It's been nice here in NorCal, 70-75 degrees in the area I live in for a week straight. I've decided to get back in basketball shape and been going to the court in Walnut Creek, Ca.
Usually there's a few good pick up games to be had there and that's what I was looking for. Usually when someone is out there playing and more people start showing up we usually all get together and play a game. But not with this select group...
It's a group of kids of Chinese descent. For the record, I have absolutely nothing against any race out there. This is only about this select group.
Check it out... I've been going to this court for about 4 years now. I swear every time I see them - and I do mean EVERY time, they will refuse to play with anyone besides their own race. I mean, this is a big group of like 16 kids around 17-22ish. If there's only 3 or 4 of them, then I might ask if they want to get a game going, and they always decline. Yet, when their other friends arrive they get a huge like 8 on 8 game going.
Still, I'm ok if you don't want to play with anyone else, thats fine. But here's my problem.
There's only one full court, and one half court. The half court hoop ALWAYS gets stuck when you hit a shot and you have to jump up EVERY time to knock the ball out of the net. Many people have attempted to fix it, but for reason it never works. Now for starters, this past Saturday I went down there and the entire full court was filled with just the Chinese guys. Meanwhile, evvvverybody else that wanted to play ball was on the ****ty half court. Ok, fine. They were there before me. They never bother to ask anyone else to play, and I think that's a little selfish, but I don't let that get to me.
Now HERE's where I got heated...
Today I get to the court and have it all to myself. I start shooting on the best basket on the full court side. I'm shooting for like an hour. Then slowly the Chinese guys (and note it's always the same group) start coming to play. they start off at the other end, then some of them come to my end. I'm thinking "cool, maybe we'll finally end this segregation **** and get a game together for once".
So I'm being cool with them. Whenever I missed a shot they'd always want to give it back to me and always play with their own ball, but I'd insist that they can shoot mine too because we are after all sharing the same court. People that know me know I'm very approachable and a damn cool guy, never looking for trouble... anyway. They all of a sudden go back to the other side of the court - all of them, and start talking.
Immediately I knew what was happening. I knew they'd either ask me to play or they'd ask me to go to another court - which wasn't happening because I was there first. So they play "shoot around" for like 10 minutes I guess hoping that I'd leave so they wouldn't have to talk to me. But I knew what they were up to so I just kept shooting.
I guess one kid really was just so ready to play that he worked up the courage to say "Hey (voice cracking as if he thought I was about to stomp his guts out or something) we're about to play a game." LMAO!! I just said "Ok" and went right back to shooting. I mean, what does "We're about to play a game" mean to me anyway? I'm supposed to move? You're not going to ask me to play since I was here the f**k first?
So I'm a little pissed off but I keep shooting. About 10 mintues after that, this after they decided to have another "shoot around" to kill time hoping I was going to leave (which I had no plans to do), these mutha******* start the f****** game WHILE I'M ON THE COURT! WTF? If I wasn't the way I am all hell would have seriously broke loose. But no, that's not me. I had somewhere to be anyway so there was no need to be a sore *** about it this time.
They started to play, and I kept playing. I didn't make it a point to get in their way, but I played as if they weren't there just like they played as if I wasn't. On top of that, they were playing 4 on 5!!!! They could have EASILY asked me to play to even up the teams, but no. At this point, I was going to ask to play, but the other side of me said, "No, don't bother, you really don't want to play with them at this point."
About 15 minutes later I left to the appointment I had.
Just so you know, this WON'T happen again. I'm the type of person that will take things as they come for just so long, and then I'll blow up (I'm a Taurus). This Saturday I plan on being back there. I'm hoping this situation doesn't arise again. However I know it will. I'm not going to go there and fight anybody (no matter how much each one of them deserves a serious b***h slap), but I will let them know exactly what I see.
What do I see?
It seems to me like for some reason they are intimidated by me, don't know why I'm only a 5'10" 160lb black/puerto rican mixed guy and I've never done anything to give them reason to be intimidated. Do they think I'm too good? I mean, yeah I know I'd probably take them all to school on the court, but still. I'm not there to show off, I just want to play a nice full court game, nothing extreme.
