Sportsmanlike Conduct

406 words

Alrighty so I know that most of us are athletes. I mean, we are American so all of us at one time in our lives have probably played a sport of some kind. And as an athlete I can tell you first hand that sometimes it is extremely hard to keep your cool with it comes to frustrating situations. There are times when all you really want to do is tell that referee or umpire or judge exactly what is on your mind without holding back; you just want to give them a piece of your mind. Trust me...I’ve been there.

Well here's the thing: as hard as it is to bite your tongue in situations like that, you have to use every ounce of self-control you have to do it. You may be pissed off at the moment but it won't last forever. It was a stupid call on one play out of many to come. Shake it off and move on. It's the best and only thing you really can do. (I mean you COULD let it all out and get kicked out but I’m pretty sure you won't want that to happen).

I would consider myself a pro at holding things back. Sometimes I do let some things slip but that’s only when I am getting really fed up with someone and I just need to do SOMETHING! But I’m going to give you some of the tips that I use so that next time you get frustrated at an official you can try these out.

 

1.      Take deep breaths. Take a moment to close your eyes and calm down. Tell yourself that it’s over and that you just have to keep playing.

2.      Count backwards from ten. Ever since that episode of Dragon Tales (at 9:06) that I watched way back when I was little I try counting backwards from ten. Surprisingly, it does work!

3.      Clench your fists. Sometimes I do this first. Clench your hands into fists and hold them there for three seconds and quickly release them. Do this three more times. I don’t know why but this just seems to get the tension out of me.

So those are my three main stress relievers when it comes to sports. Try them out next time you get angry at a teammate or an official. I’d love to hear if these work for you or if you have any other ideas please comment below!


~Skooogster(:

Speak it Loud, Speak it Proud!

423 words

Today I experienced something that I had never experienced before:  The State Speech Contest. I myself am not on the speech team but my younger sister is on one of the freshman improvisation teams. My parents were volunteering so I decided to tag along with them and I do have to say, it was quite something!

 

First of all, there are students from more than 150 high schools from around the state of Iowa at this contest. (Yet the hallways still weren’t as crowded as they are during the school day!) There were at least twenty centers where all sorts of music, acting, and improvisation, and much more were going on. I have to say, there was a lot to see and a lot going on!

 

One thing that I wasn’t used to was no one at the contest could wear clothing displaying the school that they were from or supporting. Everything was completely neutral but it did take the politics out of everything. People weren’t intimidated by seeing a certain school walking in because, well, they didn’t know what school that was! Teams were judged based on their performance and their performance only. Even though that’s the way it should be anyway, we both know that really isn’t how it works. Unfortunately.

 

Another thing I loved was the FOOD! I mean, who doesn’t love food? I am not sure if every speech contest has such an amazing selection of food but my oh my was I impressed! I am so used to unhealthy concessions at volleyball tournaments where the healthiest thing available is an apple flavored candy. But not today! Today’s menu consisted of Chick-fil-a, Pizza Hut, HyChi (Hy-Vee Chinese food), and Zio Johnos Spaghetti just to name a few! Okay so maybe they aren’t salads but at least there is some consistency to the food! I mean, it will keep a person fuller longer than a walking taco that’s for sure!

 

All in all, today was a good day! I cried, I laughed, and I laughed so hard I cried. Either way, I really enjoyed seeing so many different groups and types of groups and experiencing something totally new that I had never done before. I really hope that I get a chance to experience a speech contest again in the future! And who knows? Maybe all of this excitement will encourage me to try out for speech next year! That way I can experience it all over again but this time from the view of a competitor, not a spectator.  

~Skooogster(: