With great relief and satisfaction I can announce making it to 50,000 words in one month. Look out now, I will actually get to spend some time on the practice board!
Friday, November 30, 2007
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Dart Related Novel Excerpt
I am up to 47,500 words, only 2,500 from my goal! I will probably finish tomorrow morning. Darts is not the primary focus of the novel I am writing, but two of the characters in my novel happen to play darts on a league team. I am including an excerpt from a part where one character is convincing the other to come out and play on his dart team for the first time. It kind of reminds me of when I joined my first league team, which was at Oscar's Bar in Metairie, LA, which is a New Orleans suburb, over 10 years ago. A lot of my team mates scattered after Katrina and I have not heard from them since. Jimmy B and the guys, if you are out there, this one's for you. Here is the excerpt:
The next morning I wandered into Ash's office and he was talking on his cell phone.
"What do you mean Scotty's dropping out?" he said into the phone. "That will make us a man short." Ash ran his fingers through his hair and paced. "Well I guess family comes first and all."
Ash turned and noticed me and held his hand up, and then motioned to a chair. I sat.
"Alright Tom. See you Tuesday" Ash said and flipped his small black cell phone closed.
"Hi Joe. How are things going?" he asked.
"Not bad. I am starting to get a handle on things." I said.
Ash eyed me up and down, almost like he was inspecting a used car. He walked up to his dart board and pulled out three darts. "What do you do on Tuesday nights?" he asked.
"Nothing really, I just spend time with Peg at home and have dinner." I answered.
"Ever play darts before?" he asked, as he walked a few feet back to a well-worn part of the carpet.
"When I did a little bartending I picked them up once in a blue moon." I said.
Ash aimed one of the darts at the bristle board. His arm slowly drew it back towards his eye, and then swept forward in a fluid motion. The dart arced towards the board and thunked audibly as it landed right next to the bullseye.
"Not bad" I said.
In a steady rhythm, he threw the next two darts. The second one hit the green outer portion of the bullseye. The third one hit the flight at the end of the second dart, and glided right into the center bullseye.
"You're pretty good I see" I said. Ash walked up to the board and pulled the darts out, handing one to me.
I chuckled. "You don't want a hole in your wall, do you?" I asked.
Ash pointed out to his bookcase, where a jar of spackle sat on the top shelf. "Don't worry, give it a shot." he said.
I shrugged, walked up to the line and threw the first dart. It was a hands' length away from the bullseye. The next one was a little bit closer, but the third was a little farther away.
"A decent start" he said, nodding his head. "We're one man short on our dart team. If you are interested, we would love to have you come out." he offered.
"I don't know if I would do you much good." I said.
"Nonsense! If we don't put a warm body in there, we will have to forfeit the games. Anything you hit will help. Even if you lose every time we are no worse off." he explained.
"Peg just mentioned that I needed to get out." I said. "That sounds good. Let me just make sure that I didn't have anything planned with my wife, and I will let you know tomorrow." I said.
"Great! It's a lot of fun. Wait until you meet the guys. They are some real characters." said Ash.
The next morning I wandered into Ash's office and he was talking on his cell phone.
"What do you mean Scotty's dropping out?" he said into the phone. "That will make us a man short." Ash ran his fingers through his hair and paced. "Well I guess family comes first and all."
Ash turned and noticed me and held his hand up, and then motioned to a chair. I sat.
"Alright Tom. See you Tuesday" Ash said and flipped his small black cell phone closed.
"Hi Joe. How are things going?" he asked.
"Not bad. I am starting to get a handle on things." I said.
Ash eyed me up and down, almost like he was inspecting a used car. He walked up to his dart board and pulled out three darts. "What do you do on Tuesday nights?" he asked.
"Nothing really, I just spend time with Peg at home and have dinner." I answered.
"Ever play darts before?" he asked, as he walked a few feet back to a well-worn part of the carpet.
"When I did a little bartending I picked them up once in a blue moon." I said.
