Sarah's blog

Serena Williams Sets Earning Record

2009-11-16T15:42:50-06:00

This weekend 20 year old golfer, Michelle Wie won her first championship. This is pretty exciting, especially since she has been playing in LPGA events since she was 12, but we aren't going to talk much about that this week because something much more glamorous happened in women's sports this weekend. Serena Williams set the record for earning the most prize money in a single season in the WTA. EVER.

In 2009 Serena Williams made $6,545,586.

Six and a half million dollars, AND CHANGE. Not too shabby.

Williams broke the record previously held by Justine Heinen. In 2007 Heinen earned $5,429,586. That isn't chump change either but Serena beat the record by over a million dollars.

Will that be how people remember Serena in 2009? Probably not. I'm guessing that they will remember her eruption during the U.S. open semi-finals.

Sadly, that will most likely be how most people remember the entire WTA season but it isn't the only cool thing that happened in women's tennis this year. Diana from Women Who Serve created an entire Top 10 list dedicated to interesting events in the WTA this year. Her number one is about Serena in an event that I haven't even mentioned yet.

1. 2009 Wimbledon semifinals--Williams def. Dementieva, 6-7, 7-5, 8-6
"Instant classic" doesn't begin to describe the 2-hour-and-49-minute extravaganza that was the Serena Williams-Elena Dementieva Wimbledon semifinal. The longest women's semifinal in Wimbledon history, this match had just about everything--brilliant shot-making, big serving, constant changes of momentum, significant netcord points, and some tense challenges. There was a hardly a moment that didn't provide precision, artistry, excitement--or all three. Each woman elevated her game to such an extent that almost every groundstroke or volley seemed more important than the last. Williams would go on to defeat her sister, the defending champion, and win the tournament.

Clearly Serena Williams has had quite the eventful year, but no matter how you look at it she goes into 2010 as a much more affluent lady. So now Serena Williams is a designer, an actress, a model, a spokesperson, and pretty much a lock for the tennis hall of fame. Serena is an icon and now she can add top single-season prize winner to her resume.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad, Draft Day Suit and MamaPop.

Are Mean Soccer Girls Unacceptable or are We All Just Overreacting?

2009-11-09T14:33:11-06:00

As soon as I saw the Elizabeth Lambert video I knew that I would be writing about her this week. Elizabeth is the "mean girl" soccer player that was suspended for rough play this week. She is the girl who was caught on video punching another player in the back and pulling hair.

If you watch this video it looks terrible.

A lot of people were shocked and offended when they saw this clip.

But this video looks different to me.

I am not saying that this excuses her behavior. I do not think that anyone (perhaps anyone outside of WWE wresting anyway) should be pulling other people to the ground using their hair.

What I am saying is that while Elizabeth Lambert certainly overreacted and was clearly unsportmanlike, her competitors were elbowing her too. Why isn't anyone upset about that?

And have none of us ever watched a soccer game before?

Soccer can be a tough game and it appears that’s especially true in the Mountain West Conference. Footage of the conference semifinal game in Provo, Utah – where BYU beat New Mexico 1-0 – has been making the rounds and not for any of the right reasons.
Why is it that the only time women’s sports make the nightly news is when the players cross the line? Last summer, an on-court brawl between the Detroit Shock and the Los Angeles Sparks was front page news. Now, game footage of the BYU – New Mexico match is being rerun on ESPN and major network news shows.
The two teams in question combined for what would seem like a stunning 25 fouls, however according to The Sporting Blog, that’s actually not a huge number:
"In the three games of last year’s Women’s Final Four, there were 23, 24, and 33 fouls. The shocker is that only one yellow card came out in this game, which seems wildly out of proportion to the amount of brutality in the above video."
- Jane, Pretty Tough

See? I don't want you to think that I approve of Lambert's actions, but soccer is a violent sport. It is like the only things anyone knows about women's soccer is Brandi Chastain in a sports bra and this Elizabeth Lambert debacle.

It is a fantastic image, but did anyone actually watch the game? Would anyone be freaking out if this was a men's soccer game? I doubt it.

As usual, Laurie White says it best:

...I think a lot of times more force than necessary is used on athletic fields, but I’ve never been out there so I don’t know what it’s like. I do know that winning is a huge expectation in high stakes games and pressure drives people to crazy behavior. I’m not sure that’s always a good idea. And whereas I do believe strongly in accountability I think it’s sad that of all the things a highly competitive, talented female athlete can be known for in her collegiate career, it boils down to headlines with words like “dirty” and “violent,” and stupid, videotaped, aggressive behavior. I’m sure she can do way better. Let’s hope she does from now on, no matter who’s watching.
- Draft Day Suit

Elizabeth Lambert has been indefinitely suspended from The University of New Mexico's athletics department and she has issued an apology.

I still think the issue is that the violence was done by a woman. This type of brutality is not at all uncommon in men's soccer.

Soccer Hooligans are famous for rioting. I guess Americans just aren't used to seeing this kind of thing from the ladies in their colleges. I think Elizabeth Lambert deserved to be suspended. I think she acted inappropriately, but I also think the outrage is coming from people who don't watch soccer.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad and MamaPop.

The Yankees Win The World Series... Again

2009-11-05T11:57:02-06:00

The New York Yankees have won their 27th World Series.

Try to process that for a minute. 27 championship wins. That is insane. That is more than any other team in Major League Baseball. These wins date back to 1923, but that doesn't make it any less impressive.

My favorite baseball team has never won a World Series. Ever.

