Labor Day Blues

We enter Labor Day with high hopes and exhausted patience.

In a few hours,we'll (the ladies that mean the most to me and myself) will trudge to the Muni for the final regular season game against the Lakewood Blue Claws.
It's a meaningless game since the Suns have clinched a playoff berth,but we'll still go and enjoy the baseball since it is so close to ending.
We are guaranteed to see one more game on Wednesday in Game One of the SAL Northern Division Finals and maybe with some luck,a few more the following week for the championship and then it is all over.

The focus here soon switches to Buckeye and Browns football and soon after Devils hockey (for Rachel) and Cavaliers basketball (for Cherie) and the time that seems to be so short for errands and family things becomes the excess time of "what do we do today?".
I will watch the work schedule ramp up as I begin to accumulate funds for next season's summer and plans,but my plans are a bit different this year.
I'm not only going to put back enough money and personal leave time to take off from work,I'm going to put back enough that if I want to go,I'm going to go,
One of the best trips that I ever took was when I went to see the Browns alone and maybe I should be less dependent on others on some of the bigger events of the summer.
It's tough being a one car family in these situations,so I'll need to put extra money for rentals aside,but that was a mistake that I made.
I'll put myself in a better spot next year,so if others can't or don't want to go,I can still have fun.

I have planned things better for next year and have a better idea of how I want to go about the events that I want to hit next year and avoid the mistakes I made this year.
For example,I didn't know how stringent NFL security measures would be at training camps,so when I heard about these and the difficulties involved,I was not prepared,so I canceled my Saints training camp trip until next year when I can hit a "meet the team" day (They had one that I was too late finding out about).

Another missed trip was the LPGA.
That was the one that I looked most forward to and the one that I still wished I would have attended.
The planned scheduled tournament was Williamsburg Va,but I'm considering a change to the Toledo event later in the summer.
That would give me a chance to knock the Toledo ballpark off the list or maybe even the Lake County Captains for the Midwest League if the schedule fell right.
I've quite enjoyed becoming an LPGA fan and I plan on a post sometime over the off season telling you more about it.

I also missed out on two new ballparks next year,one because it didn't work out (West Virginia) and another because of rain (Jamestown),but as disappointing as the missing Jamestown was,I still was able to spend a rare day with my son and considering that with being in the park on game day,it's wasn't anything to be too upset with.
I think I'm planning two trips baseball wise and will settle for one.
A NY/Penn league run would be nice as I could knock off the two most endangered teams after Jamestown's move to Morgantown in Batavia and Auburn and try to squeeze another stop in (Erie?) as well.
Another run could take me south for some Appalachian play as the unique parks and small towns have some appeal in August when their sets are out.
I kinda doubt I'll do both alone,but my wish is to be able to hit one.
That doesn't mean I wouldn't welcome company,just that I'm preparing for it alone and be pleasantly surprised if I am joined by others.

Graphing has had its fun times and fun trips (Just had one yesterday with Kendall and Brad),but on the overall,it has been the least fun that I've had yet.
I'm going to give it another chance next year at full speed,but as I've said to several friends-If next year is like this year,I'm changing how I do this.
Not leaving,just changing things a bit.

Finally,a nod to the best weekend of the summer.
The IFL Draft and cookout with the best friends and family that I could ask for.
My mom and dad couldn't make it due to dad's surgery and they were missed,but it still was a great time by all.
It's tough with Ryan being so far away for all of us to get together,but I really hope we can do something more often than one weekend a year.

Think I better start to get ready to go,the Muni is calling for "Fan Appreciation Day" snicker.
Let's see what this one brings.
See you tomorrow or maybe later tonight,I have some things to write about me from the non-sports world....