Rugby report:

Two matches (160 minutes) played. Win vs. Erie RFC, Win vs. Canisius College RFC.

Injury report: Severely sprained left ankle, pulled muscles in left leg (near knee, hip), rake marks to abdomen, chest, back, arms, legs, cleat punctures on hand, leg, general soreness.

Conclusions: The human body is not designed to play two full matches of competitive rugby in a day. I was impressed with the fact that for 158 minutes I was fit enough to keep up and compete. I do however feel that I was injured because I just didn't have "anyting left in the tank" by that point. So now I've got two weeks to gear up and get healthy before the Dead Ants tournament in Batavia. On the good side of things, we dominated in the lineouts (I stole 4 or 5 each game...nothing beats the feeling of being 12 or 13 feet in the air) and in the scrum...good news for our future.


Now the dilemma....

What would you do if one of your friends told you you could probably get a good position in a part of the country you'd always wanted to live...but that meant leaving behind everything you'd ever really known and moving all the way across the country?

A friend of mine in Oregon told me his company is looking for someone and that I'd probably fit the bill. He said I could live with him...either on a semi-permanent basis or until I get a place of my own. I've always wanted to live on the west coast...but to pick up everything I've ever known and head out there? The prospects haven't ever been this "real" to me before.

Big decision time, eh?

Oy....lol.

-Austin

The following story takes place within a 72 hour period.....(lol):

What an absolutely CRAZY weekend! Lots of fun, some pain, too much booze, weird tan lines, bad phone calls.....but I digress...let's take it from the top, shall we?

Friday started for me at 5:00 am. I got up, went for a drive to procure nicotine and gasoline, and then stopped off for caffeine (that's alotta -ines!), before returning home at about 6:45. After that, I put in my 8 GRUELING hours at work...(seriously...on a "holiday" Friday...it was torturous..). I got home and was completely and totally wiped out, but as I REALLY wanted to try and get laid this weekend (I know, I know...that's not conducive to meeting someone and falling in love...but it's been a while...even my last blowjob was weeks ago...), I decided to head out to Allentown with (e:theecarey) and see what we could find. However, I was in need of a nap at this point (having been up since 5), and so I decided to hit my bed for a couple of hours. So I hopped into bed around 7 (after dinner, setting up plans, etc...), telling (e:theecarey) to call me before she left her house, which would give me about 45 minutes to get ready to head out. Well...for those who haven't slept with me (or near me, around me, etc...)...I sleep like a friggin log. My house could collapse around me Looney-Toons style and I would still be asleep. So not only did I miss (e:theecarey)'s first phone call to say she was leaving...I also missed her 2 phone calls when she arrived at my house...plus her knocking on my door...plus my neighbour calling me...plus the neighbour's dog barking. However, one of her calls (in combination with everything else) did finally manage to rouse me from dreamland...and I managed to pull on shorts and a t-shirt (thank god...sometimes the whole sleeping naked thing can be a bit of a liability...lol) before almost taking a header downstairs to open the door. There was (e:theecarey)...all glitzed up and ready to hit the town...and here I was, in Adidas shorts, a rugby t-shirt, and unable to even form a complete word. After a couple of cigarettes, I was able to start speaking and then I hopped in the shower to get ready to go. After the shower and a bottle of wine, we were ready to hit the town. We made it down to Frizzy's by about 11:30, and met up with (e:vincent) and his friend. Had a great time...drank too much...wound up at The Pink...were there until close. (e:theecarey) and I then said our good-byes to (e:vincent) (even though we were all having a great time...we'll all have to do that again...:) ) and we headed home.....okay...well...not home...to Jim's. Yes...to Jim's...where the birds were already chirping away on Elmwood...which reminded me...I had a rugby match to play in 9 hours. Oh..I failed to mention that I got a last minute notice earlier on Friday afternoon that the Buffalo Old Boys had requested that we play a B-side match for them against Syracuse (our rivals) on Saturday? Ooops...silly me. Oy. So we ate, and drove back to my place...where I thankfully was able to crash out by about 6 am. Which, by my half-assed plans, allowed me 5 blissful hours of sleep before rushing around to get my ass ready to play. Still didn't get laid...but oh well..had a great time anyway.

