Eddie the Pool Shark

This 'ere is my brother Edwin setting up the rack for a game of pool - he's a bit of a hustler when it comes to sinkin' a few holes. He started getting really good when he was about 9 or10, when he was able to play every evening at boarding school. He was also phenomenally good at swinging on the monkey bars in the school playground - even perfecting a method which involved breathing hot air onto his palms so that he didn't get any blisters! Quite incredible.

It'd been a while since we'd played - I remember him beating me when I was about 15 and he was only 11...(I still think of revenge)! We racked up again, and I started well. However, Edwin then started assuredly potting balls like he'd hadn't rested his cue in years. I tried to counter, but alas, my shots hit cushions, my white fell down the pocket, and Eddie the hustler began to dominate.

Soon I was beat, well beat.

There's something humbling about being beaten by a younger brother. The only words I can mutter in compensation are "I taught him well." Unfortunately, these words are not true.

He's just better than me.