mc

[mc]

my dad thinks I'm crazy because I want to smash my brother with a golf club. now I get to go see a doctor and sit in a leather chair and tell him all about why I get so angry.

in other news, I hit 6 consec atom smashers today, starting on the flip, inside kick set gyro mirage bsos, 7 smears on good side, 4 on the flip (although flipside attempts were more consistent), some good two bag toe juggling on both feet (more good on the good side, only one good shot on the bad side)...

all in all, a pretty meager session. I'm starting to think that I may have to quit smoking pot, which sucks, because I LOVE smoking pot, but every 30-60 seconds (and that's not an exaggeration), I was having to take a break from the intensity of footbag to stop and lean over and breathe. bad sign. How does Vasek do it? A good friend of ours has come to a wonderful compromise on the matter, and it's not actually a compromise, because he's come to nothing but benefit from it... Time to invest in a vaporizer... Vapir, here I come. Being that I'm not going to worlds, I should be able to afford one.

I need to make Waylon Lew a footbag. He has made one for me, and I'm making some testers to see if it's worth it for me to stick to the craft of stitching, so I said I'd make one for him. I would start it tonight, but I've been drinking Crown Royal in big gulps, and drunk + glover's needle = bloody. And who wants a bloody footbag?

Maybe I really should quit smoking. It really hurts me that I'm not better at footbag. I watch videos, and I feel like I missed the boat. It's a sad thing to say, "I could have been great, but it's too late now". It's definitely too late to be great, but it's not too late to be better, I just have to take some real actions. At least I played pain-free today, although I was starting to feel some tightness in the hips when I was trying mobius. Thank god I hit it first try on one side, and second on the other... I'd be sore right now if I kept at it...

I'm just a big giver-upper, don't listen to me. Just stretch after sessions, and try hard when you're a teenager, because it just gets harder and harder to bust. Ken David said something really nice to me at the New Year's Jam, because at least I was doing a good job of keeping everybody rocking and keeping the event running straightahead. He said, "From now on, when I don't know what to do, I'm going to ask myself, 'what would Matt Cross do'." To which I told him, "If you want to do that, you should just ask yourself, 'what would Peter Irish do', because that's what I do".

Anyway, the point is, Ken was mistaken. Don't be like Matt Cross. Try hard at footbag and don't put off working hard to be good, because you'll end up a half-assed freestyler like me by the time that you realize that it's time to really start working.

Oh, in other TOFU news, which I didn't get a chance to write about in my last post, I had a wonderful time hanging with Nick Laroche at TOFU. I was afraid I might not see him for a while, or ever, because I had heard he was done with footbag to take part in the more rewarding profession of beating the crap out of other people for money. I guess I can understand that, because I want to beat the crap out of people pro bono, so, of course it would be better if there were money involved. Anyway, he joined me on a short and twisted easy journey, and we listened to his album and sat around and talked about the emotionally trying nature of being not the best footbagger that you think you could have been, and all the great things we like about each other's game, and music, and everything. We had a good time. I miss Nick. I love Nick.

At least I've met the people that I've loved the most ever through footbag. Can't take that away from me, ever, even though I can't hit montage.

Too bad I've also met some people who hurt me the worst, almost.

Maybe I really am crazy.

[brinard]

you better not give up on footbag!

smoking weed shortens my game, but i dont let it stop me from kicking ass. im in the best shape of my life, except im smokeing way too much weed. i should stop.

(vapos give you huge headaches, i dotn like em)

[Jdigges]

Matt Cross. You are definitley one of the best friends i've met through footbag. You don't need to efine your life through footbag. Maybe im saying that because im not as HARDCORE as willie digges but i play footbag for fun. i've accepted the fact that i won't be the greatest because i don't want it as much as other people. I like to play footbag. im not too sure where im going with this, maybes its because im a little drunk. Willie and i want to come and chill with you for a couple days at the zoo. Play a little footbag, get spanked by willie digges, drink some beer, chill with the monkies and the wolves. you know, the usual. Keep your head up man

[david]

I don't think anyone has as many changes in how they feel about footbag as I do, so perhaps I can just say what I think of your situation.

First off, I think if you have the mindset that your finished, then you are from the very start. You have to really beleive, and buckle down. You have to look at people like bevier (26), peter (30 something). They rip and they are older than you. If you treat your body right, focus, and dont do harmful tricks you can get better. You have so much natural talent that I don't see why you can't be one of the best. You can hit shit now people dream of.

