Field Theory by Hadyn Green

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Field Theory: How I Roll (pt1)

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  • Alan Perrott,

    oooooh, that kind of bowling....

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 438 posts Report Reply

  • Graeme Edgeler,

    In America, professional bowling is huge. They have super-stars; they have endorsements; they get live coverage on ESPN (despite how much I yell at the TV for them to just show the baseball).

    I was stoked to get a 222 in my last attempt at bowling.

    And seeing you mentioned ESPN and baseball ... the 12:30am Monday night-Tuesday morning slot on TV2 frequented until early this morning by The Wire will feature ESPN's miniseries The Bronx is Burning from next week. Any idea whether it's any good?

    Wellington, New Zealand • Since Nov 2006 • 3215 posts Report Reply

  • Danielle,

    I got a few paragraphs in and thought 'we should probably discuss The Big Lebowski in the comments'. And then you did it in the post! Nice.

    Is Jesus cool, though? (The John Turturro character, not the religious figure.)

    Charo World. Cuchi-cuchi!… • Since Nov 2006 • 3828 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown,

    Awesome post, dude.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Jason Kemp,

    Does this thinking apply to lawn bowls? If so I have an idea for you that involves bowling and fun in Wellington.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 368 posts Report Reply

  • Joanna,

    See, you post like this, and yet you hardly fronted in the Wellingtonista Bowling League, so I kinda feel like your blog is writing cheques your wrists can't cash...

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 746 posts Report Reply

  • Hadyn Green,

    In chronological order:

    The Bronx is Burning ... Any idea whether it's any good?

    I saw part of it while holidaying in Hawaii (looks out the window and sighs) and it was actually quite good. John Tuturro is a great character actor, and speaking of which...

    Is Jesus cool, though?

    Don' fuck wit de Jesus.

    Awesome post, dude.

    Gracias!

    I have an idea for you that involves bowling and fun in Wellington.

    I'm listening

    yet you hardly fronted in the Wellingtonista Bowling League

    Yeah but that was at The Lanes, this year we should roll at Bowlarama

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 2090 posts Report Reply

  • Hadyn Green,

    And for those wishing to discuss the Big Lebowski, think about this (via my friend Dom): Donny is actually Walter's imaginary friend

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 2090 posts Report Reply

  • Naly D,

    Bowling is also not without controversy.

    I live with three people who have at one stage worked at The Lanes, and Joe used to just bowl on his breaks. He does this freaky thing where he holds the ball backwards and just kinda... Flicks his wrist and it does this weird backspin thing and takes out all the pins.

    Playing against him has made me lose most of my enthusiasm for bowling. #Timesmycompetitivenaturehasruinedmyenjoymentofanactivitynumber25

    You forgot the cheerleaders Hadyn! The cheerleaders!

    Wellington • Since Sep 2008 • 307 posts Report Reply

  • Kyle Matthews,

    Donny is actually Walter's imaginary friend

    Now you're just being silly.

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • Geoff Lealand,

    The Putnam book has coped a lot of justified flack, for it sloppy use of evidence and unjustified claims.

    I somehow missed the discussion in the prior thread about the Chief's victory on Friday. We took my 85 year old dad-in-law from Nelson along--he hadn't been to a live rugby match since the days players wore long shorts and we watched rugby in b&w. On his behalf, I nearly did damage to a group of Hurricanes supporters in front of us (who supplied them with those damn foghorns!).
    Truth is, I went along to the game with only slight hopes of victory. In the Waikato, until this season, we have come to live with disappointment. I also thought that we needed Brendon Leonard. So, the final result was so satisfying, as we wandered off home in the fog (but certainly not in a fug).

    Screen & Media Studies, U… • Since Oct 2007 • 2562 posts Report Reply

  • Hadyn Green,

    The Putnam book has coped a lot of justified flack, for it sloppy use of evidence and unjustified claims.

    Oh definitely. I remember a part where he says there will be lower crime rates in neighborhoods will less ethnic diversity. Very large intuitive leaps there.

    But it did have some good stuff and it was just a brief stop in my "study" of social capital

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 2090 posts Report Reply

  • JackElder,

    The Big Lebowski is a parody of The Big Sleep. The Dude is what would have happened if Humphry Bogart lived in the 60s.

    Wellington • Since Mar 2008 • 709 posts Report Reply

  • Robyn Gallagher,

    I like bowling but my problem is my fingers. My mother and my brother have long thin fingers, my dad and I have short fat fingers. So I always have trouble finding a bowling ball that is light enough to be able to wield comfortably, but with holes big enough to fit my fingers in. And, it seems, the lighter the ball, the smaller the holes.

    So when I start off, I'll have a ball that's the right weight and with holes big enough. But after a few bowls, my hands swell slightly and my fingers start to get stuck in the holes, meaning that instead of elegantly sliding off my hand, the bowl will hurl to the land with a giant *thunk*, and everyone looks at me like I've suddenly turned into some sort of embarassing drunk cousin who's just decided to start throwing the ball at the lane instead of rolling it down it.

    Obviously the answer is some form of anorexia coupled with strength training.

    Or I could just not bowl.

    Since Nov 2006 • 1946 posts Report Reply

  • Simon Poole,

    I love bowling. And I love The Big Lebowski . (Donny is not Walters imaginary friend. The Dude speaks to him, and the clifftop sequence at the end would make absolutely no sense unless Donny was real.) I've been trying to write this post since yesterday afternoon, but work keeps getting in the way.

