It’s 58 degrees in here. I haven’t said anything. Coach Dietrich would be proud.
Here’s something these modern athletes don’t understand: athletes don’t complain. You adapt. You overcome. You wear a pullover at your desk and you type through it. Furthermore, when the thermostat in the Newswax headquarters main office is set to what I can only assume is “meat locker,” you handle it silently. Like a professional. Like someone who earned All-Conference Honorable Mention in 2006.
Am I cold? Irrelevant. The only relevant question is: am I working?
Athletes Don’t Complain—We Adjust
When I tore my ACL in college, I didn’t complain. I rehabbed. Additionally, when coach told us to run suicides in August heat, we didn’t complain. We hydrated—well, when he said we could—and we pushed through. Therefore, when my office—formerly a storage space, technically, but it’s still an office—dropped below 60 degrees last Tuesday, I simply put on a second polo shirt and kept working.
The insurance agency that shares our suite controls the thermostat. Consequently, they keep it cold because apparently insurance adjusters prefer arctic conditions. I could complain to them. Moreover, I could ask for accommodation. But as I wrote about athletes needing grit over hydration, the answer to discomfort is never complaining. The answer is character.
What Happens When You Don’t Complain
My fingers were so cold yesterday I mistyped “quarterback” as “quarertkback” seventeen times. Did I mention it to anyone? No. Did I email facilities? We don’t have facilities. Did I bring a space heater from home that I’m technically not supposed to plug in? That’s between me and the outlet.
The point is this: every moment of discomfort is training. Consequently, I’m more disciplined now than I was when I played. Which is saying something, because I was extremely disciplined when I played. All-Conference Honorable Mention, remember. Additionally, that doesn’t happen without mental toughness.
The Lesson For Today’s Athletes
These guys today sit out games for “load management.” Meanwhile, I’m sitting in a converted closet at 56 degrees writing about why they’re soft. Therefore, I am practicing what I preach. I’m not asking for sympathy. Furthermore, I’m not asking for a warmer office. I’m asking for nothing, because athletes don’t complain.
Besides, I brought gloves. The fingerless kind, so I can still type. They were marketed as “gaming gloves” but they work for journalism too. Coach Dietrich would probably make fun of them, but Coach Dietrich never had to meet a deadline in a room that smells faintly of Pine-Sol and regret.
I’m not complaining. I’m just describing. There’s a difference. A cold, cold difference.
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