Okay, let’s talk about this Brooks Kieschnick thing I went through. It wasn’t exactly about playing baseball, you know, but more about an idea he represented, at least to me.
Getting the Idea
So, I was kinda stuck, feeling like I had to pick one thing to focus on. Work stuff, hobbies, whatever. Then I remembered reading about Brooks Kieschnick. This guy was doing double duty in the majors – pitching and hitting. Not just messing around, but actually doing both. That got me thinking. Why do we always feel pushed to specialize like crazy?
My Little Experiment
I decided to try my own version, less impressive obviously. I’d been wanting to get better at writing code for a personal project, but I also really wanted to learn how to properly smoke brisket. Totally different worlds, right?
First steps were messy:
- Bought a cheap smoker online. Seemed easy enough.
- Dug out some old programming books I never finished.
- Tried to make a schedule. Like, coding Tuesday/Thursday, smoking on Saturday.
The Actual Process – What a Joke
Man, it fell apart fast. The coding part needed quiet focus, deep thinking. Debugging took hours I didn’t plan for. Then the brisket… that thing needed constant attention. Temperature checks, adding wood chips, the whole deal. It wasn’t just a Saturday thing; it was an all Saturday thing.
I’d be trying to understand some weird coding error, and then suddenly remember I hadn’t checked the smoker temp in an hour. Burnt brisket smells terrible, by the way. Then, when I was deep into smoker mode, covered in grease, I’d get a coding idea but couldn’t just run to the computer.
What it really felt like:
- Doing two things poorly instead of one thing okay.
- Feeling constantly behind on both fronts.
- Realizing my schedule was pure fantasy.
It really made me appreciate what guys like Kieschnick pulled off. Okay, hitting a fastball is probably harder than not burning meat, but still. The mental switching, the different physical demands (even if mine were just sitting vs. standing near smoke), it’s tough.
Wrapping It Up (Kind Of)
So, what happened? Well, the coding is still happening, slowly. The smoker? It’s sitting on the patio, looking kind of sad. I realized I just didn’t have the bandwidth, or maybe the talent, to juggle both seriously right now. Maybe Kieschnick was just built different. Or maybe the pro sports world gives you structure I just couldn’t create for myself between coding and cooking.
It wasn’t a total failure, though. Learned I really dislike burnt brisket. And I guess I learned something about focus. Maybe specializing isn’t so bad after all, even if the idea of being a two-way threat sounds cool. For now, I’m mostly just a one-way guy.
