Foosball Radio | Patreon Profile | Jimmy Love

[00:00:01] The following is a presentation of Foosball Radio. Since establishing the Foosball Patreon page, you have shown your kind generosity, helping Foosball Radio to continue. Now, we present to you the Foosball Radio Patreon Profile. Time to find out more about you. Hey, it's Tom Robinson. Welcome back to another Foosball Radio Patreon Profile.

[00:00:28] This time, we are very honored to have one of our Patreons who's been on board for us for quite a while now. His name is Jimmy Love from Jacksonville, Florida. Hello, Jimmy. Hey, how's it going, Tom? It's going well. I understand that it's in the upper 70s in Florida today, is that correct? Yeah, close to 80, correct. And windy. You had to tell me that, didn't you? And maybe it's going to rain soon, too. Okay. Have you always lived in Florida?

[00:00:59] 99%. I was born in Texas, actually. Oh, Texas. Okay. Got it. Yeah, my dad was in the military, so I was born in Beeville, Texas. But when I was like two, I moved to Jacksonville. Understood. Been here ever since. Wow, yeah. So you're definitely a native of Florida, no doubt about it. And so in Jacksonville, Florida, what occupies your time during the day? What do you do for a living? I work as a nurse in the ER. Been doing that for the past 11 years.

[00:01:27] Oh, fantastic. Yeah, that's a great occupation, and thank you so much for doing what you do. Oh, yeah. Yeah, this whole COVID thing, when you were working, how did that affect you in your life? It was a little crazy. I mean, I've been working for so long, I worked through Ebola, and now I had to work through COVID. Wow. And when COVID first hit, the ER was a ghost town. I cured everything, apparently. Nobody wanted to come to the ER.

[00:01:58] But it was all, you had to like dress up in like hazmat suits and go through like three zipper doors to get in to see people with COVID. And then, wow, it's just crazy. Yeah, I mean, it seems things have chilled a bit, but there is still cases of COVID appearing, correct? Yeah, it's not any worse than the flu. Right. Basically. Right. Have you had COVID at all? Have you suffered from that?

[00:02:26] Well, when COVID first came out, I didn't get it for a whole year, even working in the ER with COVID patients. And then they made me get the vaccine. And then a week after getting the first vaccine, I got COVID then. Oh, interesting. Okay. Yeah. Interesting. Yeah. So, and how did it, it was just like the flu, just a couple of days, that kind of thing? That was terrible. That was the worst I've ever felt. Oh, really? No kidding. Yeah, I think I slept for like a week straight. No doubt. Yeah. No, it affected people differently.

[00:02:54] There's, it was, I'm trying to think now, last year after a tournament, a foosball tournament, I came back and I tested positive. And I felt kind of crappy for a couple of days. Took a day off from work, but that was it. You know, everything else beyond that was, I just went, kind of toughed my way through it, sort of like a head cold. Yeah. Yeah. So it affects everybody a little differently, I think. Yeah. Wow.

[00:03:21] Well, during, when it first happened, it was really bad. But I think the more, you know, more people got it, the more it got out there, it started becoming less severe. Right. Right. Exactly. It's mutated so many times now. Yes, exactly. Exactly. Wow. So foosball. First of all, thank you for being a Patreon for Foosball Radio. I can't thank you enough for that. It's, it's, if, if someone is watching this particular video,

[00:03:48] I'd like to know, what is it that, how, why you felt so strongly to become a Patreon to begin with? I've just been playing foosball forever. So I enjoy listening to the, uh, foosball radio. I'm at the gym. So I just really appreciate that. So the little money I can put in there, you know, to make it keep going. Wow. That is, that is so generous. We really appreciate your help. And, uh, without people

[00:04:14] like yourself, you know, foosball radio, I don't know, might exist in some form, but it's hard to say, you know, it's a, it's a challenge and we do enjoy doing it. Um, but, uh, it's not necessarily free. So thank you again. Um, so, okay, let's, let's take it back. Now you've, you've been a foosball player for how long? Uh, I was trying to think of that a while ago, cause I knew you'd ask this question, but it all depends on how you look at it. Let's see. I feel like I've

[00:04:42] started, I started playing foosball, like just say 20 years ago, but that's before I knew about, um, for a new about tournament play and everything I was playing like one of those Harvard tables. Okay. Gotcha. And so I, my dad, I guess used to play. So he showed me a pool shot. So I'd do that to everybody and score them. And then it wasn't until about 10 years ago that I saw they had

[00:05:07] terms, things like that. So I started, um, started playing then. And then it wasn't until about five years ago. I started doing the, the IFP, uh, the points and all that. I haven't got it. Okay. Yeah. So, so your dad was, uh, was a player. Was he a player in Texas by the way? No, I don't think so. Okay. I think it was just the military and the Navy. Right. It's interesting that, you know,

[00:05:34] you think about the origins of, of foosball and, uh, I believe it was the Vietnam era when, uh, a lot of, uh, Vietnam vets were coming back from, uh, from Asia, places like that, where they found foosball. Uh, you know, they were bringing tables back and, uh, that kind of kicked things off in this country. Although I think it came through other ways as well, but yeah, uh, fascinating there. The military has, uh, has had a foosball heritage. Right. But next, uh, now is your dad still with us? Uh, yes.

