Hockey?

HEY! I can not believe that the USA vs Canada hockey game was not on prime time Hi-Def television. What were they thinking? Hockey has been around for a long time and it still has not won the respect of all sports junkies. How can hockey get more notoriety? It's simple, find a minority that's better than any hockey player that has ever lived. It worked for golf. More than likely that will never happen because hockey will never be popular in urban areas. Ice rinks are expensive and hard to maintain. It's much easier to play pickup basketball, baseball, football, soccer, and softball because all that's needed is space. I like hockey because they fight and draw blood. Arrrrrg!

DA BEARS!

Can someone please tell me what is up with my Chicago Bears? They fire everyone with potential and keep the HickDeads. This upcoming season better be thrilling or else I am going to walk to Halas Hall and tear it down with my bare hands. Yea...........I'm ticked off. Love, Tracy

DO NOT FORCE THEM

Lately, I've been blogging so much about children and how to carefully handle their pre-amateur sports activities. I apologize for boring you if indeed I have, but there is a reason for the madness. Sports and activities can shape a child for the rest of their lives. It can help our children grow into teachers, doctors, lawyers, general contractors, project managers, forklift drivers, dispatchers, state employees, human resource generalists, small business owners and landscapers instead of drug addicts, drug dealers, gang bangers, pedophiles, murderers, robbers, selfish co-workers, bad neighbors, and Ponzi scheme organizers. Let's show them the importance of discipline and teamwork so that they have a better chance at a successful life. By not getting children involved in activities at an early age we force them into uncertainty. Get them active and please do not force them.

Don't interfere

Parents, if you have a kid playing some kind of organized sport or activity you have to let the coach or instructor do their jobs. Not all coaches and instructors are great at what they do and we should all understand this. If you do your homework and investigate the program you will have more that enough information about the program to know if you are comfortable with it's instructors. If you don't feel that they are good enough to teach your child then do not enroll. If you are comfortable in their coaching ability and knowledge of the activity then by all means sign them up and let the coach coach.

TEIMWORK?

There are new words and definitions added to Websters dictionary on a yearly basis. I really hope that TEIMWORK isn't one of those newly added words. In my last blog I wrote about sportsmanship and teamwork. They both go hand and hand and should be taught correctly and taken very seriously at an early age. I played high school basketball and one of my teammates had a selfish me me me me me, ok enough about me let's talk about YOU, what do YOU think of me?, attitude. One day, during a scrimmage game, the coach put him on a team and secretly told the other four guys to lay down when he got the ball. It was great to see him get smoked trying to do it all by himself. We all learned a valuable lesson that day. There is no I in team.

SPORTSMANSHIP

Team sports is the most affective way to teach children the importance of teamwork, sharing, and a little thing we call sportsmanship. It becomes disturbing when parents encourage their child to be selfish. I was taught at a very young age that winning isn't everything. I believe that winning is better than losing, so I teach my children to give it all you got and if they don't win at least they know that they tried their best. If they have a teammate that caused the team to lose because of selfish acts it makes losing a whole lot worse. There is a kid on my son's soccer team that has big talent. His father and brothers verbally abuses him if he misses a goal or passes the ball to an open teammate. He's being taught how to be a loser at a very early age. This kid will not line up and shake hands after the game if he doesn't score enough goals. Dude, pass the ball, shake hands and have fun.