I Came in Like a Bowling Bowl

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger on Twitter
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By know you've probably seen NBA legend Shaq tumble and fall on the set of TNT.  The world is laughing and creating memes of the now famous incident.  It's reminding me of a similar situation I experienced nearly 25 years ago. Luckily (or maybe not) there were no smart phones or cameras around to capture the incident.  So no memes at my expense.

Picture it, a fresh (pimple) faced 18 year old, uncomfortable in his own skin but trying to make a good impression on a girl he was crushing on.  Okay, I'll stop the third person talk... Anyway I was  a senior in high school and a part of the Key Club.  The service group was celebrating the upcoming end of the school year at the local bowling alley, White Oak Lanes.  

The girl in question, will remain nameless, had a boyfriend. That didn't matter to me as I'd hoped my sweet bowling skills and witty sense of humor would be enough to woo her.  It was the tenth and final frame, and I approached the lane.  I eyed the arrows on the floor in front of me and pins at the end of the lane.  Then with all my might I prepared to send that 12 pounds of polyurethane screaming down the lane.

Not the incident in question
I don't know who that is 

But I stepped over the foul line.  I heard that annoying buzz and then my foot hit the waxy floor on the other side.  That action caused my other foot to follow.  I then went awkwardly into the air with the ball still in my hand.  At some point, it slipped away and my body came crashing down with a THUD.  I laughed for a split second before I panicked, wondering what had happened to the ball.  My fear went away when I heard it land in the gutter not far from my head. It then slowly rolled away.

Several people came to see if I was alright and as I laid there. I couldn't help but laugh out loud.  Tears streamed down my cheeks I was laughing so hard. Then I bellowed "I'm soooooooo embarrassed."  That gave everyone else approval to laugh, the girl included.  Luckily I only bruised my ego, but I didn't let that derail the good time.  But that was my last bowling excursion with that group.