Blame it on the heat

So June is basically just pure softball in our house, except for a few hours spread out here and there for work and sleeping. I added it up the other weekend and with two kids at one weekend tournament, three games per child per day, with on average 75 minutes per game puts me at around 15 hours of sitting and watching ballgames in two days. And let me point out that, that’s not 15 hours of sitting in an air-conditioned, peaceful environment. Quite the opposite! That’s sitting in approximately 100-degree weather with the sun beating down on me, sometimes with a breeze but hardly ever a clean one. Wind at the softball fields likes to coat your exterior with lovely field dirt. AND you get to eat some of it when it sticks to your teeth or blends in with your gum! Crunchy!

Along with the heat, comes the smell. Softball tournaments bring out quite the crowds and when you get the blend of concession stand food and hundreds of sweaty individuals, it can be a bit ripe. Not that I smell like roses myself, but I know you know what I mean. At least when you’re in a gym with air conditioning watching a basketball or volleyball tournament, you’re free from the odors that the heat can create. A lot different at softball tournaments, needless to say.

Anyway, if I didn’t love watching my kids, I wouldn’t be there, melting and taking a dirt bath, so please let me point that out right off the bat. I’m just saying that after several hours of sweating and stinking in the humid summer heat, while replacing good nutrition with thousands of salty, sunflower seeds, my patience is hard to keep at bay. In the morning and even early afternoon, I’m all about positivity and encouragement and having fun! But gosh darn, by 4 pm, with my clothes all gross and glued to my skin, and my back and neck hurt from sitting in the bleachers ALL day long, I can’t help it if I become a bit irritated.

So as hard as I try to remain calm and cool and collected, by late afternoon, on game 5 in the blistering sun, I’m liable to let a sarcastic, half rude side of me sneak out. Those close calls from the umpires in the morning, I can brush right off, but by late afternoon, I want to yell out from the bleachers and ask them which kid from the opposing team is their granddaughter, cause it sure looks like they’re playing favorites! And the mom from the other team that has parked her softball entourage right smack beside home plate and keeps screaming mean things to our catcher or pitcher, makes me giggle in the morning at how ridiculous she acts. But, by cracky, by early evening, I am glaring her down and have plans to find her in the parking lot after the game and ask her what redneck rock she crawled out from under.

Ya see, I’m just not myself after hours and hours of sitting in the heat. And it doesn’t matter if we’re winning or losing, things just get real annoying by the end of the day. So I guess if you see me smiling and friendly in the morning but yelling and being snotty by the end of the day, cut me some slack cause I’m blaming it on the heat!