Sports

Published on by Grace

I don’t follow sports – anymore. I did at one time, from toddler to middle age. After I moved out of NYC I stopped following sports because I had no one to share them with. My husband was never much of a sports fan despite coaching his son’s basketball team and playing volleyball and the occasional inter-agency softball game.

Four years ago, when my husband fractured his left hip and was confined to his recliner, he started watching sports, most often with the sound off. When asked which teams were playing he’d say “I don’t know”. He was just watching to have something to distract him.

Football was the first sport he became a watcher of, then basketball for a while but his interest tapered off and he took up with soccer. He became a devoted soccer fan. Hockey never really engaged him despite his family being rabid Bruins fans (ask me about my wedding reception.)

Since fracturing his right hip several weeks ago he finds himself growing fond of golf. Golf! (Funny golf story – years ago, after my father died, I would visit my mother every Sunday like a dutiful daughter. She was always watching golf. When I asked her why, she said “I like to watch them wiggle their asses”.)

The other day my husband was watching basketball. I asked him why and he said “There’s no golf on”. He’s not a huge basketball fan. The thing is, it IS baseball season, the one sport that simply doesn’t interest him. So – no hockey, no baseball, limited basketball watching.

One would think that now that I have someone who is interested – somewhat – in sports I would start watching again, but no. I’ve been away from it for so long I have no idea who is who or which teams are doing what. The local teams here hold no interest simply because they are the local teams and I have no emotional attachment to this part of the world even tho I have chosen to live here.

Ah, but I was once a rabid sports fan – the New York Giants (football), Yankees, Rangers, Knicks and the Boston Celtics. The Jets never interested me and back in the 80’s I went to more Mets games than anyone should have – my company had field box seats, I lived near Shea Stadium, and no one ever wanted the tickets.

I was one of those people who gets really into it, really excited, really loud and enthusiastic. I yell, scream, holler and even cry. You don’t want to be next to me when something exciting happens – you WILL be black and blue.

Some sports watching memories that are forever embedded in my brain: 1980 Winter Olympics – Miracle on Ice. I was watching it alone and hoo-boy when the US beat Russia I stomped, yelled, screamed and cried. What a great game. What a great win.

Or that move that Earl “The Pearl” Monroe made. Wilt Chamberlain jumped to tap the ball into the net and Earl scooted between his legs, came up in front of Wilt, stole the ball and into the net. OMG – You had to see it. I laughed and laughed. It was great. You have to know that Earl Monroe was 6’3″ and Wilt Chamberlain was 7’1″.

I crowed in delight every time L.T. Taylor sacked the quarterback. It was his thing. I especially liked when that snotty little John Elway got sacked – never liked him. I had a huge crush on Dave DeBusschere, and stopped watching the Rangers when they traded Eddie Giacomin. It was all very personal.

Horse racing – while I deplore the sport and how the horses are treated – it is a thing of beauty to watch a horse move. I’ve been a fan since I was a little kid and we would sneak into Belmont Race Track. I love the ponies! You want to see someone almost have a heart attack? Be with me when I’m watching a horse race.

There was a famous horse race – a mare and a stallion – head to to head. The mare was the most magnificent creature you have ever seen – she was so far in front it was not even a competition and then the unthinkable happened – her front leg snapped, she went down. Out came the trainers, the vets, then a makeshift tent was placed over her and they euthanized right on the track. Oh my word how I cried. (Just writing that I got a little emotional. It was more than a horse race it was a battle of the sexes. It was political.)

I could go on and on but I’ll leave you with this bit of sports info – I was the only girl in the neighborhood who collected baseball cards.

12 thoughts on “Sports”

  1. I was born and raised in New Jersey so I grew up a Yankee fan. My father’s office had box seats and we used them whenever he wasn’t schmoozing clients. I wept when they tore down the old stadium. So much history… lost. And for what? More skyboxes for millionaires. 😠
    Fast forward a few decades and now I’m a die hard Red Sox fan. Living in Maine, it’s required.
    😉

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I guess I was a Yankee fan when I was a little kid, had no choice really. I remember vaguely reading that they tore down the old stadium, my father would have been furious since he grew up in the shadow of the ‘old’ stadium and worked for the Ruppert Knickerbocker company , but I don’t really care. Baseball was never one of my prime favorite sports once I got older. It is boring as hell. Love that George Carlin routine about baseball versus football. A girl friend and I went to all those Mets games, she was a fanatic baseball fan and could recite the damn rule book. But you know they were fourth row field box right at first base and we could admire the players asses. I guess admiring men’s asses runs in the family.

      Liked by 1 person

  2. Do you still have said collection? I have mine though my kids have no interest and I never even watched baseball. I’ve always been a collector of things though so it seemed a natural fit.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. No, I lost interest in baseball when I got to my mid-teens. Besides I was also over that horrid bubble gum that came with the cards. I was serious about it for a while…did some serious trading and dupes were used for “flipping” cards” – there were variations of the game but it usually kinda trashed the card so you only played with dupes if you were smart. I probably gave the cards to my brother or even threw them away. Don’t remember…

      Like

    1. When something catches my fancy I can get VERY enthusiastic LOL (I liked this too, so much so, that I went back and edited it, don’t know if I really made it any better but I’m happier – there were too many “errors” to suit me. I don’t spend a lot of time on this stuff because I don’t have blocks of time – 1/2 hour here. 1/2 hour there. And I’m brain dead tired.)

      Like

  4. I’ve never been into sports much. I tried to watch football with Wade but just couldn’t get interested. The ex used to watch golf and fishing shows all the time. I could never understand how anyone could watch either one. Those are both quite possibly the most boring things on the face of the earth to watch.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Fishing? There actually is a fishing channel, pretty much like watching paint dry or grass grow. Can’t imagine watching fishing LOL

      Like

  5. I enjoyed reading this and learning about your sports fan days! I remembr LT and I, too, can’t stand John Elway! We lived in Colorado when he was quarterback and people there thought he walked on water. Best game we ever saw in person was at Mile High Stadium on Oct 17, 1994 when Joe Montana led the Chiefs in a late game comeback against the Donkeys! Of course the games at Arrowhead were amazing too but beating John Elway at his home stadium was the icing on the cake! We used to go to Royals stadium a lot when Geoge Brett, Willie Wilson, and that era was playing. After moving to Colorado we’d go see the Rockies play and also the Avalanche hockey team when both those teams came to Colorado. I don’t like watching hockey on TV but in person the atmosphere is electric!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Who are the donkeys? I never paid attention to other teams than my own except for the Celtics…Loved the Celtics. Nobody liked Elway…

      Like

Comments are closed.