Bulldogs Junior and Chunk roll past Dewey Beach Liquors

Schmidt’s Malt Liquor bulldogs - Rescues Junior and Chunk are on the wagon rolling past Dewey Beach Liquors on Dagsworthy Avenue at the start of the Race for the Paws 5K Aug. 3. Speaking of dog days, the race was so hot the humans were panting. It's a mammalian adaptation. “Mammals, their name is called, they raise a paw.” – They Might Be Giants. I also saw a Ratzo Rizzo rescue sporting an NYPD vest, harking and barking the message, "Take a bite outta crime” or “discarded Dewey doughnuts.” And there was my friend Laurie Yanacek carrying a corgi in a frontal papoose while pushing another in a buggy protected by mosquito netting. “Life comes at you fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” – Ferris Bueller. 

Exhilaration to exasperation - The Paris Olympics are prime time in the morning, and the tribe of social media surfers has been instantaneously all over it, reacting from the miraculous to the mundane. But like Summer McIntosh in the butterfly, speed over depth gets you to the yakity-yak chat room first. Transgender athletes are not approved to participate in Olympic competition. Beyond that, there are all types of testing protocols in place, from drugs to genetics. Let’s be frank: This controversy has focused on athletes who compete as women who may look too masculine in the eyeballs of some people who have no idea what they are talking about. This is opening the door to a room I’m not walking inside. 

Emma Hayes - The United States women’s Olympic soccer team coach has a British accent and looks like she should be coaching the hammer throwers. Hayes' team has won the first four games at the Olympics for the first time since 2012. My instant reaction to her after the U.S. beat Japan 1-0 in extra time was negative. I don't like coaches who keep talented people out of the game. She rarely substitutes, creating playing time issues for Olympic athletes and their families. But then I read an in-depth feature story on her life’s journey and decided I do like her. The moral of the story – I rarely have one – is to get to know someone (say, a coach) before you decide you don’t like them.

Intrusive thoughts - I have pretty much avoided all Phillies broadcasts over the last three weeks, which doesn’t make me a fair-weather fan, and I’m not a long- or short-term suffering fan because there is real human suffering in the world, and none of it is pegged to some baseball team. And yet I always know what’s going on. I just prefer not to watch it. Perhaps if I start to gamble and predict they will lose, the Phils will actually start winning. Note: The Phillies won Sunday while the Braves lost, boosting the Phils to a six-game lead with 51 left to play. 

Snippets - I am a field hockey personnel tracker and make no chicken bones about it. College freshmen players quickly learn that the initial roster for 2024 may not include freshmen. And when they’re are added, it may take weeks before their photo appears, and their bio will be thinner than a fashion model who runs marathons. Speaking of field hockey, the U.S. Olympic team beat South Africa 1-0  to close out the games with a win, a tie and three losses. Internationally, women can play that game, and a percentage end up on a college roster in the United States. Melissa Jefferson, the USA bronze medalist in the 100 meters, has a Cape connection. She is Sara Young’s Aunt Sheila's husband's brother’s daughter. I know there are also Young siblings – Allison, John, Chris, Ben and Sam. Athletic quickness comes down from mom Eileen’s side. Frank Young ain’t got no speed. Football guys now wear sissy pads on non-contact days (yes, that’s what they’re called). They are like a liner that just covers the shoulders in case they are pegged by a hard helmet. Back when I was an offensive lineman, I wore elbow pads over my calf muscles, which were bruised from leg-whipping people. Go on now, git!