Game on

Yay.  Hockey season has begun again (does it ever really end?).  In my household that means a more than occasional argument over what to watch on TV.  Last year we even subscribed to "Leafs TV" so my husband could catch up on missed games later (as well as games he may have missed in the 60s and 70s - don't ask me why anyone would want to watch a 40 year old sports event).  Yet I still seemed to have to battle for control of the evening TV choice.  I'm not really used to having to battle my husband for control of anything.

I will occasionally swallow my estrogen and sit and watch a game - I'm not completely incapable of compromise after all.  And although I don't admit it easily, it is a little fun cheering for the home team.  When they're winning that is.

But I will never be able to understand the importance society places on professional sports.  In fact, the more I think about it the more disgusted I get.  I get athleticism, healthy competition, sport.  But the money.  So much money.  I'll save you the rant - suffice it to say I don't agree with it.

What's different about this hockey season is that I'm decidedly outnumbered now, 2 to 1. 

And it's not just about control of the TV.  As my husband fantasizes about the star athlete and hockey player my son will become one day, I cringe at the fact that I'm destined to become a hockey mom. 

Don't misunderstand me; I do like the idea of the camaraderie of team sports, as well as the confidence, fitness, and responsibility that they can instill.  But I also have memories of my own humiliating and confidence-smushing experiences with competitive sports (an athlete I am NOT - I fit in much better as a band geek).  Plus, I've seen the news about crazed hockey parents that put such tremendous pressure on their kids that it stops being fun for everybody.  I don't really want my son in that atmosphere.

But what am I going to say to the little guy - "Sorry honey, you can't play hockey because mommy thinks that the NHL is a waste of money and Billy's father is a raving competitive lunatic."?  Not likely.  Besides, as I told my husband the other day, who's to say our son will even want to play hockey when the time comes?  Maybe he'll be more interested in figure skating.  I wouldn't be disappointed.