Summer Has Come to a Close

If you were up and on the road before gas stations open on the weekdays this summer and happened to be driving down the interstate from Atlanta to northeast Georgia, there is a good chance that blue and silver bullet you saw on the highway was Ole Blue. Those who know me realize that calling my truck a bullet would suggest that my truck and me may travel even somewhat fast. That is a loosely-worded suggestion.

This summer I completed my first of two fieldworks (or an internships for you non-OT people) towards my occupational therapy degree and was lucky enough to be at Peachtree Orthopaedic Physical Therapy (POC) in Dunwoody, an outpatient clinic.

POC is the official orthopeadic company for the Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Hawks, which all is good and fun to say but to those of you about to ask, do you think Braves General Manager Frank Wren would let a student rehab his players? You know better. The Hawks and Braves have their own therapists that go to the players anyway, but it was a tremendous learning experience nonetheless.

My fieldwork educator was Missy Thurlow, a well-respected hand therapist in Georgia and throughout the Southeast. Not only was she able to guide me through the summer and provide instructions from how to fill out charts to dealing with problem patients, but she will hopefully serve as a huge resource as I set out on the hunt for a job this time next year. She deserves all my thanks for taking me under her caring wing for the past three months.

Missy and one of her more famous patients,
 the world's No. 1 golfer Rory McIlroy.

While at POC, I was able to see everything I could have possibly wanted to. I followed a doctor around in the office to see what an initial visit looks like before we OTs will ever see them. I saw multiple days of surgery, which was much more interesting than I could have ever imagined. So much so that I have talked to some of the new first year students about joining in on some of their cadaver labs so I might can perform my own surgeries.

By the end of the summer, I had my own case load and was acting as a full-fledged therapist, except for having to have my documentation co-signed by a licensed occupational therapist. I even  joined a hand therapist professional group, the Georgia Hand and Upper Extremity Special Interest Group. 

I can also say that I have been one of those miserable rush hour commuters in the Atlanta area. Never again. Not saying I would never live there, but I will not commute in-and-out everyday. You know how I know Georgia Tech's Engineering School isn't all it is cracked up to be? Atlanta traffic.

As busy as I was I still had time to go and vacation a couple of weeks, to Passport with the youth from FBC Gainesville, a beach trip with the family, moving across town, and a trip to Arkansas. The summer was busy, but undoubtedly better than school.

Now that I am not waking up before the sun every day and commuting to Atlanta, much of my effort will be focused on school and my thesis. Only one more year -- and passing grades-- remains between me and a Master's of Science in Occupational Therapy from Brenau University.

On top of conducting research and eventually writing a 200-page paper with three of my new best friends, I continue to find things around the Poultry Capital of the Word (Gainesville) to keep me out of too much trouble. As some of you have seen or read, I have joined the staff at ArkansasExpats.com, a website devoted to the Razorbacks, and will produce a weekly column, which will run on Fridays previewing the upcoming weekend.

On Friday nights, you can come watch high school football with me as, different from last year when I was in the newsroom, I will actually go to games, sit in the press box, and write a story for the local newspaper The Times in Gainesville.

Then Sunday mornings will be filled with the inappropriateness of seventh and eighth grade boys in my Sunday School class. Big weekends in store for this fall.

When I was in Arkansas, my grandmother asked, "So your writing a weekly column, covering football, and writing for your own blog, and you're going to be a therapist?" My response, "Yep." It is a way for me to scratch a new found itch that I love, but I know could never make a career out of it.

I also learned that my grandfather was a paperboy when he was young, my old man was a copy editor for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, and now I am just keeping the family tradition going.

With that being said, I have to go to class. It's my last first day of school.

The four of us in Gulf Shores

The Best of London 2012

I believe that everyone has a talent for doing something. Is that vague enough for you?

Each person owns a gift or ability to demonstrate a skill to an extraordinary degree, though maybe not up to Olympic standards. The sad part about this theory is that most people never realize their talent, whether by choice or lack of exposure, so they will never be able to show it off. Still lost?

Could this have been me? We will never know.

For example, and to keep with the Olympic theme, I might be the greatest fencer the world would have ever seen, but I will never be able to show off my sword-fighting skills because where I come from, we stop playing with plastic swords from the dollar store after the age of five. We move on to tee-ball and pee-wee football. Thus my talents for wielding a sword in a fancy USA mask have gone untapped.

Not everyone is deprived of an opportunity to realize their talent. Instead many, by accident or grand design, find their destined activity, but do not possess the drive to continue on with it.

Another example, which also helps exhibit that these skills are not limited to the realm of sports. For the  better part of eight years, I played trumpet. During some parts of high school, I was playing more than five hours a day in several different groups. Not to "toot my own horn'' -- yeah, I just did that -- but I was a decent musician.

Based upon my theory, I had found a skill in which I was better than most at doing. However, I had different interests which I wanted to pursue as a professional, meaning my trumpet playing would have to take a back seat to them.

Had I stuck with playing the trumpet would I be in the Boston Pops? My grandparents might think so, but more than likely not. Those performers, like Olympians, are geniuses at their craft, a level only few attain. Had I stuck with playing trumpet could I have played "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" solo on a Saturday in the fall at UGA in the South corner? I like to think I could have.

All this is a roundabout way of getting to the people who found their niche and thrived to a level few only few will ever reach. In fact, the odds against a newborn child of becoming an Olympic athlete are 2,500 to 1, 5,000 to 1 to medal ,and 10,000 to 1 to become a gold medalist.

The undisputed greatest swimmer ever, Michael Phelps started off slow but finished his alleged final Olympic swim in gold medal fashion.

How many of you actually believe this? I give it two years.