So congratulations to the New York Yankees, again. If they were a player I would be encouraging them to retire. I can't help but be reminded of the Crash Davis quote from Bull Durham about strike outs.

Relax, all right? Don't try to strike everybody out. Strikeouts are boring! Besides that, they're fascist. Throw some ground balls - it's more democratic.

Sometimes that is how I feel about sports dynasties. I can't be the only one that thinks that it is boring when the same team wins over and over. The Yankees have made six appearances in the World Series since 1998. They have won four of those.

I was watching SportsCenter and ESPN took a reader poll that revealed that in the United States only three states loved the Yankees while 47 states hated them.

Before you yell at me I totally understand that internet polls are fairly unreliable. It could have been 12 guys voting 700 times each, but still, nobody likes the guy that wins every single time.

Unless it is Tiger Woods.

I admit it. I rooted for Philadelphia. I'm not especially proud of this, but I wasn't rooting for them because I am a Phillies fan. I felt like I was rooting against the school bully. So did Maureen.

Monday night, I was delighted to see the Philadelphia Phillies dig in, man up, and win a do or die game in the World Series. They may, of course, have merely staved off what seems inevitable: a Yankees win.
A Yankees win.
Blecchhh.
...the last time I rooted for the Yankees to win was in 2001, when they were America's Team and should, by rights and corny story-telling, have won it all.
That was then and this is now, so it's boo, hiss, Yankees, buying their way to contention and beyond with a checkbook as big as the Empire State Building.

It feels like that, doesn't it? Of course that is completely legal in Major League Baseball. You want to know how much they spent this year? I'll give you the top 10.

1. New York Yankees $201,449,289

2. New York Mets $135,773,988

3. Chicago Cubs

$135,050,000
4. Boston Red Sox $122,696,000
5. Detroit Tigers $115,085,145
6. Los Angeles Angels $113,709,000
7. Philadelphia Phillies $113,004,048
8. Houston Astros $102,996,415
9. Los Angeles Dodgers $100,458,101
10. Seattle Mariners $98,904,167

Hey look at that! The top 4 teams were all in the spent over $100,000,000 on payroll.

I really should have worked harder during tee ball.

Don't get me wrong. Some people were thrilled that New York won.

Rebecca was beside herself. So was Gina.

And Lisa is just excited about the ticker tape parade.

Then there are those of us who are just feeling melancholy because last night was the last baseball game of the season.

On that note I would like to congratulate the New York Yankees and all of their fans. For the rest of us there is always next year.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad, Draft Day Suit and MamaPop.

Nancy Lieberman Challenges Barack Obama to a Basketball Game

2009-11-02T14:49:40-06:00

Lately there has been a lot of talk about the White House being a big old boys club. Sure, we know that about half of the Obama staff is made up of women so why all the fuss? Oddly, a lot of it has to do with sports.

Well, we know that back in March, President Obama filled out his men's bracket for the NCAA Tournament and he didn't get involved in the Women's Tournament. Okay, that is vaguely inequitable but until this year I had never filled out a women's bracket either. They were too hard to find. Let's not forget that President Obama played 23 rounds of golf before including a female in his foursome.

Here is the new problem:

This time he is getting grief for an all-male congressional basketball game. I heard about this but didn't pay much attention to it. The man already disappointed me with the bracket thing and the talking out of two sides of his mouth as he extolled the presence of female athletes on ESPN. So am I surprised that the game was all guys? Nope. 'Cause I am pretty sure that there were not that many women jumping to get into that game. Even if they are basketball players, it's pretty much a no-win situation for them. What if they are better than all the other congresspeople? What if they are worse? What if they tear an ACL during the game?

- After Atalanta

Uh oh. That isn't good. An all-male congressional basketball game? That sounds terrible.

President Obama says that this is silly. The guest list was reviewed and approved by males and females alike on his staff. So everything is okay?

I'm not so sure, but Lauren Taylor doesn't think that the problem lies with the President.

I have a difficult time believing that any female White House staffer who showed up dressed to play ball would be turned away by the President. He’s a husband who continues to date, adore, and showcase his ‘buff’ wife and a father to two burgeoning female athletes. Oh, and by the way, he just won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in bridging divided groups. There is simply no reason to suspect he’s being prohibitive when it comes to women in any kind sports – informal or otherwise.

So if we don’t get to blame the President for the lack of women in b-ball, who can we blame? Hate to say it ladies, but it’s no one but ourselves. As long as we women wait for a special invitation, we’ll be missing the action. If the reality is that deals and decisions get made out there, then we better start working on our finger rolls and jump shots.

Interesting... Lauren has a really good point. But what women is going to do it? Who is going to be the one to jump up and say "put me in coach".

I'll tell you who. Nancy Lieberman.

Ms. Lieberman has challenged Barack Obama to a pick up game. I have sung the praises of Nancy Lieberman in the past and here I go again. Listen to what she wrote on More.com:

That’s right. Today I am declaring myself eligible for the presidential pickup games. Please allow me to present my credentials. I am no stranger to being on court with the boys. In high school and college, I played pickup with guys at Harlem’s Rucker courts and also played in summer leagues with NBA stars from the L.A. Lakers and the Utah Jazz (and I’m still pals with those teams’ then-coaches, Pat Riley and Frank Layden). I was also the first and only female player in the all-male United States Basketball League. I’ve played against the most famous team in the world, the Harlem Globetrotters. I'm fortunate to have been an Olympic silver medalist in women's basketball, and honored to be a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Plus, your right-hand man Reggie Love, the former college basketball star who plays in your games, can vouch for my reputation as a former college player who still has serious skills.

