Daddio: Bowling Update

I went bowling with Brandon yesterday at lunch!  I did okay, but not good: 91 and 95.  I'm beginning to rethink what I'm doing and start over with fundamentals.  But what's important is that I'm still having fun.  Also, I'm very disappointed that the older kids who went to homeschool bowling night haven't posted about it.  I want any toe that reads this post to comment on it.  But I also want Connor, Mason and Avery to each post up a new post about homeschool bowling night.

Daddio: Bowling Tragedy!

I went bowling today and did poorly: 95 and 102.  But the real story is the tragedy that occurred to Brandon, who is usually who I go bowling with on Wednesdays.  He won the firm's annual bowling tournament two weeks ago and left his bowling ball and bag in the trunk of his car.  It's been over 100 degrees most days since the tournament, so when we got to the bowling alley, he opened his bag and saw this:

OH NO!  The heat made the ball expand and it cracked right down the middle of it!  Brandon was pretty bummed out, but it didn't stop him from using a house ball and still kicking my butt.  He bowled a 140 and 153. Hey, if any of the toes read this, please comment.

Daddio: Book Update, Bowling Luck and Jury Summons

Just an update on my awesome book.  After 49,000+ words, the first part (there will be three parts total) of the book is finished.  Before I move on to the second and third sections to finish the book, I want to do a close reread of the first part and rewrite a few things I know I want to change.  Then I want to get some feedback from the kids.  Depending on their feedback, I may change more, or move on to the second part.

ALSO- I need everyone's luck.  This Wednesday night is my law firm's annual bowling tournament.  Please send me best wishes so that I don't embarrass myself.

Finally, Mommio and I both got jury summons to serve at the same time.  How ridiculous is that?  Because she's a stay at home mom, she's exempt and doesn't have to serve.  I filled out my questionnaire this morning and gave the dates that I can't make it.  I've never served on a jury (they always reject the lawyers from the jury pool- I do it too for my own trials), and it would stink having to spend a few days away from work and other stuff to serve.  But it would be pretty cool to see what a trial is like from the juror's perspective. Ideally, I'd like to get picked for a small one or two day trial, just for the experience of it.

Daddio: Bowling Update

I haven't bowled in a while and yesterday evening when I told Mommio that I went over lunch yesterday, she was shocked and disappointed that I hadn't blogged about my triumphant return to the Art of Ten Pins.  At first I was hurt by the fact that she apparently didn't care that I had already blogged yesterday about the awesome new novel that I'm writing, but then I realized that she's right.  Bowling is important.

Yesterday I started strong and felt comfortable.  I bowled a 134, which is really good for me lately, especially considering how little I've bowled.  Then in the second game, everything fell apart.  Maybe I was tired.  Maybe I lost my concentration.  Maybe it was the fact that kids started bowling with bumpers on both sides of me.  Anyway, I ended up bowling a terrible 82.  But hey!  I remember when I'd bowl in the 50s and 60s, so when a "terrible" day is an 82, that's not so bad.

I went over lunch again today and did better. Today there was a senior's league at our usual spot, the Interstate Lanes, so instead we bowled at the fancy shmancy Mel's in Georgetown.  I got a 129 and a 105.  I felt comfortable today, but was getting tired and losing my concentration in the second game.  But overall, I'm really happy.

That's the bowling update!

Daddio: 152!

I went bowling today over lunch because I didn't get to go on Wednesday.  The first game was the same crappy stuff as always, and I scored an 88.  Then my co-worker, Brandon, gave a piece of advice that we both thought was really minor at the time.  He told me that it looked like my hand was in an upward position when I released the ball, and I should have my wrist twisted just slightly more when I release the ball.  I shrugged and said I'd try it.

BAM!  Several strikes and spares later, I scored the highest score I'VE EVER BOWLED-- 152.

This is like the first day of the rest of my life.

Everything will be different now.

Daddio: Bowling!