The 27-year-old will become antsy, see all of his peers still fighting to get better, and join them after some time out of the pool. I am putting my money on seeing Phelps in Rio de Janeiro and not as a commentator.

Sure he is cocky, but Bolt has every reason to be. He is a legend.

Usain Bolt joined Michael Phelps in the legendary category at the 2012 Games. While Phelps finished as the Olympics' all-time winningest athlete 22 total medals, Bolt owned the track, winning every race he competed in with ease (100-meter, 200-meter and 4x400-meter).

Bolt left little doubt that he had earned legendary status with his winning margins alone, but he made sure in every post race interview and press conference to tell the world that he indeed is a "legend" because of his performances at the last two Olympic Games. Luckily for us all, Bolt admits he will be back for 2016.

The Americans also had tremendous results on the track, especially the women. However, one of the most compelling stories was in the Men's 4x400-meter relay preliminaries. Not only had Bryshon Nellum come back from not being able to walk after sustaining gunshot wounds two years ago, to running in the Olympics, but there was Manteo Mitchell.

Mitchell finishing his broken 'leg' of the 4x400M relay.

Mitchell broke a bone in his leg during his run and still finished the final 200 meters of his 'leg' -- of course the pun is intended. He told reporters that he knew he could not stop because it would not only be a disappointment to him, but to his entire team and country. USA's 4x400-meter relay team can fly home proudly with silver medals around their necks.

Then of course there are those American teams which proved dominance over the world, causing all of us as Americans to walk a with our chests out a little bit further: Gabby Douglas and the Fab Five, Missy Franklin, the Women's basketball and soccer teams, Serena Williams, Allyson Felix, Sanya Richards-Ross, and David Boudia to name a few.

It is hard to believe that the London Olympic Games are over and we are four years away from another edition of the Summer Games. In the mean time, a 24-year-old male's greatest chance of becoming an Olympic athlete is in Equestrian at 1 in 62.

Anyone have a horse?

Honey Badger Didn't Care, Saban too Tough, Howard Happy, My New Home

Matthieu will have to look elsewhere to play this season.

There has been a celebration in the South. In small towns all over Alabama and Arkansas, chocolate fountains have been working hard, and there is a shortage of all-you-can-eat and cotton candy supplies at Golden Corrals in light of recent news out of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

As we know, Tyrann Mathieu was dismissed from the LSU football team on Friday for an undisclosed violation of team rules, which will help the entire SEC West in their respective journeys to the SEC Championship.

Reports say that the Honey Badger could not stay away from hitting the pipe. His decision have cost selfish player playing time for the Bayou Bengals in the past, leaving coach Les Miles no other choice but to dismiss the Heisman Trophy finalist. Does this sound like someone you would want to hang out with?

On his Twitter feed, the 2011 unanimous All-American wrote, "The realist hearts have been through the most pain!! I'm out!!"

By horrifying the LSU English department, Mattieu showed again that he simply does not get it. He does not understand how actions have consequences and when you break rules -- over and over again -- you will be punished accordingly. He does not demonstrate an understanding that the game is not all about him. Now he will learn this lesson at a FCS program (reportedly McNeese State in Lake Charles, Louisiana).

As a fan of college football, it is sad to see arguably the most exciting player in the game no longer able to compete with the top talent. What is worse is when an individual with his talent, who has the chance to set an example for young people, can not get his act together though given multiple opportunities.

ALABAMA TRANSER TO TRANSFER: After four practices under Nick Saban, cornerback Travell Dixon has completed paperwork to transfer from the Crimson Tide. The junior college transfer was expected to see significant playing time, but reports from Tuscaloosa say that Dixon was experiencing, "a little overload."

Call me crazy, but isn't that what is to be expected when you commit play for Saban? Isn't that what makes playing against the Tide's defense so good and so dang difficult for opponents? Isn't that what makes Alabama players NFL ready as soon as they are drafted?

The good news is Alabama will, like LSU with Mattieu (though his back-up Tharold Simon also missed games last year because of drug related problems), fill in their new loss with another speedy monster on the depth chart.

Howard at his Laker press conference.

HOWARD APPEARS TO BE HAPPY, FINALLY : Dwight Howard was traded from the Orlando Magic to the Los Angeles Lakers this week in a four-team deal. Just go look at Y! Sports site if you want to see all of the players involved. Blogger will not let me have that long of a post.

It only took the Magic two years, a Howard agreement on an extension, and a two better offers turned down. Yes, Orlando got rid of the best defensive player in the game, and they got the fourth best player of all the teams and no one to fill Howard's void. Thirty-year-old Magic general manager Rob Hennigan has plenty of work to do. On the bright side, because of his age he has plenty of time to do it.

Keeping with the franchise tradition of big-time big men, the Lakers again stole the greatest big man in the game from Orlando as they did with Shaquille O'Neal in 1996. Other similarities include their draft position (No. 1 overall) and nickname (Superman). Remember how these two bicker about how different they are? And how Howard said he does not want to follow O'Neal professional career?

Now the Lakers are the team to beat in the Western Conference because they have the most complete starting lineup with room to add a few wiley veterans.

Some things change, but Ole Blue remains the same.

ON A PERSONAL NOTE: I would like to apologize to all three of my readers for not posting more often lately. There have been several events that I would have loved to share my opinion on, but I have been moving into a house from the south Hall County Georgia to the northern parts. The move has cut down on the time I have been able to sit down and write. However, because of the move, I now I have a beautiful new desk, a better view from my desk, and the improvements in overall quality of life that come along with moving from an apartment to a house -- like a quite night's sleep and a new pillowtop mattress, which will change your life. All are welcome.