Isn't she amazing? She goes on to say:

I would be honored to get on the court with you, Mr. President, not just to play but also to help you make change. It's what I've done my whole life as a woman in sports and it's what you've done your whole life as a politician and now as our Commander in Chief.

Warmest regards to you, the First Lady and your daughters. If invited to play at the White House, I solemnly vow to protect, preserve and defend the basketball until my team wins. Let me know if I've got a game.

I love how she combines respect, progress and trash talk all in one letter. I really hope he accepts. I think it would be good PR for the Obama administration and I think it would be huge for women's basketball on all levels.

You know what else? I think she could take him.

Contributing Editor Sarah Braesch also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad, Draft Day Suit and MamaPop.

Ladies Running in The Marine Corps Marathon are an Inspiration

2009-10-26T16:18:36-05:00

One of my neighbors (and a fellow bus stop mom) ran the Marine Corps Marathon yesterday. I always wondered what would posses a person to want to run 26.2 miles in a row. I have always been of the mind set that I don't run unless there is someone or something chasing me.

My neighbor started training when her boss turned 40 and decided to train for a marathon. Her husband said she would never be able to do it. Stephanie is 47 and a breast cancer survivor. She ran the Marine Corps Marathon in six hours and 14 minutes.

She is my new hero.

I was very excited to talk to her about it this morning. She has only been training for 25 weeks for this marathon. Steph wasn't a runner before this.

Yesterday she ran 26 miles. That blows my mind. This morning Steph told me that the first fifteen miles were glorious but at the end her body started to give out. Someone asked her if she considered not finishing. I don't think it ever even crossed her mind.

Amy Reinink ran the Marine Corps Marathon too, but things were different for her.

This race, finishing was never, at any point, a certain thing.
The reason: near-constant vomiting and, erm, porta potty stops throughout the race. I have some gastrointestinal issues that I have to be careful about, and I made the mistake of eating a (very plain!) grilled chicken sandwich at a new place for lunch yesterday that immediately didn’t sit right, and felt kinda funny all afternoon and evening. I started the race feeling not-quite-right. After about the 5-mile mark, I spent more time running hunched over than upright. Now, my legs feel pretty great, considering, but my torso feels like I was in the plank position all morning.

Amy finished too, and how amazing is she? Amy ran her first Marine Corps Marathon to cope with the depression when her husband (who is in the Navy) was deployed.

Anarcha woke up sick on Saturday and almost didn't run at all, and she ended up being the 3rd fastest woman to finish the race.

Meredith finished the race too, and she had two fantastic observations:

My favorite moment of the race happened around mile 18, going past the Capitol. There was a high school band playing there, and just as I was passing, they were playing the theme music from Star Trek. I guess none of the runners near me were quite as geeky, since many of them looked at me like I was nuts when I started cheering.

The most inspiring thing I saw was a group of wounded Marine veterans. On crutches, in a wheel chair, or just hobbling along, they were making amazing time (I don't know where they finished, but they were ahead of me until mile 19). Even now, the thought of their dedication, motivation, and perseverance is making me tear up.

As much as I dislike the idea of running (me running, I am fine if other people do it) I have been inspired by these ladies, especially Stephanie Geis. I keep hearing buzz about this "couch to 5K" running plan and I am seriously considering trying it.

Now all I need is you guys to help talk me into it.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad, Draft Day Suit and MamaPop.

October: It's Not Just For Baseball

2009-10-19T10:52:57-05:00

When I think about sports in October the first thing that comes to mind is baseball. October means playoff series' and hot dogs and beer. The World Series begins on October 28th this year. They call clutch baseball players who do well in the post season "Mr. October". October is for baseball, right?

Well, yes and no. Sure we love championship baseball and late-inning comebacks, but there is more to October than just baseball.

If you are into comebacks you should have seen the Vikings-Ravens game yesterday. When I turned this game on Baltimore was down 17 - 30. Four minutes later the Ravens were up 31 - 30. Now if you know football, you know that if anyone is going to comeback to win the game in the last two minutes it is quarterback, Brett Favre, and sure enough #4 came through for Minnesota. The final score was 33 - 31 and the Minnesota Vikings are 6 - 0.

If you weren't paying attention you may have missed the WNBA finals. I was thrilled when I was in a bar in Pittsburgh and they actually had the Mercury/Fever game on the biggest tv. This year Phoenix won their second championship in three years.

16 year old Jessica Watson set sail yesterday. She is attempting to become the youngest person to ever sail solo around the world without stopping. Go Jessica!

On the other end of the spectrum, 101 year old Ruth Firth won a gold medal in shot put at the World Masters Games in Sydney. She also broke a world record.

The International Olympic Committee added rugby and golf as events in the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro.

Lastly, sports organizations all over the place are "thinking pink" to help promote Breast Cancer Awareness in October. Ladies, please remember to check yourself or go have a mammogram. It can save your life.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad, Draft Day Suit and MamaPop.

What Kind of Fans Boo Their Own Team?

2009-10-05T20:30:21-05:00

Yesterday I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to do something I have wanted to do for years. I got to see my favorite football team, The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, play against the Washington Redskins at Fed Ex Field in Landover, Maryland.

I have probably been to 20 Bucs games but this was the first time I got to see an away game. I've lived in the Washington D.C. Metro area for almost four years and this is the very first time since I have lived here that Tampa Bay played the Redskins up here. I wore my Buccaneers jersey and everything.

