Quotes

The wife and I relocated to a new city and state two weeks ago, and we're getting out new apartment set up the way we like it. It's smaller than our old house, so we've been going through boxes of stuff and putting it away, donating it to the Goodwill down the street, or throwing it out. Paring down is something that we've needed to do for a long time.

I went through one of my old plastic storage tubs the other day, and found some old quotes that I'd copied off someone else's cubicle nearly 15 years ago and used contact paper to preserve. I'm sure it's been said in various forms by countless people all over the planet, but my quote is attributed to Stephanie Scott, who said it was the motto of the 1992-93 Texas Tech Lady Raiders. She played guard on this team, which won the 1993 women's basketball national championship, four months before I enrolled there.

                 "Accomplishing anything is 10 percent ability and 90 percent desire. You just have to want to get down and do it."

This is a meaningful quote to me. It ties in to the 'give excellence' quote I have at the top of the blog. I don't know how many times I know what needs to be done but just can't motivate myself to make it happen.

As an introvert, lots of things scare me. Things I see others do regularly and seemingly in a natural way, frighten the hell out of me. This quote reminds me that personally or professionally, there are things I have to knuckle down and get done. And most of the time, it's not as bad as I make it out to be.

Top Eleven

Every now and then I spend a little time looking for articles that talk about the best Android phone apps. Back in March, I came across a game that I've come to spend a lot of time and a little bit of money playing.

Top Eleven is one of the most realistic soccer (football, for you purists) simulations out there. You get a team, set tactics and formation, and play matches in league, Champions League, and Cup tournaments. The players perform/underperform, they practice and get better, get tired or grumpy-- sometimes both, and their play follows suit. Facilities improve as you go. State-of-the-art stadiums, medical, training, parking and youth training grounds are all part of the infrastructure, and take proportional amounts of time to build. Stadiums take over two weeks, while minor things like scoreboards, parking lots, and turfs take less time. Nothing gets done overnight-- it's all a very gradual build.

Good players and a strong bench are also a requirement, since matches are sometimes scheduled with short turnaround times. I even set my alarm for 5 am one day so I could swap players out for an upcoming match. There are big wins and disappointing losses, as well as promotion and relegation. It all makes for a very realistic and challenging feel. I guess another reason I like the game is that my side is typically pretty good. I've been promoted after each season, won a league title, made a few appearance in the round of 8 in Cup play, and lost two CL finals, including once on penalty kicks.

My heart rate even elevates a little bit during games and during player auctions, and I get wrapped up in tactics, formations, opponents, standings, and what not. Sometimes I wear myself out with research, and click away for a little while. Someday I'm sure I'll grow weary of it, but for now it's got a pretty solid grip.

Now excuse me-- I have a Champions League and League Season 5 match to prepare for.