Quick Update

Due to bad weather and a 3 hour late plane I missed my connecting flight to the US.  I spent the night in a hotel and am back at the airport sitting next to my favorite garbage can.  Internet is cheaper here. Airport is crazy with stranded travelers.   I just got lucky and rebooked my flight back to the states without having to wait in line for hours.  I heard horror stories of people waiting in line for 11 hours.  I tried to be more efficient, computer, skype and customer service.  I said some prayers and Lord came through with a flight.

Well I will home on Wednesday.  12 hours to live up Amsterdam.  Can't wait to get home for Christmas.

Peace, Love, and Amsterdam
TJW

Newspaper Blog: I Heart the Sixth Man

Guten Morgen Werne. I have kept this column fairly basketball free so far but you had to know that wasn’t going to last forever. Hopefully, I can throw a lemon twist on it too for all the non-ballers out there.

As you may or may not know TV Werne 03 basketball team earned a nice road win this last weekend in Hagen, definitely well-deserved. To be honest, I was not surprised by the win. Every time I step on the floor I expect to win. Not because we have overwhelmingly more talent than the other team but rather because we prepare diligently and with focused intent.

The greatest satisfactions in life do not come from things placed at our feet but rather from a combination of preparation, sacrifice, dedication, and hard work. If one does everything they can to prepare, the end result takes care of itself. A wise man once said, “To give anything other than your best, is to sacrifice a gift.” Your best comes through countless hours of preparing.

"All of us are Stars in our own lives"

I have a love/hate relationship with theory. It can be inspiring and motivational on paper but reality many times has its own agenda. I realized early in life that great successes are rarely attained alone. To bring the idea full circle we return back to the hardwood (or plastic, this is Germany). The average basketball fan sees who made the basket, who scores the most points, or who wins. They don’t see the hours of practice, liters of lost sweat, or constant aches and pains. Not to mention the players that bust their butt in practice every day for the team even if they don’t see a minute on Saturday. They might not see the great screen that allowed the shooter to score or see the fan pour out his or her heart for the team.

Every team has its public figures but those stars would not be what they are without their supporting cast and diligent preparation. All of us are the stars in our own lives have our own supporting casts. “Have you recognized yours?” and “How do you prepare?”

Finally, I want to say “Thank You, to the Sixth Man for the energy and enthusiasm they bring every week. Because of them we will never have to walk alone.

Come join in on the excitement this Saturday as we host Luddenscheid. Tip-Off 7:30.

TJW

Weekend 2 of Big 3 -- Short Wrap-Up with a bunch of tangents

I know this is a day late, big surprise.  I have been feeling a little under the weather lately and spent the last couple days in my bed.  I felt that watching the first season of the The Big Bang Theory was more important than anything else.  Its a different type of humor but definately worth checking out. 

14 episodes later, I arrive back at my keyboard at work.  Not that you are interested in the course of my illness but I am feeling better and actually practiced last night, not well might I add.  Still a little tired from sleeping for 15 hours a day.  Who would have thought. 

I do have a couple remarks on the German health care to note. 

Quick tangent: Germany is the 4th fattest country in the world, right behind yours truely the US.  The fattest country in Europe as a matter of fact, Germany that is not the US.  For all you geographical majors out there the USA is NOT located anywhere in Europe and in case you are wondering where Europe is its across the Atlantic Ocean. You can never be too sure with educational system in the US.  Maybe we should start teaching people how not to be obese, oh wait the information is everywhere people simply are too lazy to change, or just not mad enough yet.  Either way.  I think House is wearing off on me with his truthful sarcasm. I am going to stop now so I dont get any hate mail from my PR manager.  Send all complaints to Trapper Swierenga .

Healtcare system = efficiency at its finest.  Thats what I love about Germans, sooo efficient.  So I go see our team doctor.  He does a thorough 10 sec check of my ears and throat.  From this observation he concludes I have a bacterial infection.  Efficiency. I inferred this by the antibiotics he prescribed that I immediately googled when I got home.  He gives me a mystery shot in my "backside," writes me a prescription and I am on my way.  I leave the doctors office and conveintly located 3 feet from the door is yep you guessed it a pharmacy.  I give the pharmacist my piece of paper the prescription roles out on a little conveyor belt.  I smile, pay nothing and leave.  I almost felt like I needed to tip the pharmacist but didnt feel it was socially acceptable, or is it? She was kind of cute.  Anyways, I walked to the doctor and was out of there with my prescription and back in my bed in under an hour.  Might I add it takes over 20 minutes to walk one-way to the doctors office. Efficiency (the doctor part, not the walking).

Quick Tangent:  I really need to start taking pictures of some of the architecture out here.  On my walk I found some pretty cool houses in some pretty cool neighborhoods.  Much different than the states.  This could be a blog post on its own so I am going to note it and move on. 

Well we won last Saturday 86-65.  We were supposed to win so no surprises there.  If you are brushing up on your German the short non informative online article is riiiiiiight HERE.  There is a point breakdown though that you may find interesting.  That is how good teams with, who are you going to stop?

They were supposed to be one of the better teams in the league only because they have a couple Americans.  Well, all they had was a couple Americans.  I think the Americans for them scored 52 of the total 65 points.  I am sorry but you are not going to win too many games when two players score 80% of your points.  Yes, exactly .8.  If you dont believe me waste 5 seconds of your life and get a calculator out.

I really dont have much to say about the game.  To be completely honest, it was really boring.  We were never really in jeopardy of losing.  No rims were broken, nothing.  I am failing to find words to describe it.  Even the fans that I talked to were semi-disappointed.  Can't please everybody I guess.  Really everyone knew, this is just a warm-up to the showdown we have this weekend in Recklinghausen.  Battle of the unbeatens for top dawg in the league.  Should be a good game.  I guess on the infamous forums (that coach reads and has to fill us in about) they believe we will lose by 20.  Thats why its a belief.  The Easter Bunny also hides my easter basket every year. 

I don't have much to say but wait till the smoke clears then start talking.   

I woke up to a dusting of snow this morning.  All the more excited to be coming home.  Stateside in four days.

TjW

P.S.  Good Luck on your finals Pops and thanks for subscribing to the blog  

Das Ist Deutschland

So, I guess I said click too many times in my postings and the invisible powers that be removed my adsense ads.  Just took the rug right out from underneath me.  I may try and appeal just for the meer fact its fun fighting with something bigger than the world as we know it, google. 

So I had to get a little input from Tramaine for this week's edition.  This is his idea and all credit should be given to him.  He doesnt read this blog anyways so just give me all the credit and I will be sure pass it along to him :)

Today's installment is on ICE.  Not the abundance of ice like you might expect in a well-developed 21st century democratic nation but rather the lack there of. 

Today I compiled a short list of places where ice is missing here in Germany. Enjoy!

1. Drinks -- Never have I found a place that puts ice in water, soda, mixed drinks, or any drink for that matter.  I questioned a local about this and he informed me that Germans want to get their money's worth and ice just takes away from the product they are actually looking for.  This specific instance was in regard to an alcoholic beverage so I dont know if this opinion can be held as scientifically significant. 

2.  Injuries  -- Sprain an ankle, here is some cream and a wrap.  Break your arm here is some cream and a wrap.  Contract malaria, here is some cream and a wrap. 

3.  Bags of it readily available in gas stations, grocery stores, or literally any store that sells anything. 

4.  McDonald's beverage dispenser -- You know the drill, grab me a cup, grab me some ice, grab me a coke.  Well, its the same here just leave out the ice not by choice but because of the man.  The absence of an actual ice dispenser attached to the soda machine makes obtaining it impossible.


Is this an adversion to cold or a deep rooted cultural revulsion for this simple pleasure?  I for one like it cold. 

