This could be a repost, but I love this story of Andre Agassi detecting a tell (an inadvertent behavior or mannerism that betrays a player’s true intention) Boris Becker had when they played each other. After losing to Becker in their first three matches, Agassi then won eight straight over Becker. Agassi revealed this to Becker in retirement over a beer.
“If he’s serving in the deuce court and he put his tongue in the middle of his lip, he was either serving up the middle or to the body. But if he put it to the side, he was going to serve out wide.”
“The hardest part wasn’t returning his serve — it was not letting him know that I knew this,” Agassi said. “I had to resist the temptation of reading his serve for the majority of the match and choose the moment when I was gonna use that information on a given point to execute a shot that would allow me to break the match open.”
I suppose hanging on to regret suggest we haven’t learned anything from it.
Something I miss about being a married parent is discussing what we were going to buy the kids for Christmas. The banter was fun. Some divorced couples have a relationship in which that can happen, but the boundaries set up in my situation prevents that joy. For the most part, I have to hope what I buy isn’t already bought by their mother or someone in her large family. Oddly, I try not to buy anything on their Christmas list thinking a former in-law will use it as a guide. It’s hard trying to make Christmas warm and rememberable when you dread the whole experience and doing what you can to merely survive the experience. Sheesh, it ain’t even December yet, lol.
I think I enjoy reading biographies because I wish I was living a different life.
I took advantage of some Wal-Mart ‘Cyber Monday’ deals. There’s no need for my children’s presents to be delivered anytime soon, so I chose the cheapest option, which was free shipping. To my surprise, all my items were delivered to my doorstep before dinner. Wal-Mart delivered everything in less than seven hours of my order. Color me impressed.
Several times this year, I mentioned as I look back at things, I felt my ex was gaslighting me. “Gaslighting” is a word that’s not really a part of my vernacular. But my eyebrow raised when I saw this article yesterday – ‘Gaslighting’ is Merriam-Webster’s word of the year for 2022. I wonder if Merriam-Webster is going to put her profile pic next to the definition.
I called Aetna again about the neck brace they wouldn’t pay for. They told the provider it wasn’t “medically necessary” despite having neck surgery. The rep I spoke to stated the provider needed to provide documentation of the surgery performed. I told them that since they already paid for the surgery, they must already have all documentation. She thought that made sense, and after some back and forth, called the provider and conferenced all parties. I love it when they do that, everyone speaking to each other at the same time to get on the same page. In short, the provider sent me the bill in error.
To be honest, it was never great. It was very, very good. Taquitos were fun to get when it got late at night.
I found this tweet yesterday while reading my second favorite blog (hey, I’m all about some self love and ain’t gonna put myself #2), and doubted it was true. Being the investigative journalist that I am, I decided to test it out using “Shanghai” and then “Beijing”. Nothing suspicious or seedy came up in my results. Heck, the first result was a literally FU to the late Chairman Mao on Tiananmen Square.
That bullet point may get this blog banned in China. Which makes me think of actor Richard Gere who made Red Square, a film which negatively portrayed the Chinese government. At the time, many people predicted it was career suicide since China was becoming a major contributor to the film industry. Depending on how you look at it, that may have come true. He certainly hasn’t been in any notable films as of late.
I hope TCU goes undefeated.
I’m wrapping up the Jimmy Johnson book. He dedicates one very long chapter to not making family a priority in life, and the regret he lives with. Here I am thinking how much I’ve made family a priority in life, ever since a social studies class in junior high pointed out the average age of a white male and compared that to the age of my father. All I ever tried was to make family the priority, with how I spent my weekends (I rarely went out as a teen), to the college I chose (Abilene is only two hours away in case of an emergency and weekend visits once a month), to the jobs I selected (I wanted to be with my wife and kids more than anything). Yet, I lost all of them early – Dad, Mom, best friend, brother, sister, and the family unit I helped start. I pray I don’t lose a child. It all makes me wonder if I should have pursued money or put a career first, and focused less on family. Maybe I would have lost all those things, but at least I would have family. As of now, I have neither after putting family first. I guess I should have put myself first at times. There’s nothing like living with regret. I am the common denominator.
Whenever I see the Progressive “Turning Into Your Parents” commercial with the line monitor, I’m reminded of playing football and the coach yelling at us to back up and stand behind the line of scrimmage or not to pass the 20-yard barrier near the end zones.
Justin Tucker, the kicker for the Baltimore Ravens, had an opportunity to break his own and the league’s record for longest field goal yesterday. Aggies will remember him as the Longhorn kicker who beat them on a game-ending field goal, the last game played in that rivalry.
I’m tired of hearing the doctor on the Lume commercial talk about her armpits, under-boob, and butt crack. Her words, not mine.
I’m reminiscing about the football era of Breathe Right strips.
Okay, Kroger, we’ve had enough of that sappy holiday commercial you’ve been playing since before Halloween.
I enjoy reading books on my Kindle. I like how I can instantly look up definitions or Wiki articles. And, I think it’s easier on the eyes. But, sometimes I’m in that mood in which I just want to read a physical book.
Here’s an excerpt of Jimmy Johnson’s new book that Peter King highlighted in his previous article. It’s leads to one of those interesting “what might have been” thoughts.
Archie Manning called Johnson before the ’98 draft to ask him to try to work a trade so Peyton would land in Miami. One insurmountable problem, as Johnson writes, was offering Miami’s entire draft to Indianapolis to move up. “We picked 19th,” Johnson said. “People say, well, what would you have done with Dan Marino there? Well, you know, Peyton would’ve been behind Dan. But the way it worked out, Dan missed games every year and so Peyton would’ve been thrown into the lineup.”Added Johnson: “On top of that, Bill Belichick came that close to coming down and being my defensive coordinator. We could’ve had Peyton Manning as our quarterback and Bill Belichick as my defensive coordinator. But he had too much loyalty to Bill Parcells [on the Jets’ staff].”
I’m reading that Jimmy Johnson book. I thought I’d come off liking the guy more after reading it, but I don’t think that will be the case. When I read a coach’s book, I sometimes ask myself if I would have like their coaching style if I played for them, or if their coaching style would have been effective on me. Johnson’s coaching style wouldn’t have worked for me, though Parcell’s and Tony Dungy’s would have.
I don’t think I’ve fully internalized how frankly bizarre the world of suburban mega churches are. And I’m saying that as somebody who attended one as a kid pic.twitter.com/TRm1DwDaDp
This is a HuffPost article. I usually try to keep from linking to something so biased. But this will only be a big deal to me if Franklin Graham and Robert Jeffress turn on him, and I doubt that will ever happen as they lack a spine.
On The TICKET, TCU alumnus Corby, stated out of all the Christian schools (in term of the likes like Liberty), TCU is the least Christian amongst them. I blogged that opinion once and got roasted by the husband of a TCU alumnus.
Corby also perpetuates the rumor that Ann Richards got Baylor in the Big XII. A lot of people get that fact wrong. It was Bob Bullock, the longtime and powerful Lt. Governor at the time.
