students don't drink and party much, and I, as coach, have total control of the things they do.

WILL I SEE YOU IN SEPTEMBER, OR LOSE YOU TO A SUMMER’S LOVE?
Some stupid early sixties song.

Today, it was only the 2nd of September, but I didn’t care. The summer, and therefore "Summerball" is officially way over. I raged. Blowing a whistle isn’t enough for me. Neither a practice nor a scrimmage can be similar to any kind of a "recess". September, or any time is a time when I want us to actively strive to get better every time we strap it on. From now until forever our goal here is to improve as a team every day that we are together, and to therefore add dimension to our in-game capabilities. Period. Yes, I expect a lot.

I brought out my infamous squat and "stare at the ground in despair" thing today. I don't know if it helps, but I can't or don't want to control it anyway. All I know is that I no longer have patience for consistent unforced errors at this level of play, even in the fall. Yes, I expect a lot.

I no longer do things like encourage people that have never played lacrosse before to "come out and give it a shot" the way I used to. For one thing we already have 50 players on the "squad". For another, we are just not "there" anymore. Pretty much if you have never played, you will never have enough skill to play on this team. That is where we are, and that’s where I'm happy, for now.

If you are here playing in the fall, but will be snowboarding all spring, don't expect much attention from me. You might be extended family, but you are not FAMILY. Yes, I expect a lot.

I’ll probably be back to coaching 9th graders again someday if I live long enough, and that will be all good. Then, but not yet. It’s not good enough now. Having said that, I was out there today yelling things like, "Catch it like an egg!" and "Gravity is your friend", and other really "advanced" concepts, because at the beginning of practice nobody could catch at all, let alone throw on the run or shoot and stuff like that.

I do get some "positive guy" points today, albeit only a few of them. As they (team) improved during the practice, they got more encouragement from me, almost like some kind of a cause-affect deal. The better they played the happier I got. It's just amazing how that works. I wonder what I will be like tomorrow.

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