Stupid basketball.........

**WV_mom_of2** · 01-15-2010, 07:53 AM

My ds(8th grade) is playing basketball for the school team this year. I never wanted my kids to play sports as it's really crazy here in small town USA as far as sports are concerned. Little League starts them out and the parents get NASTY and fights break out,etc. People who have been friends for years fuss and bicker all season with each other and it's just stupid.

He really wanted to play this year so I let him. What a mess this has been! We have a coach who is very lazy and believes everything can and should be put off until tomorrow. We get no info from him at all and he is very hard to get hold of if you have a question. I never know what time the bus is leaving for a game, if they are stopping to eat somewhere, etc. No way to know or judge what time they might get home. It's very frustrating to say the least. I finally allowed ds to get a Tracfone so he could keep in touch with me during away games.

They have missed alot of games due to the bad weather. The coach told me he would reschedule the games at the end of the season. He'd left a couple of weeks pretty much open to do that. On the original schedule they have one game next week and two the next. Ds comes home from practice Tues. and tells me that they now have FOUR games scheduled a week for the next THREE weeks! Can you imagine??? On school nights!

My dh works 12 hour, rotating shifts. I have a dd who works an after school job. I HAVE to know what is going on and when. I do NOT do last minute crap well. When I pick the boys up from practice Wed. I find the coach in the school office. I tell him I want a copy of the new schedule. He says oh ummm can that wait until tomorrow. I promise I will make all the boys one and get it to them tomorrow. I told him if he was SURE he'd do it, that was fine. That I have to know what's going on because I have another kid to make plans for, etc. He assures me he will do it.

I pick T up after an away game last night at 10:45. He informs me in the truck that they have a game scheduled for TOMORROW! On Saturday! This really sucks because I had plans for tomorrow as I'm sure many other parents do. T says the coach told them about this game in the huddle in the middle of the game! GEEZ!

This is going to cause a HUGE stink here. Little League basketball uses the middle school gym on Saturdays for their games. It's been that way forever. They are on the books. He is bumping their games to reschedule this one and as of last night hadn't even told them about it! Knowing how lazy and do nothing he is, I doubt he tells them at all. All these people are going to show up for the games and find us there playing. And they are NOT going to be happy!! I'm telling you these parents can be UGLY! I'd say there is going to be a huge blowup and it's probably going to be really ugly. Oh, and did we get a schedule???? Yeah right! He FORGOT! I guess I will go up to the school this morning and ask them to make me a copy.

I will gladly give up my Dog the Bounty Hunter marathon to watch my kid sit on the bench for the whole game but they darned well better have me back home to watch my COLTS at 8pm!

**frugalwarrior2** · 01-15-2010, 08:02 AM

When our DS was in hockey that all started. My DH worked constsntly,DD and homework. When the team started to travel I had him quit. We are family and everyone has to work together. Good luck in whatever you decide.

**WV_mom_of2** · 01-15-2010, 08:17 AM

Originally Posted by frugalwarrior2

When our DS was in hockey that all started. My DH worked constsntly,DD and homework. When the team started to travel I had him quit. We are family and everyone has to work together. Good luck in whatever you decide.

I'm not protesting his having away games. That is part of it. You play each team twice, once away and once at home. I just don't go to the away games unless they are very close to home or dh is off to drive us.

My problem is the total lack of respect for parents. They treat us like we have no right to know what is going on with our kids. Just because he's almost 14 doesn't mean I don't need to know where he is and what he is doing. I want to know what time the bus is leaving the school for an away game. I want to know if they are stopping after the game to eat or coming straight home. I also want to know AHEAD OF TIME when they have games. And if I have a question, I want someone available to talk to me. And I think it would be nice to let us know several days ahead of time if you reschedule a game on a Saturday! Many people work all week and do family activities on weekends or do their laundry, grocery shopping,etc. Not to mention all the little league parents and grandparents who will show up to see their kids play/cheer and find us using the gym when they are the ones on the books to play!

