Thoughts on W @ Rutgers

Had my annual physical in August and tipped in at 236 lbs. More importantly, my blood tests showed i was at the borderline for type two diabetes.

My doctor had me come back in Christmas week, eight months before I normally would have seen him again. He told me in August I was going on diabetic medication if my numbers didn't improve. I went in on the 22nd. My weight was down to 222. More important, my hemo numbers improved. He told me to keep doing what I'm doing. No type two.

No sleep apnea either. I had my bi annual DOT physical in May and she told me my neck circumference was the highest it could be without being sent for more sleep apnea testing. That had dropped two weeks ago as well. So 2020 wasn't a total lost cause for me.
 
A little of my own perspective...
Good post.

The ebb and flow of losing a loved one is hard to describe...but you understand if you've been there. It hits you hard...you go through the process as best you can and try to absorb it ...then it fades into the background a bit as you try to go back to "normal"...but it comes back when you least expect it. Can't predict when, where, or how much. But it always does. Years after my Dad passed...I had unexpected times when for no apparent reason it just overwhelmed me again.

It helps many people to have something to put themselves into...work, school, the team. That can be a healthy coping mechanism. But it always comes back around at some point. When that happens you have to honor it. If you're fortunate, you have people around you who understand and support you through it.
 
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it comes back when you least expect it. Can't predict when, where, or how much. But it always does. Years after my Dad passed...I had unexpected times when for no apparent reason it just overwhelmed me again.
Lava soap.

Every single day when he came home from work he washed his hands with Lava soap.

To this day if I smell it somewhere, even just faintly in passing, I know exactly what it is and I turn into a puddle of piss on the inside. I’m 40 years old and nothing I’ve ever heard, tasted, smelled, seen, or felt has that strong of a reaction to me. It’s absolutely ridiculous the effect it has and I’m guessing it always will. The dumbest part is that even though I know it makes me lose it, if I see Lava soap on the shelf at Walmart or wherever, I still pick it up and smell it. I can’t explain why. It’s like purposely touching a hot stove and makes no sense.
 
A little of my own perspective...

My dad died very unexpectedly at the age of 57; I was 26. And when I say unexpectedly, I talked to him at 8:30 the previous evening in a very normal conversation, and my mom showed up at my workplace at 8:30 the next morning to tell me he died.

First thing I want to say is I'm not Jack Nunge. Everyone handles those kinds of things differently and everyone grieves differently. But I will say that I know some of what he's feeling right now and I can't imagine playing basketball at all, let alone P5 basketball on TV in a year when you can't be around your family.

I was in a total fog for months afterwards. Couldn't concentrate on anything, and every morning when I woke up had a little mini panic attack because as weird as it sounds, you sort of forget that he had died and it takes a couple minutes to "remember" when you wake up. I know it sounds strange, but it happens, and the constant re-hash of it everyday runs your soul down. It's exhausting. Got to the point where I didn't want to go to bed because I knew what was coming in the morning.

so...

1) Jack is a hurting unit right now. The fact that he's even playing at all tells you how strong a kid he is. I was close with my dad similar to how I've read Jack and his old man were, and I can tell you it's a total kick in the gut that sticks with you 24 hours a day.

2) The hardest part is still coming. Right now he's where he needs to be. He's with his teammates and a great coaching staff that cares about him every day. I've always liked Fran because of how protective he is of his players and running a clean program, but seeing how he's handled this whole thing with Nunge's situation and how supportive he's been publicly makes me really not give a shit if they win anymore. It's evident he'd gladly take a bullet for any of his players and that's what matters.

But like I said, the hardest part is still coming. There will come a day in the next few moths when he's not surrounded by his team or family, and doesn't have basketball to distract him. Those are the hard parts. Similar to how most of you have probably experienced in some form or another, the first few days after a death aren't the hard ones. It's when everyone goes home and it's just you and the walls.

Jack will get through this and be a better basketball player than he is right now. And he deserves as long as it takes.
Nunge is contributing and I hope he has a great year. He’s dealt with a lot the last 2+ years.
 
Winning close games are such a hair pulling thing for me. If you're looking at it from their side they have to be pissed at both the FT discrepency and how many they missed. That would piss me off if it was the other way around.

Thankfully we shot well from the line (minus JW missing that last big one) and that was huge for us. Winning road games against really good teams like that is impressive. This season is a dog fight and still just getting started.
The whole season is NCAA Tournament caliber games. And I love it. I hate playing teams that are meaningless wins or a bad loss.

We’re 2-0 my double figures at home. We’re 1-1 on the road in games that could have gone either way. I’ll take it...and hope it continues. If we are 10-0 and 5-5...with our schedule...I’d say that’s a very successful season.
 
The whole season is NCAA Tournament caliber games. And I love it. I hate playing teams that are meaningless wins or a bad loss.

We’re 2-0 my double figures at home. We’re 1-1 on the road in games that could have gone either way. I’ll take it...and hope it continues. If we are 10-0 and 5-5...with our schedule...I’d say that’s a very successful season.
I agree. As on edge as I am for these games and everything I'd have it no other way. How's the saying go? The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. You can only have that if the games matter. Thankfully the whole league season will pretty much be that way.
 

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