Gimp- Mark Zupanhttp://www.gosportslife.com/gimp-mark-zupan/en-US2008-11-22T18:23:53ZSquarespace Site Server v5.0.0 (http://www.squarespace.com/)When People Read This Bookhttp://www.gosportslife.com/gimp-mark-zupan/2007/12/20/when-people-read-this-book.htmlAndy Kaasa2007-12-20T02:55:20ZDetermination Adversity Trauma Character RewardingMy hope is that when people read this book, they will be reminded that you can stage a comeback even when you think you've lost everything. After my accident, I thought my life was over. I was wrong. It was just beginning. We will all face hardship, pain, difficulty, and death at some point in our short stay on this planet- every single one of us. While tragedy can be a cruel teacher, it can also lead you to understand a truth and beauty that is much greater than yourself, as long as you refuse to quit. Even when you're feeling weak, alone, outmanned, our outgunned, as long as you are breathing, then you are still in the game. Because if a gimp like me can keep playing after everything I've been through, than anyone can.

Pgs 269-270

]]>You Have To Be Responsible For Yourselfhttp://www.gosportslife.com/gimp-mark-zupan/2007/12/20/you-have-to-be-responsible-for-yourself.htmlAndy Kaasa2007-12-20T02:52:15ZAdversity Character AlcoholAlcohol is just an inanimate object. It's not good or evil. Sometimes drinking can be fun and social and crazy, but here's the catch: You have to be responsible for yourself, because every moment in life is an active one. It doesn't matter if you're angry, upset, lonely, overworked, overwhelmed, or addicted. You still have free will, and you never know how the actions of this minute will impact the next minute, the next day, and maybe even the rest of your life.

Pg 250

]]>As Soon As You Stop Pushing Forward You Stop Livinghttp://www.gosportslife.com/gimp-mark-zupan/2007/12/20/as-soon-as-you-stop-pushing-forward-you-stop-living.htmlAndy Kaasa2007-12-20T02:50:28ZDetermination Adversity Character RewardingI had learned over the years that as soon as you stop pushing forward in life, as soon as you become complacent and fearful of new experiences, you stop living.

Pg 240

]]>Sportsmanshiphttp://www.gosportslife.com/gimp-mark-zupan/2007/12/20/sportsmanship.htmlAndy Kaasa2007-12-20T02:37:20ZSportI admired the sportsmanship of the rugby players. I also admired how hard they hit each other. After every game, no matter how acrimonious the play, the competing teams would go out to a pub and raise a glass together and sing some rugby songs.

Pg 201

]]>Recognizing What Victory Looks Likehttp://www.gosportslife.com/gimp-mark-zupan/2007/12/20/recognizing-what-victory-looks-like.htmlAndy Kaasa2007-12-20T02:30:56ZDetermination Adversity Sport Character RewardingRather than fighting an impossible battle, one that was beyond my ability to win, I chose instead to focus on the life that was within my grasp, and that life happened to be in a chair. You can say that I was surrendering to my injury, but I choose to look at it another way. I was surrendering to my desire to live a happy, fulfilling life. I found I could now align my expectations with my abilities. Instead of concentrating on what I couldn't do, I tried to focus on how far I had come. When I had first arrived in the hospital, I was almost fully paralyzed. Two years later, I could bench two hundred pounds. I could walk close to three-quarters of a mile with my crutches. I had skydived. I had crowd surfed. I had realized that most roadblocks existed only in my mind. But my physical limitations were different. They were real. By accepting them, I wasn't admitting defeat. In fact, I was doing the exact opposite. I was realizing I had done everything in my power to overcome them. And if I related all this back to my old ideas of winning and losing, I guess I was declaring myself a winner once and for all. It had just taken me some time to recognize what victory was going to look like for me.

Pgs 199-200

]]>Wishing You Could Change The Past Does No Goodhttp://www.gosportslife.com/gimp-mark-zupan/2007/12/20/wishing-you-could-change-the-past-does-no-good.htmlAndy Kaasa2007-12-20T02:27:21ZCharacter Regrets"I wish I could have come here for rehab," I said to Marcia. "This place is great."

"Don't say that," she said. "Wishing you could change the past doesn't do you any good."

Pg 193

]]>Mike Utleyhttp://www.gosportslife.com/gimp-mark-zupan/2007/12/20/mike-utley.htmlAndy Kaasa2007-12-20T02:17:00ZDetermination Adversity CharacterMike Utley, the Detroit Lions offensive lineman who had broken his neck in a routine play against the Rams. When they carried him off the field, Utley gave a defiant thumbs-up to the crowd. I liked his style. The article was about Utley coping with his life in a chair. There was a story about him dropping a two-pound bag of M&M's. The pieces of candy spilled and scattered across his kitchen floor. It would have been an inconvenience to most able-bodied folks, but to a quad, it became a test of patience and will. He could have waited and let a nurse clean it up for him, but the article said Utley had too much pride for that. He climbed out of his chair and dragged his body across the floor for three hours, picking up every single tiny round piece of chocolate by himself. I related to him and to his unyielding ambitions to live life on his own terms. Utley's injury was incomplete like mine. He said that his goal in life was to walk off the field where he was injured. I respected his blind determination.

Pgs 170-171

]]>Indifferencehttp://www.gosportslife.com/gimp-mark-zupan/2007/12/20/indifference.htmlAndy Kaasa2007-12-20T02:09:51ZAdversityI will light a match this morning, so I won't be alone
Watch as she lies silent, for soon light will be gone
I will stand with my arms outstretched, pretend I'm free to roam
I will make my way through one more day in hell
How much difference will it make?

-Peal Jam

Pg 169

]]>Wearing A Brave Face All The Time Is Exhaustinghttp://www.gosportslife.com/gimp-mark-zupan/2007/12/20/wearing-a-brave-face-all-the-time-is-exhausting.htmlAndy Kaasa2007-12-20T02:01:29ZAdversity TraumaDuring these moments of solitude, I would indulge in a little self-pity, something I would never do in front of my family. I wouldn't cry, but I would allow myself to feel scared and alone instead of trying to repress all my emotions.

Wearing a brave face all the time and telling people I was fine when it was obvious that I wasn't exhausted me, but I didn't know what else to do. I didn't want to be a burden to my family. I had no emotional outlet for my sorrow. I felt trapped by I it. I wasn't capable of expressing my fears and anger because I couldn't see how talking about them would help. Words wouldn't change anything. I would tell myself to man up and quit being a crybaby. Rub some dirt on it and get back in the game. I had gotten myself into this situation. I had to figure out how to live with it. No one else could do it for me. I would do it one step at a time. Hen I would tell my parents about my plans to walk within a year, they would encourage me, but I knew they had their doubts. So did I. But we kept these secrets to ourselves.

Pg 155

]]>My Condolences For Your Shitty LIfehttp://www.gosportslife.com/gimp-mark-zupan/2007/12/20/my-condolences-for-your-shitty-life.htmlAndy Kaasa2007-12-20T01:56:54ZAdversity CharacterI missed my brother too. But I noticed that he was looking at me differently now, staring at my hunched shoulders, my contorted hand, my emaciated figure. It was like he was assessing my weaknesses. He had this patronizing expression on his face that I was seeing more and more these days. People were constantly giving me this thin, forced smile while nodding their heads slightly as if to say, "My condolences for your shitty life."

I new people were going to feel sorry for me. There was nothing I could do about it. But there was no way I was going to let my little brother pity me. Not in this lifetime.

Pg 152

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