    There is something incredibly simple about bowling that just makes it fun. It's easy to learn, very easy to improve technique, but hard to master. Oh, and it is almost mandatory to drink while playing. It totally parallels pool, which also rocks.

    That said, I hate the Lanes in Wellington. I'm not sure hate is a strong enough word. To be fair, however, I have been once shortly after they first opened, so maybe the surface hadn't worn in or something, but everything just felt wrong.

    Most of my bowling has been done in Hamilton, at the Sky Riverside lanes - and I totally recommend it to anyone that is forced to spend any time in Hamilton. It's basically the best thing the city has on offer. In one week of furious attendance I managed to push my average from 100-odd to 140, and bowl my best ever game of 151. It's not a patch on Graemes 222, but I love that just by watching what happens when you do this compared to that and making small changes it's very easy to go from rubbish to decent.

    That said, I haven't had the cash to bowl for a long time, and would probably be happy to roll 80-90 in my first game. Too bad there isn't an accessable set of lanes worth using in the CBD. Is there?

    I recently sold off a good chunk of my dvd collection to raise money for the impending newborn. The Big Lebowski is one of the few titles that survived the purge. I recommend it to anyone that hasn't seen it.

    Since Dec 2008 • 161 posts Report Reply

  • Paul Litterick,

    I am all for social participation but I cannot abide wearing a pair of shoes which has had many previous wearers.

    My last bowling experience was at the Lanes, after which I vowed never to humiliate myself and to let down others in public again.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 1000 posts Report Reply

  • Hadyn Green,

    Too bad there isn't an accessable set of lanes worth using in the CBD. Is there?

    Or is there...? Bowlarama

    I am open to bowling invitations if folks want to drink beer and roll some rocks. My highest score is 180 but that was years ago and the best I thrown recently was 172 (I took a photo to prove it).

    As for Donny, it was just a theory. You're right the Dude speaks to him, but only once ("Phone's ringin' Dude" "thank you Donny").

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 2090 posts Report Reply

  • Simon Poole,

    As for Donny, it was just a theory. You're right the Dude speaks to him, but only once ("Phone's ringin' Dude" "thank you Donny").

    Yeah, I had to think about it for a while. It's kind of like the Janitor in Scrubs - no one but JD speaks to him for the entire first season. Somewhere between there and the second they decide they like the character too much for him to be a figment of imagination so begin scripting interaction with other characters. Watching later episodes, it's not something you realise they ever contemplated.

    Oh, and following your link, it's good to see that the strings on the pins weren't a figment of my imagination. I swear that I saw pins that should have fallen just slide a little and stay upright. Fucked me right off, that did.

    See Lanes? This is what happens when you fuck a stranger in the ass!

    Amen.

    Since Dec 2008 • 161 posts Report Reply

  • Graeme Edgeler,

    In one week of furious attendance I managed to push my average from 100-odd to 140, and bowl my best ever game of 151. It's not a patch on Graemes 222, but...

    140 is probably better than my average - I tend to be all over the place. The same night I bowled my 222 - 30+ points better than my next best - I also bowled an 80-odd.

    Wellington, New Zealand • Since Nov 2006 • 3215 posts Report Reply

  • Simon Poole,

    140 is probably better than my average - I tend to be all over the place. The same night I bowled my 222 - 30+ points better than my next best - I also bowled an 80-odd.

    It is amazing how much a couple of great rolls (or a couple of poor ones) can swing your score.

    I was very happy with my consistency during that patch - I think my lowest roll was 130 or so, with the bulk hovering closer to 140. To be fair, in a week I played something like 15-20 games which was a little extreme. I wouldn't put any money on being able to continue that streak now.

    Since Dec 2008 • 161 posts Report Reply

  • Steve Barnes,

    See Lanes? This is what happens when you fuck a stranger in the ass!

    Comedy Central had to change that line and had trouble in the edit so according to IMDB

    To solve this they decided just to re-dub it, and the phrase they chose? "Do you see what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps?".

    I'm so going to use that one day. ;-)

    Peria • Since Dec 2006 • 5521 posts Report Reply

  • Danielle,

    "Do you see what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps?"

    "I'm tired of these monkey-fighting snakes on this Monday to Friday plane!"

    Charo World. Cuchi-cuchi!… • Since Nov 2006 • 3828 posts Report Reply

  • Geoff Lealand,

    I totally recommend it to anyone that is forced to spend any time in Hamilton. It's basically the best thing the city has on offer.

    Hey, I can't let that slur pass without comment. Have a good look around, the next time you visit.

    Screen & Media Studies, U… • Since Oct 2007 • 2562 posts Report Reply

  • Simon Poole,

    Geoff: I spent most of my childhood and adolescence in Hamilton, educated at Deanwell Primary and Melville High. I was up last weekend to visit family and friends. The Riverside lanes are fantastic, the rest of the city does not hold that much attraction.

    Oh, the botanic gardens in Hamilton are also excellent - best in the country and I try to visit them a couple of times a year. (I don't know why Christchurch gets The Garden City...)

    Otherwise... not so much.

    Since Dec 2008 • 161 posts Report Reply

  • Simon Poole,

    Crap, forgot the sports grounds! Waikato Stadium is awesome for watching rugby. The sound in the old stand when the bells are going is deafening. The view from the new stand is unrivalled.

    And Seddon Park must surely rate highly on the list of NZ's cricket grounds. I do have the Basin Reserve a short train-ride and walk away, however.

    Since Dec 2008 • 161 posts Report Reply

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