Ladies Blog, Part 2

And now, brought to you in stunning HD... the dramatic conclusion of The Ladies Blog!!! Wow, that really does make things seems way more exciting than they are. Now I get why they do that for obviously piss poor matchups on Monday Night Football and the like. For those who don't know, by the way, every NFL team is guaranteed at least one nationally televised game, e.g., Monday Night, Sunday Night, Thanksgiving. So those matchups are set in advance. I think it's hilarious when they try and hype up that November game with Kansas City v. Jacksonville or something like that.

In between posts, we got one more response from the ladies. I refuse to recalculate the totals in Part 1, since we all know my math skills at this point, but did want to quote her from Question 1: "I love sports. I like the way the guys look in their uniforms." Awesome. Without further adieu, back to the ladies, who are still unofficially brought to you by Victoria's Secret.

5. Is your significant other a sports fan? How does this affect your relationship, e.g., do you go to sporting events together? If you are not a fan and he is, does his fandom get in the way? Does he make it up to you in some way, e.g., take you places he doesn't like? 6. If you are both sports fans, are you fans of the same team, different teams, or both? How has this affected your relationship, e.g., does he sleep on the couch if he talks too much trash?

Putting these two together. As we established before, the ladies' gentlemen and Fah are all sports fans, so let's move into how this affects them. Best story on this one, by the way... Fah is a die hard N**** D*** fan, and his wife is a die hard Michigan fan. He proposed to her on campus at N**** D***. I wouldn't be surprised at all if she considered saying, "not yet, try again, buddy." Anyways, the answers seem to fall into two categories here. The first is basically those ladies who identify as sports fans and do sports "things" with their guys, e.g., go to games, have Super Bowl parties, etc. As one lady put it, "sports are a big part of who we are individually and as a couple." Another mentioned, "most of our time consists of watching games at a bar or going to games together." Within that, you have the ladies who share teams with their guys and the ladies who don't. Impressively, the ladies don't hold back in terms of talking s**t to their guys (the wife especially). Good for you, ladies.

The second group is those who aren't sports fans, but whose gentlemen are. You might think the ladies in this category get annoyed with their boys about our obsessions; however, the ladies of LB are overwhelmingly supportive of their men, despite their reports that none of the guys in our survey do anything to "make it up" to them. One lady mentioned she knows her man will be angry on Sunday afternoons after the Lions lose, so she just ignores it. Another mentioned she usually just does something else, e.g., random errands, watching TV in the other room, etc. One lady summed it up pretty well here: "I understand that he has attachment and poor sport issues (throwing remotes, punching walls when his team loses)." Now that is love, my friends. Even those who aren't into sports seem to like hanging out, i.e., "I never mind because there is usually good food, cold beer, and other women in the same boat." Awesome.

Again, doesn't it just seem like sports is such a huge part of our culture that people just seem go to with the flow, even if they aren't that into it. It's almost like celebrity gossip for yours truly. I hate it. I mean, HATE it. I really don't see the point in following people's lives just because they are in a movie, TV, or whatever the hell made Paris Hilton and the Kardashians famous (your job is a "socialite?" Really? Where do you submit a resume for that?) But last night, hanging here at my cousin's house in South Florida, his wife, he, and I were talking about random 80s sitcom stars who developed drug habits, and all of us knew quite a bit about it. I can only get so far away without knowing something cause it's always there. I think that's like sports for the ladies. And, I must say, they handle it a hell of a lot better than I handle the celebrity thing.

7. Did you grow up in a family that followed sports? If yes, what was that like?

Short and sweetly, yes, the ladies did. And yes, I think it's because its a huge part of our culture. But I also think its for a lot of the reasons stated in our next question, so let's move on.

8. Did you play sports growing up and/or do you play a sport now? Do you want your kids to play sports, or if your kids are grown, did you put them in sports when they were younger? Why or why not?

No divisions here. The ladies all played some sport when they were growing up, and nearly all played multiple sports. And all of our ladies who had kids said they had them in sports. Even the ladies without kids spoke up and said they planned to put them in sports when they had them. The reasons?

The ladies sighted all of the lessons we learn from sports here, all quotes from emails: teamwork, discipline, working towards goals, community, respecting authority, dedication, learning how to win and lose appropriately, building confidence and character, creating lasting friendship, determination, cooperation, working with others, good exercise, building happy memories...

I mean, what more do you want to teach your kids? Trust? That's built into teamwork and cooperation. Perfect quote from one of the ladies on this, "I think of all the money we spent on hotels, fees, meals, gas, not to mention the time that it took away from the family, just so we could be involved. Hey, I guess we were good kids and it kept us out of trouble. That is probably priceless." Exactly. One more on this topic before I move on, "I think that a lifelong sport is an important example for our children. Whether it is running, cycling, golfing, tennis, etc., it is important to find what our children are passionate about to make sure that it will help maintain a healthy lifestyle." I would add more to this question, but the ladies own this one. Last question, moderator?

9. Please share any other thoughts or comments on sports in general, or that you feel are important about this topic.

Any good gentleman knows that you gotta give the ladies a forum to speak their minds, and it was well worth it. Many of them individually brought up a great thought about sports (a possible future post, I might add), that I want to share. However, before we get to the serious, I have to share this random comment from a different question that fits here:

"Side note: Is it wrong that I have a small crush on Tim Tebow?! I hope the Browns draft him so he can be in Cleveland (where this lady lives). Of course we have Brady Quinn (the Browns hadn't traded him yet), who is almost just as awesome. I actually ran into Brady Quinn at the grocery store about four months back. It was awkward. 'Uh....hi, Brady Quinn. Can you sign my baby?' That's not what I said...but I was at a loss for words." Fabulous, my friend, fabulous. For the record, there is a definite list of athletes I would ask to sign my baby. Steve Yzerman is #1. I think Ryan Howard is near the top of the wife's list. She would definitely have him sign her pregnant belly right now.

Anyways, the more serious thought many of the ladies shared pretty much goes like this: "in a time it's not easy to meet people, sports brings us together and provides a good venue. It brings communities together." How many of you have slapped hands or hugged a total stranger after a big win for your team? I see a lot of hands out there, mine included. You go to a game, you are instantly temporary friends with everyone near your seat. And in a time where our culture loves to get into an "you vs. me" instead of "we" mentality, sports is a well deserved and much needed break from that. Props to the ladies for pointing this out and reminding us that, whether it be sports or life, we're all in this together, and like sports, it's a really damn fun ride.

Many thanks to the ladies who humored this little project. It was enlightening and fun to read. You clearly put thought into your answers, and I appreciate your time. Many of you stated you hoped this helped the blog, which I think it did. Comments here on the blog, other comments and suggestions to my email. And, as one of the ladies answered to that final question, "I am all shared out."