[00:06:04] And next time you see him, just let him know that I'm thanking him for his service. Oh, no problem. No problem. Sure. Well, so, um, when it comes to, uh, your, your foosball life, uh, how often do you play? Uh, well, I probably, since the table is just right over there, I pick it up and play like every, I play about at least 10 minutes a day, at least every day. Okay. Just to hit it on the table for a little bit, then move on.

[00:06:32] Got it. Got it. And, uh, But then every Wednesday we do the, uh, the DYP at the, I'm going to extremely plug this at the dark bar. Oh, please do. Please do. Yeah. The dark bar. Here in Jacksonville, Florida. Mm-hmm. Chris Carson bought a bar and, uh, put our tables there. And so we play there every Wednesday. Yeah. No, we, we know the name Chris Carson for sure. Uh, you know, as a, as a promoter and somebody who's, uh, really, you know, getting, getting things moving. Um, so for, for your DYP

[00:07:02] on Wednesdays, what kind of, uh, what kind of, uh, player base do you have? Uh, anywhere from beginners. Well, if you want to scoot back further, we have a foos academy we do every Thursday. Yes. So we teach people it's free to play and, uh, we teach people how to play foosball to our, to our beginners. Then when they're good enough, they'll come play in our

[00:07:24] Wednesday DYP. So we have anywhere from beginners to our, uh, pro, uh, Jay Ali is our pro. So. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. We hear the, hear the name Jay, Jay Lee quite a bit. Um, and, and so Thursday night is foosball academy. Now how many people have been converted through the foos academy? Do you have any ideas to how many people have showed up and stuck around? Oh, well I know. And I think next

[00:07:50] weekend we actually have a five year anniversary party that's going to go, that's going to happen. Nice. To answer your question. It's like, uh, maybe 15 people. Yeah. So one person that came from the foos academy is a Keith Glenn. Yes. Keith. Yep. Keith. Well, yes. Uh, not only is he a good player, but now he's been working for inside foos as a commentator, uh, which, uh, I'm sure when he

[00:08:17] first started with you guys had no idea that would be where we'd end up. Exactly. Very nice. Now it's, uh, it's funny the, the, the, the society within an area, the, the, the, the scene, so to speak, it's, uh, it's amazing. It becomes family pretty quickly. Um, how do you feel about the people you play with? Excellent. I have no, no problems at all. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. No, it's, uh, I think every,

[00:08:42] every scene has its, uh, its core people. And of course, uh, getting together, I can, I can attest to this cause I was out till one 30 in the morning last night, uh, with, with my foosball family, you know, doing our thing. But, uh, so are you a forward or are you are, are you a goalie? Uh, I can do both. I'm mainly a goalie though, but I feel like on the AFP tour, the only time I've

[00:09:06] won really anything is when I was played forward. Oh, okay. Okay. Uh, I get to win an IFP event though. Yes. I've won a bunch of smaller ones. I have not won an IFP one. So I'm looking to do that sometime soon. Oh, I'm only getting older. It's getting harder. Oh, I understand. Uh, I don't know. Did you watch, watch any of the, uh, the hall of fame classic from last week? Pretty much watched the whole thing. Yeah. Wasn't it amazing? Just, uh, you know, from, from, uh, from beginners, rookies,

[00:09:35] amateurs, uh, some, some terrific playing going on. Uh, by the way, we want to, uh, send out a hearty congratulations to Michael Veidt, uh, who took amateur singles at the hall of fame classic. Wow. Uh, great playing Michael. Wow. Um, and he was recently a, a Patreon profile just like yourself, but, uh, yes. So maybe that's what you need. You need to have this Patreon profile. So when you go out next time you'll win, you know, win an event like that at IFP. That's what I'm hoping. I'm hoping

[00:10:02] it'll change. I keep getting like second or third or whatever, but I have yet to get first. So you're knocking at the door. Yeah. Yeah. Slowly. It's, uh, it's interesting how this, this game, once it gets under your skin and you, you develop and you, uh, you improve, there's certain methods some people make use of to, to get better. Uh, what, what's your, uh, what's your source of, of, uh, inspiration? What do you, what do you like to do or watch?

