Category: Fourre-tout

I have made it my job (besides gossiping) to recognize the club’s Stakhanovites who go above and beyond of what is expected of them.

These last few weeks, we have seen a steady improvement of our playing field. First, there was the (once controversial) fence, then the move of the scoreboard to a better location, and recently the replacement of all the boule-stopping planks around the field.

Contrarily to what some might believe, our mini-wall owes nothing to our Twitter in Chief, and no good fairy was involved either. A few dedicated club members led by Mark and Sandra Shirkey did all of the work… without any fanfare.

Mark is a true “work hero” and like true Stakhanovites, he deserves a shiny Pour le Mérite” medal… or at least a keg of beer.

But he was not alone. My Intelligence Officers are telling me that Akira Okawa, Mike O’Leary as well as Marc Davantes, and Nick Davantes  were involved.
I might have overlooked some additional volunteers; I will glad to rectify this omission as soon as I learn more about it.

I was just reminded that Charlie was there (of course) and that the excavator operator was Paul Vierra. Thank you Marc Davantes. Evan Falcone was also very helpful in moving the kiosk.

In the former Soviet Union, Mark would have been called a “Work Hero” and be awarded a medal. In democratic Marin County, he will get a firm handshake… and maybe a peck on the cheek. If you feel exceptionally indebted, you might also let him win a few games.

Good deeds cannot go unnoticed. They inspire and nudge other people into participating in a project.

“Every time you do a good deed you shine the light a little farther into the dark. And the thing is, when you’re gone that light is going to keep shining on, pushing the shadows back.” Charles De Lint

After the battle of Austerlitz, Napoleon addressed his troops and said:
« You will just have to say: I was at the battle of Austerlitz, to be answered: here goes a brave lad!”

To paraphrase the Emperor « You will just have to say: I was at the battle of the Pétanque Court, to be answered: here goes a brave lad!”

Epilogue

Next time you see Mark, Sandra or any of the other Work Heroes, feel free to hug them or share our secret handshake with them.

Alain

“When the Zone calls, you must listen.
You never know how long being in the Zone lasts.
It is a cardinal rule – you must take advantage of every second that you are in the Zone.” ― JohnA Passaro

While playing pétanque a little while ago, something peculiar happened to me. I suddenly strongly felt that I was “in the Zone”. It might have happened to me before but I was never really aware of it. This time I was.

“In positive psychology, flow, also known as the Zone, is the mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity. … Achieving flow is often colloquially referred to as being in the Zone.”

I was at the plate ready to shoot. I threw the ball as usual, but this time it felt different. My arm and my body responded exactly as asked. The pitch felt inspired, smooth and powerful.

Usually, the second the boule leaves your hand you know if you pitched correctly. You know before the boule hits the ground if you are going to hit or miss.

When you are in the Zone, everything feels right. You are almost witnessing a slow-motion sequence of your move. Your mind is locked on the target and all your limbs perform exactly as directed. You cannot miss.

Your sojourn in Heaven is fleeting, but while it lasts it feels fantastic. I remember thinking, why couldn’t I always play like this?

But it is difficult. The body does not always perform as directed by the mind. I would almost say that the body has a mind of its own and often does as it pleases.

The secret is to keep both body and mind on a very tight leash because almost anything can break your concentration. When playing (especially shooting) you should almost be in a trance-like state… with the total absence of any external stimuli…

But finding your way to Zion is difficult. You keep trying and failing… you never know when it is going to happen. But when it does, even for a few minutes, you feel like Superman. You want to remain there forever… but the Gods of pétanque are capricious. One moment they favor you and next they discard you like a one-night stand.

Entering the Zone is like falling in love. And it is better to have loved and lost than never have loved at all.

Alain

Yesterday I/we witnessed one the greatest upset since the 2016 presidential elections.

La Pétanque Marinière was hosting a “select double” tournament sandwiched between two storms and it turned out to be one of most exciting “tournoi” of the year.

It was well attended with twenty-two “doublettes” (44 players) registered to play.

You might also have called this day “la Journée des Revenants”, the Day of the Ghosts. People who had vanished from the radar screen suddenly appeared to return from the Great Beyond.

I saw with great pleasure Colette Van Der Meulen who left the Bay Area a while ago and resurfaced yesterday (as perky as ever) to play in our tournament.
Also reappearing after a long absence, Raymond Nielsen, and his daughter Erika.

Luc Pouget also reappeared and reenlisted in LPM.

The field was still wet and soggy and it took a while for players to adapt to this condition. It was essentially (especially in the morning), a game of “plombés » and the best « plombers » were, in my opinion, Raymond Nielsen and Peter Mathis.
Especially Raymond who played with a disconcerting facility.

Before I go into the tournament itself, I want to recognize Sandra and Mark Shirkey and Akira Okawa who were instrumental in revitalizing our field. Yesterday, Mark shanghaied some sturdy fellows to move our scoreboard. It worked very well and the contraption was moved in no time.
The whole operation reminded me of the raising the flag at Iwo Jima.

Back to the tournament.

On the personal side, my teammate (Jean-Claude Bunand) and I lost our first game 6/13. We won our 2nd game 13/1 and also our 3rd game 13/6, which unfortunately qualified us for the Concours. I said unfortunately because we might have had a chance in the Consolante, while practically none playing with the Big Boys.

In the afternoon Peter Wellington and Joe La Torre quickly dispatched us,  allowing me to devote the rest of day to memorialize this event with my sneaky little camera.

In the Concours semi-finals, Patrick and Brendan faced Raymond Nielsen and his daughter Erika. Both (particularly Raymond) played very well but were defeated 13/4. I felt sorry for Erika who might have been under tremendous pressure to please her demanding father.
Also in the semi-finals, Kevin and Peter defeated Ed Porto and Woolfie 13/4.

In the finals, Peter Mathis and Kevin Evoy faced Patrick Vaslet and the Great Brendini. All excellent players.
Midgame though, the situation did not look good for Patrick and Brendan. Peter and Kevin were leading 10/3 and cruising to victory.

Peter who has a flair for the dramatic, was so relaxed that he even jumped the fence separating us from the dog park to fly to the rescue of a dog being attacked by another dog. Atta boy!

But as I always said, it ain’t over until the fat lady sings, and I never saw any fat lady loitering in the vicinity.

At one critical time, the score was 12/8 in favor of Peter and Kevin. They needed a single point to win the tournament.
But Patrick and Brendan kept their composure. Especially unflappable Patrick who remained as cool as a cucumber and saved the situation when it really mattered.

Toward the end of the tournament, in a stunning reversal of fortune, Patrick and Brendan scored 5 points to clinch the tournament. They won 13/12!

Final results

Concours
1st place: Patrick Vaslet and Brendan Cohen,  $79.00 each
2nd place: Peter Mathis and Kevin Evoy, $66.00 each
3rd place: Woolfie Kurz and Ed Porto, $53.00 each

Consolante
1st place: Delio Cuneo and J-Michel Poulnot, $40.00 each
2nd place: Charlie Davantes and Liv Kraft, $26:00 each

Alain

I have a lot of photos to show you (maybe too many) but I managed to whittle down the original number of pictures from 941 to under 250. Enjoy!