I was slightly concerned that I would get some razzing wearing the enemy uniform but none of the Redskins fans said anything to me.

I was happy. It was a beautiful day. For a while the Bucs were even winning. This was when it started.

The Redskins fans started booing their own team.

The first time I thought. Aw, that is sad and I felt bad for the guy who dropped the pass. Then they booed their quarterback, Jason Campbell. He had just thrown an incomplete pass.

Then I started feeling sick.

This was their team. I watched my team (who are now 0-4 by the way) blow a perfectly good lead. The Bucs stunk up the field but I was there cheering them on every single play. I was amid 50,000 Washington fans applauding the enemy and they were booing their own team in their own stadium.

I'm not saying that the 'skins were playing well. I am not saying I agree with the play calling. I am not saying that the fans shouldn't have been disappointed with the level of performance they were seeing.

What I am saying is that booing your own team is mean. It is bad manners.

I know that this isn't going to win me any friends at the bus stop, but I was appalled. I knew it happened at the last Washington home game, but I wasn't there for that. I didn't hear how loud it it was. I didn't hear how mad they sounded. The crowd sounded bitter.

I bet you will never hear Lori booing the San Diego Chargers.

As upset as I was by the event, some people here in DC see it as a positive thing.

Say for example, you are a Caps fan:

It’s a storied franchise, filled with championships and great names and history that bleeds into just about everyone around here – until now. People are pissed, and for good reason, with anger the likes of which I’ve never seen in my 27 years as a Washingtonian.
They’re annoyed and confused and frustrated. But most of all they’re searching for something, anything, that can give them some enjoyment as the Skins stumble to disappointing losses and equally disappointing wins.
Enter the Caps, the team filled with young superstars and contagious personalities. Enter the team led by the underdog coach, with the Russian phenom who could just as easily be that kid on your block who used to fry ants with a magnifying glass as he could be the Next One. Enter the group of guys who are so quotable they make Clinton Portis look like Sidney Crosby. Enter the team that has more potential than all the teams in DC combined, and that has more fun than all the teams in DC combined.
Caps Chick - A View From the Cheap Seats

Okay, I see her point. I also happen to love the Capitals. Maybe she is right. I know for a fact that the fans around here are pissed off. I'm afraid to listen to talk radio on Mondays. I am still just amazed by a fan base that would would pay $80 for a ticket and then boo.

Maybe that is the problem. Maybe these people expect to see a little more effort on the field for their money.

Or possibly they need to learn some manners.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad, Draft Day Suit and MamaPop.

Weekend Full of Upsets

2009-09-28T10:22:18-05:00

I was sitting quietly working on a post this weekend when my husband called me from his office. "Are you watching this game? USF is beating FSU?"

My husband went to the University of South Florida and he had the game live streaming on the internet. He asked me to record the game so he could watch it when he got home and I am so glad he did or I would have missed history being made.

This kid named B.J. Daniels - a freshman - got thrown into starting his first college game during a nationally televised game when the starting quarterback, Matt Grothe, got hurt last weekend. Daniels grew up in Tallahassee and wanted to play for Florida State. When he couldn't get on the team there he ended up in Tampa at South Florida. A lot of Bulls fans kind of wrote off this season when Grothe tore the ACL in his left knee, and the Seminoles have been a powerhouse in Florida football for as long as I can remember.

18th ranked FSU was favored by 14 points, but they were never in the lead. In fact, at the end of the third quarter the score was 14 - 0 with the USF Bulls winning. South Florida was able to keep FSU scoreless until the fourth quarter and they ended up winning the game 17 - 7 with me jumping up and down and screaming and generally traumatizing my cats.

Here is the craziest part - this wasn't even the biggest upset of the weekend. Four of the top 10 ranked teams in NCAA football lost their games. Unranked South Carolina beat fourth ranked Ole Miss, (#5) Penn State lost to Iowa, (#11) Virginia Tech beat (#9) Miami and the craziest of them all was (#3) California losing 42 - 6 to Oregon.

Cal dropped from #3 to #24 on the AP Poll. I can't even imagine what the BCS is going to look like tomorrow.

Even the people who had to vote on the polls were confused this week:

...the voters didn’t sound too sure of themselves. One voter, Barker Davis of The Washington Times, told the Associated Press in an e-mail message: “This was one of the toughest weeks I can remember in my 10 years of being a pollster, because after the top 3 there simply weren’t any other squads that merited a top-10 ranking, much less a No. 4-5-6.”
Naila-Jean Meyers

In the NFL the Detroit Lions snapped their 19 game losing streak by beating the Washington Redskins and the Cincinnati Bengals beat the Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Pigskin loving lady recaps all of the week three NFL games.

I'm not sure I am going to make it through the football season with my voice intact if I scream this much every weekend.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad and Draft Day Suit.

Messy Bedroom, Clean Mind?

2009-09-23T08:00:00-05:00

One time when my twins were about a year old a friend of mine told me that I really seemed to really have everything under control.

I thought she was making fun of me, but she really meant it.

I'm thinking she had never seen the inside of my house.

I am a lax housekeeper. My kitchen is clean, or cleanish. All of my dishes are clean and the food is all put away, I just have piles of mail in there. For some reason my counter space begs to be covered with unread mail.

I'm not really her to talk about my mail issues. I am here to tell you that I am not very strict when it comes to making my kids clean their rooms.

I make them both do a pretty thorough cleaning about once a week (assuming they want their allowance) and every third week they have to make sure everything is off of the floor so that the cleaning people can vacuum in their rooms.