Just a quick update- I bowled a 118 and a 109 today and I was very happy with my improvement.  Most importantly, we took our new attorney out to bowl with us and we all had a lot of fun.  The best news yet?  She's a worse bowler than me.  Hooray!

Daddio: Best Day Ever

Next week is my birthday.  My 37th birthday.  It will be the greatest day that has ever been recorded in human history.  Are you excited?

Nana bought me a new bowling shirt which is totally awesome and looks freaking great.  I wore it bowling yesterday and had 2 100+ games (but just barely).  Convinced that my new bowling shirt was lucky, I wore it again today for our regular bowling game and... it wasn't so lucky.  Poor bowling today.

Ah well.  It turns out that you can have all the right equipment and clothing, but you still need the skill.  I'm working on it.  I'm working on it.

Daddio: Bowling and Halloween

Halloween was a blast. You toes stayed up way too late and were way to tired and cranky the next morning... BUT IT WAS WORTH IT! Trick or treating; ghost stories; ghost in the graveyard; the fire pit; roasting marshmallows; eating candy... it was a complete blast.

D&D night is tonight and again I'm very excited. Once again Marney will be watching (and trying to stay awake the whole time) so that she can join the group in a few weeks. Even more exciting than that-- tonight's adventure will take place... UNDERWATER! Sweet. It's not easy to swing a sword underwater.

Bowling was very disappointing today. I bowled a 74 and a 109, which are comparable to what I bowled last week. But I was out of sorts and didn't feel comfortable. It just was a bad day. Blah. It's okay, I suppose, because I still had my hook (even if my aim was completely all over the map). Here's hoping that next week is better.

Daddio: Bowling was AWESOME!

So my scores at bowling today weren't exactly awesome-- a 102 and an 88. But what was awesome was that today, something clicked with my technique. I got a technique that was comfortable and felt right. And when I let the ball go, it would fling down the alley and start with a strong hook to the left (which is ideal in bowling-- you want the ball to almost go in the right gutter, then "hook" back towards the pins and hit the inside of the front pin). And by god, it happened over and over.

Now don't get me wrong- as you can see from my scores, it wasn't perfect. Now that I'm getting a good, strong hook it's throwing off my aim a bit and I have to make some adjustment. Thus, even though I got a lot more strikes, I also got a lot more gutterballs. But that's okay! I was so happy with how my technique improved, you would have thought that I bowled a perfect 300.

In other news, D&D night is tonight and I'm very excited because Marney is going to try and sit in and watch the whole session-- Connor's agreed to have her help him and roll his dice for him. It's especially exciting because if she can make it through two entire sessions, she gets to have her own character and join the group. SWEET!

Finally, everyone's getting wicked excited for Halloween. But I might be even more excited about the pumpkin carving. Everyone's picked out some pretty cool designs, and this is definitely going to be pretty spectacular when they're all lit up.

Daddio: Wii Night, D&D and Bowling Update

Three quick notes:

1) Last night was Wii night for older homeschool kids. So Connor, Mason and I went over to Nana's house to play Wii on her big screen television. Cameron and Isaac joined in. I was going to set up an elaborate tournament on Mario Kart for them, but right off the bat they all wanted to play Super Smash Brothers Brawl. Well, they played that for an hour and a half, laughing like crazies while pummeling each other on the game. The trash talking was excellent. They played Mario Kart for a bit and then went back to Smash Brothers. Two and a half hours later, the party ended and everyone had a great time. Thanks especially to Cameron and Isaac for coming.

2) Because Gabe's having a sleep over with Elder tonight, we're skipping D&D and instead going to level up the characters. Everyone is moving up to level 5. Avery is a Monk (a martial arts fighter), Connor is a Duskblade (Elf fighter with some attack spells), and Mason is a bard (a spellcasting muscian). They all have a lot of gold to spend, and I don't know what they're going to do with it. Gabe leveled up this character this weekend and decided that his 4th level rogue (thief) was going to start taking levels of sorcerer -- so now he can sneak up behind foes and zap them in the back with spells. Very nice.