**imagine** · 01-15-2010, 08:25 AM

Having a first year sports boy myself all I can say with school sports in sometime you have to go with the flow. Sadly, but true.
With all the bad weather the schedule probably was up in thin air, the coach might not have know until right before either. Hang in there.

I always sent my son with our cell phone and money when on away trips. The coach would have them all call home when they were 20 mins. away from arriving home.

Big big hug.

**ravenmaniac** · 01-15-2010, 08:38 AM

In my school district the Board of Education does the schedule, not the coaches or Athletic Directors. Even the make-up games. We are at the mercy of the BOE because they worry about the high school games first. Sometimes games are last minute. I have never seen a new schedule printed out.

School events trump trump all Parks and Recreation events, no matter what.

I work the clock for our home games so I've come to accept that changes can be made. I totally understand how you feel as a first year parent. No, they don't take anyone's feelings into consideration.

I hope things work out for you. It is very frustrating, I went through this with my daughter for years, she played volleyball.

I will be watching my RAVENS play at 8pm on Saturday. Have fun watching the game. I love football!!!!

**WV_mom_of2** · 01-15-2010, 08:41 AM

Originally Posted by imagine

Having a first year sports boy myself all I can say with school sports in sometime you have to go with the flow. Sadly, but true.
With all the bad weather the schedule probably was up in thin air, the coach might not have know until right before either. Hang in there.

I always sent my son with our cell phone and money when on away trips. The coach would have them all call home when they were 20 mins. away from arriving home.

Big big hug.

Oh I'm sure he knew about this game when I talked to him on Wed. and after explaining that I needed a schedule it would have been nice to have least been told about this game. This guy is a piece of work. He is my dd's boss and he actually told her this summer he hired her to be his brain. He is honestly the laziest man I've ever known. When I volunteered at the school I would take messages for him and when he came in at 1 I would give them to him. Two hours later people would be calling yelling at me for not giving messages and I'd go find him goofing off in the library and ask him to return his messages please. Sometimes he would and sometimes he'd say Oh they can wait. Half the time when I would give them to him he'd just throw them away!

The calling thing works great if you live in an area with good cell service. I don't. I live 10 minutes from the school and depending which direction they are coming into town they sometimes don't get a signal until they are in the middle of town. That doesn't help if I'm 10 minutes away(plus time to get my coat on, get out to the car, etc.) and he needs to be picked up at midnight. If I know what they are doing about eating, etc. I can at least estimate what time they will be back and be there early to get him. Ds has a friend who doesn't have a home phone. They use cell phones that get a signal sometimes and sometimes not. His dad sat at the store here last night for more than hour waiting because he was afraid noone would be able to get through to him and it was FREEZING!!

It's just frustrating because with just a little bit of planning and respect for the parents the coach could make this so much easier on us.

**pop goes the weasel** · 01-15-2010, 02:13 PM

This is just one of the several reasons my sd doesn't do sports.

**mauimagic** · 01-15-2010, 03:55 PM

What an idi**!! Sure there are challenges and problems in schedules, with weather, etc......but his behavior leaves room for no excuses IMHO!! Is he a DOE employee? Put the concerns of the families in writing - then it needs to be/has to be addressed. Why is he the coach? Who else would like the job next year? So sorry for this mess for you.

**Lori63** · 01-16-2010, 06:52 AM

I feel for you. My boys are now 21, 18, and 14, so most of my days of that are over, but especially in high school sports you find out the day before. I work in the school system and have even found out the day of.
We have had a soccer coach who was on his cell phone the whole time, and we've also traveled far to see one of our sons sit the bench.
Chin up! You'll miss it someday (maybe

)

**LynnLC** · 01-16-2010, 09:55 AM

Originally Posted by Lori63

I feel for you. My boys are now 21, 18, and 14, so most of my days of that are over, but especially in high school sports you find out the day before. I work in the school system and have even found out the day of.
We have had a soccer coach who was on his cell phone the whole time, and we've also traveled far to see one of our sons sit the bench.
Chin up! You'll miss it someday (maybe

)

This. My HS DS hockey games are quite often on school nights and practice 3x a week. I just go with the flow.