[00:10:31] Uh, well, I watch any kind of, anytime there's IFP events, I watch it on, uh, the stream or whatnot. And I do just watch what people do and how they do it and try to imitate sometimes, but I don't, I don't, uh, like copy anybody's style. I just do my own style. Gotcha. Gotcha. Do you make use of the instructional videos that are out there? I, when I first started, I did watch them,

[00:10:56] but now I don't need them. Right. Just basically watch what other people do. Yeah. It's, uh, it's pretty neat. Um, I'm trying to think, uh, chase Pennell was one that was doing some, um, some instructional videos. I found this, you know, well-produced and easy to follow. Uh, so if somebody is first getting into this and they really want to know the finer points of, of, uh, playing, uh, I think chase's, uh, stuff on YouTube are, are pretty good. Um, I'm trying to think, what was it? Um,

[00:11:23] Oh, there's a couple of, of different, uh, different, um, uh, videos that were out there. Yeah. But yeah. Well, recently, uh, Kane and Tony have been here and so I've gotten instructions from them as well. Right. Yeah. So now getting pro masters in the mix, I mean, in, in your area, what's, uh, what's the top level player? Who's your, who's your best player? That's it's Jay. Jaylee. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And then Chris Carson's next.

[00:11:52] So that's about it. And so there's a, there's a lot of teaching going on. I take it. Uh, yeah. To, to the newer players. Okay. Okay. Uh, so when it comes to the, the, the regular routine of the DYP, um, are you streaming? What's, what's going on with that? Every Wednesday first goes foos on YouTube. Nice. Nice. About nine o'clock takes me a while to get it set up. Cause

[00:12:19] I have to bring it in and set it all up. So you are the tech guy then. That is me. Yeah. Yeah. Everybody's got anybody, anybody can come on and, uh, commentate, say whatever you want as long as you don't ban me from YouTube. I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon. Of course, something really, really different happens, but, uh, yeah. So that's really cool. And have you got a lot of viewers, people watching? Yeah. Um, maybe not live, but

[00:12:48] in the end it's about 150 viewers every week that at least watch it sometime during the week. Okay. Now, um, I'm going to ask you this question because you're in Florida. We keep hearing about the romp in the swamp, the, uh, the Florida tour. Have you gone to any of those events? Oh, I went to the, I had, I talked to Tommy and Luke all the time. We always discussed,

[00:13:11] uh, tournaments that we can do in Florida. Hey, Tommy, Chris, Keith, um, Luke, all, we all have a WhatsApp app and we discussed tournament stuff. And so we plan it for a long time for the Jacksonville stop. Jackson's Orlando, but unfortunately it's during my daughter's recital. So I cannot go or so I would go. Gotcha. I tried to convince them to change it, but they're not

[00:13:36] going to change it. Oh, wow. That's, uh, well, maybe next time, you know, maybe next time, but yeah. So it'd be four stops. I mean, Tommy and Luke, I mean, they're doing a lot of hard work with that. And I, you know, it's, it's great to hear that you guys have this Florida tour going. Um, I'm, you know, I'm curious. And now what do you think about the format with the romp in the swamp? Uh, now that he's changed it, it's pretty good. Uh, okay. I was okay with the format before,

[00:14:03] but it wasn't like, wasn't the best, but now that they changed it, then I like that much better because before it was like a B Y P and then you rank yourself and then the next round, um, whatever bracket you're put in, you get to draw, draw a partner stuck with our partner. Now instead of drawing being stuck with it now, it's just a monster for whatever bracket you land in. Oh God. It's way better. Yeah. So you're not just stuck with the same person the entire time.

[00:14:33] Understood. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I just stuck with a bunch of randoms. Yeah. Oh, okay. No, I love the, I love the, the monster format with the rounds, you know, uh, you get a chance to see what other people do. You get a chance to play with everybody else. And, uh, then of course the, the final knockout round, um, is that a double elimination in the final knockout round? Oh, no, no. It's just, I, well, I think the new one's just a monster and whatever you rank at the end. Okay. Got it. Is who places for a second there. I think that's how it works. Oh, cool.

[00:15:03] Well, that takes the pressure off for sure. Yeah. Yeah. That's awesome. Uh, so, so the next romp in the swamp is when again? Uh, it's in Orlando. Um, I can't, I can't remember the date off the top of my head, but relatively soon. Yeah. Soon. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's, uh, that, uh, well, now that, uh, summer is really kicked in Florida, it's going to be an interesting time to go there to play. Um, do, are there many people from out of state that are going to the romp in

[00:15:30] the swamp? Do you know? Uh, let me think. I know there's a few, but I can't remember where they were from. Some people were asked, some people from even from New York were asking to come to this next one. So we'll see. I don't know. Yeah. We're, we're fascinated. We want to see how this is working because, uh, I don't know if you're familiar with the Northeast scene, but we have lots of, um, you know, uh, factions of different players and, you know, decent player, player bases in,

[00:15:59] in parts of the, uh, the upstate, um, area, but, uh, we haven't really coalesced now to, uh, to do any kind of, uh, regional or major, uh, tournament of any kind. So we're looking at Florida very carefully to see how you guys do and, uh, try to figure it out. It's really fun. Yeah. No, it sounds like a great format, uh, and, and having it in a different place each time that, that to me makes a lot of