Ash aimed one of the darts at the bristle board. His arm slowly drew it back towards his eye, and then swept forward in a fluid motion. The dart arced towards the board and thunked audibly as it landed right next to the bullseye.
"Not bad" I said.
In a steady rhythm, he threw the next two darts. The second one hit the green outer portion of the bullseye. The third one hit the flight at the end of the second dart, and glided right into the center bullseye.
"You're pretty good I see" I said. Ash walked up to the board and pulled the darts out, handing one to me.
I chuckled. "You don't want a hole in your wall, do you?" I asked.
Ash pointed out to his bookcase, where a jar of spackle sat on the top shelf. "Don't worry, give it a shot." he said.
I shrugged, walked up to the line and threw the first dart. It was a hands' length away from the bullseye. The next one was a little bit closer, but the third was a little farther away.
"A decent start" he said, nodding his head. "We're one man short on our dart team. If you are interested, we would love to have you come out." he offered.
"I don't know if I would do you much good." I said.
"Nonsense! If we don't put a warm body in there, we will have to forfeit the games. Anything you hit will help. Even if you lose every time we are no worse off." he explained.
"Peg just mentioned that I needed to get out." I said. "That sounds good. Let me just make sure that I didn't have anything planned with my wife, and I will let you know tomorrow." I said.
"Great! It's a lot of fun. Wait until you meet the guys. They are some real characters." said Ash.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Off Topic: Writing Like Crazy
Those of you following my last few posts know that I am participating in Nanowrimo, or National Novel Writing Month. I and hundreds of other crazy people decided to write at least 50,000 words in one month. I am entering the home stretch, but it is going to be close. I just passed 40,000 words, and I have through Friday night to reach 50,000. Wish me luck. I had trouble finding a good graphic for reaching the 40K milestone. There is apparently a videogame called "Warhammer 40000" but their logo did not do it for me. The best I could find was this one:
I feel a bit treadworn, and with only two days to go and 10,000 words to write, I will need to get extreme. Maybe I should download the Rocky theme from I Tunes, put it on and endless loop, and keep writing until I run out of caffeine. That sounds like a plan.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Long Island Report and Another Milestone
I took the train into Long Island yesterday for the Fall Classic. I had a lot of fun visiting with my old friends from the Corner Bar dart team. Michele and Dave Hascup, John Daddio, Tom Waterman, Chris Bills, and Dr. Bob were there. I also said hi to several Elizabeth League friends. I made it just in time to register for singles 501, but just barely. With no warmup, I scored poorly until the end of the second game, when I hit a 100 and just missed a 112 checkout. My opponent promptly capitalized and I was a first round casualty.
I stayed on and watched some good matches in the singles 501. Several top Americans competed including Johnny Kucynski, Darin Young, Bill Bell, Jimmy Widmayer and Tim O'Gorman. Tom Waterman from the Corner Bar made it to the semi-finals with some fine darts, losing to Fred Krueger.
I ordered a meatball sub and sat to watch the finals, which featured Fred Kreuger against Darin Young. Both had shot well to get to that point and were ready for a good match. Unfortunately, they had difficulty scoring and traded the first two legs. In the tie breaker, Fred was a little more solid and reached the double just ahead of Darin. Two darts at double top went awry, and Darin had three clear shots at a double. He was unlucky as well. Fred was relieved to finally hit the winning double after they played hot-potato with the game for another round.
Dave and Nikki Passenti agreed to take me in as a third person in the mixed triples. I started well with a 140, and we got down to the double well in advance of our opposition. Unfortunately we got stuck on a double seven which we failed to take out despite each of us getting a crack at it. Our opponents made us pay and I was again a first round casualty. Frank Nagy from the Bottoms Up team in Elizabeth also made short work of me in the luck of the draw doubles. Overall, I shot about what I could expect considering the lack of practice lately, and I know what I will have to work on.
