Competitive ponderings
June 9, 2008
Queen’s Birthday Ping Pong Round Robin Extravaganza was the event to be at yesterday – to see and be seen. Entry price was a contribution of bbq meat, and of course VIP guests (they love to show off) bought a salad too. Doors to the Cooper household closed at 6:45pm and with abated breath all guests waited for the announcement of team pairings for the compulsory playing of ping pong. No play, no pasta salad for you matey. As master of ceremonies Coops carried out the draw with surprising dexterity, achieving some hysterical pairings (Mark and Jacqueline) and a lot of boy/girl teams, which included Hayden and I.
After 4 rounds of ruthless playing the ultimate grand final was upon us – Hayden & Amy vs Jarrod & Josh. Both teams hustled out to the patio for some pre-game sledging and final tactic talks. Bats examined one last time, words of reassurance exchanged and as Eye of the Tiger filled the atmosphere teams entered the lounge room arena to rapturous applause. I don’t know if our hastily prepared team uniform of aluminium foil helmets worked in our favour but we fought a hard battle and lost gloriously. The sweet taste of victory slid past our mouths like a 2 year old eating spaghetti.
I LOVE a good competition. It’s the reassurance of knowing you’re good. Even more though, it’s the constant challenge, the uneasy feeling that it could all fall apart at any second, and that little kick of adrenaline when you rocket over a hurdle that’s standing in the way of your goal. Which brings me to my second line of thought.
For as long as I can remember, music has been part of me. When you love something so passionately, you reflect it back to other people. It’s one of the key things that people define me by, so why aren’t I as competitive about my music as the other bazillion things I tackle in my life? Music is my so called ‘desert island item’, so it probably deserves to be higher up the list than the current spot I’ve delegated it to. I need to attack it with the same ferocity that I channel into overhauling procedures at work (which I actually quite enjoy, it brings out the control freak in me…)
Who would have thought ping pong could unveil so much clarity? So music, this next serve’s for you, and I’m aiming for game, set, match.
Lotsa Laughs
Amnesty