[00:16:21] sense. All through Florida. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Well, um, I gotta say, you know, when it comes to, uh, to, to general, uh, things that are changing within the, in the, the foosball industry, this is of course, one of those things, experimentation, uh, trying new things. Um, right now what's your opinion on this, this, uh, this new event that's taking place in Texas? Uh, it's Memorial day

[00:16:50] weekend. It's called the ITSF world series. Are you going to go or what do you think about that? I can't, I can't go to that. Uh, I was trying to actually find in more information about what it is. I actually don't know what it is exactly. Okay. It's really, what is it? Yeah. It's, it's really more based upon the European model. Uh, so it's more, um, it's, it's athletically based.

[00:17:14] They have a, a strict, uh, dress code. Uh, there is a Swiss format. Uh, so there are rounds that, uh, that everybody plays in. Now, if you go and you decide you want to play, let's say senior, senior doubles, let's say, um, if senior doubles is simultaneously being conducted, uh, right alongside open doubles, then you can choose only one. You can't be in both. Uh, same would go. Let's

[00:17:41] say if you're a junior doubles player and you wanted to play the open, if you're in juniors, you wouldn't be able to play in the open, but, um, the format, it goes all weekend long, of course, and it's very strictly timed. So, you know, when you're going to be playing, you know, when, when the, the events stop. And of course there's plenty of time to, uh, to rest and, uh, uh, recreate in between. Um, but there's, there's, um, this idea, you know, the European players, they're not in it

[00:18:08] for the money necessarily, although there's payouts, uh, they're in it because they love the glory, you know, um, and I believe there's something to do with, um, the various countries will be, uh, also having a competition, uh, depending upon, you know, uh, who shows up or how many people show up from various places. And you can be on the quote unquote team, you know, for your country, that kind of thing, which I think it's a fascinating element. And, uh, I'm going to go there just to see what it's

[00:18:35] like, you know, just, uh, it's worth being there, but, um, um, hopefully it'll be a really good turnout, but, um, it's all about trying new things. The other thing that, uh, that happened, uh, I was at the TKO in Kentucky earlier this year and got a chance to watch, um, something called championship format, wherein, you know, you, you play, uh, if you, if you end up losing a match, uh, you, the best you

[00:19:05] can possibly do is, is third place. You can, you'll, it's double elimination, but the best you can do is third place, even if you, you win through the entire loser's bracket. So what do you think of, of something like that? Well, I just want to know what Tony thinks of it since he did get third place. So I want his opinion. Uh, if as long as it's seated, the format works, but if it's not seated, I don't think that the format's very good for that, but as long as you see it appropriately,

[00:19:31] I think that's fine. It's like the, like March madness, you know, you only get one loss or you're out. Yeah. I mean, it's, um, I mean, most sports are using this kind of a, this kind of an idea. Um, and I, you know, I guess that, that, you know, everybody's into the, uh, the brackets when it comes to the March madness, you know, the, the final four and everybody's, you know, wagering in their offices. And it seems to be a really fascinating thing.

[00:19:57] And it's probably the only time some people even bother watching the sport because they've got, that's me. Yeah. Right. It's, uh, it's, it really does generate a whole, a whole lot more interest than what you'd normally have in this. And usually the best team wins in that anyways, it's never like a bad team winning. So it works in that sense, but it has to be seated appropriately though. Yeah. Um, agreed, agreed. I remember the first time I played the brackets, uh, I, you know,

[00:20:26] my office pool, I came in second because I just went according to the records of the teams, you know, just like, and I was very conservative about it, but, and it, and it seemed to work, but you know, at the very end, I didn't pick the winner, you know, um, but yeah, it's, it's, um, I have no idea what I'm talking about when it comes to, to basketball, by the way. So none, no idea. Um, but it is something that, uh, I think people, you know, they, they, they have

[00:20:52] like a horse in the race. They figure, Hey, it's a lot more, you know, it's worthwhile paying attention to. Um, now when it comes to foosball and when it comes to, you know, spectating and of course, uh, being a fan, I mean, we, we, I I'm speaking to the, or preaching to the choir here when I say we love to watch foosball, but how do we get other people to really kind of pay attention and say, Oh, here's something I've never noticed before. It's a, it's a pretty cool thing. How do we do that?