The rest of the time, unless something is really bad, I just insist that they clear a path from their door to their bed if they want me to come tuck them in at night. Plus that way if one of my kids gets up in the middle of the night they won't break their neck tripping over abakugan or a barbie.

It isn't like we live in filth. They are not allowed to have food in their bedrooms. Nobody is. I don't have a lot of rules. I don't really like rules myself so why should I go around making rules that I don't really care about?

Take making the bed for an example. I don't make my kids make their beds. First of all, they are five years old. Second of all, who cares? You are just going to wreck it up again in 12 hours. Why bother? If I plan on choosing my battles I choose fighting about eating vegetables and brushing teeth. I'll argue with my kids about not hitting each other with light sabers. I don't really care about a made bed, and if you can find your shoes in the morning, I don't really care where you put those.

Unless they are in the middle of the hallway. I don't want to break my neck going to the bathroom either.

The bottom line is this: How can I force my children to keep their rooms neat and tidy when my own bedroom is a wreck? It looks like some one's dresser exploded in there. I have one laundry basket in my room and it seems to be full of everything except laundry. I've got my old laptop in there. I have no idea what to do with it. I have a box containing about 200 Draft Day Suit bottle openers with the url spelled wrong and close to 400 Sarah and the Goon Squad key chain bottle openers that are spelled right. There is a pashmina that belongs to a friend of mine that I borrowed about a year ago that I keep forgetting to return and a couple of toys I confiscated from the children all in the laundry basket. My dirty laundry is mostly in a pile (or three) on my bedroom floor.

I can't remember the last time I really made my bed. Unless I am changing my sheets or trying to sell my house it just seems like a massive waste of time. How can I justify being a hardass about something that I don't even do myself? It isn't that I don't wish my room was cleaner, I just have priorities.

Clearly blogging about my messy bedroom takes precedence over actually cleaning it.

Maybe my kids will rebel against me by being neat and orderly teenagers. That would be awesome.

If you aren't a fan of the clean house, like Sarah, leave your link here. If you prefer things neat and tidy, leave your link on Rita's post.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad and MamaPop.

Serena Williams Loses Her Temper, Loses Her Match

2009-09-14T10:39:25-05:00

If you were watching the U.S. Open you saw Serena Williams come undone.

Who am I trying to kid? If you were watching tennis, or ESPN, or CNN or even your local news you probably saw the clip.

In a sport where decorum rules the courts it is unusual to see a tennis player throw a fit during a match.

I haven't seen an outburst like that during the U.S. Open since John McEnroe played the game.

It was all over a foot fault. A line judge called a foot fault on Serena and pardon my French, but I believe her exact words were "I swear to God I feel like taking this ball and shoving it down your fucking throat."

Then she continued to point and swear right at the judge.

As in any sport, it doesn't go over well when you threaten the referees.

They hate that.

Now, as much as I appreciate a lady with a foul mouth (and I'm not just saying that, I really do) this paroxysm was completely inappropriate.

Here, see for yourself.

I don't mean to suggest that the line judge wasn't making a lot of unnecessary calls against Serena Williams. She may have been, I don't know, I was watching football, but that is not how a person is expected to behave in a professional tennis match.

This isn't major league baseball, and some people were watching the U.S. Open with their children.

I appreciate her passion but it was misplaced here.

The fit was bad, and embarrassing for Ms. Williams, but that isn't the worst of it. She was docked a point. And that point cost her the game.

...while serving at 5-6, 15-30, the line official called a foot fault on
Serena on her second serve, thus awarding Clijsters double match point,
15-40. However, Serena became upset with the call and began jawing at
the official. To her misfortune, she had already been given a warning
earlier in the match; which now combined resulted in a point penalty,
thus costing her the match.

- Black Tennis Pros

That wasn't all it cost her. She was also fined $10,000 for unsportmanlike conduct.

Serena Williams lost in the semi-finals of the U.S. Open because she couldn't control her temper.

Kim Clijsters won the match on a technicality and went on to defeat Caroline Wozniacki in the finals to win the championship.

To be fair Clijsters is an amazing tennis player. Megan says:

Now honestly, she might have lost the match anyway because her opponent
Kim Clijsters was out playing her and was a couple of points from
winning with the score, 4-6, 5-6, 15-30... Bottom line, Clijsters is a great player and doing amazingly well for
someone who was off having a baby the last three years. She was
beating Serena on every level and though Serena may have pulled it out
in three, God knows she's done it before, you do the crime, you do the
time.

- Megan's Minute

So maybe Serena would not have advanced, but it stinks to see someone lose that way.

Some people have suggested that it might have been 'roid rage or even PMS. In my opinion Serena Williams is just a fierce competitor. She wasn't playing her best, it looked like she was about to be defeated and she was angry about it. It happens.

Ms. Williams issued a formal statement explaining, if not exactly apologizing for, her behavior during the semi-final match. She is still scheduled to play in the doubles finals with her sister, Venus.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad and MamaPop .

Your September Sports Round Up

2009-09-12T09:11:44-05:00

What a long strange month it has been - and September isn't even half way over yet! The NFL kicked off their season in style on Thursday night with the Pittsburgh Steelers beating the Tennessee Titans 13 - 10 in overtime.

The NCAA kicked off their season last week too. I'm not sure how I missed this game but I have heard (and read) that the Miami - Florida State game was one of the most exciting games people have ever seen. The Miami Hurricanes upset the 18th ranked Seminoles in a contest that even losing FSU coach, Bobby Bowden, admitted was one of the best games he ever watched.