You know how I feel about smoking pot. I'm not telling you what to do, but if you really love that, and you really love footbag, well i guess you could balance your options.

I really would like to see you get better than you already are. To me your one of the best freestylers already. You have natural flow and you hit cool stuff. Your a nice guy and you play for fun, not to be some hotshot. I hope if you ever do quit you come back and see me because a lot of the reason I school hard before tournaments is to show you all the new tricks I can hit. I guess it's my way of repaying you for helping me when I was just a newbie.

Keep your head up. You have all the tools and the mindset necessary to surpass ANYONE. Don't forget it. Footbag is 50% mental, and 50% booty. And god knows you've got that half.

Cleaver

[smokefree]

Breathing problems eh? That sucks. you dont gotta be a pothead to smoke pot you know... ever heard of casual smoking? YOU POTHEAD YOU. Jk. Ive smoked out of a vaporizer bong before it was little tiny smoke but very VERY harsh. Anyway, if you feel its inhibiting your footbag progress stop for awhile and find out.

[cd]

I don't think you missed the boat. At events, you have been regarded as one of the awesome players attending for as long as I have been going to tournaments. And you still have the ability to become great... I mean you are proficient at sooo many concepts that make the great players great. I can't think of any major component that you haven't learned, and with the determination you have, you'll be able to step it up to that level. You have had one foot on that boat for awhile now, you're physically capable of making it happen. You know the path, and it's definitely not too late. You're in your mid-twenties, in your PRIME, and you are better at footbag than you ever have been. You're hitting whirlwind bsos, and you own a whole host of fives. 6 atom smashers today, and you are close to rubberman with fears. You know what it takes, and if you keep it up you'll be hitting that drill on command. You're smart enough to know how to practice right and get what you want.

I dunno. Nobody can tell you to become better, so that whole paragraph is just how I see things. Besides, me giving you footbag wisdom is just kind of backwards, you know? Anyway, seeing footbagger after footbagger come out with crazy videos can be discouraging if you want to look at it that way. But you are just as athletic as them, and probably more experienced that most of the upcoming stars, so nothing is really holding you back except the wrong attitude. Therefore seeing all these players busting huge should be encouraging and the best possible reassurance that you are capable of taking it even farther.

Or, another example. With a little practice, you can shuffle and duck and shred with Aric's confidence and consistency, progress as fast as Paul, overcome the age obstacle as inspirationally as Mike, and freestyle with as much raw coolness as that Chris guy. You know you can do all those things because you know who they all learned from and where they all got their inspiration. Add that to everything you already have, and greatness is an understatement. If you want it bad enough, it's totally yours. You need to take a lesson from the RFA motto.



...and I'm aware that your post was just the result of one of those pessimistic days that we all have, where getting good enough at footbag seems impossible. Just wait until the next time you have one of those awesome sessions and you feel invincible, and everything that I just said trying to be encouraging will just sound silly and obvious.

I want to get a Vapir too. Health is important, and it's hard enough trying to keep up with all the other footbag players around the world.

[Tjuggles]

Hey matt.


I agree with what Cleaver was saying. I don't see why you can't be the best. That is one of the things that I love about footbag, is that I CANT see the light at the end of the tunnel, because just when I think I can, I notice that a have a little more control over the bag, OR, that Im hitting something new, and that tunnel gets even longer.

You have a really cool style, and I think that THAT is what only a select few have. I dont want to be rude, but a lot of the videos on here are of people who, dont get me wrong, are BUSTIN, but they lack style. You have style, Cleaver has style, Bevier has it, Irish, Brad Nelson, Vasek, Lon, Gf, Kenny... Although its a short, incomplete list, LOOK at it. Those
are some of the best players EVER! (at least to me) But wait, I know, I know, A LOT of people of can hit most of the stuff that these guys do (maybe), so what's the point? Well, THEY HAVE STYLE. You have it too. I wish you were going to worlds, because I would have loved to shred with you, but I guess that will just have to wait.

Yes footbag gets to me too. I have been playing for sometime now and I notice that I have that same thought process. 'these many years, and Im not good' But in retrospect, I am at least decent. Also, you can do anything if you want it. I believe that.

As far as that other topic (inhales smoke)
Japan 1gram $70 need I say more?

So...Props on being Matt Cross. I guess that's what Im trying to say.

[Iron Clad Ben]

Fuck Montage. So it's a 7 you can't hit, big deal. Fuck Adds. Who gives a shit. You've hit harder tricks with lower add counts.