[00:21:21] What, what do you, what do you think we need to do differently to make, uh, make this more accessible? Uh, well, I can tell you every day at work, I would tell people I play foosball and originally they would laugh at me, but now they actually ask me how I'm doing. Cause I keep telling them it's like, it's like, uh, when you get to the level I'm at, it's like action chess, you know, you have to anticipate and actually have skill to move your pieces. And then when I show that, when I tell them and then show them a few videos and now they're like not laughing. They're actually asking me every time

[00:21:51] I come in. Oh, how are you doing? What's your next tournament? So on and so forth. Okay. So that is at least one way. Let's just tell people your work, you know, but also streaming wise, just getting it out there. Eventually it'll pop up on somebody's feed and they may click on it. That could be another way, you know, there, but it's starting with the youth also. Right. Right. Exactly. What

[00:22:18] Michael is, uh, he's really, um, he's so passionate and he's so, um, um, active, you know, being passionate. That's one thing, but he's acting on his passion, uh, which I got to give him kudos, man. I mean, um, I'm looking forward to talking to Michael in the near future here on an episode of, uh, Foos Talk Live cause he's, he's making it happen. You know, he's doing what needs to be done. Um, and again, if, you know, if you're aware of Foosball Clubs USA, uh, I know during Michael's

[00:22:45] birthday, he kind of did a quick fundraiser to, uh, to get some, some money into the, into the group there. Uh, and yeah, it's, it's, uh, it's like every other nonprofit organization there, they're struggling with, uh, with the finances. And, uh, if you have an inclination, if you love foosball, you know, it's a couple bucks a month or whatever you can do, man. That's, uh, I'm, I'm all for that, uh, when it comes to Foosball Clubs USA. And, uh, we do miss

[00:23:11] John O'Brien. I mean, he was, he was the, he was the father of that whole concept. Um, what, what's the youth scene there in Florida? What, uh, do you have a lot of younger players coming along? Hmm. I don't real young, like maybe mid twenties. Gotcha. I got, I got my, uh, my kids, but you know, I was going to ask if they take an interest though, you, uh, encourage them to, to do

[00:23:35] this. Oh yeah. I've taken my son to a place where they had a table and, uh, challenged some people and we ended up winning. Yeah. They were surprised. Cool. Yeah. I've shown him some, uh, some shots. He does push kicks and pull kicks. Nice. And how old is your son? Eight. About to be nine. So happy early birthday, Jay. There you go. Yeah. Happy birthday. Nice. Um, you know, they, they go, they go, uh, they grow up so quickly, right? Yeah. It's a, that's, that's amazing. But before you

[00:24:05] know it, he's going to be asking for the car keys, dad. Oh gosh. Uh oh. I know. I know. And you have two, two children. Is that correct? Yeah. I have a five-year-old daughter also. Ah, nice. Nice. Uh, perhaps a, a future Sullivan Rue in the, in the, uh, in the house. I guess I don't force them to play. I'd rather them just pick it up and want to play. So they see me do it. Sometimes

[00:24:31] they'll join in, but I don't like force them to make them practice or none of that. Right. Right. Exactly. No, it has to be kind of like something that, that like you get it to get together to play, um, uh, you know, shoots and ladders or something, you know, game boards or board games, I should say. But then, you know, if they're really into like the competition thing, who knows, uh, they might, they might be, uh, the next, uh, Sullivan Rue or, or Sam Dijon or something like that.

[00:24:57] Right. You know, congrats to Sam on that win too. Oh, right. Yeah. Sam, um, just, just a killer, man. I mean, his, um, we, we think about eight, nine year old kids, right? Uh, he was standing on a box not that long ago. It looks so relaxed playing too. Doesn't he? It didn't look like anything bothered him. He just did his thing and won. And, and as a kid, he was pretty emotional. He

[00:25:22] wanted to win so badly, you know, he would, you know, get, get to tears because he was, you know, uh, he wasn't playing as well as he thought he should. And so he put a lot of pressure on himself and, and it's something that now that he's matured and what's he 16 now. So he just got his learner's permit. I feel like I've been watching him forever. Right. Exactly. And,

[00:25:46] uh, his, uh, I think his points is he might be pro master before the end of the year. I'm not sure about that. Let's look at the, the points again. Um, what is, what is pro master level? Do you know what, what, uh, how many points? I think change the points. I don't, I don't know. See, that's the problem. Yeah. I'm not sure what the, uh, the point reset is going to, uh, how that's going to, uh, change things. Yeah. Um, there's a big debate, you know, because a lot of people think

[00:26:13] that the point system doesn't accurately rank people like, like pro master is, uh, it's, uh, it should be more difficult to attain. Um, and there shouldn't be more than let some people are saying, Hey, there shouldn't be more than let's say 10 or 15 pro masters at one time. Maybe some requirements to meet that level. I don't know. Yeah. Winning certain events or. Mm-hmm. Before you become a pro master, you have to win at least, let's say two or three

[00:26:40] open events at a, at a major of some kind, you know, um, which I guess that would make sense. Uh, there is just this, this top of the, of the heap, you know, the Tommy yours and the Tony's and the Ryan's and, uh, those individuals present such a barrier. I mean, who really, when you think about it, uh, could, could even threaten their, their, uh, their domination. Um, and if

[00:27:08] you're a pro master, you should have the ability to do that. You should be able to, to at least go toe to toe with those individuals and not get, get, uh, slaughtered on the table. I just, I don't know, you know, what the solution is when it comes to that. Yeah. I don't know either. Maybe just certain requirements and then makes you a master, like ranking the top 10 and something or top five or whatever. Right.

