Odds and Ends

A few odds and ends, collected here because I'm too lazy to put them in separate posts:

• I have decided that last yesterday I had an experience that only a father could truly appreciate: Sitting in the pouring rain, watching your daughter's winless soccer team losing again by a score of 8-0, and still playing hard and having fun.
  
• Overheard at the other soccer game:
  

  Player from one team, to friend on the other: Are you a left forward or a center forward?
  Friend: I'm the rover.
  First player: What's that?
  Friend: I don't know.

  
  
• The editor of the New York Times Crosswords has rejected my second crossword puzzle, the one that I liked so much. I'm being philosophical about it. (Translation: I'm really disappointed, but trying not to show it.) He was quite polite about it, and his rejection e-mail wasn't a form letter. It specifically talked about my puzzle, and what he saw as the weaknesses. Since he's the long-time editor of the nation's most prestigious crossword puzzle, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt and assume that he knows what he's talking about.
  So, I'm going to try again. He didn't say, "It was a good effort, keep trying," but he didn't say, "It sucked big time, loser," so I'm interpreting that as encouragement. And I'll look to see if there's somewhere else I can send that one. It may not be good enough for the Times, but I still think its publishable.