Chip Shot: This time for real
March 12, 2021 at 11:47 p.m.
Chip Shot: This time for real
By Chip Davenport-
for real
I woke up at what I thought was 7:00 a.m. on my watch last Sunday, and I began to open blinds feeling joy from the sight of bright sunlight! Then I thought it must really be 8:00 a.m. because it’s sunny and Daylight Savings Time (DST) had begun.
The joy quickly shifted to a bit of embarrassment.
I looked at my smart phone (smarter than I in this case) instead of my watch, and it, much to my chagrin, correctly read 7:00 a.m. I realized I began last week’s column talking about the imminent DST.
Any defense of my error would be pathetic.
It’s not like one of those Gestalt things where you subconsciously turn a trick card deck with red clubs into black, or naturally add the missing word to a typo you’re reading. I was just… so… wrong!
I became more amused than embarrassed because I realized I went through the entire weekend thinking the clocks were moving forward Sunday morning. I reminded my family, too, before closing the door behind me early Saturday evening on my way to Culver to cover a sectional basketball final.
It felt like the way I would feel if I found a very visible chive in my tooth after lunch following a meeting or a hallway conversation at work. What the heck? No one pointed out this thing to me!
There are times I’ve tripped over nothing and either fell to the ground or bounced a few extra feet forward and regained my balance. I usually counter the physical gaffe with an Olympic gymnast-styled dismount in the hopes the people witnessing my lack of grace would give me some mercy points… and laugh a little bit with me instead of at me!
Last Sunday morning, to an audience of two cats staring at the snack pantry, I did an Olympic gymnast-styled dismount!
I moved on. Now, I’ll move on.
I like covering area sports and sharing my thoughts for the Times-Union because I’m a guy who’s not from around here. I see the boys and girls on the hardcourt and the gridiron, and I appreciate their contributions in the moment regardless of their local bloodlines.
Caden Silveus, for example, was a talented three-year starter at defensive back who also made some great offensive plays and kick returns for the Tigers last fall. I had no idea his dad was the defensive coordinator for Warsaw at one time until wrestling coach and current defensive coordinator Kris Hueber told me he played under Coach Silveus near the end of a great conversation and interview.
Initially, I thought shame on me for not having this knowledge. However, it wasn’t relative to the outcome of the games I mentioned Silveus-the-Younger.
I look at it this way. Roger Grossman is a great sports information director. I believe if I need to tie the relevance between Warsaw sports trivia to a current athlete’s notable performance, I can reach out to Roger. Otherwise, it’s solely the athlete’s moment in the sun.
Relevance is the key word here. Warsaw football coach Bart Curtis nailed it when he talked about the Tigers’ first win over Plymouth, 28-14, since 2013, Better yet, it was the first Warsaw win at The Rock Pile since 2012.
Curtis cited in interviews earlier in the week these kids were in fifth grade the last time Warsaw beat the Rockies. He punctuated that fact noting most of those kids probably didn’t remember that game.
The parents and other adult fans sure remember, though. Almost to a fault. I even brought up how young the four seniors were who made key plays in the fray in my game coverage.
If you scratch the surface, a victory over Plymouth wasn’t foreign territory for those seniors. The graduating class of 2021 had been kicking Plymouth’s kiesters in middle school football, and middle and high school basketball, and JV football through recent years.
I guess those kids didn’t get the memo. Instead, they savored the September 4th victory instead of recalling the previous drought.
Sometimes our knowledge of high school sports lore gets in the way of enjoying the moment in front of us. I’ve lived in Michiana almost 25 years, 17 of those years in the Lake City. Watching Tiger sports long before my son played middle school and high school football helped me enjoy the athletes before and after his years at Warsaw Community High School. I became accustomed to Tiger teams reloading with new athletes, new family, and new student fans each school year. Let’s keep enjoying each group’s turn in the spotlight.
E-Editions
for real
I woke up at what I thought was 7:00 a.m. on my watch last Sunday, and I began to open blinds feeling joy from the sight of bright sunlight! Then I thought it must really be 8:00 a.m. because it’s sunny and Daylight Savings Time (DST) had begun.
The joy quickly shifted to a bit of embarrassment.
I looked at my smart phone (smarter than I in this case) instead of my watch, and it, much to my chagrin, correctly read 7:00 a.m. I realized I began last week’s column talking about the imminent DST.
Any defense of my error would be pathetic.
It’s not like one of those Gestalt things where you subconsciously turn a trick card deck with red clubs into black, or naturally add the missing word to a typo you’re reading. I was just… so… wrong!
I became more amused than embarrassed because I realized I went through the entire weekend thinking the clocks were moving forward Sunday morning. I reminded my family, too, before closing the door behind me early Saturday evening on my way to Culver to cover a sectional basketball final.
It felt like the way I would feel if I found a very visible chive in my tooth after lunch following a meeting or a hallway conversation at work. What the heck? No one pointed out this thing to me!
There are times I’ve tripped over nothing and either fell to the ground or bounced a few extra feet forward and regained my balance. I usually counter the physical gaffe with an Olympic gymnast-styled dismount in the hopes the people witnessing my lack of grace would give me some mercy points… and laugh a little bit with me instead of at me!
Last Sunday morning, to an audience of two cats staring at the snack pantry, I did an Olympic gymnast-styled dismount!
I moved on. Now, I’ll move on.
I like covering area sports and sharing my thoughts for the Times-Union because I’m a guy who’s not from around here. I see the boys and girls on the hardcourt and the gridiron, and I appreciate their contributions in the moment regardless of their local bloodlines.
Caden Silveus, for example, was a talented three-year starter at defensive back who also made some great offensive plays and kick returns for the Tigers last fall. I had no idea his dad was the defensive coordinator for Warsaw at one time until wrestling coach and current defensive coordinator Kris Hueber told me he played under Coach Silveus near the end of a great conversation and interview.
Initially, I thought shame on me for not having this knowledge. However, it wasn’t relative to the outcome of the games I mentioned Silveus-the-Younger.
I look at it this way. Roger Grossman is a great sports information director. I believe if I need to tie the relevance between Warsaw sports trivia to a current athlete’s notable performance, I can reach out to Roger. Otherwise, it’s solely the athlete’s moment in the sun.
Relevance is the key word here. Warsaw football coach Bart Curtis nailed it when he talked about the Tigers’ first win over Plymouth, 28-14, since 2013, Better yet, it was the first Warsaw win at The Rock Pile since 2012.
Curtis cited in interviews earlier in the week these kids were in fifth grade the last time Warsaw beat the Rockies. He punctuated that fact noting most of those kids probably didn’t remember that game.
The parents and other adult fans sure remember, though. Almost to a fault. I even brought up how young the four seniors were who made key plays in the fray in my game coverage.
If you scratch the surface, a victory over Plymouth wasn’t foreign territory for those seniors. The graduating class of 2021 had been kicking Plymouth’s kiesters in middle school football, and middle and high school basketball, and JV football through recent years.
I guess those kids didn’t get the memo. Instead, they savored the September 4th victory instead of recalling the previous drought.
Sometimes our knowledge of high school sports lore gets in the way of enjoying the moment in front of us. I’ve lived in Michiana almost 25 years, 17 of those years in the Lake City. Watching Tiger sports long before my son played middle school and high school football helped me enjoy the athletes before and after his years at Warsaw Community High School. I became accustomed to Tiger teams reloading with new athletes, new family, and new student fans each school year. Let’s keep enjoying each group’s turn in the spotlight.
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