Sixty years of living leads to a simplistic perspective. Baseball, poker and life are my bottom line. Thoughts rattle trying to make sense of it.
Baseball is a game of failure that emits joy to the incessant fan. The radio broadcasts of my youth have been replaced by high-definition spectacles. Box scores have morphed into a statistical wonderland. Old-school grinders have evolved into celebrity wealth magnets. The more things change; the more they stay the same. Hitting a baseball flung from 60'6" at speeds approaching 100 miles per hour is incomprehensible. Turning a double play is a marvel of coordination and teamwork under fire. Catching a ball on the dead run while careening into a wall sparks drama. A game that weaves strategy, athleticism, psychology, competition and history has a vice grip on those of us who can't get enough.
Poker is a game of failure that produces frustration and satisfaction. A battle of wits, by a gaggle of disparate competitors, prompt the addicted to chase the action, forever.
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Life is the ultimate game of failure. Possessions, accomplishments and ego trips fade with a looming expiration date. We all end up in the same place. Squeezing joy out of the mundane is an attribute. The late, great Warren Zevon was a role model. A prognosis of terminal illness prompted the following advice, "Enjoy every sandwich." Enough said.
