A Week Between Sporting Events

.... and the fans are growing restless.

I find NFL Insider a ridiculous program to be viewing in May, yet there was my husband, fanatic fan that he is, gleaning smidgens of information about a sport which will not be contested for two more months.  No one is interested in Tom Brady or Adrian Petersen or Johnny Manziel, though one is appealing and one is tweeting and one is just appalling.

Their turn will come.  It's not here yet.

There was a women's friendly soccer game between Korea and the USofA; I tried, but couldn't get interested.  TBG was happy to return to the talking heads on ESPN, who were dissecting the reasons that Americans don't seem to love LeBron James any more.  TBG was part of the conversation; my native Clevelandian was hollering at the commentators with as much energy and enthusiasm and intellectual rigor as the panelists themselves.

And, why not?  He's followed The King since high school, hurt with the rest of his hometown when he was deserted for Miami and a championship ring, thrilled when he returned, crossing his fingers as the Cavaliers prepare to meet Steph Curry and the newbies-to-the-championship-arena Golden State Warriors on Thursday.

But, first, we have to get there.

And that is why my house was filled with women's college softball this weekend.  At the top of their game, in the sunshine in Oklahoma City, teams of long haired women faced off against one another as their families cheered them on from the sidelines.  Sneer if you will, those of you who fail to see the beauty in the game.  The Bride pitched in high school and college and coached teams in Illinois and Kansas and Alabama; it was fun to imagine her on the field, vying for a national championship.

The players all had long hair, french braided or cornrowed or clasped in rubber bands at random lengths along their backs.  Most of them wore makeup, none of which smeared.  Some wore bracelets, woven threads or colorful rubber.  There were top of the last inning three run hits, bad calls by the umpires, wild pitches which batters stood still to take in the helmet, and some very fine bunting.

I can't remember the last time we watched a baseball game at any level; this weekend it was all I saw for three days.  This is really a sports drought.

We watched the Stanley Cup Regional games, cheering the Rangers and the Blackhawks and marveling at the quickness of both the players and the announcers.  Knowing nothing about the game at all did not stop us from judging the action, the refereeing, the coaching decisions.  We are passionate fans, even in our ignorance.

And now, it is Monday afternoon.  The Women's College World Series starts in a few hours.  Other than that, there is nothing until Thursday night, when the basketball resumes.

I hope he makes it til then.