You are not past your prime. Fuck that dude. I'm your age (24) and I only started freestyling a year ago (and only seriously 6 months ago). I'm getting better every time I play. If I got bitter about all those years I missed when I didn't know about freestyle and just hacked around I would have given up already. But screw that. I love footbag too damn much now.

If weed is gettin' in the way of footbag then fucking cut down or quit. Your health is SO important. You feel like you're invincible when you're an adolescent, but even into your early twenties bad decisions can take their toll. That's why now I don't smoke weed, I'm a vegetarian and I rarely drink. Do I miss weed, meat or getting wasted? Not at all because I feel great without them now. Footbag and rock and roll is what I love.

Have fun playing footbag. Have fun playing your music. Fuck the montage noise. Take good care of yourself. You are Matt Cross goddammit and you can do whatever the fuck you want in life. Make smart decisions and enjoy what you're doing. Purpose is not something you find in life, it's something you build into it, and we all know you have plenty of it.

[mc]

Wow, thanks for all the love and support, guys. I appreciate all that you guys said. I'm not even thinking about quitting freestyle, I guess I was just feeling a little down about my level and my choices. I get guilty and worrysome and jaded easily. Maybe I've just gone to too many tournaments in the past few years, and the lifestyle is starting to wear on me. But don't worry, there's plenty of Matt Cross action left for years to come.

Josiah, just give me a few weeks of notice, and I'll clear some time for you and your brother. You know how glad I am to have met the both of you and to have enjoyed your company at tournaments and the rides there and back these past few years. you guys are always welcome here, and I look forward to seeing you.

Cleaver, you're an incredible person, and to have your support means a lot to me. It makes me really happy to think that I've got some value to the footbag community beyond hitting some weird tricks, so it makes me glad when you say you're glad I'm around. I'll always want to see what wacky stuff you're hitting next, so don't worry, I'm not going anywhere

Chris, you're my RFA brother and definitely one coolest, most talented players I've had the privelege of playing with over the past 5 years. I'm glad you reminded me of the RFA motto, it changes my perspective. I feel like all we've been through together as the RFA, and the group improvements (personal and kicky-wise) that we've made together warrant me getting some kind of RFA tattoo... Never Give Up could fit somewhere nicely, I'm sure. Thanks for always pushing me, style-wise, and last night, personally-wise... -wise-wise-wise

TJ, thanks for the words of encouragement. I'm glad you like my style. I forget that at least I've got some style appeal sometimes. Thanks for reminding me... $70 a gram?!? nuts!!!

And Ben... haha, thanks for the drill sergeant post I need those, too. I hope we can play together sometime, and I hope I can make the lifestyle improvements that you have too...

more later, back to work...

[mc]

My Jake Raye bag is turning out pretty sweet. I've been playing with it, my rainbow sherbet johnny, and the lewd bag that I just received in the mail the other day. The lewd bag is playing surprisingly well. it is half cow, half rainbow. I call it the Gay Cow. I had a lot of fun playing with it today. I like it when I get bags with patterns I've never seen before, and waylon hooked me up with one, so, thanks waylon. good pattern.

I played at work, and I did clipper> far gyro toe > far gyro toe both sides, and repeating same toe rakes on both sides. I also hit superfly BSOS first try (only try), and lots of double around the worlds on both sides, a move that's been lacking on the flipside for a long time. and some 2 bag juggling, too. I like playing at work, because I play in big baggy shorts, and I tend to work on different stylistic elements than when I play in my shred shorts. so, it's fun.

Keely (the girl I've been occupied with lately) wants to make footbags. She admires miniature work. She makes clothing sometimes, and she feels there's little technical skill involved, and wants something more interesting, and she has LOTS of time on her hands. I bet she could make some sick bags. Next time we hang, I'm going to show her what's up.

Except, I don't know what's up myself, because my bags all turn out stiff. i wish I knew why. I hope, with this next bag (that I started tonight, 4 pents in) I make some progress, but the fact is, I've been doing it exactly the same way since I started, with minimal changes. With this bag, I'm trying something I've known tom and peng to do at the end of their edges. I feel it could lead to a cleaner product, but I need to work on it. We'll see, I need to get back into the swing of things, maybe order some more facile. I hope this one goes well. I'm keeping it for myself, then making one for waylon. I hope waylon enjoys collecting, because I can't promise a sweet, shred-worthy bag like the one he sent me. Oh well... anyway, time for a little puff and a lot of sleep. Still gotta order that vapir... goodnight, hackyland.

