Humor Post #68 from the world’s Crankiest Curmudgeon’s Middle School Blog (and probably the awesomest YA blog too) –
Anyone catch any of the NBA playoffs? Pretty awesome stuff. Those guys can do stuff on their own that the rest of us would need pulleys, ropes, wires, and green screens to bring off. But I realized that there’s something else good about basketball. Its name makes sense. Basket + ball = a game where you try to get a ball into a basket. How simple! How truthful! How sensible!
Now let’s talk about football, America’s most popular sport by far. It’s so popular they still talk about it almost every night on ESPN and the season ended almost six months ago. But the trouble is that football is hardly played with the feet at all, unless you count running. But then shouldn’t we call every sport (except hockey) runball? Anyway, you do use your feet in football, sure, but at the very most once every four or five plays. Usually it’s less. Now there IS a game that uses your feet much more. It’s called football. Well, uh… that’s what it’s called in every other country in the world except ours. We call that sport soccer. Huh? But even football/soccer would be better named as foot and head ball since a bunch of goals are scored by headers (which is hitting the ball with your head, for those of you who don’t live on Earth).
Okay, you say baseball does have people running to bases. Yes, you are so right, but you are so wrong that that’s the best way to describe the game. Wouldn’t the bat, or the actions of pitching and catching have as much or more to do with the game? Besides, getting on base isn’t the ultimate goal. Getting to the fourth base is! So baseball, you strike out too.
Well, what about hockey? you ask. (Or maybe you don’t, but hey, it’s my blog and Ima be in charge.) Hockey is basically just a soccer… uh, football game played on ice. A bunch of guys trying to get a ball (or a ball substitute) into a goal surrounded by a net. (That goes for lacrosse too.) Nothing in the name hockey even suggests a hockey stick, kind of an essential part of the game, wouldn’t ya think? And there’s other games called hockey, like field hockey. And what’s a hock anyway? Just askin’.
Bowling? Where’s the bowl? Golf?? Tennis??
There goes Crankenfuss, you say. Always pointing out the problems, but never anything good to say. True enough. Most of the time. But today I have a few sports where the names DO MAKE SENSE. Handball! Yep, it’s not that popular, but you score every point by hitting a ball with your hand. What a concept! Notice that it’s not called wallball though that would at least include an important part of the game. And there’s swimming. Ah, a sport that tells it like it is.
Diving.
The 100 meter dash.
The high jump.
Long jump.
Calf roping.
Dumpster diving.
And how about fishing? I’m talking about fighting those marlins and swordfish, not sitting around drinking beer all day in a rowboat and catching minnows. And one more great one: bullfighting! Even though it’s not really a fair fight, what with them stabbing the bull about a gajillion times (by the picadors; you can look it up) before the matador ever gets into the ring, it still pretty much summarizes what’s going on.
So in closing I’ll say… I’m through. ‘Nuff said. Game, set, and match to
Dr. Crankenfuss
Your Dude with the Tude
