For the new visitors who don’t know me, I have an insane habit of raising my hand to volunteer to help out my son’s sports teams/leagues even though I happen to already have a full time job and run a house with 2 cats & 2 sons all by myself.
My hand seems to go up without checking in with my brain when people ask “Can anyone help out with….?”
THIS though – this has to be the last year, right? Senior in high school – final football season and all that. I knew when I volunteered to be a co-parent liaison that it would take up most all of my spare time.
And now the season is over, and there is just the year end dinner to coordinate. That did fall most heavily on me since the lead liaison had to travel for work this week. Fine – I knew what it entailed, and I was absolutely OK to juggle it all. I have spent quite a bit of time even at work exchanging emails with people and trying to get RSVP’s to the dinner and collect payments. 17 has been a huge help in collecting money from other players each day at school. We called him the Swedish Mafia Collection Agency 🙂 At this point all of the families know that I backup the other liaison when she is out of town, and I’ve done that 4-5 times now since June.
And yet….
This morning, I receive an email from someone asking me if a) I was already planning on getting the other liaison a gift and arranging with the coach for her to be recognized and then b) if not, could I please send out a message to the other families (minus the main liaison of course) asking for $10 to be handed in on the night of the dinner and then c) could I go out and buy a gift card or a nice card with the (anticipated) money collected?
(blink)
(blink)
Um, yes, I know this sounds petty and small, but…WHAT ABOUT ME?!!!
Did you not notice that I have been the one bombarding your inbox with updates on the dinner? Did you never pay attention to the other weeks when I was the one emailing team updates and asking for game day volunteers and soliciting donations for the team? Do you not remember that I have been listed as co-liaison all freaking year in every email sent out??!!
How about the other 55 families? None of you can lift a finger to figure out how to thank BOTH of us on your own?!!
Steam….out…my…EARS.
But…I took a deep breath, then politely replied that No, I had not had a chance to think of that, and yes, that is a great idea, but hey – since I’ve been covering for her all week could you PLEASE PLEASE handle the task of thanking her? I’ve still got to send in a final head count to the hotel with payment for the event after contacting the last 4 families who have been AWOL. Then I have to secure a place for Monday night for the senior moms to build shadow boxes for their players, then I have to finish gluing back on the missing letters on jerseys, then I have to log all the checks I’ve collected, then I have to pick up spirit wear from another mom to put together gift baskets for team support staff and coaches gifts, then I have to buy a fancy gold pen to write in the name of the next recipient of the Spirit Award bull horn that’s been in my house all year (gotta admit I’m gonna miss that thing!), then I have to take my player to buy a button down shirt and tie for the event….so NO, I cannot take on even ONE MORE task even one as important as thanking our liaison. Who DOES deserve all our thanks because after just this one week in her shoes (forget the other times I filled in), I am in AWE of her skills!!
PHEW!
OTOH, I have absolutely perfected my begging/pleading/cajoling/harassing skills via email, text and phone this week. Got *every* damn family to at least reply about attendance, secured payment from all but three families as of tonight but with arrangements made to get those tomorrow AND I got us a house for the Monday night gathering. SCORE!
Moving on….here’s a photo I had to take tonight of the teen for his official rugby ID:
Tomorrow I get to watch his first match. At the edge of Ocean Beach. In the cold. And wind. And rain. Yippee…new sport?!!
NO – I wont be volunteering for anything more than helping to setup the field before home games!!
It’s quite the thankless job…good thing I do it for the boys, not the parents.
Trees & Flowers & Birds! 
>My hand seems to go up without checking in with my brain when people ask “Can anyone help out with….?”
I laughed unreasonably hard at this. And then thought, “Yep. That’s Christina.”
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