[BenRea]

Keely (the girl I've been occupied with lately) wants to make footbags. She admires miniature work. She makes clothing sometimes, and she feels there's little technical skill involved, and wants something more interesting, and she has LOTS of time on her hands. I bet she could make some sick bags. Next time we hang, I'm going to show her what's up.

.

Thats always nice to hear, i like it when people actually WANT to make footbags. you better post them when she does her first ones.

[Wasabi]

Matt,

I'm not sure if we've met at last year's Jersey Spike, but I'm sure our history and friendship began at last year's Funtastiks. At that time, as much as I can say, I was a shy fry of a newbie in the footbag scene, and only knew a few familiar faces that I've met around NYC and Somerville, NJ. However, even with all of the players that I've met at Funtastiks - Peter Irish, the RFA crew, Jon Nagela, Nathan Pipenburg, Dan "The Man" Johnson, Josh Benham, etc. - the one person that gave me the most inspiration for freestyle was you. I remember it was a circle of myself, you, Rizz, and maybe a few hackers, and we were all playing with your lesh bag. It was a sweet bag, but it was your smooth style that was especially sweet. Fluid control and patience is the one factor I see in your game that I love the most.

Since then, I've been trying my best to go to all of the East Coast tournaments that have been announced. The very first was the New Year's Eve Jam you hosted, which was a blast. I don't think I've ever had a better time of my life than in Rochester. I felt that my friendship with other freestylers began to strengthen and grow from there. I think I was introduced to the Digges brothers, Jorden Moir, Tom Mosher, Pengpeng Du, and other footbaggers with a huge variety of styles. Of course, your charity holds no bounds not only for the event, but for your own household to have players stay the night. It was that night that I knew a little more about Matt Cross than I've had from playing with him in a circle.

Alright, screw it with the back story. Where was I? What I'm trying to say is, you will always be you, Matt. Both for the good and the bad. You're always in our hearts both in footbag and the normal mundane life we all live in. I believe that we all have a certain volition when it comes to footbag, and to what degree that we want our level of play to be in. Whenever I play aggressively, I keep thinking that i want to match the speed that both Chris Dean or Jorden Moir have in their playing styles. However, in contrast, whenever I want to invision a smooth and well concentrated style I think of Matt Cross. Ken David is correct on that I guess.

I've been cutting back on weed less and less these days. I love getting high, but I don't think playing footbag while high is a good thing for me. I tend to get hurt way too much, and I can't afford another sprained something in the next few months to come.

Thanks for the compliments on the bag I made for you. I hope Gay Cow does you well. I'm definitely trying to refine my stitching, and my game.

I love you Matt Cross. And your booty.

-Waylon.

[mc]

Short, fun session after work yesterday. I did a little of this and that during work, so my legs were a bit loose when I started. My first string of the session was fear > atom > leg > blur on my flipside, did it first try, then second try on my strong side. Still not put together, though. Have to work on blur > fear a bunch. No problem.

A bit later on, I hit muted pixie ss DLO BSOS. I'm pretty sure I hadn't hit it on my flipside before, but it didn't take long. Also did a bunch of merkons, haven't hit those too much in the past... aaaand what else... vortex both sides at work, mobius both sides during the session. Both are still hard for me, but at least I can talk myself into hitting them after a few tries. No midstring action on either. I think I'll try for void / marius BS next session. I might have hit one void before, but not very well, and only one side. Never a clean marius. We'll see, spins are still bad for me.

One particularly positive thing about the session was that I played pain-free. my hips were tightening up on the mobiuses, but they feel okay today.

Last night was a LOT of fun. The reason my session was so short was because some friends were picking me up for an open mic in Oswego. It was a bit of a long haul out there, maybe 90 minutes or 2 hours or so. When we got to the bar (Old City Hall), there was a sign outside with a wizard wearing a long white robe walking a tightrope barefoot doing a devil stick with each hand. I took that as a good sign. It was a hip place, good drink prices, great decor.

My friend that I drove out with scored us a well-paying gig for august, which basically put a bow on the night for me... I was satisfied before we even got started, so we ordered some beers and jammed on this and that, and waited.

The host of the open mic was an acoustic funky blues folk player with a left handed guitar. I met some wooden sword sellers and painters for the local renaissance fair, I guess they're travelling craftspeople. Seemed like a seriously fun bunch, I invited them to come to the zoo at their leasure and enjoy some fun with me. I hope they can make it.