TJW

 

I Heart the 6thMan -- Newspaper Article

Guten Morgen Werne.



I have kept this column fairly basketball free so far but you had to know that wasn’t going to last forever. Hopefully, I can throw a lemon twist on it too for all the non-ballers out there.

As you may or may not know TV Werne 03 basketball team earned a nice road win this last weekend in Hagen, definitely well-deserved. To be honest, I was not surprised by the win. Every time I step on the floor I expect to win. Not because we have overwhelmingly more talent than the other team but rather because we prepare diligently and with focused intent.

The greatest satisfactions in life do not come from things placed at our feet but rather from a combination of preparation, sacrifice, dedication, and hard work. If one does everything they can to prepare, the end result takes care of itself. A wise man once said, “To give anything other than your best, is to sacrifice a gift.” Your best comes through countless hours of preparing.


I have a love/hate relationship with theory. It can be inspiring and motivational on paper but reality many times has its own agenda. I realized early in life that great successes are rarely attained alone.


To bring the idea full circle we return back to the hardwood (or plastic, this is Germany). The average basketball fan sees who made the basket, who scores the most points, or who wins. They don’t see the hours of practice, liters of lost sweat, or constant aches and pains. Not to mention the players that bust their butt in practice every day for the team even if they don’t see a minute on Saturday. They might not see the great screen that allowed the shooter to score or see the fan pour out his or her heart for the team.


Every team has its public figures but those stars would not be what they are without their supporting cast and diligent preparation. All of us are the stars in our own lives have our own supporting casts. “Have you recognized yours?” and “How do you prepare?”


Finally, I want to say “Thank You, to the Sixth Man for the energy and enthusiasm they bring every week. Because of them we will never have to walk alone.


Come join in on the excitement this Saturday as we host Luddenscheid. Tip-Off 7:30.


TJW

P.S. I also heart Matthew Oja for (not in this order)
a. finding a job
b. being my friend
c. adding himself to the followers of the blog

Week 1 of the Big 3 -- Insert Hagen-Haspe

So I lied the other day about putting the game summary up on Wednesday.  If you haven't figured out I make a lot of empty claims you have not been reading long enough.  No worries you will figure it out soon enough.  I do have a good reason but I dont like to make excuses for my sins.  I will throughly make up for it if I get around to putting together some insider video I shot before the game. If I don't get it up I will not make up for it.

As I forshadowed brilliantly in the title this was the first game of the big 3 in December.  Basically we play the top 3 teams, excluding ourselves (in case there was any confusion) during December.  Everyone has been talking about these games before I even came to Germany.  To be honest, I have had children, yes children, messaging me on facebook to inform me how important these games are.  Nothing like a little pressure.  That brings me back to the old adage an old college buddy used to proclaim,

"Cole turns to diamonds under pressure"

Since my names is indeed not Cole nor am I made of coal I like to stick to another saying,

"Pressure either breaks pipes or builds diamonds."

Although I am not a huge diamond lover, cue Blood Diamond here, I am more opposed to breaking pipes so I guess by default I like diamonds, end Blood Diamond here.

The pressure forunately built a fine diamond as we won in convincing fashion 87-76.

We had control of the game right from the tip.  Our lead flucuated between 2-10 points a few times but there was never any real doubt that we might lose the game.  At least from a players standpoint there wasnt, I can not speak for the fans or the coach.

Because of the specialness (yes specialness) of this game we decided to fill up the rest of our team bus with fans.  By we, I am speaking of the management which does not include me so insert they.  But, I was on the bus so I could be included, insert whichever you want.  We were subsequently serenaded for a majority of the 1 hour ride with songs and chants.   All is well for a nice showing of TV Werne faithful in Hagen.  To be honest it really felt like a home game because by my rough estimate I would say the ratio was about 3 to 1 TV Werne fans to Hagen fans. 

I really wanted to get the stats done for this game but because bringing my computer to work all of sudden is  frowned upon, time to work on my laptop is scarce.  Especially when it takes me 12 hours to convert the WHOLE game into DVD format so I can watch it on a screen bigger than 3 x 3.  I emphasized whole because I forgot the second quarter on the two subsequent four hour conversions.  The village idiot may post full stats later.

Our goal for this game was to pound the ball inside, get some easy buckets early and put their posts in foul trouble.  We did a great job of this in addition to shooting the lights out in the first quarter.  No seriously they had to replace all the lights in the gym because everyone had been shot out.  There was a short break in the game.  We scored over 30 points in the first quarter.   Thats over 3 points a minute.  Phenomenal points per minute for all you statisticians out there. 

For Brensley's first game in one and a half years he played really well.  He cáme out of the gates smokin and really helped us build a lead early.  He continues to learn the ins and outs of  playing point guard for our team and also getting used to the European game.  It definiately takes some getting used to and I was very impressed with his first outing.  I think he finished with 16.

Tramaine played a great game for us at the point guard position (when he is not sick I relenquish my dominance at the point to him) eventhough he struggled with the German officiating and fouled out late in the game.  He finished with 28 on a very good shooting performance. 

I, for once, did not have any trouble with the officials and only finished with 3 fouls.  I spent the majority of my night at the free throw line.  I may have shot close to 20 free throws.  I finished the game with 31.  To be honest, I made a living at the line and its a good thing too because my legs for some reason didnt have any bounce or energy at all.  I think the lack of sun out here is really hampering my ability to recover from workouts, seriously.  I have not had good sunshine since I have been out here.  May have to start hitting the tanning bed .

All in all the team played very well defensively.  We kept one of their Americans in check the whole game and didnt let any of the Germans beat us.  Great way to start off the Big 3.

Its mid-week now and we are getting ramped up for our next big game against Luddenscheid this Saturday.  It is home and I've been told lots of sponsors will be attending so a good show is mandatory.  Diamonds.
Next up is the newspaper blog for the week.  Will probably post that tomorrow.  Dont want to put up too much content in one day because this post is ridiculously too long.

Peace, Love, Harmony, Sun and Diamonds.................and SNOW to everyone back home

Trevor

P.S.  Everybody loves a good clicker...if you are wondering how simply look down or see the sidebar and react accordingly :)

 

Das ist Deutschland

I am starting a new series on my blog called "Das ist Deutschland."  Basically, its just a random semi-entertaining happening that Tramaine or I go through.  Usually it involves a large culture gap and many times results in a realization I am not in Kanas anymore.  We have already begun compiling a long list that could possibly turn into a youtube series depending on how creative we get.  Here is the numbero uno.

So I stop in at a restaruant and order 1 water, 1 soda, and 1 beer.  Can you guess the most expensive, least expensive, biggest and smallest.  Here goes,

  1 BEER

1 SODA

1 Water

1 Beer (.5 L) Least Expensive

1 Pop (.3 L)

1 Water* (.3 L) Most Expensive

*Water with bubbles might I add and without ice (all Das Ist Deutschlands in themselves)

I will let you draw your own conclusions from this scientifiic study.

DAS IST DEUTSCHLAND

Game Summary Coming Tomorrow

Your Favorite PG

I have been a little lazy on giving game reports lately so I am going to rectify my sins and start with the game two weeks ago.  (Okay maybe a lot bit lazy)   I apologize in advance for this post being uncreative but the game happened two weeks ago.

We had a cup game a few weeks back against the same team we scrimmaged and pounded by forty.  In case you are wondering what a cup game is use the brand spankin new search bar I added on the homepage.  I am pretty sure I had an in depth post on this last year sometime.  In a nutshell its a massive lottery tournament with every team in Germany.

Borken, the team we played, is in the league below us and was supposedly on a 28 game winning streak.  Since we had pounded them in a scrimmage by 40 a few weeks earlier no one was really worried about the game.  Tramaine did decide to throw one wrinkle into the mix.  He chose to get sick and not participate in this athletic endeavor. 

