Basketball!

Last night I played basketball at the local Sports Center. Really, it's just an old gym. Yulia's friend invited me to come play basketball with him. Truthfully, I was a little hesitant to go, just because I didn't know what I was getting myself into. I haven't played basketball for a long time and I'm ridiculously out of shape. Other than climbing the seven flights of stairs to my flat, I don't workout. I was also hesitant to go because I didn't exactly bring basketball shoes with me. I guess I thought that it would be a long time before I found a place to play and I'd have time to buy a pair of sneakers. Since I never got around to buying the sneakers, I ended up having to go in my Pumas, not exactly the best basketball shoe. I wore them with my ankle braces, a very cool look I'll have you know.

Roma met me outside my building at seven o'clock. We walked the three minutes to the gym. As soon as I walked inside, I was happy that I went. It had been a long time since I heard the familiar squeak of sneakers on the gym floor. Hearing it lifted my spirits. It was almost like hearing the voice of an old friend.

It ended up being boy's hour on the courts. Girl's hour is earlier in the day, but they let me play anyway. There were enough guys to make three teams of four. They let me play as the fifth player on Roma's team. The director of the gym stood and refereed the game. He called a lot of fouls in my favour that weren't fouls at all. I think he was trying to take it easy on me. I didn't play great but I wasn't bad either. I took shots anytime I was left open. I only made one of them, but the ones I missed I didn't miss by much.

It was a lot of fun. I need to buy some sneakers because I was totally paranoid that I was going to twist my ankle in my stupid shoes. I think that I'll have the chance to buy some on Saturday when I go to Vinnysta with Jennifer.

Anyway, that's the good news: I found a gym where I can play basketball. Hopefully I'll be able to get there three times a week to play. It's certainly not karate, but it's way better, so I'm not complaining.