Membership Has Its Privileges

In late September I renewed my membership over at the Hamilton Fish Recreation Center. A six-month renewal cost me twenty-five dollars. That's 14 cents per day. To practice pool. On big tables. Instead of sitting here at my computer, it is most likely where I'd be this very moment if the place wasn't closed early for Columbus Day. I started playing at the rec center in early 2006, around the same time I joined the APA. Since then, there have been times where I've gone over a month without stopping by to practice. It's hard to get into any groove or get any kind of respect when you have such a spotty attendance record. And I realized playing only in bars was depleting my cash flow too quickly. So for most of 2007 I've been going pretty regularly, two or three times per week on average. When I saw a Skill Level 5 ranking next to my name on the scoresheet last season, the first thing I thought was "all that practice over at the rec center has paid off." I've long ago come to the conclusion one does not become a 5, 6 or a 7 by just playing on league nights. A lot of the players in the league that I've come to know and sort of "keep my eye on" all definitely practice throughout the week. I haven't played in a match in almost a month, and having the rec center for practice has become a good way to stay somewhat in stroke. Granted, there are many times where I go to the rec center and I'm just not feeling it. It'll take me three games before I finally get any sort of toehold. Other times I'm on fire, stringing together six, seven, or eight wins in a row, which is actually much more of an accomplishment than doing so at Sophie's. One thing is for certain though, at least at the rec center. We've all beaten one another many times. There's nobody who's unbeatable.