As I took Makai, our Anatolian Shepherd, on his walk this morning, I watched the sunrise breaking in the east. My mind drifted back to the founding of this nation and the awe that must have been experienced when viewing this wonderful “new” land for the first time. Out of this vision of majesty and freedom evolved the great American experiment, The United States of America.
Founded on principles higher than our ability to live them, America’s development, I was thinking, was similar to the evolution of a child from infancy through adolescence to adulthood, and finally into our old age and eventual demise. I reflected on Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” pamphlets that helped to galvanize an infant colony into a nation. Even then he wrote of the trade-offs of freedoms that would be extracted by the formation of a new government. Paine did not presuppose to suggest the form a new government should take but did warn of the inherent oppression that any form of government would eventually impose upon its subjects. Even a small grouping of like-minded individuals would eventually change from a successful collective with common interests to a more selfish and less cohesive grouping as interests changed and self-interest became more important than the security and prosperity of the group.
While I was thinking on these lofty philosophical issues, and minding to stop by each and every tree so that Makai could pee or else determine who had recently peed on the tree, it hit me. A more encompassing and engrossing issue was suddenly all that I could focus on….Wii Knee!
Christmas had come and gone and Santa had brought a Wii console and accessories to my daughter and son-in-law. Mrs. Commish wasn’t feeling too well so there was nothing to keep the Commish from showing the younger set that he still “had it.”
We competed in bowling and archery and various other gaming forms, looking always for something in which I could shine. Then we opened the Wii Fit Plus (or Extra, or whatever it is called). We got on the Wii Board and got measured and balance tested and so forth and so on. The Commish came up with a Wii age of double nickel. Not too shabby for a recently turned 61 year old. BMI was borderline between “Overweight” and “Obese.” This, too, was a win as everyone else was firmly in the “Obese” range. What a great Christmas gift. For a mere $400 we have a game that not only insults you but tells you that your goals to get better are not within reason!
Then we took some Wii Fit options to improve ourselves. The Commish immediately choose “Yoga” and excelled at “Breathing.” Hey, how wrong could I go? I figure if you are still alive then you must have a handle on the concept. The “Obese” youngsters proceeded to advance to “Hula Hoops” and then “Super Hula Hoops.” Of course, since Mrs. Commish was home in bed nursing her head cold, nothing could stop me from playing again and again, knowing that this next round was the one I would win. Finally the phone call came saying, “It’s 11:30, do you know where your Commish is?”
Leaving the scene of my defeats, I knew that I could have won if only we had Hula Hooped one more time. Well, tomorrow there would be Wii Golf. After all, I am the Commish of The Bad Golfers Association and I intend to use all of my skills to bury the competition.
This morning as I walked the dog and thought about Thomas Paine, Mr. Real Paine made himself known to me in my left knee. Wii Knee, I was sure. Well, I hobbled back up the hill pulling a dog the size of Delaware that just wanted to smell one more tree and chase one more small herd of deer. Strange to believe, but even Wii Knee has an upside. My son-in-law, who beat me in archery, hula hoops, bowling, etc., woke up with Wii Shoulder!
Tonight I will use my secret weapon, learned during the many rounds of bad golf I have played…tonight I will take Aleve, not before tee time but an hour before Wii time. Tonight Wii means ME.
No comments:
Post a Comment