This definitely changed the game but we were still confident we could come away with a win.  Since Borken is a lower division team we had to go to their place to play and boy I am glad we did.  They had a semi-normal gym.  They also had a little sky box and a massive projection on the wall of what appeared to be a continuous powerpoint of the Borken players.  Oh, and a wood floor to top everything off.

*Note to self:  Bring camera to game so you don't have to write terrible, uncreative descriptions of the facilities 

As you may already know we ended up winning the game by 3.  Well, its was actually 2 when I went through the scoresheet.  Karma is a b I guess because the scorebook credited me with an extra foul in the first half and forced me to play with four fouls for most of the second half.  I managed to steer away from any contact after my mystical fourth foul and not foul out of the game. 

Since Tramaine was sick I got to display my versatility on the point guard position.  Early in the game we were struggling to get the ball up the floor and into the offense.  They were putting a lot of pressure on us and we were not taking care of the ball.  This is when I decided I needed to take over the point.  I then ran the show for the majority of the rest of the game.  I think I did a fine job if I say so myself.

Borken had an older American that really kept them in the game.  He was a little guard who could flat out shoot the lights out.  He was making the craziest shots, one-foot fadeaways, floaters, deep threes.  I think Borken's biggest mistake is that they went away from him late in the game.

The game fluxuated between us having a ten point lead and them cutting it close.  Everytime I felt like we had gotten a comfortable lead we would throw it down the drain.  Daniel, our big man, made a lay-up with about 20 seconds left in the game to put us up by 3 and seal the win.  Borken came down and missed a three to tie.

All in all ugly but a win is a win.  I could really tell how young our team was at the end of the game just by how people carried themselves.  There was a lot of nervous energy in the last huddle but it was a good learning experience for everyone. 

Your Favorite PG
TJW

P.S.  I think I had mid twenties in the game
P.P.S. For the first time I had opposing fans try to harass me in English, pleseant surprise

Newspaper Blog: Thanksgiving

Welcome back!


From where, you may be asking yourself. From the illusion of wonderful weather the last weekend tempted us with. I do hope that when this reaches your breakfast nook that the weather gods will have changed their minds and put us all back in their good graces.

Enough about weather, let’s move on to something a little more important, something slightly less depressing. The day of Thanksgiving is. Most likely this still is resulting in a bewildered stare at your newspaper but keep reading please and enlightenment will ensue.


Thanksgiving is an American mainstay. In my mind it’s a Top 3 holiday rubbing shoulders with the likes of Christmas and Independence Day (without Will Smith and Aliens attempting to destroy earth). I did an in-depth scientific poll of one person, my roommate Tramaine Aaron, and the results showed that indeed these are America’s favorite holidays. I digress.

What is the meaning of this Thanksgiving Day Celebration? The “original” meaning of Thanksgiving has a very distasteful past to say the least and I am not here to bore you with a history lesson. This is of course why Google was invented. Plus, I want to believe we as a society are evolving from the ignorance of the past.

Let’s fast forward to my 21st century definition. Thanksgiving on the calendar is the last Thursday in November and is summarized by the 3 f’s: family, food, and football in order of importance of course.

Reader Clause: Remember I am American so football to me is American football to you. Your football is soccer is to me.

Thanksgiving is a time when families come together, enjoy each others company, and give thanks for the many blessings that have been bestowed upon them. A highly competitive, backyard family football game commonly precedes the festivities. This allows for friendly banter and bragging rights for the ensuing year.

The meal although, is the highlight of the festivities. But before the over indulgence can take place everyone must profess what they are thankful for. Then with a table decorated with turkey, stuffing, cranberries, squash, and sweet potatoes an “I ate too much” feeling usually transpires. Everything is home cooked under grandma’s watchful eye and finished off with her world renowned pumpkin pie. There is always room for desert.

After the meal everyone congregates in front of the television to lie back on the couch, unbutton the pants and fall asleep some good American football.

I know this may not be a German holiday but take a second this Thursday, or any day for that matter, to give thanks for everything you have been given. Go around the table if you like or simply take a second to reflect. However you or your family wants to do it take a few seconds to recognize how truly blessed you are.

Thanks for reading,

Trevor

P.S. We won on Saturday and if you want to find out more check out the real writers at the newspaper. Also, since I do play basketball we have a home game this Saturday and would love for you come and watch.

Quick Update

Hello Hello

First things first....Find the one that doesn't belong (throw it in a comment)

1.  We won on Saturday by twenty
2. I broke a rim on a dunk and we almost had to forfeit the game
3. It was sunny for multiple days in a row last week in Germany

I have been slacking the blogger world.  Too much to do at work.  Actually, I have been searching for my plane ticket back to Germany after Christmas and it looks like its going to cost me my first born child.

I hope to have that finished up by tomorrow morning so I "hope" to get some writing in after that and get the game recaps up from the last two games.

As for the video, the download link is available but I dont think many want to download a 600 megabyte video so I am shrinking it down again and getting it back on the internet.  The company is not particularly fond of me having my laptop at work so I most likely wont get any of the videos up until next week.  This is if the Lord so graces us with Internet this weekend but I think God forgot about this country a long time ago.  I kid I kid I joke I joke.  But seriously it does take fifteen years to get internet hooked up or to get almost anything done for that matter.

I will also post the next article I wrote for the newspapter last week in a new blog post. 

Brensley Haywood also arrived in Germany last week to help with our big games in December.  He is a good friend of mine.  He played at Saint Mary's so we played against each other for three years during college.  I will talk more about this later.

That's it for now. 
Ich Liebe Dich
Trevor

p.s. Google Adsense should be up and rolling.  Clicking links gives good karma points and we all know you need to get out of the red.

Happy ThanksGiving

Even though they don't celebrate Thanksgiving out here in Germany I still need to celebrate it on the blog.  I think for my thanksgiving dinner I am going to have spaghetti with red sauce and tuna, very festive I know.  I hope you eat enough for the two of us though.

I just want to say how thankful I am for you following me on this journey.  I appreciate the clicking and the comments.

Sorry for the lack of content lately.  I have been busy at work this week but I am going to try and get a bunch of content up in the next couple days. 

I miss everybody and hope everyone has a festive and thankful turkey day.  Now I need to slingbox up some NFL football. 

Your Favorite Turkey,
TJW

Newspaper Article

I wrote my first post last week for the newspaper.  Here it is.

Guten Morgen Deutschland!



I hope this column finds you gazing out your window at a beautiful sunny day, although I am not about to bet money on it. I do however admire how gracefully everyone still goes about their day despite the clouds, rain and darkness. I know if I was dealing with this depressing weather year after year I would definitely be financing my psychiatrist's new Audi.


As my first column I would like to take a few moments to get to know each other. Well, rather get to know me since you are undeniably reading a newspaper. Although, if you do see me on the street say “Hello” and then I can get to know you. I do have one condition, can we speak in English please because “Meine Deutsche ist nicht gut.” I do love to learn so if you would like to teach me some Deutsch I am looking for a tutor.


Back to who I am. Most would recognize me as a basketball player for TV Werne but basketball does not define who I am. It is simply a game I love and have been working hard at for over 15 years and fortunately seen some success. Basketball has given me many experiences and allowed me to meet some amazing people. To be honest, it is the reason I get the privilege to write you today. Everyone has their vehicles in life and mine at this period in my life is basketball.


Throughout my months with you I hope to have a conversation, even though it is extremely dominated by one person. I want to make this fun and not just another read. I hope to make you smile every once in while and possibly think a little bit too. I am in a unique position as a foreigner to be able to share my thoughts and concerns with such a large audience and I plan to take full advantage of it. Whether that is good or bad, you be the judge! I have no specific plan on where this is going to go and will simply let creativity be my guide. I will frequently touch on basketball and living abroad but will not limit myself solely to these topics.


