Sports

I'm a sports chick. I've followed sports since I was a young child - starting with my beloved Yankees. I remember going to Yankee Stadium as a child with my father, grandfather, and brother - and one specific memory sticks out: Bat Day. I was probably 7 or 8 years old, and the bat I happened to get a Bucky Dent bat. (Sorry Mark - I have to say his name.) I remember walking to our seats and a girl who was probably in her early 20's asking me if I wanted to trade and my dad not letting me. Of course, years later, the bat is long gone - I only wish I would have realized at the time just how special that was.

I also played sports - yes, really. Those of you who know me now probably have a hard time picturing it. I played basketball and softball with the Emerson Boys/Girls club when I was in elementary school. I was never a star athlete, but I learned a lot about sports during those few years. Mostly because of those experiences, I can call a strike or balk before the umpire, or an illegal pic, double dribble or travel before the ref does (often surprising my friends!).

I love watching sports on TV and really love going to the games. My top three sports are baseball, basketball and football. I appreciate most of the other sports (although I can't seem to embrace boxing) and I am so happy not being a sports "widow" having to seek an alternate activity for the hours that a baseball or football game is on. I don't know all the player stats, the exact pitching rotation or batting lineup of my Yankees, or all the teams in the NFL playoffs this year, which I used to when I had the time to play fantasy football. But I enjoy it all the same.

Sports is entertainment - and I'm a big fan. Whether at home or in person, I will cheer for a great basket or awesome touchdown. I can appreciate an amazing sack or a seemingly impossible touchdown catch. I will (in fact, I did!) tweet about a bad call by the ref or the nearly-blind umpires in the ALCS and World Series games. I wear my Yankee hat and t-shirts with pride (and also to mess with my Red-Sox fan husband!); and we will order the MLB extra innings package to watch our teams every summer. And I will enjoy every minute of it.

In the US (and some other countries) some athletes are paid almost as much as movie stars; and are as famous as Brangelina too. My next blog will be about those professional athletes who lose focus and take their eyes off the prize. Think Gilbert Arenas, Michael Vick, and Ray Lewis. Stay tuned...