Anyway, my set came up and I played well, and the host liked me, so I tossed him a demo and one of my new brochures that I had made, and hopefully I can get some gigs from him too. I played my song The Botanist, and the beatboxing sounded rad over the sound system. it went over really well, I'm looking forward to my gig.

We stayed at the bar 'til close at 2, and it was a LONG drive home. Fortunately, our driver is a ball of ADHD energy, and she was able to stay up just fine. I was afraid I was going to be wrecked for work the next day, so I left my dad a note saying I'd be 2 hours late (which is no problem, he's sympathetic to my music ventures), and when I woke up, I was greeted with the wonderful morning surprise of pouring rain; no work! so, more sleep.

So, it's been a pretty good past 24 hours. I wish I had more people to play footbag with, and I wish Jerrod wasn't so intent on reinventing the wheel in regards to his technique and his shoe modification (or complete lack thereof) but I can relate to that mindset, so i try not to give him a hard time. I'm going to finish bag number 28 (or is it 29?) later today, and now I'm going to try and write music. Bye bye hackyland.

And, thanks for the kind words, waylon. Hopefully, someday, you'll know the joy of hosting a successful event yourself.

PS TO ALL NEW YORK CITY KICKERS: Keep an eye out for a very fashionable black guy named Brian Ijeoma in Union Square. He is very shy, but extremely cool, and likes to play footbag. He is my friend, so give him a warm NYFA welcome if you see him!

[Wasabi]

Will do, Matt.

[mc]

I was stoned and taking a shower before my open mic tonight and I had a vision of downtime your mom (massacrefly, basically) and I got so excited that I decided to say to myself "fuck the fact that you're clean, time to bust", so first I tried it barefoot a bunch of times, and I started to get psyched. So, I put my old lavers on and tried it with no luck. Then, I went outside, and I brought my little camera, and I must have tried that move 150 times and erased the camera 20 times because it could only record 2 minutes at a time, but I got it! I busted it with my new Jake Raye footbag. The video is hard to see, and I can't slomo it, but I'm pretty sure I get all the dexes right at the ankle, basically like an eggbeater but keep going into butterfly from the symple legover.

It's funny, I was getting into a deep meditation from so many tries. I tried to think of Jorden, and the fire he gets from chasing a move down, and I was in the middle of analyzing what I was doing, and how no one but myself, not even god, could bring me satisfaction at that moment, and at the precise time I was thinking about how relief and gratification could only come from inside, and from buckling down and busting, the bag came back up from my foot. The bag bounced out of my hand as I tried to catch it, but it came back up... I hope the rest of you count it. It was practically the only footbag trick I tried today, I'll definitely bust it again, soon. And, the legs are feeling good!

Soon, I'll be driving east to play with this new guy, Alex, who lives near Amsterdam, NY. Hopefully I can get the Digges brothers to come out on the same day, and we can all bust for this newb together. It would be a great intro for the sport to him. I guess he's getting lavers, I'm psyched for that. I bought a 14 panel bag from him to help support the cause.

Anyway, just wanted to brag about my new move. I don't think I'd ever heard of anyone hitting it before, but it's so doable that I wouldn't be surprised. I hope to find out tomorrow.

[sen]

Props Matt. Stuff like that is why I love footbag. Thanks for making my day.

[SandWraith]

Wow, that's a cool story. Though I can't do eggbeaters well, I can see how it would be doable (for someone good at eggbeaters anyways). Still, I would be afraid of spraining my ankle so I feel obligated to say: be careful.

Hey, do you sell footbags by the way?

[Skippy!]

I can honestly say that you're one of my favourite guy's, Matt. You're wicked supportive, and wicked cool. And your wicked good at footbag. I dunno, I can't really elaborate on it much more than that. I wanna hang out soon. Maybe one day before summer is over...I hope!

[mc]

okay, here is a really crappy video of the first time I hit maggot (illusioning symp dod). I hit it again yesterday for Keely, and I caught the hand catch instead of it flying out of my hand at the end, like in this video. I call it maggot because it's a combination of eggbeater and superfly, which leads to egg fly, which leads to fly egg, which leads to maggot. Also, it's like a massacre-ing butterfly, so having it start with the same two letters is good. I wouldn't name it, except that I think it is a new downtime move.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-flTH_ZFGE

I am sad about life today (but not incredibly sad). I hope everyone has a blast at worlds and tapes a lot. I wish I could be there with you all.

[setman]

i can't see the dexes, because of the video quality, anyway, props :)

i'm sad too, but maybe i'll be at next worlds :(

ps. how many dexes does have rev symp. butterfly ? two or one ?