MY OTHER LIFE

So, what does a writer do when she’s not writing? Thinking about writing, of course. Planning the next day, jotting down ideas, researching, corresponding – BUT there comes a time when the mind just shuts down and the body says, “MY turn.” It’s a very singular, lonely, sedentary job, writing is. Which is why my other passion is as challenging physically as writing is mentally. That would be…..

HANDBALL!

One way to shoot the ball. Huh? You ask. Handball? No, not the sport that you only hear about during the Olympics – that’s team handball – sort of like soccer only you can use your, well, hands. MY handball is court handball. You know, sort of like racquetball only without the weapons, er, I mean racquets.

You ask, isn’t that – no offense – a MAN’S sport? While men first starting playing handball (like all sports) women have become increasingly involved over the last twenty years. I grant you, our numbers are small, but our spirit is great. Here in the Northwest, there are only a handful of women playing regularly. So, when I play, I play men.

It’s a tough sport, as anyone who has been infected with this disease will tell you. If you aren’t familiar with handball, it’s played on a racquetball court – which by the way, was a handball court long before it was a racquetball court – and in handball, your only two weapons are your right and your left hands. The ball is smaller, heavier and harder than a racquetball. Playing handball forces you to develop your off-hand side. Just try effectively throwing a ball with your off-hand and see what I mean. It takes years to develop handball skills, but you’ll know the first time you make contact with that little hard ball if this is the game for you.

WARNING: IT’S AN ADDICTION AND TO MY KNOWLEDGE THERE IS NO TWELVE STEP RECOVERY PROGRAM.

I guess that’s why there are men’s age brackets up to 80 and over in the National Tournaments! I guess that’s why I hope to play it for the rest of my life. To ensure that level of fitness, I also run, bike, and (yuk) lift weights. Again, we writers need some mean physical activity to balance out the hours of utilizing butt glue – you know, that stuff we have to coat on our chairs in order to keep us working.

Writers should downplay the use of adverbs, but. . . I play handball aggressively, competitively, avidly, passionately, constantly, and lovingly. That’s how addicted to this game I am. If you’re a player and are ever in the Tacoma, Washington area, drop me an email and I’ll set something up.

If you want to know more about this game, link over to the United State Handball Association at http://www.ushandball.org.