[00:27:34] Yeah. Reach somebody that to be ranked there. It's, um, there's always this, um, this, this thought that, Hey, you know, things are not perfect when it comes to, uh, you know, the way people are ranked to the point system, but it's more perfect than anything else that's out there right now. Right. So far. So, um, who knows where that could go? Yeah. I mean, I got, I was about to be moved. I got moved up to the amateur level. I haven't

[00:28:02] won a single thing, but then they changed the points on back to rookie again. Oh, no kidding. Okay. Gotcha. Well, it's, it's interesting. Cause I've been to so few tournaments. I mean, I've been to a few ITSF or I'm sorry, uh, IFP events and you know, I'm still there in the beginners category. Cause I've just never, you know, I think the best we did, what was it in a beginner doubles, we got fourth place one year, uh, at the worlds, but you know, that didn't change anything. And, uh, there's another feeling

[00:28:32] like at the very bottom of the heap there, they feel like if you play, uh, one or two, um, IFP events, let's say in a given year, you should no longer be considered a beginner cause you're not, you know? Right. So it should be automatically, uh, you know, bumped up to rookie or whatever, but because of the way the points are, that's just, you know, I'm just kind of hovering there at a beginner and I'm 65 years old. Oh, well.

[00:28:59] Yeah. I don't see myself moved up that, that far anyways. It just gets harder. The older you get. I didn't think that when I was younger, but now that I'm getting there and it's all these kids coming up, they're so much faster. Oh my God. Process things quicker. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, brutal. You look at Jacob Balkos, you know, uh, he is just, he's a phenom and he, he and his dad and his sister, they just, they're just a great foosball family. Um, and it's, uh,

[00:29:28] you know, yeah, you're correct. It's, uh, how, how does somebody even in their thirties and forties match a kid who's 17 or 18 years of age and has all the energy on the planet and, uh, can, can play for an entire weekend and not even be phased by it, you know? I feel like I played them like a year or two ago and expert doubles for third, for third. Okay. And we lost in a, like match ball, no kidding. Him and his dad. Yeah. They're, they're a mean team, man. They are mean team

[00:29:58] together. They communicate so well. Uh, and the really, but yeah, but if you could took them to, to final ball, that's saying something right there, you know, you guys were, yeah, it was probably my fault. I turned it over to him. So, uh, whatever it happens. Yeah, exactly. That's foosball. Of course, it's all about the learning, you know, what, what not to do at times, uh, when it comes to those kind of, those crucial moments when it's, when it could go either way. Um, but that's what we

[00:30:25] love about this game, isn't it? Yeah. So I shouldn't have been up there anyways, but you know, we made it all. No, no, I think you should have, um, because you, you earned it, right? So you, you, uh, got that far in the, in the event. That's, that's fantastic. Um, so when it comes to your, your, your general philosophy and your general, uh, practice routine, you say you get on the table every day? Uh, pretty much. And less days I work, cause then I'm just too tired. Cause

[00:30:54] I, you know, I work 13 hours a day, but only three days a week. So that's the nice part. Okay. So, you know, next time you go out to a Wednesday night DYP, is there something that you take with you that you've tried or that you've practiced? Oh yeah. All the time. That's what I use it for. I don't use it when I use it for practicing what I tried at home against people. Cause I do it at home all day with nobody playing against me. I want to get to play people as I can't do it. Yeah, exactly. Right. No, it's, it's, um, it's funny because, you know, we're all champions at home.

[00:31:25] You know, we complete every day. One defeated at home. Yeah. Well, you better be. Um, unless of course your son is starting to start to come up on you, but, uh, no, it's, uh, that won't that be interesting. Um, but no, it's, uh, I think the thing that people don't realize is if you don't have a table at home and you're not doing this and, and not, you know, really focusing on something different and trying to find new options, uh, it's very difficult to, uh, to get move up in the ranks.

