Bring the soul to the hole...

After chasing down a long rebound while playing a spirited game of "21" in Memorial Hall Monday Morning, I had a choice to make. I could pull up and take a jump shot which would signal that I was indeed dog tired (although my middle name should be "Ames" because the J is absent). Option number two would be to suck it up and drive to the bucket anyway to get a better shot. I chose option two and drove full speed down the right baseline. Mike, a freshman kid from my Lifetime Fitness & Wellness class who goes about 6'3, 215 lbs., saw me out of the corner of his eye and he runs over to meet me and block the shot. Instead of shooting with my strong hand (right) and having my layup attempt swatted to Caroline County, Maryland, creative instinct took over. I went up, shielded him with my body, snuck the ball past him with my left hand, off the glass and in the hoop. The ensuing collision of 500-plus pounds of negro sent him sprawling to the ground and me stumbling and crashing into the folded bleachers, but the oohs and ahhs from everyone else in the gym was enough for me to crack a slight smile.

Small incidents like these (although I made it sound like the greatest play in basketball history) let me know that my energy is at an all-time since I went on this weight loss venture, which of course I have yet to come up with a suitable name for. The working title was originally "Huck Motivation 101: let's get it," referencing my given nickname at the Hornet newspaper and a play on Young Jeezy's first album. However, it just seems too...corny. So I guess it'll be the weight loss of which we do not speak, who knows?

As I've played basketball with these jovial, fresh-faced, energetic misfits commonly known as the class of 2010, I realized that I missed those two summers when my best friends and I hit every court in the city of Wilmington, and sometimes beyond, looking for a good game or an open court so we could play "Free." The laughs we used to share in between yelling at each other for not hustling, covering for each other on defense or taking bad shots were legendary, we still have jokes to this day about everything we've experienced in life.

In the years since, I've obviously become withdrawn and difficult, not wanting to stray outside or towards a gym for fear of being a joke. Getting over that fear has also allowed me to go to the gym twice a week now (about to make it three times) so I can really accelerate my progress and get ready for life after Delaware State University.

Moral of the story? It's always easier to take the jumper, but if you go to the hole, good things most often times do happen. And I'm definitely looking forward to going to the hole more often.