So those 5 hours of sleep I was planning on getting? Yeah right...they turned into the 3 hours of sleep I ACTUALLY got before the birds and the big blazing ball of nuclear fusion we call a sun woke my ass up. Hungover and dehydrated, I set about making the most of my morning. That is to say, I made lots of coffee, popped some pills, grabbed an entire pitcher of water, and took about 6 hits off an asthma inhaler to clear my lungs of all of the smoking I had done the night before while crashing out on my couch. At 11 (the proposed "wakeup" time...), I dragged myself back upstairs to hit the shower and try and wake myself up enough to go out and run for 80 minutes. I then tossed on some spandex, some shorts, and headed off to Delaware Park. I arrived to find the party already gearing up and found a good spot to watch the A-side game with the rest of my team. I grabbed a couple of pre-game beers and we talked while watching Buffalo beat the snot out of 'Cuse (thank god..I hate those guys..). The highlight of the match was seeing our very loquacious team president (McGowan) be stopped mid-sentence by the sight of two very attractive (I'd go as far as to use the term "lipstick" for both of them) lesbians in full lip-locking glory. So, as the A-side match was winding down, I got kitted up to head in for the B-side match. This was my first REAL (non-practice) rugby of the spring..so I wasn't expecting much. I played a decent match...no real touches but a lot of good rucking and several good tackles. I did spend 3 minutes in the sin bin (only the 3rd time of my career) for a "late hit". Listen...rugby is a rough sport, and I WILL make it a lot rougher if you're going to slow down and showboat in the try zone. This kid thought he was going to waltz uncontested in between the posts to touch the ball down. Well...that's well and good..but you'd better do it at full speed or I'm going to DRILL you into the ground....so that's what I did. Unfortunately...he DID touch the ball down when I was about 5 steps out (moving at full speed...), but there was no way I was going to stop. All in all..it wasn't a bad first match...not one of my best...but definately passable seeing how hungover I was. After the match, I stripped down, put on my "after" clothes, and started drinking. The Old Boys were kind enough to have 2 kegs of Flying Bison on hand for the afterparty. Those kegs, combined with the 5 cases of Molson we already had for our (South Buffalo) team alone, made for a great afternoon. We stood around eating dogs/burgers and drinking great beer while having a blast recalling good hits from the match, making plans for the evening, and reliving old times. Most of the guys decided they wanted to head to the Colonie Lounge (please see previous posts for warnings about this strip club...!!), but in my completely obliterated state I just couldn't bring myself to go drink more beer and stare at less than attractive naked women (besides..that doesn't help me get laid...lol). Besides...spending the day before Easter at a strip club just seemed so incredibly wrong. (This is the day Christ spent in Hell...so to replicate that experience, I decided to spend the day at the Colonie...hmmm...LOL) So I hopped back in my car and made the trek back to my house in South Buffalo...where the plan was to take a nap and get up and head out again. Well...that didn't happen...the nap became "Austin has LEFT THE BUILDING" and I ended up waking up at 8 am Sunday morning. (If you're keeping score...I still didn't get laid at this point...)

Sunday morning started out great. I grabbed the paper, some coffee, turned on the TV to listen to the worthless Sunday morning network political jibber-jabber and nursed my wounds. (Total injury count: 4 cleat rake marks [chest, abdomen, knee, back], 1 contusion [right knee], general soreness to back, legs, butt, neck, shoulders. and sunburn to face [with bonus awful tanline mid-forehead due to scrum cap]) I got a call from a "friend" on Sunday afternoon...so I headed over to her place for a lazy Easter Sunday afternoon snuggling on the couch, watching bad TV and talking. It was fun and relaxing, but that's it....yup...no getting laid for me this past weekend. (Sorry...no good stories like (e:Jenks)' post...) And Sunday ended in probably the worst way possible. I got a phone call from my most recent "very-serious" ex. She's getting married. Yup...so now I'm 4 for 4 on the "you're an amazing guy and I love you but it just isn't working" breakups converting into "after we ended things, I met this great guy and now we're getting married...". Just friggin fabulous...y'know...I thought I was lonely before...but now...well...that's a whole new level of lonliness. Any woman out there feel like having a great time with me for a couple of years and then breaking up and finding the man of your dreams? Apparently..that's my lot in life. Oh well...my "Miss Perfect-For-Me" is out there...I'm sure I'll find her. No reason to let that spoil and otherwise good, fun weekend. Or maybe it is...I don't know...it's too much to ponder at this point. Things will happen if and when they're supposed to...I can't waste time and effort trying to force them.....