3) I went bowling today and did okay. 79 and 102. I improved what I was doing a little bit, so I was happy with my technique, even if my scores don't really reflect it.

Daddio: A Good Day

What a good a day. I got into the office today and found out that we got an exciting new case from a new client that I helped convince to use our firm. Then I went bowling and was pretty happy with my results (more on that later) and later tonight is D&D. So it appears that this is going to be one of the best day in the history of Daddio.

Bowling update -- Okay, the bad news first: my scores were only an 86 a 91 and an 82. But I'm not worried about my scores and I'm actually happy with how I did today because I was able to make some serious improvements on my technique. I'm now getting the ball to hook in the proper direction (it was originally hooking in the opposite direction -- away from me -- known as a back up ball) and with a semi-consistent trajectory. All I ever want is to feel like I'm making improvement, and I felt like I was today. So I think it was a good day.

Daddio: OH YES! (Bowling Update)

Whew. Well now I feel better. I realized that my problem yesterday was that I was trying too hard to make sure that my cool, new, expensive ball hooked and reacted the way it's supposed to. And in doing so, I was screwing everything up. So today I went back to basics.

Today I decided that I would forget about getting the ball to hook, and instead I just wanted to get a form I was comfortable with and that could get the ball to consistently go exactly where I intended it to go. So with a little bit of trial and error, it worked.

Long story short -- the ball hardly hooked at all, but went exactly where I wanted it to. This has made me happier than you can imagine, because now working off this basic form, I can start tweaking the elements of my game (the release, the approach, etc.) and continue improving. Just like when I was practicing for the tournament, I expect that I'll get a little bit better each week.

Today's scores: 97 and 106. MUCH better.

Daddio: OH NO! (Bowling Update)

What happened? I mean... WHAT HAPPENED?!?!?!?! Well, I actually know what happened. I'm trying to use the same technique that was working for me with the crappy house balls as I'm using with my new ball. This, of course won't work because of the way the ball is drilled, the different way I hold it, the different effect of the weights on when the ball is released, etc.

Anyhow, the whole time I'm bowling today, I just felt completely uncomfortable with the ball. It was like I kept trying to adjust what I was doing to find something that felt good and that I could use, but I never got there. It was really weird and disorienting.

I went with three guys from my office and bowled a 56 and a 66. Ugh. That's just awful. But again, I'm not so much worried about my score as I am about my technique. So even though my scores were horrible, what I'm irritated with is that I can't find my comfort zone with my approach and release of the ball.

All that being said, I'm not actually that disappointed. Sure, I would have loved to gone on out my first try with the new ball and bowl a 150 or better, but that wasn't realistic. And if I'm going to look at it realistically, I know that it's just going to take more time and practice.

And the most important thing is that I had a great time.

Daddio: Thanks Nana!

I did awful at bowling yesterday. Just awful- 83 and a 60, but I'm not letting it bug me because: (1) I was trying to use proper technique/grip/etc. with a house ball, which I've decided is nearly impossible; and (2) while I was bowling, I was waiting for the guy in the pro shop to finish drilling my new bowling ball.

And then he finished drilling it. And I held it. And it. was. AWESOME!

Wow. Having a bowling ball that fits your hand is awesome. It actually makes using proper form 100% easier. I'm using a fingertip grip with plastic inserts and a full thumb.

The ball was done with two frames left in my last game. I got it, went to the lane and bowled my ninth frame-- it looked good and knocked down eight, but leaving a four ten split. I picked up the ball again and rolled it perfectly into the right edge of the 4 pin kicking it out directly into the 10, and picking up the spare. This ball is blessed.

Then in the 10th frame I tried too hard to spin the ball and only knocked down one pin.

Big deal. My bowling ball is awesome.

Daddio: Bowling Update

I went bowling today and scored a 108 and 85. I'm really just bowling for fun right now because I feel like I can't do much on my technique using the normal "house" balls (the ones you use for free in the bowling alley). But that will all change soon because...