Speaking of basketball I should touch quickly on it before I leave you this morning. We won! Oh, and the first wood floor we ever played on in Germany completely and utterly disappointed me!


Until next week,


Trevor J. Wittwer


p.s. If you do not find this post humorous at all you can blame it on Daniel, my translator. The humor must have gotten lost in translation.

Google Adsense

I got my google adsense working again so you should really NOT* click on a bunch of links and then close the window.

*By not I mean you should.  Its hard to display sarcasm in a print medium. 

I can't remember the team.....but there was a wood floor

I can't remember the last team's name we played but we played on a wood floor.

Well, I don't even know if I could call it a wood floor. I think it was actually fake wood and it had a layer of white film on it that made it ever so slippery. I thought it was my shoes so after the first quarter ran to the bench, slipped on a towel and fell over a chair just to put on a different pair of shoes. I then found out when I went back on the floor that is was not the shoes but rather the stupid wood floor.

Just to put everything into perspective in Germany we do not believe in wood floors unless its the Bundesliga (top league in Germany). Every other league plays on a sport courtish surface which surprisingly has some give and bounce to it.

Coach the whole week had been building up this wood floor too. Naturally, in my mind I was thinking traditional wood floor in a normal gym.


Why the wood floor you may be asking yourself when we are not playing a Bundesliga team? The answer is the women's program of this particular club plays Bundesliga. They happened to be playing before us and this fake wood is pieced together on top of the sport court.

We actually got to watch the second half of the women's game as they were playing when we arrived. These women were not women but rather men dressed like women. In all honesty these ladies were huge and thick too. One team had to have a girl close to seven feet tall. This is not an exaggeration either.

You could definitely tell that this was the top women's league in Germany, although there was still a ton of turnovers and terrible decisions. No value for the ball and terrible offense. The 3-point line in top leagues in Europe is the same for both men and women. It is between college line and NBA. I would guess it was about a foot behind the men's college line.

The atmosphere was pretty cool for the women's game. They set up a restaurant along one of the sidelines. It also went back underneath the stands. I think it was put together by a catering service. There were also probably between 500-750 spectators. Too bad most left for our game. Personally, I still think our league men's basketball is more exciting than women's Bundesliga. Thats just me though.

Definitely more professionally done that other venues I have seen, but still nothing compared to the states. You really can't compare basketball here to basketball in the states. Its like night and day, apples to oranges, insert another lame analogy !

I just realized that I still have not given the score of the game or whether we won or lost. I let the wood floor control my mind. Well we did WIN, with a significant margin of 32.

88-52

The game was actually much closer than the score indicates. For some reason the officials really wanted to keep this game close. Some of the most ridiculous things were being called. The charge was again the "call of the day" on multiple occasions. Except when yours truely tries to take a charge then its a no call.

Quick scenario: A player from the opposing team has the ball on the three point line lets call him Curly. I am standing near the hoop. Curly dribbles full speed and slams directly into me. During this entire time I did two things 1. Squared up to the ball and 2. Put my arms over my head. I literally stood waiting for the guy to hit me for a good three seconds. Guess what, NO CALL. "pitchko matre" !! Thanks Marko for the Serbian lesson.

My thinking is if I am not going to get the charge I might as well try and throw his business into the upper decks. I am probably going to get a foul anyways so we might as well make things interesting.

Besides horrendous officiating they played a 2-3 zone and we not hitting our outside shots. A sweet combination for a close game. We did wear them down as the game went on and simply good care of buisness in the fourth quarter.

All in all a good win. We have a cup game this Saturday against a lower league team then back to league play next weekend.

Its sunny in Germany, its gotta be a great day
TJW

P.S. Marko has begun his season at Northern State and I am going to check the box score of his game last night when I finish up here. Check out his schedule and catch a game when he is in your area. Then after the game talk to him and call him a "pitchko"

BAM!!!!

NEW BLOG LOOK!!!! THAT JUST HAPPENED!

Weekend Wrap-Up

Happy Tuesday To All

I was very busy with work yesterday so I had to push the wrap-up back a little bit.

First things first, I think I got the game film of our first game online. I uploaded it to megavideo yesterday and as of the instant that I am writing this blog it is still unavailable. Usually it takes a couple days for them to finalize everything. I will be sure to post the link when the video pops up.

Secondly, I taped our second game as well and am in the process of getting that on the internet. Big things poppin'.

Thirdly, we got the big W on Saturday. This was not unexpected as this whole week coach had been talking about how we need to beat this team by 30. Yes they were the last team in the league and we are tied for first but 30 is a pretty significant margin of victory no matter who you are playing.

We ended up winning by 19, 96-77. Still a convincing win none the less but many people were not happy with simply a 19 point victory. The more upsetting piece was how many points we gave up. For the best defensive team in the league (according to points against) 77 points is way too many.

My reasons why we gave up 77 points

1. Awkward Line-Ups

At times during the game I was the 5 (center position) on the floor. In essence this is a 5 guard team on the floor running a post dominated offense. Not to mention these players are not used to playing together and many playing in unusual positions.

2. Our HelpSide Defense was mediocre at best + we were getting beat off the dribble

First we were getting beat off the dribble and second our helpside was late or non existent. This means lots of easy buckets. Again this points back to Number 1 and chemsitry issues. Also, principles are not clearly defined on our defense which can cause confusion.

3. There was never any threat from the other team.

After the first 5 minutes of the game we already had a double digit lead and never looked back for the rest of the game. The game was comfortably under control the entire time.


Simple items that will be ironed out in our preparation for the top teams in December.

On a side note: The 2. Men's team I coach got a nice win on Saturday as well after one good half of basketball. They are also 5-0 and on top in the first position in their league. Consistency is the key for those guys in terms of effort and practice attendance.


Its boring but its my life
TJW

p.s. If you want to practice up on your German the newspaper article is HERE

Stuff not as important as SIM JU

Hello

Just a little bored at work so I thought a would write a thing or two on this blog then head over to the other one and write some too.

Speaking of writing, I am going to be writing a short column for the local newspaper every week which I am pretty excited about. I just confirmed it with them today and I will simply be talking about basketball and living overseas. The first installment will probalby be in two weeks. Most likely it will be simply a blog or excerpt from here with a little more editing to make sure I haven't extremely offended anyone or called out the entire German culture which seems to happen from time to time. Or use extremely long run-ons like the previous sentence.

I am going to work on the basketball game film stuff tonight. We are still waiting for our permanent internet connection so trying to upload the massive game film before was unsuccessful. I must dum it down and try again

SIM JÜ - The Cadillac for Carnies

First off, I was excited I could spell it right because I am currently on a German keyboard.

I just realized I have yet to comment on Sim JU. One of the official German holiday celebrations that freezes the world as is. Everything stops for Sim JU. Gyms close, supermarkets close, restaruants close because why would you need to eat out when there are 3478 half meter bratwurst stands, 25 crepe stands, 7 chocolate fruit stands, 1 amazing chinese stand and enough beer to intoxicate a small country. By the way these are all on wheels except the massive beer tent. But don't fret there is some beer on wheels.

Quick side note: Why do carnivals or anywhere else for that matter insist on having racially correct people working the diversity stands? Does my satisfaction of the food depend on the racial matching of restaurant and employee? But I do appreciate the effort.

This year I limited myself to only 1 day of eating and 2 days of enjoyment. I do have to give it to the Germans on their engineering prowess. This carnival has some bad to the bone rides. Remember the most important fact here, portability. Who cares about the fact it takes a week and a half to set everything up and it shuts down the major roads through town. They have three dimensional spinning.

