The theme song for this week's blog is brought to you by Sue Sylvester and Olivia Newton-John. I have always enjoyed playing sports and have met some amazing people along the way. This past semester, I did not work out very much and I didn't have the formal structure of being on an athletic team to fall back on. By not joining a team or at least working out, I overlooked a great opportunity to meet new people who share a similar interest. In order to rectify the missed connections (and work off all of those Christmas cookies that I devoured over break), I spent this past week getting physical.
For almost a month now, I have been looking forward to playing volleyball in both a women and coed league through Ames Park and Recreation. This wait is finally over, since we played our first games of the season. I am not sure what I was expecting, but after going 1-3 over the week (our one win was due to a forfeit), this league looks like it will be more of an opportunity to meet new people than playing intense volleyball. Hopefully, we just had some first week jitters and start improving next week.
In addition to joining the volleyball leagues, I have also been utilizing the recreation facilities and fitness classes at Iowa State, which are free for students to use. While shooting hoops at Iowa State, I have bumped into a few opportunities to meet some fellow cyclones. One of the guys from the track team came up to me to ask if I was on the basketball team after his workout. After laughing off his suggestion (I don't think he had ever seen a women's basketball game), we got to talking. It turns out he is from Kenya (Sarah, he didn't know who you were which surprised me since you know everyone), so we discussed his experience in the US. I might just have to go to some track meets, since I know someone on the team. Another time when I was shooting hoops, I saw some girls throwing a Frisbee around. I went up to them to see if they were on the ultimate frisbee team, and it turns out they were actually the captains of the team. They were very welcoming, but I am not sure if I can fully commit to the team based on time that is required. There may be an opportunity to play on a B team, which would mean less time and fewer tournaments, if enough girls are interested. Later in the week, I went to a zumba class where I got a great workout dancing to some fun songs and meet Yang from Beijing. It was also her first time, so we were very lost. Hopefully, next week there will be fewer people so that we might be able to see the instructor.
As a final note, I applied for a job as a site supervisor for 3-6th grade basketball games. By participating in sports, I have learned many invaluable skills that I use every day. I was given the opportunity to participate in sports and I wanted to help extend the same opportunity to youth in Ames. Additionally, I thought it would be a great way to earn a little extra money. Last week I received a call about coaching instead. I was a little nervous about coaching, since I did not have any experience. During the interview for the job, it was mentioned that there currently were not enough kids signed up, so they were unsure whether there would be a position or not. Unfortunately, I did not get the job, but they encouraged me to apply for future positions. On the student job board, I saw that the youth softball association in Ames was looking for coaches, so I am thinking about applying.
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