do non softball people think you are crazy?

[jofus]

I used to play golf at least once a week from April to November or so....I played 9 holes total last year and 18 holes the year before that.

I used to trout fish quite often in the spring....I haven't had my fly rod out in 3 years. I did finally get smart last year and save money by not even buying my license.

Hopefully there will be time for that stuff down the road...but, with a 2 year old daughter (that my 13 year old had a glove on this weekend trying to teach her to catch with it), it's probably gonna be a long road

[sftballjnkie]

My Dad tells me constantly that I am crazy and that we are too "serious" about our daughter's softball. She's 10 and stands in the garage with her glove at 5:00 sharp waiting for me to get home from work so she can go out and pitch. I don't "make" her play, she BEGS to play.
What alot of people don't understand is that my 10 yr old knows more about compromise, integrity, hard work, dedication, committment and teamwork than most 25-30 year olds today. She knows that success is not handed to her on a platter, she actualy has to earn it. I juggle my schedule and have actually changed carreers to allow me to committ my time to my children instead of my children being second fiddle. They will be phenominal adults some day with an understanding of what it takes in life to succeed. All that because I get up at o-dark-thirty on a Saturday morning, drive 1 1/2 hours to watch my kid play a game she LOVES and do it all again the next day.
Put me in a looney bin.... I'm proud to be NUTS!!!!!!!

[WhatDoIKnow]

You ever talk to friends or other family members about softball? When I tell people we get to the park at 7 or 8AM and may not leave till 11PM or later, they think we are nutz. I told my mom we left at 11:30 last night and got home around 1AM, she questioned me.

Then when I tell people about practice, pitching/hitting lessons, rec games, they are convinced we (me and my wife) are crazy

Do you get the same response? I dont deal with too many people outside of softball but when I do, thats the typical response.

Is this a trick question; I just don't understand? Softball people think I'm crazy!!!!!

[busymom]

My husband and I have two kids. Son sixteen #2 on varsity golf team in HS golfs mon-thurs. Races his Stockcar every other weekend. DD 14U plays on a TB team 1hr away with her mid week and weekend practices, friendlies, and all the hotel stays for tournaments. People ask us what we do for "us"??? We just say "watch our kids do what they love to do!!!" Are we CRAZY?? YOU BET!!! Would not have it any other way. Money and Time well spent. How many 16 and 14 yo kids do you know that love to spend time with thier parents. And on the far fetched weekends we don't have anything (maybe two a year) they want to know what WE are going to do together! Can't beat that!!!

[DonnieS]

>> I juggle my schedule and have actually changed <<

One wednesday, a group I was working with called and asked if I could teleconference on a Thursday night on a project. I said 'yes providing my kid's relay doesnt make the finals. Her other events are earlier in the day'. They said 'Ok - whatever, we are going to get the group together.' I get to the meet on the thursday afternoon - my dd is jumping up and down - I watch her win her individuals and then her relay runs - they not only qualify, they are close to a record. I call the group, told them, she made it to the finals, move the meeting to later, or in the morning. They acted horrified - I said 'Whoa, this is my kid and they may set a new district record (they didnt) - our project is not a cure to AIDS, its a financial program - we can do this later or tomorrow.' I heard later that they said I had a problem with priorities - I replied, 'well, I guess I have to live with that.' My kid will remember that I was there - and I took the pictures of her group winning that event - I saw her group on that pedastal receiving the gold - I cant tell you for the life of me what the hell the meeting was about - we had it the next day.

[dittoz]

It's funny how with so many things, if you're not "into it", you just don't understand "it".

As a young 'un, I had very little athletic support from my parents. They never went to play ball with me in the park or the backyard, rarely ever had them show up at a practice - even when I was about 10. Games were a sometimes-event for them, but only because they felt obligatd I suspect. For them, it was all about academics - no need to play sports... your brother is the athlete - not you. You should be an "A" student and quit wasting time on sports - you're too little - not good enough - (fill in whatever here) - I'd probably make a good episode on the Dr. Phil show !

Fast forward to today and now I'm in my 17th year of coaching and we're taking our daughter all over the state to TB games and have been doing so since the fall of her second year of 10's. My son plays baseball in HS and I follow him whenever I can. People think I'm one of those "helicopter parents" that hover, but honestly, I'm content to sit back and watch them practice, play, whatever. Can even do it from afar - I just like watching them. And what do MY parents say today? They're forever asking if my daughter wouldn't rather do something else - that she really just can't enjoy it that much. They think we're wasting our time and money chasing all over the west the way we do. She's an "A" student and she is very athletic - so I think they're pretty conflicted on how to react. Athletes just couldn't possibly also be "A" students... right???

Our friends all understand - after all... the only friends we have left are in softball and baseball !

[watcher]

Let me think further on this subject........... OK a little story & you make the call, I was out of state on a job-site and a few of the guys wanted to know what "we" were going to do (fri night) I grabbed the local sports section & asked a local. How far is Tyler from here, How far is Nac from here, How far is....... OK you get the jest of it, We ended up in a lil town just east of Tyler Texas watching a HS playoff game, Both my DD's were in CIF's in California & I needed a fix.

[mayhemdad]

Nitro I live in Russaiville and my DD is playing 12U for the Indiana Mayhem which is just starting this year. The guy who started it has a 18U team that used to be called Chaos and they play out of the Westfield area at Roundtripper.Ya this indoor stuff is driving me crazy DD has a scrimmage this Saturday and I am chompin at the bit to get it goin.

[Lunatic Fringe]

You should try living with my husband, he never threw a ball in his life.

Tuscon, I would question why you married him.

Anyway,

We had a daughter who swam. They are the crazy ones, not the softball/baseball types. She swam in heats 1,3,119,137,138 & 142. Staying at those meets was like getting you teeth filed. It was the happiest day of my life when she quit to join cheerleading. Cheerleading will grind your brain, but its over in an hour.

[DonnieS]

>> Staying at those meets was like getting you teeth filed. It was the happiest day of my life when she quit to join cheerleading. Cheerleading will grind your brain, but its over in an hour. <<

Now I know how you got your handle, been there and done that with both swimming (3 kids for 10 years) and cheerleading for 2 years for one kid. She loved the cheerleading - she thought the girls were a pain.