Dr. Bob and I had some great practice sessions between matches playing 170. I was looking good on my two dart outs so that will give me some encouragment with two big tournaments approaching in January, including the Rae Chesney Tournament in Philadelphia and the New York/New Jersey Open. We drove home this morning and had some great conversations about darts that I might share in some future articles.
To change the subject, the novel writing is going well. I must have looked quite a sight on the Long Island Railroad train, typing away on my laptop computer. Every once in a while the train would lurch and I would have to grip it to keep it from sliding off my lap down to the floor. However, I made steady progress and can now proudly announce meeting the 30,000 word milestone.
I stayed on and watched some good matches in the singles 501. Several top Americans competed including Johnny Kucynski, Darin Young, Bill Bell, Jimmy Widmayer and Tim O'Gorman. Tom Waterman from the Corner Bar made it to the semi-finals with some fine darts, losing to Fred Krueger.
I ordered a meatball sub and sat to watch the finals, which featured Fred Kreuger against Darin Young. Both had shot well to get to that point and were ready for a good match. Unfortunately, they had difficulty scoring and traded the first two legs. In the tie breaker, Fred was a little more solid and reached the double just ahead of Darin. Two darts at double top went awry, and Darin had three clear shots at a double. He was unlucky as well. Fred was relieved to finally hit the winning double after they played hot-potato with the game for another round.
Dave and Nikki Passenti agreed to take me in as a third person in the mixed triples. I started well with a 140, and we got down to the double well in advance of our opposition. Unfortunately we got stuck on a double seven which we failed to take out despite each of us getting a crack at it. Our opponents made us pay and I was again a first round casualty. Frank Nagy from the Bottoms Up team in Elizabeth also made short work of me in the luck of the draw doubles. Overall, I shot about what I could expect considering the lack of practice lately, and I know what I will have to work on.
Dr. Bob and I had some great practice sessions between matches playing 170. I was looking good on my two dart outs so that will give me some encouragment with two big tournaments approaching in January, including the Rae Chesney Tournament in Philadelphia and the New York/New Jersey Open. We drove home this morning and had some great conversations about darts that I might share in some future articles.
To change the subject, the novel writing is going well. I must have looked quite a sight on the Long Island Railroad train, typing away on my laptop computer. Every once in a while the train would lurch and I would have to grip it to keep it from sliding off my lap down to the floor. However, I made steady progress and can now proudly announce meeting the 30,000 word milestone.
I am unsure of whether I will meet the goal of 50,000 words by the end of the month, but I have no doubt that I will finish soon.
I was touched to hear how much my friends in the Elizabeth Dart league miss my weekly column chronicling the dart matches. Sorry I could not play this season guys! I hope to come back next season. Best wishes, and until next time good darts!
Monday, November 19, 2007
Grand Slam of Darts Results
I was recently reviewing the results of the early action of the Grand Slam of Darts on the Planetdarts website. Quite impressive. I counted four players who averaged over 100 points per turn in winning their matches yesterday (James Wade, Phil Taylor, Raymond Van Barneveld and Roland Scholten). That means they are finishing their 501 games in 15 darts or less, on average.
Leading the pack was Roland Scholten, with an amazing 110.21 average. His opponent, Michael Van Gerwen, must have been shocked to lose 5 games to 1 with his own very respectable 97.62 average. It's great to hear that so many players hitting so high a standard.
I am glad the PDC now promotes big events in North America, as it has given me a chance to see all of the players mentioned above in person. There is something special about being there and seeing players with such good form. The PDC's apparent strategy of putting more prize money and media coverage into darts seems to be raising the bar considerably. Until next time, good darts!
Leading the pack was Roland Scholten, with an amazing 110.21 average. His opponent, Michael Van Gerwen, must have been shocked to lose 5 games to 1 with his own very respectable 97.62 average. It's great to hear that so many players hitting so high a standard.
I am glad the PDC now promotes big events in North America, as it has given me a chance to see all of the players mentioned above in person. There is something special about being there and seeing players with such good form. The PDC's apparent strategy of putting more prize money and media coverage into darts seems to be raising the bar considerably. Until next time, good darts!