Now whats a 3-dimensional ride you may ask. Picture this. I pay my three or four Euros for the ride. Thats close to five bucks a ride so this better be good. I step onto the massive circle that spins. I walk to my two person spinnable contraption and get strapped in. Might I add that this spinnable contraption spins on a horizontal axis and is connected to lots of other contraptions that spin on a vertical axis, which is connected to a large circle that also spins on a vertical axis. Now 3-4 minutes of this mayhem. Three times the fun, three times the spinning, three times the recovery time. I need another bratwurst.

The ride referenced above was Shake but my favorite was High Energy. Check them both out in the pictures in the link below.

Here is a link to some cool pics much cooler than mine. Wait, I didn't take any. I knew I was forgetting something. Glad someone else didn't fail.


To another year of mayhem
TJW

p.s. if you are still trying to figure out how to get to the pictures or are upset I didn't post a URL click the word link using only the tip of a yellow florescent highlighter.

New Blog

With my new found job I have new found desk time. I have decided to launch another blog based solely around basketball, anything and everything basketball.

www.basketballu.wordpress.com

if you know anyone really interested about taking their game to the next level have them check it out.

I posted the first article today and will update the blog frequently.

TJW

Quick Update

Hello All,

I just wanted to write a quick something during the commercials of the vikes game (greatest invention ever: slingbox). If you are reading this during the vikes game or instead of watching the vikes game you really should seek the appropriate help.

First things first, we got the W yesterday, 85-52. It was a good "get back into it" game. I definitely had my struggles during the game but got the kinks worked out and dunked on a couple heads. Everyone really played well. We had lots of contribution from a bunch of different guys which was very good to see.

I taped the game and hope to get it on the internet ASAP. I have the game finalized but i need to make the file size smaller before I can get it on the web. I'll post a link when I get it up.

Exciting day tomorrow, I start my part-time job at Kon M. Not excited about having to get up in the morning.

I think that is all I have for now. Back to the vikes and my spaghetti.

Keep livin' it up,
TJW

P.S. Keep grandpa Nemitz in your prayers and he recovers from back surgery. Sounds like everything went well and he will be back home in a couple days.

Observations of a foreign land

Weather Report: Mostly cloudy and damp Correction: Sunny and nice (I started this post yesterday but didn't feel the inspiration so I put it off)

I had a great walk around the neighborhood today because the weather was bearable more importantly I NEEDED that sun for my soul.

A couple observations of European living:

1) Everything is smaller here, houses, cars, yards, streets, shops and restaurants to name a few.

2) People have chickens in their yards. Yes, chickens in the middle of town. Don't be afraid these are not rampant garbage eating chickens but proper free range (there is a fence) hens. I thought this was just a fluke when I was walking around but saw it in several yards.

3) Now #3 is the most perplexing to Tremaine and I. This has happened to us at other places but the gym, fitness gym, is where is occurs most frequently. People say "Ciao" aka "bye" when they leave the locker room at the gym. Previous to this good-bye I had no contact with these people nor had I seen them on a regular basis. We never had a moment while in the locker room that warranted a good-bye. There was no "we both come to the gym at the same time but never talked but feel a connection with each other because of the similar interest in moving extreme amounts of steel" with these people that in my world prompts a good-bye.

I feel that a "hi" has to precede a "bye" at some point during the process. But that is simply my humble opinion. Maybe its just a creepy locker room thing because last year at a completely different gym it was guaranteed to happen if someone was leaving the locker room to go home. They would not however say it if they were simply leaving the locker room to go out on the gym floor.

Maybe its a testosterone thing maybe its just creepy but if anyone could shed some light on this it would be greatly appreciated.

TJW

Borken Beat-Down

Hello Hello

Well last Friday was simply a Borken beat-down. Brash, maybe a little, but I thoroughly the alliteration. I try not to think too long about stuff just simply write the first thing that comes to mind for better or worse.

So we traveled to Borken because for some reason if school is not in session the gym all of a sudden becomes out of commission and we either practice somewhere else or have "friendlies" away. The drive does provide a supurb venue for a nap though which Tremaine and I take full advantage of all the time 90% of the time.

I am liking the look of our team. We have quick fast guards mixed with a big front court so I think we are going to be able to put a lot of pressure on teams this year and score a ton of points. With everyone being a year older and having another year of experience our bench is much improved.

Long game short, defensively with our pressure we created a ton of turnovers which in turn lead to lots of easy buckets. We made them play a lot faster than they were capable of playing which made the 30 point difference in the game. Everyone got to see a lot of time and I am excited to get the season going again.

I mean Germany is fun and all (insert: Sim Ju) but basketball is what I really look forward to.

TJW

p.s. Sim Ju news to come. Still two more days of festivities.

Just another damp day in Germany

Guten Morgen

Well as the title foreshadows it is indeed another damp day in Germany. Nobody go crazy on me or spit your cereal all over the computer because of this big freakn' revelation but simply take it for what it is. What is it you may ask yourself? Its every single day in Germany. That's what it is. Is it too much to ask for a little sunshine up in here. I would love to see some depression statistics or vitamin D levels of this part of Germany.

Quick tangent: Speaking of Vitamin D, get your vitamin D levels checked, seriously. If you can do anything for your health right now optimize your VD levels (anyone else find that acronym slightly funny?). I can almost guarantee that most of you will have insufficient VD levels. Insufficient VD levels lead only to BAD things.

In all seriousness check out these two articles

What it is:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2002/02/23/vitamin-d-part-five.aspx

How to optimize:
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2002/02/23/vitamin-d-deficiency-part-one.aspx

Alright back to my pessimism. But really, I am going to be honest there have been probably 2 real sunny days out of 7 since I have been here so I can't complain too much. On the bright side, you like the connection to weather, we do have a "friendly" today. That is code in German for a scrimmage. I think we travel to Borchen.

I have been getting used to my excessive free time because I don't start my part-time job for at least a week. We are also in a new pad this year which is much farther from town. This translates to excessive walking to get there. Indeed it takes a while so if any Germans read this blog and have an extra bike lying around and would like to be a pal and let a friend borrow it. You will be showered with praise and admoration.

This is worth repeating, "DOES ANYONE HAVE AN EXTRA BIKE THAT LIVES WITHIN 100 KM OF WERNE AND WANTS TO LET ME BORROW IT?" -- I am expecting sarcastic comments from my US viewers like "Oh I have an extra bike Trevor but its in the US" so fire away. Thus the reason I put in the clause" 100 KM of Werne."

To bike hunting (because they cost as much as things with engines here),
Trevor
p.s. Sim JU this weekend. Thats German code for people gunna get crazy. You will recieve a full report of all the craziness.

Safe Arrival

Guten Tag

I arrived in Germany and I actually gotta run to the store to buy some food so I am going to make this short and put a longer one up later. We won last night by like 25. One of my bags got left in Amsterdam so I didn't have any basketball shoes. Tremaine had an extra pair that were about a size too small so I ran with those. I can't say my toes felt good after the game.

Well, I just wanted to say I arrived at our new place and am hoping my bag comes today but right now I need to get to the grocery store.

TJW

I'm Back......Online and Off

Sorry for the lack of posts in the last four months. To be honest, there was not that much to talk about. Actually a very frustrating time for me but I'm back to being healthy and ready for another season of blogging and basketball.

After much deliberation I decided to go Round 2 on Werne. I am excited to get back, see some old friends, and make a run at the championship.

Just booked the flight to Werne. Back to the old stompin' grounds. See everyone on Friday the 16th.

Trevor

p.s.
remember to not click the links, I hate it when you guys do that :)

I Love Chipotle

If you didn't figure it out from the title I safely landed in the United States and made it to Chipotle. If you don't know what it is you are missing out on a small piece of heaven here on earth. But seriously if you still haven't heard of Chipotle climb out of your cave. You don't have to take it personally its not your fault, but it is your fault now if you don't go check it out now. Nothing like giving a free plug to a company. If you need someone to go with I will be more than welcome to explain the intricacies of this fine restaurant establishment to you.

