June 4, 2021
Dear Everyone:
Summer is upon us.
We’ve already had our first official “heat wave”, with outdoor
temperatures climbing up to, and even above, 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
These days, the sun doesn’t set until almost 8:30 in the evening.
When we were growing
up in northern Oregon, the sun wouldn’t set until nearly 9:00.
That meant that we had, literally, hours to play after dinner,
when the heat would dissipate, and it was cool enough to frolic around.
I remember marathon basketball games played in the driveway, with
the traditional hoop mounted over the garage doors.
With three boys in
the family, there was always a game to be played.
They even let us girls join in if they needed another player or
two. When the sun (finally!)
disappeared, we would turn on the outdoor lights and keep on playing.
We had nearly three months with no one calling us in to go to
sleep, or get ready for school tomorrow.
However, summer
vacation does end, and school begins again.
When I was in High
School, the Physical Education (Phys Ed, or just PE) teacher tried to
teach us “real” basketball.
At first, she patiently explained the rules.
This was important for two reasons:
One.
If you don’t know the rules, how will you know if the other side
is cheating?
Two.
There will be a written test, of some sort, at the end of the
semester. This was the only
way the school had of proving that it was teaching us anything.
She also explained
the function of various positions on each team.
I don’t remember playing any particular position, but I do
remember getting a lot of Free Throws.
You see, there is
something called an Offensive Foul.
This is not what you might imagine.
It simply means that a member of the offensive team, meaning the
team that has the ball and is trying to get it up and through the hoop,
has committed a breach of manners against a member of the defensive, or
opposite, team.
Bear in mind that the
only noticeable difference between teams was the color of cotton vest
worn by players during the game.
Also bear in mind that most of these girls paid absolutely no
attention when the rules were explained.
I quickly discovered
that if I got about two or three feet ahead of the other team’s player
with the ball and just stood, flat-footed in her way, she would
invariably run me down. And
that was an Offensive Foul, and I would get a Free Throw.
Why didn’t she just
go around me?
Probably didn’t see
me. After all, she had her
eyes on the hoop, just dribbling along, minding her own business and
“what the heck did I just trip over?”
And there I’d be, on
the floor. I got a Free
Throw.
A Free Throw, for
those not versed in Basketball-Speak, meant that the player (me) got to
stand within a certain number of feet from the hoop (they even painted a
half-circle on the floor of the court for it) and throw the ball up
through the hoop without any interference from the opposite team.
What could be easier?
It only worked for a
short while, of course.
After that, they started warning each other.
“Watch out for the speed bump over there.
She’s tricky. She’ll
get in front of you; and you can’t just push her out of the way.
You have to go around her.”
But until that day
came, I got a lot of
Free Throws!
You may ask, “Did you
score many points that way?”
What, are you
kidding? 5 feet, 2 inches
tall. Add to that the
hand-eye-coordination of a pineapple.
But they were Free
Throws!
The operative word
here is “Free”! It’s
like those free bags at the cosmetic counters.
Just spend $50 and they give you a free bag!
They’re free!
I have almost an entire closet filled with free bags.
They’re free!
You may ask, “So,
this is basketball as it relates to shopping?”
Silly question.
Everything relates to shopping.
Love, as always,
Pete
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