January 4th, 2014 - How to curve a bowling ball

The Dude abides...

I'll admit it: my greatest bowling achievements have never taken place on the lanes, but instead have taken place on a Nintendo Wii.

I've never been all that adept at bowling (and I say this like there are other sports-related activities out there where I'm a pro).  It's something about the rhythm and the flow of the throw, a combination of walking and...well, doing something else...that apparently befuddles me.  I've tried to get better over the years, but I've never been able to crack 100, and I've spent most of time watching my bowling ball careen into the gutter.

But it's a new year, and that means that maybe I can get over my inadequacies on the lanes.  To do this, I enlisted my friend, Kevin Sellers, to teach me how to curve a bowling ball.  My traditional throw was like Ron Swanson's: straight down the middle, no muss, no fuss.  But much like the great Costanza, if every instinct I had was wrong, then I maybe should do the opposite.

My first throw reminded me of every other throw that I had done before.  The second, however, did the trick just fine.  Will I be invited into league play with Walter, Donny, and of course, the Dude?  Probably not.  But as they say, life's just strikes and gutters.  Hopefully, with this new technique, I'll see more of the former.


Other things that I learned/looked up yesterday:

1) People in Chicago, while whiny about their Bears, are some of the friendliest people you can hope to meet (Kevin and his wife Rachel just got back from Chicago and said people there were amazing).
2) The name "Windy City," while applied for the bluster of it's politician's, also refers to the bitterly cold winter winds in Chicago (Also gleaned from Kevin and Rachel's trip.)
3) I kick ASS in laser tag.  (This was learned through personal, firsthand research.)