Speaking of college football, Bud Light has come under attack for their team colored fan cans. The adversaries of this marketing campaign say that this will encourage underage college student to drink more beer. Laurie doesn't agree.

In tennis, American teen Melanie Oudin upset fourth ranked Elena Dementieva in the second round of the U.S. Open.

The Pro Basketball Hall of Fame inducted Michael Jordan, John Stockton, David Robinson, Jerry Sloan and Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer.

Women's golf legend Annika Sorenstam gave birth to a beautiful baby girl on the first of the month.

This is interesting: A study done in 2008:

suggests that schools that use sexist nomenclature to distinguish their
women's teams are also likely to offer disproportionately fewer
athletic opportunities to women.

- Title IX Blog

A different study in Canada has concluded that women don't like professional sports. This comes as a complete shock to me as I sit here typing this and watching SportsCenter. However, I suppose it explains why the mainstream media still insists on using sex to sell professional sports and even sports reporting. If you want to be really upset, read this post about how women's football finally appeared on the sports pages of Chicago newspapers.

Muslim Women in Sports ask this question about being an athlete during Ramadan: To fast or not to fast?

Megan from ...Because I Played Sports and Women Talk Sports looks into how to increase the attendance at women's basketball games.

Pat Griffin talked about the perils of being a strong woman athlete.

Don't forget that the WNBA playoffs start this week.

Did A-Rod and Kate Hudson get engaged? (No, seriously, I want to know. I can find neither confirmation nor denial of this rumor.)

But if it is still football you are after (and if you are like me, it is always football you are after):

Women's Football: Does it matter if you call it powder puff or flag football. What is in a name? The IWFFA looks into exactly that.

Allison at EveryJoe.com wrote a week two preview for college football.

Chicks in the Huddle previews week one for the NFL.

If you are looking for my personal NFL predictions for the year, you can see them over on Draft Day Suit. If you want a quick recap I am prognosticating that San Diego will beat New Orleans in the Super Bowl.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad and MamaPop .

Did the NFL Just Tell Me I Couldn't Tweet from a Football Game?

2009-09-04T20:26:01-05:00

A couple of weeks ago The National Football League started fining players for tweeting negative things about training camp. Then they made it clear that players were not allowed to tweet during games. Now the NFL has a new set of guidelines restricting the fans permissions to tweet (or Facebook, or YouTube or MySpace) before, during or after professional football games.

What? The NFL thinks they have control over what I put on Twitter? Since when?

What are they going to do? Fine me $2500? I'd like to see them try to collect that. I don't have $2500 in my bank account. Roger Goodell is neither my father nor my boss and he doesn't get to tell me what to do with my twitter account.

Actually, now that I think about it my father can't tell me what I can post either.

The NFL says fans are encouraged to post updates about teams and
players, but cannot post play-by-play accounts of actual games.

Really how would the NFL even monitor this? Do you have a team of 750 people doing tweet searches for football related search terms or hash tags? I suppose they could ban smart phones from the stadiums (as if that would go over well) but how are they going to stop people who are watching the games live from home? And how would they know the difference? And how would they find me?

And would something like this be a play-by-play or an update about a player or just good old fashioned trash talk?

goonsquadsarah: With :21 left Leftwich throws a 43 yard pass to Michael Clayton to beat the Lions. IN YOUR FACE @queenofspain

See? It could go either way.

Elana Cantor said it perfectly:

Unfortunately for the NFL, they are trying to solve their problem in a
pre-social media business paradigm and it probably won't work. What
newspapers and now The NFL don't seem to understand and appreciate is
that in this new social media business environment the rules of
engagement have changed. Businesses are no longer able to dictate to
consumers they way they used to. In this social media era, businesses
would be smart to pay more attention to what consumers want.

Exactly.

St. Louis based Punching Kitty has a more irreverant, but also valid viewpoint:

Its such an odd thing to mandate. Sure this is something that makes
the more fame-whoring of players to concentrate on the game, but why
would the league make this rule? Wouldn’t you think if you missed
something because you were tweeting, the locker room justice would be
far worse than a nasty email from the Commish?... takes a particular hit to the Rams who generally have lots of free time after being down 30 points at the half.

Now I'm giving the NFL a hard time because this came out big in the news today, the season starts in about a week and well, I am a huge football fan and I love to tweet during games, especially when I am actually at a live game and I can taunt my friends who didn't get tickets, but this isn't limited to the NFL in the sports arena. The NCAA has been trying to establish their power over bloggers since 2007. The NBA will be releasing their own guidelines (and remember the NBA owns the WNBA) and the US Open has issued warnings to their players.

The message... “Many of you will have Twitter accounts
in order for your fans to follow you and to become more engaged in you
and the sport — and this is great. However popular it is, it is
important to warn you of some of the dangers posted by Twittering as it
relates to the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program Rules.”

Players are already reacting to the warning with Andy Roddick tweeting: “lame the US Open is trying to regulate our tweeting.. I
understand the on-court issue but not sure they can tell us if we can’t
do it on our own time … we’ll see.” He then added: “I definitely respect the rule about inside info and
on the court, but you would seriously have to be a moron to send
‘inside info’ through a tweet.”

- Jeanne Dupuis, EveryJoe.com

Roddick has a point. Listen, I understand that these leagues don't want to give away any secrets or lose any money, but why would a player intentionally jeopardize winning? Most people who make it into professional sports are highly competitive, and in my opinion a social media buzz is a good thing. Maybe The NFL, NBA and US Open should try to think of social media as free advertising. Why would you want to quash that?

