Tuesday, June 24, 2003

The Supreme Court Takes on the Wide World of Sport

Okay, well maybe this entry isn't that extreme, but it would be cool to see Clarence Thomas do something other than fall asleep on the bench.

It seems as if Jeff Lehman has won the most important fight of his life. And to think, he hasn't even taken over at Cornell yet.

No, Slope Day hasn't been dissolved (not that Jeff wants that, being a Cornellian himself). Instead the Supreme Court ruled that the U Michigan Law School's admittance process is constitutionally acceptable. The whole of idea of using race to create a more diverse learning environment, while not making it the main factor of admittance is indeed cool. Unlike what Michigan was doing for its undergraduate process...

But I go to Cornell, and as the temps in Ithaca have now reached the mid, to high 80s, it's time to enjoy the greenery that is Central New York. Which I did in full today ... right after I slept until 10 a.m., and then played video games inside with the lights on ... and then went to the mall to catch a movie ...

I did go for a run at some point, but had to get pumped up for it first. Ever since my MP3 player died I just haven't been able to find the same motivation to get started. What I have found, however, is a close replacement.

Hitting up my itunes playlist, and using my illegally downloaded songs I have constructed a list of all the songs I would have listened to during my run. While lacing my shoes and rolling my ankles, I listen to the music. Then I sit in my chair and listen to them some more until something prompts me to move (Today it was the urge to visit the John). Then, when the urge to move hits, I ignore the intial urge, run out of my room, down the stairs, and I'm free.

Of course, I don't really start running until I've hit the back of Cascadilla, but who's really keeping track?

Anyway, I did the usual run, and capped it off with running the steps at the stadium. While out there I noticed the lacrosse cages were out, and immiately resolved to return after a quick dinner.

It's funny how those things never really turn out as planned. But atleast it fits the theme of the summer.

An hour later, while I was sitting on my lazy ass and slowly forgetting about the greens of Scheollkopf, Rachel called. She had just finished rehearsing (she's in some production at the plantations which you will no doubt read more about later) and was bored. Also being bored, I remembered the original plan and told her. She was excited.

So there we were. Two college students, two lacrosse sticks, and one soccer ball -- loudly making our way through collegetown and acrosse campus. The lights at Scheollkopf were out (they clearly didn't get the memo that we were coming...), but not those at Bartels hall. Like every other building at Cornell, Bartels was also open. So in we went.

The Ramin room called to us — it practically begged us to enter. The lights were on, nets were in place, and the whole thing was empty. Kristen would have loved it. And to think that she, Owen, and I used to drive to IHS to find a net to shoot on. It boggles the mind. More boggling however was how I wasted the opportunity to play soccer with Rachel. Still, considering that the room will probably be open again later, and that I enjoyed myself, I can't really complain about wasted opportunities.

So when a larger one presented itself, we took it.

With a misdirected cross just ten minutes into our "game," Rachel had unwittingly struck gold. The ball sailed outside, hit a canoe, and led us to the realization that the lights were on over Alumni Fields. It was as good as it gets for two kids looking to enjoy a summer night.

We passed, we crossed, we missed shots. Above all, we smiled, laughed, and enjoyed ourselves. It was so great to be with someone else who realizes that you don't need to be an athlete to enjoy a sport. Still, it took us sometime before we realized that all of our games were merely masking what we were really doing.

I'm talking about sprinting of course.

It makes sense too. Every sport is really just an attempt to make sprinting fun, becuase most people can't stomache lap after lap at the track.

So we gave in. Removing our shoes, we soon found ourselves doing a walk-trot-run exercise. And it felt great. Grass was flying everywhere (they had just cut the fields), and it felt cool and wet beneath my feet. My second skin was also proving to be a great cushion, softening the impact. Not that running on grass is that bad anyway.

We soon were feeling good enough to go home, and chatted about inflections on our way back. It was an enjoyable conversation, and perhaps something I'll write about sometime. But for now, what was said is said, and remains only in our memories of the past.

-- Today's random thoughts --
For those of you who are currently wondering (I noticed other blogs post this), I am listening to Mandy Moore's "I wanna be with you." No, I don't listen to "chick music" beucase I am in the closet, and I'm pretty sure it's not because I'm in touch with my sensitive side. I just think she's hot, and that if she were singing this song for me, I'd be a lucky SOB.

Also, mad props to fellow Western New Yorker Matt Nagowski. The man has given me a shout out on his site, which hopefully means you are new to the site (not that I'm really keeping track of visitors anyway -- I do this for me). Tomorrow I'm going to join his Polar Bear Swim Club. I did it at Camp, so it can't be so bad here. Besides, I'll be able to meet some more people, and that's always a good thing.

Finally, I'm going to call that girl I took a walk in the rain with. She is going away on Thursday, and while we may not have had a sense of direction on that walk it sure would be nice to get one now.

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