[00:31:55] Very difficult. Yeah. Especially when you can't go to the tournaments, I can only go to a couple of year based off of, you know, work, uh, work and kids and stuff. It's really hard to get off time because unfortunately sick people do not take breaks. So they're always going to be sick anytime of the year. So I'm forced to work holidays, weekends, whatever. When people say, Oh, it's the weekend. I'm like, what does that mean? Right. I used to, I have to work weekends, holidays, man. And, and, uh, you know, the, the hours of course, uh, when it comes to any,

[00:32:24] anybody who works in the medical field, obviously are, are extraordinary. Uh, and again, we, we appreciate your, your, uh, your dedication to that. Um, incidentally, you know, you are considered a registered nurse. Yes, correct. But I also am a nurse practitioner. I just recently got my master's in nursing, got my license for it. So looking for a nurse practitioner job now. Well, there's, um, it seems like, especially, I don't know about, uh, Florida, but upstate New York, we're having

[00:32:51] issues finding, uh, finding enough physicians, enough, enough PAs, uh, that, that, uh, can take on new patients. Yeah. And I'm not sure what that that's all about. Uh, would that be because people are getting out of the, the industry? Uh, I don't know why they would in New York. That's problem. I have no idea. Yeah. I don't know the answer to that. Sure. Sure. No, we're, we're, uh, we're seeing, I know, uh, more recently I was, uh, diagnosed with, uh, cataracts. And,

[00:33:20] uh, so I've got to, got to get that taken care of soon, but, um, to get a pre-op, uh, checkup, I went to my, my old primary and, uh, they said, well, you haven't been here since 2018. So you're not a patient of ours. Like, really? I just don't get sick. Sorry. Oops. Um, so now, you know, I'm going through my, uh, my provider just to, you know, try and find somebody who's too, would accept new, new patients. And it's like impossible. Uh, it happens everywhere though.

[00:33:49] Yeah. We tell people follow up with, follow up with the GI people. And then like, well, I can't get in. They said the new, the next time I get in is like three or four months or all. Like, uh, well, yeah, that's what, that's what, that's the, uh, that, that seems to be the case. So anyway, uh, we're, we're getting off the foosball topic here, but I, again, you know, this is what you do for a living. I think that's a, it's a fascinating thing. ER for the last 11 years. ER, no long time. Most people only last like a year or two.

[00:34:16] Oh, no kidding. They're out. Cause it's so difficult. Yeah. Um, so are you going to be writing the book about your experiences in the ER sometime soon? Uh, uh, in my head, I have things, you know, but you know, I try to, some things you want to forget. Of course. Of course. Yeah. No, it's, it's like, you know, being in wartime, you know, you think about, uh, the kinds of things that, uh, that, well, the human condition and what, what people can do to

[00:34:42] themselves or what, what happens to people in general. Uh, boy, I, well, again, I take my hat off to you, man, for doing that and, uh, for playing foosball and especially for being a Patreon, you know, Patreon of, a foosball radio, man. It's, it's just, it's so cool. Um, Um, no problem. So when it comes to the, the, the tour stops this year, uh, what, where can we expect to see you out? Nationals and Florida state. Nationals and Florida state. Yeah. I got,

[00:35:08] I got time off. I think I do. I at least requested it, but we'll see. Okay. Yeah. National. I mean, I'm going to make nationals, but whether I play in rookie singles or not, depends on whether I get the time off on Thursday. And nationals in, is in New Orleans this year. Yeah. Correct. So it's going to be pretty warm there. I take it. It'd be worse in here. Yeah, I know it's, it's, uh, it sounds exciting. And I think that if I could, I could have that weekend off, I would, uh, I would

[00:35:36] definitely make the effort to be there. It's just, it's just a poor timing for me, but, uh, it's still a possibility for Florida state. Yeah. Hopefully, you know, fingers crossed here, but, uh, right. Time will tell, but then the beach town beat down. I'm going to throw it out there. Oh, you are. Okay. Oh yeah. That's my, that's my event. Yeah. Do the best there. Do you really? Okay. I don't know why. Maybe it's because it's on my birthday weekend, except for this time. Thanks Tommy. Okay.

[00:36:04] The weekend after, but yeah, the, the beat down, I mean, I've, I've seen the, uh, you know, the play by play for that and it's just hilarious. Um, there was, um, I forgotten what it was now. I think it was Tony versus it was doubles, but it was Tony and his dad versus, um, was it Tommy Atkinson and, uh, Blake, I think Blake. Yes. I don't know. And, uh, they started buying timeouts.

[00:36:30] Yeah. And then they would, uh, buy shots and, well, I don't know, but they were buying shots and drinking at the table. There was drink flowing for sure. Um, and it's entertaining. Let me tell you that as it should be, right. Uh, maybe this is the way to get people to watch foosball. I don't know. So, yeah, but it just seems like there's, uh, there's so much more, uh, it's, it's jovial and everybody seems to be getting along and having fun with it, you know? Uh, but, um, yeah, it,

[00:36:58] I guess there's probably not, you're not going to see your, your top game because of the, uh, the other activities that are, that are going on, uh, the drinking, et cetera. And, and, uh, whatever debauchery that takes place. Um, so. I was the original beach town beat down winner. Were you? No kidding. Wow. Won with Tony, but we're not going to talk about that. I, I want it. Oh, you want it. Gotcha. Gotcha. Gotcha. I played with Tony though. So all I do is slide points.