Sorry for being so verbose...just a lot of craziness....lol.

-Austin

Well...I survived Day One of outdoor practice. I escaped with only some minor injuries (a friction burn on my hip because I wore regular boxer-briefs instead of spandex and we worked on lineouts for about an hour...lol...getting hoisted 12 feet in the air by your shorts can lead to these sorts of things if you aren't prepared..the other injury was self-inflicted...a nick to my left ankle...when I get tired I start to overpronate and basically ended up dragging my cleats across my ankle), and today I'm ready to do it all over again.

On to the topic of the day...names. This actually came to me at practice on Tuesday...someone used one of my many nicknames...one that I hadn't heard in a while. (He called me McDerf...) This got me thinking of all the different names/nicknames I've had over the course of my life. So, I sat down last night and put together a fairly comprehensive list of them all, and decided to share (even the AWFUL ones..). If nothing else, this has brought back a ton of great memories....

Austin
Freddie
Frederick Austin
Craig
Fast Freddy
Craiger
Derf
Faust
Freddy-bear
Bear
Harvard
Federale
Fiddy-One
And One
Wales
Frelix
McDerf
Big Sexy
Bareback
Spurs
Slim Shady
"Auuuuuuustinyoudon'thavetoturnontheredlight"
Shrek

Now that you're all laughing.......I'll field any questions....lol.

So I was reading through several journals and find myself with new or concurrent ideas on some of the key issues they've touched on. This is a good thing because I find myself unable to articulate exactly what is causing me so much distress lately. I often have an inability to find the root of things which are getting me down and really work to solve them. (Which is odd, because I can usually cut right to the quick when I'm helping someone ELSE with their problems......)

The first journal that really got me thinking is (e:Flacidness). I can completely relate to having a hellish "family" life. I haven't spoken to my mother since Christmas. I haven't really spoken to my siblings since probably Thanksgiving. And my father...well...I haven't heard from him since my high school graduation back in '97. This hasn't really bothered me...I have assembled a new "family" out of my friends. Great...I understand and accept this. However...why does it seem that other people I meet in my professional and personal life don't understand why I don't contact my family? Why does this constitute a character flaw on my part and NOT on the part of my family? I'm lost....I dunno. It seems even if your family treated you like crap you're obligated to pretend that life is all roses and hearts and small fluffy animals. Anyway....

The other journal that really got to me was (e:Byllc). Wow...talk about an unexpected kick in the chest. The simple premise was, "When was the last time you were really and genuinely excited?". I took this to mean the downright elated to be alive, birds-are-singing, choir of angels type of excited. The type of excited you got all the time as a kid, when everything was new...when everything was earth-shattering. The type of excited I got before/during the first time I had sex (sorry about all that excitement Miranda....wherever you are....haha), the type of excitement I felt when I got my acceptance letters for university, the type of excitement I felt in huddle before the first play of my first game of football in college. The last time I was ever THAT excited.....was when I proposed to my ex-fiancee. And it was at that realization that three things immediately happened; 1) I realized how much I'd changed in the past 3.5-4 years, 2) I became angry that someone who would eventually hurt me so incredibly badly would "hold" that position in my life, and 3) I became really really confused. You see, over the past few years (I'd say the last year especially), I decided that I definately didn't want children and probably didn't really ever want to get married either. That's not to say that I don't want serious or deep relationships...just that I don't see the benefits to having a binding contract with a member of the opposite sex. Great...then why hasn't there been any sort of excitement like that in my life since? By steering clear of marriage as a whole, am I then denying myself access to this level of excitement ever again?

And now..well..now I'm just depressed. I realize that I've only really ever truly and deeply loved three people in my entire life. And that I haven't had that feeling in quite some time now. And how much I miss that feeling of being able to tell someone anything and everything and have them really and truly care about what I'm telling them. And how I miss waking up next to someone...and not being alone. The feeling of security and understanding...I even miss the fights sometimes. (You just can't have a good fight with someone you don't love/care about enough to put the effort in.....lol). And what's almost worse is that, looking back on things, I don't have any idea as to how to find that again. It feels like those three wonderful experiences in my life just fell in my lap...I don't know how I'd obtain that again. They all happened in very different ways...and they all seem so random now. And how in retrospect I definately didn't cherish those times the way I should have, I took them for granted. I miss it and I want it again.......but I definately feel like I'm "all dressed up with nowhere to go", so to speak.

