Liz’s rant: Give me back my Sundays

Liz — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 05:01:10 +0000

Something about having things to do on a Sunday afternoon is inherently irritating as it is.
But having something to do at 2:30 p.m. when expecting to be done by 4 p.m. and not being done until almost 5:30 is just beyond my current tolerance level.
The lead-in hadn’t helped much either. A zillion soccer fields and no place to park had traffic backed up 15 minutes, meaning we were far from being on a roll straight out of the gate. I’m guessing it was the just-named scenario that was at least in part responsible for the initial delay of game.
So my daughter and I sat in the car for 20 minutes as the teams warmed up. Then we headed to the field for game time. But the game didn’t begin.
Thirty minutes later, we hit the official kick-off, and made it through the first quarter without much effort. But as the second quarter began, the skies were growing a little dark and the winds were picking up.
Five to 10 minutes later, the sprinkles turned to massive poke-your-eye-out drops, falling at a rate that left us drenched to the bone in about 60 seconds flat.
The umbrellas weren’t helping, the lightning was streaking through the sky, and a couple dozen U10 soccer players remained on the field, playing, well, soccer. In the rain and lightning.
By the time the game was finally called, it almost seemed a mute point.
The game was not called off, though – they simply called for a 30-minute break, keeping with the soccer association’s rules.
As play resumed, the real mud bath began. I’m left tonight to wonder if his white team shirt and socks will ever be white again. And also left to wonder what I’ve done to deserve such a sloppy afternoon at the soccer complex.
There’s a lot to be said for indoor sports in my opinion. And an equal amount to be said for lazy Sunday afternoons that don’t include sports activities of any kind.
Just me and the couch, sweat pants and a T-shirt.
And Sunday afternoon NFL football.
But that’s very different.
-Liz

Coffee Break with Liz and Kate » soccer

Liz’s rant: Give me back my Sundays