PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: The Road to Madness
First, congrats to LouPop13, not only are you the winner of a PeaceLoveBasketball T-shirt and my memoir, your UCLA pick is still in the running. I, on the other hand, was hurt on that game and many others.
Being an Eastern Washington University grad and hoopster, and an optimist, I had the Eagles going to the Final Four. Unfortunately they went down yesterday in a tough game against Georgetown. I love that they didn’t give up, but in the end my bracket took a beating, and not just from that loss.
It really hurt me, because a 45 minute massage from my husband is on the line, and bragging rights. But, there is a lot of Madness left on the road to the championship game. Go Kentucky!
Monday’s Pen to Paper: Talking About Butts and Life
It’s not like me to talk about butts, but here I go, because not only do I need to get my butt up and moving so I can get back into shape, I also need to set it back down in my chair regularly to get some writing done. Both can be difficult to manage.
With basketball season wrapping up, I am ready to get back into shape. Not that I gain weight during the season, I just don’t work out much, which means the butt drops (there’s that word again) and in general I don’t feel as healthy. In the last five days I have taken LONG walks with the dogs, ridden my bike twice, played two basketball games, gone for a run and gone to yoga. (Yoga is something I love to sneak into my life as much as possible. Read more in my article There When It Matters)
I also found time, or shall I say MADE time, to simply put my butt in a chair and write. I reintroduced myself to the characters of my Young Adult novel. I wrote a poem (very unlike me) and I revisited a short piece I had been working on in the fall that is loosely based on my family history in Austria. It was fun to get my fingers moving again and my mind working in a way that it hasn’t for a while. Even if my butt did get a little sore, it was fun to write a bit more. (wow and just like that, another poem!)
WRITING PROMPT: Just Write! Write about your family. Start your novel. Finish your magazine article. Write a short poem. Write about the “buts” that keep you from writing…”but I’m too busy, but I’m […]
PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: Win a Free T-shirt and Book!
PeaceLoveBasketball T-Shirt
Enter to win a FREE PeaceLoveBasketball T-shirt and a signed copy of my memoir Back On The Court!
It’s easy! All you have to do is answer one of the questions below in the comment section and you will be entered in the drawing. And since this blog is about writing AND basketball (and life in general), you can answer both question and be entered twice! (The drawing will take place March 19, 2015 – comments made after this date are encouraged but will not be entered in the drawing)
Question #1: Which Basketball team will be this year’s NCAA Champion? Since it’s that time of the year – March Madness 2015 is about to begin – let us know which team you believe will win the NCAA Championship (men’s or women’s).
Question #2: What is your favorite book? If you were to recommend to someone a book that they just HAD to read, what would it be? It can be a novel, a non-fiction book, a young adult book, a book of poetry, a romance novel, a mystery, a children’s book…any genre…just let us know and be entered to win a T-shirt and my memoir!
Monday’s Pen to Paper: A Season to Remember
photo by Paul Mosely
One of my coaches texted me yesterday, “Wow…no practice next week.” My reply, “Weird huh?” For the last four months we have be in full basketball mode. Practices and tournaments and games non-stop. We went undefeated in our league, were league Champions, made it through Districts and Regionals without our point guard and then headed to the State Tournament for the first time in school history.
The random draw going into the State Tournament matched us up against the #1 ranked team in the State for our first game (they eventually won the tournament). “How unlucky,” people lamented when I saw them after the brackets were set for the tournament. I stayed positive. “The good news is that we get #1 right out of the gate and we can knock them off when we are well rested.” It didn’t happen, we lost. But we came back in our second game and got the win, and then played for 4th or 6th in our final game, were we lost by just one point.
It’s hard to end the season on a loss, but I reminded the girls that we were one of the top teams in State. Placing 6th in State is incredible, especially considering five years earlier we had just three wins. Still, after four intense days of basketball, when the season ended on Saturday with a loss, it hurt. It took some reminding to appreciate what we’d done, we had changed the girl’s basketball program at our high school, made school history and excited the community.
And when I talked to the girls in the locker room after the game, I assured them that the most important thing to remember was the journey they had over the year and the friendships that […]
Meet Sonya
Meet Sonya
Sonya Elliott’s memoir, Back on the Court: A Young Woman’s Triumphant Return to Life, Love & Basketball, is her story of finding hope in the wake of tragedy after she and her fiancé were hit by a train. She blogs about writing, basketball, and life and is currently working on a Young Adult Novel and a Non-Fiction Coaching book. Stories of her career as a fashion model are woven through her memoir, as both the Soloflex and Easy Spirit Shoes commercials were filmed during that time period, and this unique and intriguing business continues to be a part of her life.
Sonya played basketball at Eastern Washington University and was a starter for the Big Sky Champion team that went to the 1987 NCAA tournament. She coached for almost 25 years and was voted Seattle Times Coach of the Year, Seattle Officials Women’s Basketball Association Coach of the Year, and twice voted Metro League Coach of the Year. She loves the game of basketball and is thankful, not only for her husband and kids but for her ability to continue to get back on the court.
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PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: “10 to Win” Rules of Defense
I love defense. When things aren’t going right on offense (maybe my shot is off or I’m having trouble handling the ball), the one thing that I can ALWAYS count on is my defense. It’s a little more difficult now that I’m not in great shape, but during my years on the court as a player I focused my energy on this part of the game, and as a coach I did the same. To help my players, I took what I have learned on the court, and from the coaches who I assisted (and those I read about and listened to at clinics) and put my favorites rules of defense together in a “10 to Win” list. If you play, or coach the game, these rules won’t be anything new to you, but it doesn’t hurt […]
PeaceLoveBasketball Friday: Get Ready for a Wild Ride
There is nothing more exciting than the playoffs. They are fun to watch, and to be a part of, because the level of talent increases, as well as the pressure, and anything can happen. We play basketball, and sports, and watch the games, because you never truly know what will happen.
Things can get crazy, and that’s why as a player, and as a coach, you have to go into every single game with intensity. I used to tell my girl’s, “Leave it all on the court ladies.” Meaning, give one hundred percent (and maybe a little more), and understand that if you give your best, that no matter the final score, you should have no regrets. Sadness and disappointment, yes, but regrets? No.
So if you’re a player or a coach heading into playoffs. Pull up you boot straps (or […]
Monday’s Pen to Paper: Celebrate Each Precious Moment
It feels like spring this morning. It’s cold and crisp but it’s lighter outside and there’s a different feel in the air. Oh, I know that this will not last long. That we will get hit again with day upon day of non-stop rain and darkness, I live in Seattle after all.
But does it matter? What is important is to take this spring teaser, this bright moment, and each precious moment in our life, and celebrate.
WRITING PROMPT #1: Write about those things that bring joy to your life.
WRITING PROMPT #2: When Eric reached the end of the trail he…
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