My Thoughts Right Now

Kane, my college housemate, picked me up from the airport a few hours ago and now he is off at work. Perfect time for me to do a little writing. For starters if you have never taken a flight on Air India you must do it at least once in your life. It is definitely a culture shock. I was clearly in the severe minority on this flight. I found it very interesting to look around the aircraft and see the cultural evolution. I saw the very old traditional Indian people and then the new more modern dressed ones. I had a nice highly curry laden lamb dish for my meal and I noticed that most were getting vegetarian dishes. Definitely an interesting plane ride. Nothing like one more cultural experience to finish off the first year.

Basketball Update
First off, its good to be back in the States where a gym is readily available to me. I will probably go put up a bunch of shots tonight simply because I can. Its nice to be able to get in a gym whenever I want. I might kiss the first wood floor I see.

I think the last time I talked about basketball I hadn't been to any try-outs yet. I am extremely happy to announce that I did get a couple looks after the last blog. I traveled to Langen (near Frankfurt) for a two-day try-out there. It was a great experience. The guys on that team were very nice. I actually spent one of the evenings relaxing at the Americans' house just watching tv. Basketball wise I think the try-out went really well. My shot was a little rusty because of not being in a gym for a couple weeks but what can you do. I played solid, not outstanding but not poorly. Since this was a Pro A team, 3 leagues higher than where I played, I didn't know what to expect right away. This level of basketball is a much better fit for me and is where I need to be to really improve. Langen as a team is very team orientated. They only have a few foreign players and they have a strong focus on developing their younger players. Very nice management and okay facilities.

I had another try-out last night before I left with Essen, a city near Dusseldorf. Marko and Goran accompanied me to the try-out which was really nice. This try-out was much different than Langen. Essen has a bunch of Americans who were extremely athletic. The style of play here was more 1 v 1 and breaking down one's defender then kicking to open shooters. Even with the added athleticism I felt I fit right in. Again I played solid and speaking with the coaches afterward they liked how I played. Hopefully this will lead to some opportunity in the future.

Overall, I think the try-outs were very successful and I am happy I spent the extra three weeks in Germany to do it. The more I am in this business the more I find out how important networking is. I also have found how important character is to coaches. The game can be taught to someone who is willing to learn but the game is hard to teach to someone who already knows it all. The player is only part of the equation, character can many times be a deciding factor.

The Rest of My Life

I will be back in MN this Sunday around 2 pm. We are planning on heading to the cheesecake factory after I land. Anyone and everyone is welcome. If you would like to join us shoot me an email or give my mom a call. I cant wait to see everyone again in MN. First things first though -- college house reunion in Chicago.

I would also like to make a public thanks to Marko and his father for putting me up in their apartment for three weeks.

Also thanks to Marc, Timo, Jana, and Maggie for stopping Dusseldorf to give us a final farewell

The Windy City Awaits
TJW

p.s. I wrote this yesterday but forgot to post it so pretend you read this yesterday

MS Ride 150 - Jim's Jammin' Juicers

I want to start by thanking Liz, my wonerful cousin, for adding Jammin' to our team name. I really think it really completes the name and embodies everything our team is about.

I finally got my act together and everything is set for my first annual MS Ride from Duluth to Minneapolis. The event will take place on June 12-14. Right now I am looking for people to join my team and help me raise $3000 for the MS Society. This is a great excuse to get back on that bike and get back in shape. There is nothing like a 150 mile ride to get one motivated to start exercising again. The best part about this event is that we will be riding as a group. Depending on how big our team gets I would love to organize some training rides this spring and would even be willing to set-up a training plan for anyone interested.

If you cannot ride with me another way for you to help out is to give a donation. The MS society has made it as easy as ever to donate. You can donate electronically online or simply send a check to me made out to the MS Society and I will get it safely delivered. (All of this and easy access to links is explained again below in the letter) If you are looking for some tax breaks for next year this is a great chance as all donations are tax deductible. I have receipts and papers to make sure you get those deductions. I would love to send an email to everyone but I dont have very many email addresses and I know a more diverse group reads my blog.

Here is the email I would send to you if I had your email address:

Dear Friends and Family,

Consider a pledge to end multiple sclerosis and support me during Bike MS: Larkin Hoffman MS 150 Ride 2009.

MS stops people from moving. The National MS Society exists to make sure it doesn’t. Please help by making a donation — large or small — to move closer to a world free of MS. Or, why not join me on the event? Become a participant and side by side, as teammates, we will move together to raise the funds that make a difference.

Whatever you can give will help. I greatly appreciate your support and will keep you posted on my progress.

Sincerely,
Trevor Wittwer

Click here to visit my personal page and make a secure, online donation.

To send a donation:

Make all checks payable to:
The National MS Society
Please note my name and Bike MS: Larkin Hoffman MS 150 Ride 2009 on your check.

Mail to:
Trevor Wittwer : 30487 County Hwy 1 : Redwood Falls, MN 56283-2802

Finally if you want to find out a little more about my story dealing with MS check out my personal website for this ride. Also, if you are interested in supporting the cause or would like to hear more about the journey over the next 50+ days post your email address as a comment and I will add you to our email list.

Quick Update

Guten Morgen Alle

It has been way too long I know so since I have some free time today I thought I would sit down and chat a bit. Pull up a chair we got some talking to do. The weather here has been great the past few days but looking out the window right now it is extremely foggy. Interesting! I can´t even see the Dusseldorf tower which is only a few kilometers away.

My Thoughts Right Now

Since I have had more free time than normal I am currently reading a book called "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People." I recommend this book for anyone and everyone if you have not read it yet. I dont care how much you know or what stage of your life you are in. Everyone can take something from this book and become a better human being. I am only on the first principle and I am already suggesting it.

Don´t let the title fool you. This is not your normal self-help, if I just put on the right facade for everyone then everyone like me book. It really looks at funadmental principles in character and values rather than quick fix circus acts. It teaches about paradigms and how we look at the world and situations in it. We do have a great deal of control and are not dicatated as people by our external influences. I don´t want to get into the philosophy right now so just check it out.

I dont know if it is just me or simply coinscience that I am reading a series of books with very similar themes and principles. All these books are coming from different places and different people so I find these similarities very intriguing. I am seeing common themes arise in this book that I found in other books such as "The Secret," "The Alchemsit," and "A New Earth." All books from very different people in various situations in life. Maybe they are on to something here. It has me thinking at least, which is a good thing (I think).

No matter what stage we are in our lives, I think as humans we need to continue to learn and improve (for lack of better words). Experience is a great way but I think the best may be through the experiences of others. This is where reading and networking comes into play. This applies to all aspects of life, personal or business. This just popped into my head but I may come back and expand on it at a later date.

Basketball Update

Well I havn´t actually had any official basketball tryouts since my arrival here in Dusseldorf, very disappointing I know. Or is it? I may not be playing basketball but networking in this game may be even more important than skill. I have been blessed with running into and getting to know some very influential people in the basketball world. A week ago Marko and his dad introduced me to a friend of theirs living here in Dusseldorf. It just so happens that this guy knows almost every Serbian or Ex-Yugoslavian coach here in the world. He is man with a ton of influence and contacts. He is also very willing to help me find a job for next year. Honestly, he can do more for me than my agency can right now. Its crazy how things like this happen.

On another front it looks like Marko is heading to the United States to play basketball. I contacted a bunch of schools around MN for him and Northern State seems to be very interested. Marko and them have been in constant conversation and it sounds like they are excited for him to come over. I had a long conversation with Coach Meyer, Northern State Head Coach, the other day as well and at the end he gave me the name of a Denver Nuggest Scout over here in Germany. Hopefully I will be able to get a hold of him and maybe he can help a little guy from Gustavus get a job.

