How’s this for irony: less than a week after I start a blog named Rain Delay Theatre, I have to sit through an hour-long rain delay in Momence for a regional softball game. So that was fun.
On the plus side, the rain delay allowed me to see one of the area’s best softball players rake Diamond Dry in her Sunday’s best. Good times.
Let me explain, the Daily Journal sports department Wednesday had its scholar-athlete banquet, which is a fairly formal event, although my boss Tim, the banquet’s emcee, does a good job of keeping things loose. Emily Jo Johnston, one of the best softball players in the area for the past three years, represented Momence. She went to check out the game without changing clothes first. Upon seeing the dire state of the field, decided she wasn’t above getting dirty in her formal outfit and went out to offer a helping hand. Thattagirl. Even better, her mom found me after the game and told me I was Emily’s favorite Journal sports guy. See? She is a smart girl; she ain’t a scholar athlete for nothin’, I tell ya.
The good news about the Cubs is that, for only like the second time in the month of May, they went a whole day without losing. Granted, they didn’t play, but baby steps, my friend. Baby steps. And Angel Pagan is due back any day now. So that’s exciting.
I just saw in the USA Today that the Beecher softball team is ranked No. 16 in the nation. Kudos to them, although I’m skeptical that 15 teams are better. I may pen a letter to Gov. Blaggy recommending that Beecher be named softball capital of Illinois. I don’t see how he’d be against it. I’m telling you, if Hayhust is coaching the jr. high and H.S. teams there in 10 years, I’m moving up there so he can coach my girls. Maybe I should do it now while it will only cost me one kidney and one lung. In nine years, Beecher’s population will be about 20,000 and a 1,500-sq. foot house will, by my estimation, cost $3 mil. Good times.
I just realized my girls are only 10 years away from junior high. Actually, Kenzie’s only nine years from sixth grade, when she’ll be eligible for jr. high softball. That makes me want to chew glass.
Can you feel old at 25? I do.
~Rob Laird
Hello and welcome to the first installment of Rain Delay Theatre.
The title of this blog is basically a nod to those boring shows that television stations broadcast during rain delays. Cubs and Sox fans who watch games on WGN associate re-runs of The Cosby Show and Fresh Prince of Bel-Air with such delays.
I assure that I will do my best to make this blog more entertaining than Carlton Banks’ dance, though the Carlton Dance was pretty freaking sweet.
People often ask what it’s like to be a high school sports reporter; this blog will hopefully give people a good idea.
In it, I’ll give my musings on some of the things that happen behind the scenes, the interesting people that one meets at a job like this and various other aspects of this business.
If I meet a crazy, dilusional mom trying to lobby for a feature story on her 12-year-old who races go-karts, I’ll probably write about in this blog.
If I run into someone who tells me a touching story reminiscing about an old high school team he played on, I’ll share it here.
If a certain softball team makes another run at a state championship (ahem, Beecher), I’ll chronicle the journey in this blog.
When the Bears come to town, if I’m at Denny’s and Ricky Manning Jr. makes fun of me for being a nerd (if you know anything about Ricky Manning, you know how possible this is), I’ll tell you all about it in this blog.
I’ll also give ramblings about the Cubs, Sox and Bears (and who knows maybe even the Bulls). I’ll try to avoid talking about the Cubs in the near future, because anything I write right now would be expletive-laced and I want to keep this blog kid-friendly.
Feel free to write in with questions about anything sports-related or even non-sports related and I’ll answer them in the blog.
Thanks and check back often for updates!
Rob