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Back To The Old Practice Board
I have been throwing a few practice darts at the board in the playroom to be ready for the upcoming Long Island Fall Classic. It's been a while since I have attended a tournament but I am feeling good. It will also be fun to see a lot of my old friends there. Make sure to drop a comment below if you are going to be at the tournament.
I have been making progress on my book as well. I have passed the 20,000 word mark. It was much harder to find a good image to commemorate this milestone. The brick with the 10,000 on it was perfect. I could have lifted an image from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, but that did not quite fit. I finally found a picture of a bunch of construction cranes and equipment with a big 20,000 on it that seemed appropriate. Don't ask me who the guys in the picture are though. I have no idea!
I have been making progress on my book as well. I have passed the 20,000 word mark. It was much harder to find a good image to commemorate this milestone. The brick with the 10,000 on it was perfect. I could have lifted an image from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, but that did not quite fit. I finally found a picture of a bunch of construction cranes and equipment with a big 20,000 on it that seemed appropriate. Don't ask me who the guys in the picture are though. I have no idea!
I have 30,000 more words to go to reach my goal, so the book is still under heavy construction. However, I am spurred on by the fact that I have two publishing deadlines for other projects. I need to get this one done! Until next time, good darts.
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Recent News
As some of you know, there is a dart player in England who has a similar dart journal blog to my own. Tommo at Ebchester Darts chronicals his dart league team and other dart-related activities. He recently returned from a dart festival where he got to do a brief interview of John Lowe. Definitely recommended reading for all of you dart players out there.
The next big events in the New Jersey area are the ADO Cricket Regional Competition on November 23 on Long Island, which is immediately followed by The Long Island Fall Classic. I have missed that one from being out of town the last few years, but it looks like I will be able to attend this time. It's fun for me. I usually take the train into New York and catch the Long Island Railroad, which takes me right out close to the venue.
I am continuing with my efforts on National Novel Writing Month. I will post regarding my progress. The brick pictured above is to mark my progress, that I have passed 10,000 words on my goal to 50,000. I can't promise that it will be good, only that I will finish. Until next time, good darts!
Thursday, November 01, 2007
Happy Halloween and New Jersey Darts Reaches a Milestone!
I hope all you dart players had a good Halloween! My son Oliver made quite a haul, trick-or-treating up and down the street. Our Halloween party last Saturday went off well. Winning bragging rights for the playroom were Oliver's friend Amanda, a six-year old who racked up 100 points on the Halloween darts game, and Oliver. Pictures coming soon! It took me all day Sunday to recover from having a gang of 5-8 year olds tearing through the house.
A day or two ago New Jersey Darts passed a milestone: 5,000 hits! Not bad for a newbie's first shot at blogging. The whole reason I started (besides my love of darts) was to get into the habit of writing regularly, outside of a work setting. It has worked! I have been fairly prolific writing law related articles since starting New Jersey Darts, and I have been published 5 times in the past year. Most recently, I was published in the October 2007 issue of Clearinghouse Review, a nationally circulated magazine that focuses on the legal rights of the poor. I have several major projects in the works, and I am participating (starting today) in National Novel Writing Month. One of the characters will play darts...should be interesting. I will keep you posted.
A day or two ago New Jersey Darts passed a milestone: 5,000 hits! Not bad for a newbie's first shot at blogging. The whole reason I started (besides my love of darts) was to get into the habit of writing regularly, outside of a work setting. It has worked! I have been fairly prolific writing law related articles since starting New Jersey Darts, and I have been published 5 times in the past year. Most recently, I was published in the October 2007 issue of Clearinghouse Review, a nationally circulated magazine that focuses on the legal rights of the poor. I have several major projects in the works, and I am participating (starting today) in National Novel Writing Month. One of the characters will play darts...should be interesting. I will keep you posted.
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