For most of my life, I have been an athlete. I have played volleyball, basketball, soccer, softball, been on the swim team and even dabbled in tennis when I was younger. I loved being competitive! That desire didn't go away as I finished high school as I played soccer for 4 years at Murray State. Like most people in this position, at 22 and injury free, I was not ready to be done "playing sports". What's a girl to do?? Find bar leagues of course! I have been "competing" in bar volleyball and soccer leagues since I graduate in 2006. It has now taken my 5 years to realize that I was an athlete "in my day", not so much anymore. I try but I am clearly not as quick as I once was and let's be honest, there is a bar!
If I could pass one ounce of wisdom on to the youth of America that my dad gave me is that you should NEVER blame anyone else (ie. Refs/officials/umpires) for the outcome of the game. Unless, it is blantanly clear, she traveled, the ball was out or the "that was an inadvertant hand ball but if we were playing volleyball, would have been a sweet kill". Those are some extreme cases where the official clearly misses a call but for the most part, they are not to blame for poor performance.
That being said, I feel like adults are the WORST about yelling at the officials. I can think of multiple occasions in which an adult was screaming/arguing at a ref over a missed call...it is not like we are playing for the golf medal here and while you are yelling about the ball being out, my beer is getting warm, can we please get this show on the road? I find it kind of embarassing when my teammates jump on the refs. Take for example the lovely gentlemen that ref sand volleyball...in all honesty, that is ALL they have going for them right now. They get to sit high up on a wooden bench and run the show. Give them a break, how would you like denim cargo shorts to still be a part of your wardrobe? That in and of itself shows he does not have the best eye. While they frequently do miss calls it really isn't worth arguing over. Let's learn from the mistakes of others...Yadier Molina clearly didn't get anything but a 5 game suspension, a hefty fine I am sure and a load of embarassment for arguing with an umpire. I will leave you with this, if you do decide to compete in recreational sports, always remember, anywhere there is a bar connected to or on the premise, the refs are just trying to get as drunk as you are. They are only human.
Eat, Drink and be Mary
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