Football. Safe to watch, dangerous to play.

This past Saturday I was planning to go to the gym with my wife, but instead I wound up at our church for the men's club annual flag football game. My wife reminded me of the game, said it was okay with her, and that I should go. She then laughed and said I would most likely injure myself, but I should go and get to know a few more guys. (Why is she always right??)

Collin and I headed up to the church's athletic fields around 9am. He plays football everyday at recess, while I haven't played since a year or two after Ronald Reagan was sworn in as our President. What's the big deal? I'm in good shape. I can ride a bike for miles. I stretch and workout. What's the big deal? I'm now 43. Most of the people playing are in their 20's and 30's. They take this somewhat seriously and running is involved.

(An inside note. I've been dealing with a nagging pain around my left achilles heel area in the last few weeks. The pain has always been worse in the morning and after periods of inactivity. As I googled for information it seems to be achilles tendinitis and the cause is due to lack of flexibility in 'middle-aged' people. I resent the ideas that I'm 'middle-aged' as well as inflexible. Okay, I've been told I'm inflexible at work, but inflexible physically? I'm not ready to deal with that.)

Suffice it to say, my wife was right. I aggravated my heel "injury" and could barely walk Saturday evening and I was forced to miss a workout on Sunday which called for 2 hours of easy riding, too. "What a drag it is getting old." This stinks. I'm not ready to ruin my training for next season just yet, though I will be modifying it slightly. I guess I'll just watch football from now on.

Which reminds me to congratulate Mizzou on their great season thus far. What a fantastic game Saturday! I was confident they could beat Kansas and I am confident they can beat Oklahoma. Let's face it, they helped Oklahoma beat us in their game earlier this season. We should put them away in a similar fashion to the Kansas game. West Virginia concerns me, however.

Hopefully, I've learned my lesson. I know my place in life and it's called the sidelines. It's far safer to watch than to participate. I won't make that mistake again. That is, unless there is a bicycle involved.