And even if you wanted to, how would you go about doing so?

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad and Draft Day Suit .

Laid Back Slacker Parent

2009-09-03T06:50:28-05:00

As far as my parenting style goes, you could say that I am pretty laid back.

I have five year old twins and even when they were infants I fed them on demand and let them work out their own sleep schedules. We let them co-sleep since it seemed to work better for us and when at six months my daughter started sleeping better in her crib she moved out.

Not of our house, just out of my bed.

The boy slept with us until he was one.

My kids have a vague bedtime, 7:30. But if something good is happening, like we have people over or we are on vacation they can stay up later. During the summer I let them get up in the mornings whenever they wake up.

I wouldn't say that we practice "attachment parenting" but I wouldn't really say that we don't either.

Sure, when school starts I will get them up in plenty of time to eat breakfast and get dressed before the bus shows up, but until then it is a free for all.

Our days plays out depending on what specific things we have to do each day. They eat lunch when they get hungry. We have a somewhat organized dinner each night, but for lunch we generally all eat something different.

My kids are allowed to watch tv. I record shows for them on the DVR. I work from home, and some days it is the only way I can meet my deadlines (Hi Erin and Denise!). If they end up watching two hours of "Zoboomafoo" so be it.

Earlier today an older neighbor boy could not believe that I let my five year old son watch all six Star Warsmovies. He said "Some of them are rated PG-13!"

"Probably," I said, "but we're not really worried about ratings. That isn't how I determine what is acceptable for my children to watch."

He looked at me like I was nuts, but it is true. I've seen Star Wars at least fifty two times and I thought it was okay to let the twins watch it. My husband and I talk them through the scary parts and we try to explain the more confusing concepts. There are shows I won't let the kids watch because they are too violent or scary - like The Dark Knight or the local news.

Now I'm not going to sit here and say we don't have any rules. My children have to drink milk with dinner. They are required to say please and thank you when appropriate. I don't let them hit each other in the face with pirate swords or throw balls in the house. They aren't allowed to eat in the living room or fight on the stairs. I don't let them out in the yard unsupervised and they aren't permitted to use the stove, but when it comes to structure or schedules I figure they will get that stuff in abundance once they start Kindergarten next
week.

Yes, part of it has to do with my underlying laziness, but just as much of it has to do with the fact that this is just the way I like to live.

My children have the rest of their lives to worry about about due dates and regimens. For now they are just kids with a lot of unstructured playtime (which is supposed to be good for imagination and social development anyway) and it works for us. They are good kids with good manners that are quickly learning how to think for themselves. What more could I ask for?

* our4monkeys has become more laid back with each child.

* Texas Monkey didn't do any of these slacker things. Not one.

* mmm Slacker Fudge.

*Chris's son went to school in his pajamas, totally by accident of course.

Are there more laid back slacker moms than there are type A spreadsheet moms?

If you're a laid back slacker type of mom, share a story that supports that claim. If you aren't, then you should go visit Rita's post and leave your story linked in her post.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad, Draft Day Suit and MamaPop.

Triathlons For Children?

2009-08-28T09:51:01-05:00

I know triathlons are all the rage these days but have you heard of these triathlons for kids?

Sarah Bowen Shea from Marathon Moms had an article in the New York Times this week called "See Jane Run, Bike and Swim". She talks about Children's Triathlons which features athletes ages 3 - 15.

In the Silicon Valley Kids Triathlon the race includes swimming 200 yards (four laps in the pool), biking 6 miles, then running 1.25 miles (five laps around the track).

I think I may be opening up a can of worms with this, but here I go anyway. I have no problem with a 15 year old wanting to do a triathlon. Really, even a 10 year old knows what he or she is capable of (well, mostly), but a three year old? Biking six miles?

I know it is an endurance race but half of three years I know can't reliably pee in a toilet, how can a parent expect someone of that age to ride six miles on a bike? My kids are five now and they get tired (and bored) if we ride bikes to the playground that is probably half of a mile from our house. They just don't have the focus.

There are other risks too.

From Sarah Bowen Shea's NYT piece:

Triathlons for children have become tremendously popular, drawing
participants as young as 3 years old (who probably did not come up with
the idea themselves)... Adults, too, have been flocking to triathlons, and
not without controversy: risks include dehydration,
injury, heat exhaustion and even, occasionally, death. Doctors warn
that people of all ages need to approach triathlons gingerly, lest they
attempt more than their bodies can handle.

“At less than age 7, parents should be cautious,” said Dr. Kevin D. Plancher, an orthopedic surgeon ... “There’s not enough information for what these events can
do to the growth plates in children’s shoulder, arms, pelvis, knees,
ankles and feet.” He said that parents should consult a pediatrician to
assess if a child is ready.

There are other risks too. From Alison at RunBuggy:

There are psychological considerations, such as children becoming too competitive, or kids being pushed into
triathlons by their overzealous parents. Also, it’s important to make
sure children do not go overboard with training. Boundaries need to be set, especially for an overly-competitive and driven child.

This isn't to say there aren't advantages. Obviously, exercise is good for kids. Exercise is good for everybody and if this is an excuse to get children outside and moving instead of sitting in front of their XBox or their DVR that can't be a bad thing.

This is from a parent of a 8 year old triathlete from the Santa Barbara Triathon Club.