Whatever, I probably should have said something today, but I'll be sure to the next time it happens. Anyway, that's my rant about those losers. For those who read it, thanks....
Usually there's a few good pick up games to be had there and that's what I was looking for. Usually when someone is out there playing and more people start showing up we usually all get together and play a game. But not with this select group...
It's a group of kids of Chinese descent. For the record, I have absolutely nothing against any race out there. This is only about this select group.
Check it out... I've been going to this court for about 4 years now. I swear every time I see them - and I do mean EVERY time, they will refuse to play with anyone besides their own race. I mean, this is a big group of like 16 kids around 17-22ish. If there's only 3 or 4 of them, then I might ask if they want to get a game going, and they always decline. Yet, when their other friends arrive they get a huge like 8 on 8 game going.
Still, I'm ok if you don't want to play with anyone else, thats fine. But here's my problem.
There's only one full court, and one half court. The half court hoop ALWAYS gets stuck when you hit a shot and you have to jump up EVERY time to knock the ball out of the net. Many people have attempted to fix it, but for reason it never works. Now for starters, this past Saturday I went down there and the entire full court was filled with just the Chinese guys. Meanwhile, evvvverybody else that wanted to play ball was on the ****ty half court. Ok, fine. They were there before me. They never bother to ask anyone else to play, and I think that's a little selfish, but I don't let that get to me.
Now HERE's where I got heated...
Today I get to the court and have it all to myself. I start shooting on the best basket on the full court side. I'm shooting for like an hour. Then slowly the Chinese guys (and note it's always the same group) start coming to play. they start off at the other end, then some of them come to my end. I'm thinking "cool, maybe we'll finally end this segregation **** and get a game together for once".
So I'm being cool with them. Whenever I missed a shot they'd always want to give it back to me and always play with their own ball, but I'd insist that they can shoot mine too because we are after all sharing the same court. People that know me know I'm very approachable and a damn cool guy, never looking for trouble... anyway. They all of a sudden go back to the other side of the court - all of them, and start talking.
Immediately I knew what was happening. I knew they'd either ask me to play or they'd ask me to go to another court - which wasn't happening because I was there first. So they play "shoot around" for like 10 minutes I guess hoping that I'd leave so they wouldn't have to talk to me. But I knew what they were up to so I just kept shooting.
I guess one kid really was just so ready to play that he worked up the courage to say "Hey (voice cracking as if he thought I was about to stomp his guts out or something) we're about to play a game." LMAO!! I just said "Ok" and went right back to shooting. I mean, what does "We're about to play a game" mean to me anyway? I'm supposed to move? You're not going to ask me to play since I was here the f**k first?
So I'm a little pissed off but I keep shooting. About 10 mintues after that, this after they decided to have another "shoot around" to kill time hoping I was going to leave (which I had no plans to do), these mutha******* start the f****** game WHILE I'M ON THE COURT! WTF? If I wasn't the way I am all hell would have seriously broke loose. But no, that's not me. I had somewhere to be anyway so there was no need to be a sore *** about it this time.
They started to play, and I kept playing. I didn't make it a point to get in their way, but I played as if they weren't there just like they played as if I wasn't. On top of that, they were playing 4 on 5!!!! They could have EASILY asked me to play to even up the teams, but no. At this point, I was going to ask to play, but the other side of me said, "No, don't bother, you really don't want to play with them at this point."
About 15 minutes later I left to the appointment I had.
Just so you know, this WON'T happen again. I'm the type of person that will take things as they come for just so long, and then I'll blow up (I'm a Taurus). This Saturday I plan on being back there. I'm hoping this situation doesn't arise again. However I know it will. I'm not going to go there and fight anybody (no matter how much each one of them deserves a serious b***h slap), but I will let them know exactly what I see.
What do I see?
It seems to me like for some reason they are intimidated by me, don't know why I'm only a 5'10" 160lb black/puerto rican mixed guy and I've never done anything to give them reason to be intimidated. Do they think I'm too good? I mean, yeah I know I'd probably take them all to school on the court, but still. I'm not there to show off, I just want to play a nice full court game, nothing extreme.
Whatever, I probably should have said something today, but I'll be sure to the next time it happens. Anyway, that's my rant about those losers. For those who read it, thanks....
Comment