Well, thats about all I have today. This week I hope to try out with one team near Dusseldorf then head to Frankfurt to try out with a couple teams. I will keep everyone posted but as of right now it seems that I will be heading back to the states a week from Wednesday. I plan on flying into Chicago to meet some college buddies for a weekend of fun. Chi-town look out because the Nassau crew is back together.

Random Note

If anyone is into music check out this guy named Milow. He is from Belgium and has a great sound. I think even the older than me population will appreciate his music. I dont know if he has exploded in the states yet but give it time. Here is one of my favorite songs: You Dont Know.

Smile; Life is Great :)
TJW

Let there be Sunshine

This might be a new record for nice days in a row since I have been in Germany. I think the count is at four. I even changed cities and its continues to be nice. I think when the weather is nice people seem happier too. I have written previously about how sometimes I feel people are cold (not in a bad sense but rather simply as a social descriptor) here in Germany and it makes me think that it is because the weather is so dreary much of the time. Today I was proven wrong by the German people. There is nothing like a little sunshine to brighten up your day. Plus, the sun is really good for you as well, more to come on that later. Ever wonder why so many people get sick during the winter? Do you realize how little quality sun exposure people get in the winter? Is disease and lack of sun simply a coincidence? Research is starting to say NO. If you are interested in this topic and especially that of Vitamin D check out Dr. Mercola and search sunlight or vitamin D. This will provide reading for hours if you so choose, and do take your computer on the sunshine deck to read.

Well I had some free time today and I just decided I was going to write and let it take me where it will. Probably not the most productive way of attacking things but I dont have a lot to do so why not. My creative juices are flowing so I think I am going to just get to it. It turns out my babble in the beginning has sparked my next fitness/health tip: SUNLIGHT.

Lets start by talking about a major stimulus of sunlight that is essential to our existence on this earth as humans, vitamin D. Vitamin D is beginning to emerge in the lay community as an essential component to health. Reasearch is beginning to pile up on its ability to both combat and prevent disease. The main function taught in textbooks for Vitamin D is to help regulate normal blood levels of calcium and phosphorus. It aids in the absorption of calcium to form and maintain strong, healthy bones.

As more research is done Vitamin D is beginning to emerge as a key player in many other processes in the body not simply the optimization of bone health. Not only has this vitamin been shown to combat cancer but also correlated to the following conditions:

• Diabetes
• Heart Disease
• Arthritis
• Infertility and PMS
• Fatigue, Depression, and Seasonal Affective Disorder
• Autoimmune Diseases
• Obesity
• Syndrome X

(reference: Mercola.com)

If you think that by drinking milk (if you want to hear a rant ask me my thoughts about mainstream milk) and simply taking your vitamins that you are safe, think again. The type of vitamin in these substances or supplements is usually Vitamin D2 which is synthetic. It is not as potent as the Vitamin D3 you recieve from sunlight or natural foods such as cod liver oil. D3 is what is made by your body when it is exposed to sunlight.

The easiest and probably tastiest way (cod liver oil is no pina colada) to get your Vitamin D to optimal levels and improve your health is simply get some sunlight. Humans may think they know a lot but Mother Nature has been around for much longer than we have and it seems that all we need to do is step into the light.

°°sorry for no pictures, I am not on my own computer

Its Back

By it I mean my computer but I am not fully back yet because I cannot stay long for a chat. I just woke up and must clean the house and finish packing for my move to Dusseldforf today. Hopefully once I get moved in in Dusseldorf I will have a little more time to sit down and write. I have a lot to write about as it has been a crazy last few days with all the good-byes and BBQs. I will miss everybody here in Werne very much and its weird my 7 month stay here is pretty much over. The people here have been great to me. I just wanna take a second to thank everyone from Germany that reads my blog and has made this an amazing experience. I don't know if I will experience anything like the love from Werne but I guess only time will tell.

Seee you in Dusseldorf
TJW

Quick Update

We won the game last Saturday by 10. It was a good farewell for the fans. Dropped Matt at the airport today, now Marko is sleeping next to me (not in the same bed but in two separate beds separated by a small space) because someone peed in his bed (it was not me although I do wish it was). Its kind of like old times, the sleeping not the peeing. My computer crashed during the Villanova Pitt game on Saturday night probably because God was upset with me for betting on the game and talking trash to Junior. Speaking of that he owes me ten Euros. Its late I am going to bed. I will write a more indepth post later. I just wanted to put a quick one up.

A Weekend in Review

The weekend started with an easy win in Paderborn. I am not going to elaborate on this game very much because we won by forty 126:83; enough said. It was like playing against children because most of the players were probably eighteen. My high school team could have stomped this team. I did get a sick alley-opp from Tremaine on a fastbreak which might give one of their little guards nightmares for a few days because I sat on his head. I had no motivation the entire game because we could score at will, definitely not worth the hour and a half drive.

Championship Sunday was where the real fireworks happened. My young guns put up a strong fight but just didn't have enough energy to get the win. They are playing the best basketball I have seen them play all year. Things are starting to come together for them. Too bad there is only one game left in the season. Hopefully they learned a few things and will be better off next year.

After the game we had a little pool party and BBQ with the parents. After a hour of throwing skinny adolescent boys through the air and pelting them with water balls it was time to eat. We had bratwurst (of course) and a few nice salads. I really wish I could have gotten to know the parents a little better because they seem like really nice people. I had a few nice conversations on car rides but I think most are not sure enough of their English to really strike up a conversation with me except for a select few.

Well, the game of the evening began around 6:00 pm and was over by about 6:30. My men's team came out strong and demolished TuS Hemmerde in the first two quarters with a score of 45:15. This is the same team that beat us earlier in the season when we were missing a few of our players and we played on a "Saved by the Bell" court. Oh how things are different when we have everybody and play on a regulation floor. A thirty point lead at halftime allowed us to coast to a 79:39 win. For those who haven't been keeping track at home that secures the championship for us. WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS! Its a good feeling because these guys are way too good for this league and need some more competition. Congratulations guys!I really look like a coach in my shorts and hat huh? Well that's what a championship coach wears so all you haters out there can kiss my championship butt.

The championship party went into the early morning and it was great to have all the guys over to the house for my second BBQ of the day. Check out the grill we used below :)

GET OFF YOUR BUTT

Just to preface this post I want to say that I am writing during commercial breaks of basketball games amidst the greatest two weeks in basketball not to mention its one in the morning. So, I will do my best to proofread this before I post it but I can't guarantee cohesiveness and makesenseness (yes I just made up that word). I am also editing this during commercial breaks of Villanova/UCLA so I can't guarantee anything here.

Commercial Break between Minnesota and Texas. Time to do some writing.

So the title of the first fitness tip is "Get off your Butt." I find it very ironic that I am currently sitting as I type this article. I think I will stand up for the rest of this post. Nope, I like sitting better. I think I have done enough activity for the day to get some well-deserved sit time. Although, if you work on your computer a lot its not a bad idea to find a way to stand and work.

As we evolve as humans and technology continually makes our lives easier in a physical exertion sense we spend much more time on our rumps that our ancestors did. No longer do we have to run from saber tooth tigers or kill mastodons for food. If we want to see our friend or go to the store we sit in our car. Instead of going to the factory to work we are sitting at computers for hours and hours. Technology has allowed our population to become extremely sedentary yet increasingly productive. As humans we are not meant to sit. We evolved to walk, run, and jump so as we spend 8-10 hours sitting dysfunction and disease manifest itself inside our bodies. We no longer look like gladiators of the past but feeble couch potatoes.

Two perspectives on WHY you should be getting off your butt!

