Reading

Somehow, ( I still haven't figured out how) I managed to do some reading outside of my class readings. I had picked up The Amateur Gourmet and the gentle insistence of my mother (She has also bought me a few cookbooks and foisted as much of her old cookware on me as I can possibly handle).

Recently I have decided that I am going to eat healthier and just better in general (aka I will not have Top Ramen as a meal, just as a snack). Not only because I really need to get in shape for ultimate season, but also, all kidding aside, that I really do want to be eating better quality foods and meals. 

I already love baking. If you follow me on Twitter you know that I am making some kind of pie, cake or bread just about every other day. You follow the recipe, put in the time and effort, and watch it carefully; easy. Cooking on the other hand sometimes is a bit beyond me. There's fire and timing and planning and all this other stuff involved that I don't fully understand. There is also not an easy set of directions to follow to make a good meal. So I am slowly working on this skill. 

This book just gave me some helpful pointers. And made me realize that I don't have to be the amazing chef that my mother is right off the bat. I was banned from doing specific duties in the kitchen as a child after literally burning water, so I have a lot to learn. 

But I am kind of looking forward to the failures. 

Pres Day

We had Pres Day this weekend. It was an awesome tournament. I was really excited to go because 1) there were women's teams from all over the US and Canada, and most of them were in the top 25 teams, 2) it was my first tournament back playing after surgery, and 3) I was going to see a lot of friends that I haven't seen in a long time.

Day 1: We started the day off playing Long Beach. It was, as usual a really fun game. It got us going in the morning, but as we had Ottawa right afterwards, I don't think it was the ideal situation for us as a team. We still have a lot of work to do mentally to stay in games as a team, to stay motivated and positive and "in it" on every point. We ended up losing to Ottawa 11-12. I hate losing on universe point. We then had a bye and then beat Illinois 12-5 and lost to Oregon in universe point again 8-9. Throughout the day we improved our mental game, as well as really focusing on offense and upping the intensity on defense. 

Day 2: Because we ended up 3rd in our pool (aka pool of death) we were relegated to the reclusive swamp field. We beat Davis 13-4 and then had a great game against Colorado that we won 12-9. Kali is always really fun to play, they are always joking and fun and then really intense on the field. 

After that we switched fields and played a really intense game against UBC. We were trading points the entire game, and we were up almost the whole game but we couldn't convert the last two points and lost the game in universe yet again 12-13. I can't think of a game that stings more, because we had the game in hand, and let it just slip away. It was frustrating not being able to convert. But this is a game that will fuel me, and the rest of the Hellions for the rest of the season. Because we are a good enough team to win games like that. 

Day 3: On this day the entire women's tournament moved to San Bernardino. I have to give my props to Loryn and Joule. They planned and organized a great tournament. A three day tournament with rain looming on multiple fields and moving 20 teams to San Bernardino and figuring out that logistical nightmare is incredible. 

We had two games. We played Arizona and really played well and worked in the rainy and cold conditions. Unfortunately most of the team, living in So Cal, doesn't know how to dress to keep warm, so in the second game against Carlton, we just broke down due to freezing. (I am going to write a manual so that this doesn't happen again). 

All in All it was a great tournament. (Pictures to come later)

Hellions Pie

Being part of the leadership for the Hellions, we have been trying to supplement the very small budget the USC gives us. We also like to reach out to the rest of the ultimate community. So when Five Ultimate announced their college sponsorship program, we decided to apply. 

This was our application video, written by Broccoli and myself and performed by the team. It's mostly just entertaining. 

We like to make up songs to cheer other teams, so we figured this was the best way to show ourselves as a team. We take our spirit very seriously and as a team we can actually carry a tune, which helps out immensely. Ultimate is fun, on and off the field. 

The sponsorship with Five didn't work out due miscommunications about requirements, but we are good friends with the people who supply with neon pink shorts. Maybe next year... I still enjoy watching this video though. Notice the wedgie picking at the end. :)