Broken bones, fake teeth and flag football

By Eli Nuzzi | gargoyle@flagler.edu

Conversations are interesting to trace, as some psychology students might understand. I think it’s fun to trace a conversation backwards. Starting of course with the end and piecing it back together to see how it was related to the original topic.

I’m not much of a talker, because I love to listen, but whenever I feel compelled to tell a story, I will. I don’t know if it’s just me, but when I start talking about a random topic, it sometimes ends up with an injury story, or sharing other injury stories about people I know.

On top of that, during this time in the conversation, the other person may feel obligated to compare and compete against the original injury story. I honestly don’t care who wins with the best story, I just love to share my “fun” memories with other people.

Whether it’s smashing on concrete with a bike from the bottom of a ‘small’ flight of stairs or simply taking a snow cone sample riding a snowboard on top of the mountain you thought you could take on. My conversations don’t always end painfully; sometimes they’re about sports, bonfires, or just having a good time.

I know of three people I played ultimate Frisbee with, who have received injuries: one got a broken arm, the other one got a broken collar bone, and the last person got his two front teeth knocked out by someone’s elbow. The funny thing is, it was during a Christmas break, so I guess he was singing, “All I want for Christmas is my two fake teeth.”

Another person I know received a dislocated shoulder from a “flag” football game. I never thought that someone could really get hurt from flag football. I thought that was the point of flags instead of tackles, but apparently not.

I like taking on challenges with my phrase, “It’s all fun and games until someone makes it memorable. Then it makes a good story,” after you recover of course. I believe it’s truly worth doing crazy stunts if there’s at least one person videotaping and/or taking pictures.

This might come across like I’m carefree, but I try to be smart after I wreck. It’s best to clean the many wounds thoroughly with soap and water on a washcloth rather than skipping that step and taking a hot shower, which hurts a lot. So I strongly suggest learning from other people and being smart after doing something stupid.

Just don’t forgo the fun altogether.