[00:37:27] What's that like? What's it like to play with Tony? I'm curious about that. I've actually played with him multiple times. I just follow his directions. Yeah. Okay. Now he, he clearly, he obviously is going to give you guidance and instruction. Um, does he pull you aside and give you a hard time if you miss a, miss a block or. No. Okay. Nah, he just tells you where to be and just be right here, stay here. And I do. And then just pass it up to him and he shoots and scores and I'll go do slide the point.

[00:37:55] That's there. You go. There you go. Wow. Um, I just recently had the opportunity to, uh, it was just a local smash down, but I got a chance to play with Tommy. You're who's moved to the Albany area and, uh, same idea. You know, I just kind of stood there and pulled the beads across and watch this kid do his thing. Um, I got to play him in singles for the first time at the beat down. It was only five minutes. Oh, beat me in five minutes. Oh, wow. He's fierce, man. I mean,

[00:38:22] you know, you think about those, he's again, he's that upper echelon, uh, style player and man, uh, I just, just to watch him work. Uh, it, it's astounding, you know, um, you know, when he was up against Ryan, uh, in this, uh, in of course the hall of fame classic, I mean, you can see his, his brain is, is working at all times. He's trying to find new ways of, of, uh, getting around right because they know each other's games, but, um, you know, he's, he's there, man. He's knocking at

[00:38:52] the door. I think eventually Tommy, uh, you know, of course, Tony, Tony can't stay at the top forever, but I think Tommy's got a good shot to, to be there because of his, uh, he's, he's younger than everybody else. What is he like? 25. And he's very fast. Yeah. Wow. God, just blinding. And it's, and it's unrelenting, you know, every shot is the same every single time. He's just really relentless. So, uh, I did stuff him one time. So that was my claim to fame. Yeah. I got the point.

[00:39:21] Nice. Nice. So what is it about Florida and foosball players? I mean, it seems to be, that's where, you know, that, and, uh, I guess, Colorado are the two hotbeds when it comes to top pros. What's that, what's that all about? What do you, what do you mean? Well, I'm trying to think, uh, I, I don't have no idea why Florida is so, so many players here.

[00:39:48] You think we'd be outside doing things. Why would we be inside playing foosball? Sure. Well, it does get a little hot out there, you know, especially in the height of the summer, you got to be inside where there, where it's, uh, where it's tolerable. Um, yeah. What was it last year? You got like one or two days, what a hundred degrees or something? Yeah, it was, it was a heat wave, I believe going through, but I was actually in North Carolina at the time. I had to put it on a sweatshirt because it was, it was cold there. No kidding. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. No, it's, uh,

[00:40:14] I don't know what the heat wave was like. I was out of town. Okay. Apparently I heard it was pretty bad. No, it's, uh, I was, I was talking to, uh, Ellen Montrone and Mike Green at the time and they were, they were just like, Oh my God, it's just oppressive. You can't even go to the car for God's sake. Uh, and, uh, you know, if you don't have a remote car starter to get the car going or the air conditioning running, you're going to, you're going to swelter. Just you'll burn your legs or your hands. Yeah. Steering wheel. Oh, hopefully you don't have black leather or you're screwed.

[00:40:41] Yeah, exactly. So, yeah, I mean, uh, but yeah, it just seems like Florida has more of the, the talent, you know, when, especially the, I don't know why. Yeah. Isn't that weird? Um, but you know, enjoy it. Right. Right. It's awesome. There's more down South than up North where I'm at, but yeah, we do have a lot of players here though. So it makes it fun. Right. Absolutely. Well,

[00:41:09] I got to say, Jimmy, I mean, it's, I know it's a, it's a weekend off. You got time to yourself for change and, uh, you know, you'll probably want to do something this weekend and, and, uh, just, I, I do want to, uh, you know, express my extreme gratitude for taking the time out of your, your free time just to, just to chat. Um, looking forward to, to getting a chance to meet you in person, you know, in the same room, maybe at the beach down, uh, the beach town beat down. Gotta go this time. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Love to be there. It's the last week,

[00:41:39] yep. So that's a, that's a good weekend. So yeah, I'm, I'm, uh, I'm going to, I'll look into it. I mean, no, no promises, but I'll look into, to, uh, maybe grabbing some gear and, uh, heading down and having some fun. Right. Cool. Well, Jimmy, it's, it's, uh, it's a pleasure and, and, uh, great to meet you and get a chance to chat with you. And thank you again. Likewise. Oh, well, thanks. And, uh, and, and thanks for being a, uh, a Patreon, uh, supporter of, uh, foosball radio. We're,

[00:42:08] we're, uh, we're keeping the faith here, trying to keep it going, but, uh, thank you for that. Yes, sir. You're welcome. And once again, Jimmy Love is our Patreon profile for foosball radio. Many more of these to come. Your story could be next on a foosball radio, Patreon profile. Thanks again for being a foosball radio, Patreon pillar. This has been a presentation of foosball radio.