For the Love of the Game

Have you heard? The Cubs are playing in the World Series! No one is quite sure who they are playing because the country appears to be having a love affair with "Flying the W" while shouting, "Go Cubs Go!" Okay, I'm stretching this a little bit because really, everyone knows that Rick Vaughn is only one win away from glory. It's playoffs season and while I spent a lot of hours wishing, hoping, and praying for my team to pull through and win, things didn't exactly pan out for my Lovable Losers. Sigh, another season, a fresh start- 31 years as a Dodgers fans teaches you the meaning of patience.

At any rate, I love this time of year because a season full of hard work is finally culminating in the ultimate victory. And as I've sat watching game after game of October ball, I found myself trying to explain to Hot Stuff that baseball isn't just a game. Because to those of us who bleed blue (or whatever your team is), it's so much more than that. It's all your hopes on a line that your dad will finally get his championship, that a city will swell with pride, and that for the first time in your adult life you will be victorious! Okay, so maybe I'm being just a smidge dramatic. But it is that drama that makes baseball the best. You haven't seen crazy and dramatic until you've met someone who's drunk the baseball Kool-Aid.

Example 1:  When we were kids, the Dodgers won, and dad took us to get ice cream. When we lost, dad said he was taking us to get ice cream but took a half hour detour as he was lost in thoughts. It's these childhood experiences that teach you not to always think with your stomach.

An ice cream starved girl with her 1988 Championship tee.

Example 2:  We are ridiculously superstitious. Most recently, we were playing well right after I had finished combing my hair. I proceeded to hold on to my hair brush for the rest of the game because I was convinced that changing any of my behavior would somehow influence the outcome of the game. I've changed shirts, not washed shirts, sat in identical positions for hours, refused to send texts, you name it, I've tried it. Because as far as the fates are concerned, there is no messing around.

Rolling on the field for good luck because, why not?

*Also one of my favorite pictures of my mom :) 

Example 3: We take rivalries and competition to a whole different level. Let's just say that people have threatened to not show up to the family Christmas dinner due to a loss against a rival team. And I won't even begin to tell you how many Cubs fans I've unfollowed on Facebook due to their incessant whining...kidding! Whether it's someone glaring at your hat on the subway or me shouting, "Go Dodgers!" to you from across the gym (true story), team pride is the badge we wear with honor.

Boo Giants aka "The Midgies"

Example 4: Baseball fans are purists. We like to actually sit and watch the game, and we never leave early. We get angry when you buy shirts with our team's name on it because you're nothing more than a bandwagon-er.  We take trolling comments on social media to heart and we only support other teams when we're cheering for someone else to lose.

My sister: Not on a bandwagon. Baby, she was born this way.

Example 5: Losing hurts. It hurts badly. And sometimes it even makes you cry. So when your team has just gotten killed by the Cubs, it really means something to have your Cubs-loving colleague bring you a latte to soften the blow.

A show of sportsmanship before the Playoffs began.

So despite all this craziness and drama, what is it about baseball that is so important to me? Well, I like to think of baseball like the glue that bonds my family together. It has always been something we do together, and in the case of my dad, virtually the only thing he ever talks about. There's just nothing better than going to your first game of the season in the spring, stuffing your face on Dollar Dog Night, and singing "Take me Out to the Ballgame" like you're Harry Caray. In many ways, to me (like Benny "The Jet" Rodriguez), baseball is life. So will the Cubbies win it all? Only the goat will tell. Play ball!

The Pursuit of Perfection

The fall is absolutely flying by! Maybe it's the days starting to get shorter, but whatever it was, I've spent a lot of time feeling like I'm doing sprints on a hamster wheel. And when I start feeling like this, I wonder why we are always pushing ourselves to do it all, and have it all, in hopes that we might someday capture this notion of a perfect life. Whether we know it or not, pursuing perfection is something we all seem to do. You know, the goals that we all have- a good job, a happy marriage,  a healthy lifestyle, a plentiful savings account, and on and on. I want life to be good, no, better than good. I want life to be perfect. Or do I?

Let's start with the basics- a good job. It's where we spend most of our time so we should probably feel pretty happy there right? Well, I'm a few months in to my new job, and so far, so good. In fact, when one of my friend's was asking me how things were going, he laughed and said, "Wow, that's the first time I've heard you say positive things about your job since we've been friends!" Yikes! Well, I guess the change was a long time coming. Yet I still catch myself wondering, is this what I'm supposed to be doing? Do I have a better work-life balance? Do I have a supervisor who sees my potential and encourages my growth? Am I getting paid what I'm worth? Is my work effecting others in a positive way? Because if I don't have definitive answers to these questions, I manage to talk myself into searching for yet another new job. This makes me tired.

Okay, what about your health? Well, thanks to a pedometer challenge at work, I've become quite obsessed with how many steps I get in a day. I love how this has made me much more aware of the time I spend being active. It has also made me aware that I need more comfortable work shoes. At any rate, monitoring steps is good, but what experts also tell you to monitor is your blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar levels, heart rate, water intake, calorie intake, stress levels, and sleep cycles. That's a lot. That also explains why so many people have a Fitbit. It seems like a healthy lifestyle should be easy to maintain, yet there is constantly something that makes you fall off the horse...like french fries. And cupcakes. Why must these taste so good? And why must the couch be so comfortable? Ugh. This makes me feel defeated.

If you still don't think there's enough out there to perfect, let's add in some relationships. You've got to have your family time, your husband time, your girl time, your time with other couples, your time with his friends, your time with your friends, and then with whatever there is left, you get time for yourself. And don't forget that everyone else is also doing this at the same time and only by some miracle beyond time and space, the stars align and you actually get together for an evening. And when this happens, it's so much fun! You laugh, you tell stories, you get the scoop on each other's dirt, and you remember why you are so grateful to have these amazing people in your life. It makes me wish that it could happen more often, which in turn, makes me a little bit sad.

Tired, defeated and sad...sounds a little less than perfect, right? But while I have these less than stellar feelings, I just have to remind myself that it's all about a change in perspective. So, going back to my original statement, should we all be searching for that perfect life? I think maybe not, because quite frankly, I'm not sure it exists. I'd rather be fabulous and happy, ready for the hanging curve that I can hit out of the park, than constantly searching for the best and feeling defeated when I miss. My wisdom says take a walk, ask for the raise, hug your husband, always eat the cupcake, and you'll be just fine.