Whats going on on the outside....aka what everyone else sees

Do you really want computer guy syndrome? Rounded shoulders and upper back, weak and inhibited butt muscles (glutes), short hip flexors and usually a regular history of back pain. Your bones become brittle, you gain extra weight, and your now 90 year old mother whaps you over the head with a ruler still telling you to sit up straight, not to mention she could wallop you in any type of physical activity. But you could surely beat her in a words typed per minute contest. Good for you!!!


How can you prevent it? MOVE!!!! If you sit at a desk for long periods of time in this position you should really check out these two articles. I could write about this all day but I think it is outside the scope of this blog and really why re-invent the wheel. I have a good resource for this that I believe does a thorough job. Read/Skim this ARTICLE because it will give you tips on how to improve your posture throughout the work day and if you are into weight training check out this ARTICLE as well.

The best quick advice I can give is get up and walk around at least twice every hour. Drink a lot of water, it will force you to get up and go the bathroom and you will stay well hydrated. WIN WIN

Now whats going on on the inside....

Not only does lack of exercise make you look whackey (see hunchback of notre dame) but it creates havoc on the inside. Our bodies have evolved to move. We are not supposed to sit for endless hours at a time. This allows disease and sickness to manifest itself within our bodies greatly reducing our quality years of living. I know you may not see the effects yet but that is because you are young and your body is still very resilient. The human body has an extraordinary ability to adapt to its surroundings. However over time your body will begin to break down unless you take care of it.

Think of your body as a car. If you don't maintain it and take care of it sooner or later little things will start to break-down. If you don't fix these things or just brush them off bigger things begin to happen and all of a sudden you are on the side of the freeway and its raining and you left your cellphone at home. Not to mention its the middle of the night and not a single person is on the road. You are in another state and have no idea what to do. Now you might wish you spent the few extra bucks or the few extra minutes to take care of it. The nice thing about the car is that you can get a new one. You only have one body. Think about it. We live in a reactionary society especially when dealing with main steam medicine. Be proactive not reactive. Lets prevent disease and distress from happening in the first place.

I found this quote very interesting as I was doing a little research for this topic:

"We have yet to find a disease state where exercise is not helpful." Miriam Nelson, Ph.D., Tufts University

I don't know about you but I find that astonishing. While I was in college I worked with a lady who had rheumatoid arthritis. Who would have thought that exercise would help someone with arthritis. Guess what, it did tremendously.

A few quick reasons to get exercising:
1. Helps to prevent certain types of cancer
2. Helps to prevent heart disease and diabetes
3. Improves mood and concentration; combats depression
4. Helps you sleep better
5. Improves resistance to infections and viruses
6. Improves brain function making you smarter
7. Improves body composition; more muscle--less fat
8. Live better longer


Movement is something I think we as a population take for granted. Just like with most simple things in life we never really realize how much we appreciated something until its gone. Don't wait for disease or disability to make you aware of how lucky you are to be able to move; take advantage of it everyday.

If you won't get off the couch for own well being, do it to see your grandchildren get old or do it to save thousands of dollars on medical bills. Do it to live longer with less disease. Do it to inspire someone else to do it. Do it by yourself, or with your significant other, or even better with a big group. Take control of your life.

I simply wanted to use this first post as an introduction to exercise and why you should be doing it. In the next few weeks I hope to dig a little deeper into exercise and provide ways for you to get more of it.

Now get off the stupid computer and go for a walk. That's where I am headed. Its a rare beautiful day in Germany.

TJW

Games Online

I have taped a few games this year and found a way to get them online. If you want to check out some games just click on the teams we played below.

Dortmund

Herford

Luddenscheid


Keep up the good clicking

Dunks, Recklinghausen, and Coaching

Well I am finally getting around to do some writing this week, blog writing that is. I sometimes feel like I have a desk job spending so much time in front of my computer. Don't worry I get up every so often to stretch out my hips and upper back. No computer guy syndrome for me. You know what I am talking about: rounded shoulders and upper back, weak inhibited and flat backside, tight hip flexors and and an infatuation with world of warcraft. Wow, this segments very well as a preview for the first fitness tip of the week "STOP SITTING SO MUCH" which make its debut later in the week.

I would have loved to write about our game against Recklinghausen last Saturday a little bit sooner but a little dunk contest in practice happened on Monday. I just so happened to have taped it and wanted the world to see it so I spent some time dabbling with my camera and editing. It just so happens to be the poll of the week as well. Who won: Marko Filipovic or Matthew Goldsmith. If you would like to hear Matt's run-down of the competition check it our HERE. Lets get to the video and don't forget to vote when you get done watching. Exercise your right to vote in the free world even if it just a lowly blogspot page.



This is just a little insight into what we accomplish in our free time. Hopefully there will be more to come with new dunks, dunkers, and of course HOTNESS.

Okay, now to the game last Saturday against 3rd place Recklinghausen that might I add beat us by 50+ the first time we played. Might I also add that we did not have Matt, Junior, or Marc and the majority of the team was sick. Saturday was definately a different story.

We played well and had control of the game for three quarters. The fourth though threw us into a tail spin that can only be described as pitiful. Of course there was help from the officials who had actually done a fine job up to this point. I really can't fault anyone except ourselves. We simply did not execute in the fourth quarter and they did a good job of taking advantage of mismatches. Long story short they outscored us 33-13 in the fourth. A ten point lead dissipates very quickly with a fourth quarter like that.

I have to give Recklinghausen credit. They are a good team. They have very good guards and 3 or 4 Canadian and Americans who are very good players. They are an athletic team who rebounds hard and pushes the ball up the floor. For the fans I think this was a great game to watch as it was a battle right from the tip. What could be more entertaining than a fast paced game between two quality teams mixed with a bunch of threes and some "sicknasty" dunks.

We ended up losing the game 93:100. I had 27 in the losing effort.

Two games left this season. This Friday at Paderborn and the the season finale home against Dortmund.

Coaching:

My men's team took down Soest, the fourth place team, in typical men's team style. A fast paced game mixed with terrible officiating and some technicals to boot. Just another day at the office. Now we can secure the championship at home this Sunday. The champagne is on ice.

One more thing about my men's team. I got the privilege to coach my coach as he played for my team because we were in need of another point guard due to injuries. For a man who hasn't played in awhile he still has some hop to his step but I think the next day he may have been regretting his decision to have played.

Back to the states in about a month
TJW

MS Ride 150

I was introduced to this event by a good college friend and it got me to thinking. Why not start a team of my own. I haven't officially signed up a team yet because I would like to put the word out before I get anything going.

What is it: MS Ride 150

Where is it: Duluth to Minneapolis (2 Day ride)

When is it: June 12-14

Why do it: I first thought of this as a way to get the family together to support a good cause but anyone who wants to ride with is more than welcome. I think it would be a good way to show support for a quality organization and also commemorate the life of James Arthur Wittwer. For those of you who don't know my family history James is my father and lost his battle to Multiple Sclerosis (MS) a little over two years ago. What a way to commemorate his life, ride with the wind through your hair in the beautiful MN countryside for those who continue the fight against this horrid disease. Maybe we will make someone else's life a little less painful with the contribution we make. Isn't that reason enough?

Reasons why you should participate:

• Support a good cause
• Help those who are less fortunate
  
• Commemorate the life of Jim
• See the outdoors firsthand -- from outside the car
• Feel the wind flow rush across your face
  
• Motivation to get back on that bike and train
• Create life long memories
• Bonding time with friends and family
  
• Accomplish something special as a group
• FUN FUN FUN FUN FUN

Mull it over and when I get the team created I will send over the link. In the meantime meander through the MS 150 Website to get the full scoop.

P.S. I am looking for a team name as well so post your ideas of team names and how much money you think we could feasible raise as a team in the next 3 months

GET TO IT!!!!!