Well...there's always tomorrow, right?

First off, I'd like to thank (e:LadyCroft) and (e:Theecarey) (and later (e:) David) for coming out and supporting myself and the rest of the SBRFC Thugs in our outstanding win over the Cortland-Homer Thundering Herd on Saturday afternoon. Thank you for braving the wind and rain and overall "grayness" of the day to come out and cheer us on (with your amazing pink and tinfoil pom-poms.. :) )

Where to begin with this past weekend...hmmm...it was absolutely amazing. Saturday started out great with the huge win in rugby. Then we had a great time having a few beers and watching the "show" after the match. After going home and getting cleaned up I decided to head up to (e:Theecarey)'s place for a bonfire (which, living in the city, I don't get to have anymore..) . I got up there and talked with (e:Theecarey) for a while before (e:pyrcedgrrl) arrived with the party supplies. (Except the gin which was safely tucked away in the impregnible packaging it was purchased in.....) (e:David) and (e:LadyCroft) arrived and we had a full-blown party/bonfire/get-together/funtime. We stayed up talking late into the night before I was finally forced to call it an evening and head back to the city. I had a great night....entirely unexpectedly. :)

Sunday was a day spent cleaning, doing laundry, and mowing the lawn (in addition to napping to catch up on all the sleep I missed over the weekend).

All in all it, it was an absolutely amazing weekend....yeah...just amazing.... :) .

Well...as some of you already know, I actually came out to meet you crazy bunch of folks on Friday. I had a good time.....you guys aren't a bad (or very crazy..lol) bunch at all. Had a few beers, talked to some good people....a good "first date" with a new group of people..lol.

The rest of the weekend...well...more of my boring life. I went for a quick little jog on Saturday, about 2.5 miles. (It was our bye week for rugby, so no match) Then spent the rest of the day lounging around, watching some TV and generally being a vegetable. Saturday evening was a quick birthday party for a friend, with a few beers afterward. Sunday was a total write-off...I went to Wegmans in the morning and spent the rest of the day watching the Bills basically be the Bills and, upon becoming too disgusted to watch that any further, went up to read and take a nap.

Of course I had to be up by 9 last night...to watch "Rome", which is by far the best thing HBO has ever done. (Except maybe "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers", which was also on recently..but I digress) Of course this is coming from the guy who spent 5 years of high school plowing through translation in Latin, so I may be a bit biased. Regardless, it's got a bit of everything...drama, comedy, sex, and all with a fairly accurate (if occassionally overly dramatic) portrayal of Roman society.

As a further aside to the previous paragraph, it's here that I'd like to offer my very public apology to every language teacher/professor/tutor I've ever had and to the Modern Languages Department at St. Lawrence University. Having studied Latin, Spanish, New Testament Greek, Japanese, and Russian, I'm guilty of having studied them only (or mostly) for the sake of learning about the culture behind them. Yes I could have taken those stuffy, boring cultual courses, but I've found you don't really learn half as much as you do by studying the actual language along with the culture. So there it is, my apology for wasting everyone's valuable time...lol.

Sorry to be a bit scatterbrained today...but it is Monday morning.

Possibly some more later....

Where to begin a journal about my life?

Well....first off...it's not very exciting. I'm a 26 year old business-world working stiff handling claims for a major insurance company here in Buffalo. (No, not Geico...oy..lol) I put in my 8 hours a day, mostly dealing with people who don't take the time to read anything (pet peeve for an English major...) and generally using only 2% of my brain in any given day. I've got all the usual accoutrements that go along with life...rent, car payment, student loans, bills, etc etc. *laugh*

So that kills 40 hours each week....the rest I spent sitting on the couch, playing rugby (wonderfully violent), heading out with friends, drinking, eating, and sleeping.

Like I said...not very exciting (well..except the rugby..lol)...but it's life. I've got good friends, a good family, and live in reasonable comfort.

And really, what else is there?