No poker content, just family stuff

I had one of the more enjoyable weekends I’ve had in a long, long time. Very full and very fulfilling. For those of you with kids, you’ll know what I mean. For those of you who are about to have kids, you’ll soon learn.

On Friday, wifey and I were dreading the crowded weekend with baseball, softball, hair appointments, professional lacrosse tickets, sleepovers, and whatnot. Last night, we were relaxing comfortably, secure with the knowledge that the weekend was accomplished with minimal difficulty and optimal enjoyment.

Friday afternoon, we got word that my daughter’s Saturday softball game was cancelled due to wet field conditions. One problem solved, especially considering that it would’ve necessitated us splitting up the kids since my son’s game was scheduled for 10am and my daughter’s was at 1130am in different cities. We still weren’t sure about my son’s game because it was being played in another city, and their parks and rec department didn’t check the fields until Saturday morning. So I’m up at 730am on Saturday checking the website for Danville’s Little League and, lo and behold, the game is ON!

It’s been frustrating this year because of the incessant rain. We’d already had postponed two games, and everyone was itching to get on the field. Some quick background: my son is playing Junior 80’s this year, a transitional league for 13-14 year olds between the claustrophobic fields of Little League (60-ft basepaths) and the spacious grounds of a full-size adult field (90-ft basepaths).

Minor issue, my son is only 12 and is the youngest kid in the league. Because of a rule change regarding birthdays, he could’ve stayed back in Majors for his third season, but he insisted on moving up. He tried out for the 13-year old Gold team, but was rebuffed, partly due to cronyism, partly due to a miserable tryout. The coach of the Gold team is pretty much a loudmouthed lout who knows little about baseball and he filled the team with players that he had coached in the past, most of whom had worse years than Trevor last year. My wife and I weren’t entirely dismayed because the Gold team plays twice as many games and travels up to 100 miles for road games.

Some of the parents on the team even lobbied to have Trevor included, but I honestly didn’t even want him on that team. Part of me wanted him to stay in Majors and totally freakin’ dominate the league, but he insisted that Junior 80’s was where he wanted to play. It turns out that the boy was right; this league is more fun for him while still being challenging. He’s batting leadoff and starting at 2B or SS, depending on who’s pitching. His team is an interesting mix of other 7th graders and a few high school freshmen, some of whom top six feet.

As leadoff hitter, Trevor went 2-2 with a walk, an RBI, three steals, and two runs scored as his team won 13-7. He was positively glowing after the game, excited by his debut with older, bigger kids. I could literally see his confidence grow as the game progressed. It was one of those times that makes parenting worth the arguments and aggravations and busy weekends.

We went to Chili’s for lunch, and aside from Trevor dumping an entire mug of Sprite, we had a great time recapping the game. One of the coaches from the other team saw us and congratulated Trevor on a good game, heightening his glow. We hustled home to shower and clean up so we could go to our haircut appointment. We’ve had a regular hair stylist for 17 years now and she’s a dear friend (so cut the crap about being Metro). Plus, she’s very attractive and it’s always nice to have your hair washed by a pretty woman.

Trevor and I split off to go to see the San Jose Stealth professional lacrosse team. We’ve had season tickets for all three years of the team’s existence and we always have a good time watching the Stealth play. It’s like watching slower hockey, but allowing the players to slash with impunity. This game went to overtime after they blew a big lead, but they won on a sudden-death goal, capping what Trevor called his “best day ever”. Wifey was lounging on the couch when we got home around 10pm (Brianne was spending the night at a friend’s house), and after sending the boy to bed, we watched a DVD curled up together. A very, very good day.

Yesterday? Hell, we just relaxed. Played a little poker (broke even). Cleaned up the house a bit. Played some video games. Watched the Harry Potter DVD. Played some basketball together at our new hoop. A nice way to unwind after a fun, but hectic Saturday.