This evening I got to see Kyle wrestle for the first time ever. It is only the second match of his life and what he knows of the sport he has learned in two weeks. Despite his novice status, he possess great natural abilities and the intensity of a wild bull. He was soundly beating his opponent by a score of 4-1 well into the second period when he made a beginner’s mistake that cost him the match. If he elects to stay with the sport I believe he will quickly overtake many wrestlers with years of experience. Nicolai has been very encouraging and generous with his time, helping Kyle to come up the very steep learning curve.
No sooner than I arrived in California, I was on my way back to Boston. Just enough time for an important three-hour meeting in Thousand Oaks. Flying at this time of year is a real hassle, but the beautiful scenery makes up for it.
This evening I got to enjoy the sunset twice, both times through the same window of an airplane taking me to California for a brief but critical meeting tomorrow. The sun first set while I was on the ground preparing for take off. During our ascent the sun reappeared and looked as if it was rising as we climbed to higher and higher altitudes. One we reached our maximum height the sun started to set again although very, very slowly since we were chasing it into the west. Unfortunately, the window was not very clean and limited the photographic opportunities.
Cookie making is on the agenda for today. Maya and friend Allison prepare Christmas cookies. Note the efficiency of Maya’s layout. I assist by preparing to eat the resulting cookies, a very important and often overlooked job.
This evening we hosted 4 of Nicolai’s and 1 of Maya’s friends for dinner and an informal holiday gathering. Jeanine joins the kids for an extended match of Catch Phrase, a great multi-generational game that had everyone in hysterics by the time it was finished. Because we waited so long to get our Christmas tree this year (due to my travel in Asia) we had only very tiny ones to pick from. None the less, it is a happy tree and Maya in particular found it easier to decorate. A nice fire and holiday music from the Sonos completed the ambiance. Neither of the boys wrestled today, Kyle because of an injury and Nicolai because he was exhausted from two soccer games he played late last night. I photographed the match anyway and constructed a website for the team (CCHS Wrestling Team).
Kyle injured his elbow in wrestling practice today and will miss his match tomorrow. Hannah came over after dinner to offer a measure of comfort, and we enjoyed having her with the family as we trimmed the Christmas tree and enjoyed the season’s first fire.
This evening, the Sonos Cambridge office celebrated the holidays with a gathering at the Blue Room. Featured activities included a music trivia contest, numerous raffles, and a version of pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey that we call dock-the-controller-in-the-cradle.
It was a good night for the Calabria men in the sporting arena. Concord Carlisle faced Arlington High School. Nicolai wrestled up one weight class (heavier opponent) and came back from a 0-2 deficit to win with a pin at the end of the first period. The sequence shows a front headlock to the flying cradle which ended the match. Kyle for reasons not yet clear to me decided three days ago to take up wrestling. With essentially no training or conditioning he walked onto the mat and battled mightily before pinning his opponent in the third period. Hell of a way to start a wrestling career. I had two indoor soccer games the first of which I missed due to the wrestling meet. In the second game I scored three rather nice goals. 2 pins, a hat trick, and three men that will sleep well tonight.
Nicolai has been selected to field test a new forearm crutch design pictured here on the right. I am not at liberty to disclose any of the features, but I can say that Nico likes them quite a lot. On the left is the aluminum crutch that I built for him, and in the middle his current titanium crutch.
Maya spent 2 hours with her friends selling Girl Scout Cookies in front of the local grocery store this afternoon. Business was brisk, no doubt due to the excellent sales skills the girls have developed.
This afternoon I attended Maya’s winter dance recital in which she performed wonderfully. Jeanine left for Indianapolis yesterday to help her sister as she recuperates from hip replacement surgery so I also videotaped the jazz dance routine for her to enjoy when she returns on Tuesday.
Nicolai has been experimenting with wrestling from his knee in the neutral position. It makes him less vulnerable to being thrown off balance but requires additional effort to move around the mat. It is an interesting approach, and we will have to see how it works out over the course of the season.
Nicolai wrestled in his first two high school matches today with a split outcome. He lost by a score of 9-1 to his first opponent and won with a first period pin (shown here) in his second match. He showed great composure and strength but will need to continue to develop his technique and endurance.
