[cowbyfan1]

I enjoy calling and striving to become better. I have family and hate being away from them but will to go to a clinic or to a tourney. I like the money side of it as well. I put it back into my umpiring (baseball, football and basketball) or for things for the family i.e. Christmas as I love having big Christmas for them, especially toys for my daughter.

I don't have as much fun as I used to have calling as I take it more serious now than I did a few years ago. I like the big games but won't die if I don't get them. Some times I think about just saying to heck with it and calling tons of coach pitch but usually one day listening to parents screaming about Johnnie being robbed when they have not figured out that Johnnie needs to play with barbies instead of baseballs is all it takes to set me right. Don't mind calling some college ball but really have no desire, due to no real time, to try and move up to D1 ball.

I have a couple friends that do nothing but umpire. I sometimes envy them but would not trade my family, especially my daughter for that "carefree" life. One of them has been calling the same amount of time as me (5 years) but he is ahead of me as far as gatting the bigger games since he had the time and money to go to pro school. I have to settle for weekend clinics of 1 to 3 days, tho I hope to go to Arizona in the next couple years for a week long one. So this is why I don't get upset about not getting the big games.

Not sure where that puts me on the list but that is basically where I am at.