NANA GOT ME A BOWLING BALL!

It's an early birthday present, but it's pretty sweet. The Roto Grip Cell Pearl (pictured above). It will be hear soon and I'll be able to really start working on using proper form.

Thank you, Nana!

Daddio: I'm a Bowling KING!

So today I went bowling again, and I'm doing a bunch of things to improve my technique. The most important thing is to move up to a heavier ball. When I started trying to hook (or spin) the ball, I went down to a light weight, 8 pound, ball. I wanted to just get a feel for it. Last time I moved up to a 10 pounds ball. Well this time I moved up to a 14 pound ball. I'm still not getting the ball to hook as much as I want it to (which means it curves out and then back in right before it gets to the pins), but I was happy.

On my first game, I had a lot of trouble getting used to the ball and bowled a miserable 53. But then I settled down and tried to adjust my technique -- specifically my approach (meaning how I step up to the foul line right before I let go of the ball) and my release. For the second game I bowled a 148! A 148! This is the highest I've bowled since high school!

I was very pleased with myself.

Daddio: I've Neglected My Duties

There's a million excuses that we can use everyday for why we don't do the things we're supposed to: I was busy; I was traveling; I was sick; important things came up unexpectedly. But really those are all meaningless. I made a commitment to post on this blog for you little toes, and I've been neglecting those duties. In essence, all my excuses are merely that -- excuses. There's no good reason why I can't spend a few minutes on a couple of occasions during the week to post up my thoughts for you kids.

That being said, I apologize. I will begin posting up more and explaining my wonderfully complex observations on life to you on a more regular basis.

For example, I went bowling last week and forgot to report that my hook technique has gotten better with more scores in the 70s and 80s.

Another example, Mason was up sick last night and I stayed up with him until he fell asleep on the couch. Then Connor told me to go to bed and promised to watch over him for me. I thought that was a really mature and cool thing for Connor to do, and I really appreciated that.

A final example, we finally got to watch football this weekend when the Houston Texans hosted the season opener against the New York Jets. Gabe watched the first half before he had to leave to go watch Ponyo with Nana and the other kids in the theater. Even though Houston got their butt kicked and it wasn't even a close game, it was fun to watch football again, and even more fun to see Gabe enjoying it.

That's enough for now. There will be more of this posted regularly in the future.

Daddio: Practice is Important

Yesterday I bowled in my firm's third annual bowling tournament. Before I get into the details of how I did, let me begin by saying that I'm a horrible bowler. In the first tournament, I came in last place with a score of 74. In bowling, a 74 is awful, and because of my low score, I was mocked and ridiculed by my co-workers. Last year, because I switched jobs, I didn't bowl in the tournament.

So in preparation for this year's tournament, two weeks ago I went bowling with some guys from work to see how I'd do. I bowled a 43. A 43. Remember how I said a 74 was awful? Well a 43 is clearly much worse than that. After that experienced, I realized that there were two ways I could go with this: (1) don't practice at all and do really bad, which would be very funny and make everyone laugh; or (2) try to learn some basic pointers and practice more before the tournament. I decided to go with the second option.

So I watched a youtube video with advice for beginning bowlers. It gave basic, simple techniques on how to bowl-- how to hold the ball, how to aim, how to approach the lane, etc. I took this advice and went to practice... a lot. In the two weeks before the tournament, I went bowling four more times, each time bowling two games. The first time I went back, I only bowled a 66, which stunk, but I decided to keep trying. Remembering the basic techniques, my scores kept getting better and better. The last game I bowled before the tournament, I got a 143, my highest score ever-- and 100 points higher than the first practice game!

At the tournament last night, I did pretty well. I bowled a 123. Out of 15 participants, I took 4th. I was really happy with these results.

Practice is important.

Daddio: In Need of Luck

Tonight is my office bowling tournament. Wish me luck!