Being triathletes ourselves, it
is so much fun to watch our daughter, and all of the other kids,
learning about, training for, and participating in the sport. We are
looking forward to the day when she will be racing right beside us (and
probably passing us by all too soon!!)...we highly recommend that you check out
the race next year... It is a blast to watch all of the ages and ability levels, from 7 year-old first-timers to up and coming teen sensations. We guarantee you will leave with a
smile on your face.

I guess, as with anything involving children, you want them to be active and healthy and to have fun, but remember that starting anything competitive at a young age can lead to early burnout. When a tween or teen elects to participate in a triathlon I think it can be a wonderful thing, but if it is a Type-A parent pushing a toddler into riding his or her tricycle six miles then swimming four laps in a pair of floaties that is borderline abusive.
I don't want you to think that I am against triathlons for children, I am just against triathlons for very young children.

And as Carol A. Clark points out, they are adorable.

After all, what kid doesn't like to run around, ride bikes and go swimming?

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad, Draft Day Suit and MamaPop.

Photo: Courtesy of McDonald’s Kids Triathlon

Women's Sports in The Olympics: Boxing In, Softball and Ski-Jumping Out

2009-08-21T22:23:35-05:00

Do you ever feel like barring figure skating, gymnastics and maybe tennis women's sports are constantly fighting an uphill battle?

Last week it was announced that women's boxing would be included in the 2012 Olympics.

Finally, the last “No Girls Allowed” sign has been pulled down from the Summer Olympic games. August
13th, 2009: International Olympic Committee chair Jacques Rogge
announced today that the 2012 London Olympics will be the first to
feature women competing in every single sport.

Mr. Rogge said: “I can only rejoice about the decision to include
women’s boxing in the Olympic Games. [Women's boxing] is a great
addition since boxing was the only summer Olympic sport without a
female discipline. Women’s boxing has progressed a lot in the last five
years and it is time to include them.”

Hooray! I'm thinking. Women in every Summer Olympic event, this is great! Except I forgot something. I forgot to be offended that there wasn't women's boxing before. Lisa Creech Bledsoe, who wrote the quote above on The Glowing Edge goes on to say:

The last five years, yes. But how about the last 105 years? Because
1904 was the last time women were allowed to showcase their boxing
skills for the Olympics. It was a demonstration game, and afterward the
sport went underground for women until the mid-1970s, when the first
licenses began to be granted to women boxers.

Oh. Right. Well that kind of sucks. Women's boxing predates 1904 and it is just now - 108 years later, by the time they can compete - a medal worthy event? That seems unjust. You know what else stinks? There are only three weight classes that will be included; flyweight, lightweight and middleweight.

Let's ignore for a moment the fact that I am personally beyond offended that I weigh too much to box in the Olympics (okay, I accept that what I just said is unreasonable, but I don't think it is out of line to think that this could exclude tall muscular women from boxing in The Olympics) this causes other problems.

...each of the female boxers will be required to fit into one of only
three nonconsecutive weight ranges: flyweight (48 to 51 kilograms, or
about 106-112 pounds), lightweight (56 to 60 kilograms, or about
123-132 pounds), or middleweight (69-75 kilograms, or about 152-165
pounds). This structure is unique to women's boxing; female
participants in judo, wrestling and tae kwon do, who are also divided
into weight classes, don't have to worry about these gaps.

The problem with this structure lies not just in the number of women
that will be excluded from participation because their weight ranges
fall above or below the limitations, but also in the large gaps between
each class. A woman weighing 140 pounds, for example, would be required
to either gain 12 pounds or lose 8 in order to be able to participate
in any of the designated weight classes. This presents a situation that
could promote unhealthy eating or exercise habits among women who
desire to participate in Olympic boxing, but whose natural body
structures render them ineligible. This is especially true because most
boxers in this situation would probably chose to lose weight in order
to compete as a heavier athlete in a lower weight range rather than
gain weight in order to be a lighter competitor in a higher weight
range.

- Christina Carr, Women's Rights

Wow. As if a woman who trains for her entire life to be a boxer doesn't face enough challenges.

But, let's move on for a second. Let's imagine for a moment that we are all just thrilled that women's boxing has finally been included and all of the glitches will be worked out by 2016. Progress is progress, yes? It could be worse. We could be talking about women's ski jumping.

The International Olympic Committee still won't let female ski jumpers in. They have been ignored for so long that a group of Canadian women ski jumpers decided to take their complaint to the Canadian Human Rights Commission. Jennifer O'Meara at Attack of the 5-Foot Woman writes:

...the
British Columbia Supreme Court Judge Lauri Ann Fenlon said the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is not governed by the Charter, and the organization does not fall under the court’s jurisdiction... “The IOC made a decision that discriminates against the plaintiffs,”
Fenlon wrote in her 42-page decision. “Only the IOC can alleviate that
discrimination by including an Olympic ski jumping event for women in
the 2010 Games. There will be little solace to the plaintiffs in my
finding that they have been discriminated against; there is no remedy
available to them in this court.”

The IOC didn’t like being called sexist but is happy not to have to include the women in their 2010 Olympic plans.

I personally am holding out hope that by 2016 the IOC will come to their senses.

There has been one more loss. Softball will not be included in the 2016 Olympics, which (especially as an American who grew up playing softball) I really think stinks. I'm not sure if this is a positive or a negative, but the IOC has also decided to get rid of baseball, so at least that one can't be called sexist.

Contributing Editor Sarah also blogs at Sarah and the Goon Squad, Draft Day Suit and MamaPop.