Women Refs in the NBA

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

And when you are in your 20s with not the same family dynamic in your life, those checks matter.

Those checks also matter when one has a family. A know a lot of guys that use their basketball fees for golf, poker nights, fishing/hunting vacations, sports season/regular tickets, or casinos. One colleague has a separate bank account just for his basketball money, it's his money, not his family's money.

While I had many reasons to officiate, for the first thirty years (teachers were not always appropriately well paid in Connecticut) one main reason was to support my family, especially the kid's college fund. It was just about the only reason I worked recreation/travel basketball for all those many years.

Originally Posted by Raymond

A night working high school ball, no matter how close to home, is still a night away from loved ones.

You're correct. I missed reading my three kids bedtime stories, and left the busy and hectic bath/bed routine solely to my wife four, or five, weeknights a week from early December through early March for my kid's entire childhood.

But it was actually the Saturdays and Sundays that kept me away from small college basketball. I couldn't imagine spending an entire weekend day away from the family, and missing my kids participate in basketball, gymnastics, indoor track, drama, or dance, especially after being away most weeknights.

[Altor]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

One colleague has a separate bank account just for his basketball money, it's his money, not his family's money.

Wow. I save my officiating money in a separate bank account (makes it easier for bookkeeping). But then the vast majority of it gets spent on our family vacation. I justify the nights away from my family by taking them on a trip for a week every summer.

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by Altor

Wow. I save my officiating money in a separate bank account (makes it easier for bookkeeping). But then the vast majority of it gets spent on our family vacation. I justify the nights away from my family by taking them on a trip for a week every summer.

When I first started officiating my High School association only paid us at the end of the season. So every March I would take that money and first pay off all my credit cards.

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[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by Raymond

When I first started officiating my High School association only paid us at the end of the season. So every March I would take that money and first pay off all my credit cards.

Approximately half of the school systems (high schools and middle schools), here in my little corner of Connecticut use ArbiterPay, and I elect to get the money in the form of a direct deposit into my checking account rather than as a check, or a debit card. I let the money accumulate in ArbiterPay all season long, occasionally checking to insure that I was paid, and only transfer the sum total into my checking account at the end of the season, like a giant balloon payment. Part of the money usually goes to my tax accounting firm, Dewey, Cheatem and Howe. Some of the rest usually pre-pays (gets me a discount) my lawn maintenance company (fertilizer, insecticide, herbicide, lime) for the upcoming season.

I wasn't a big fan at first, worried about ArbiterPay having my bank account information and Social Security Number, but I'm now a fan, although I still like opening up my mailbox and occasionally finding a nice surprise check from non-ArbiterPay school systems.

[Altor]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

I wasn't a big fan at first, worried about ArbiterPay having my bank account information and Social Security Number, but I'm now a fan

You are still a fan after the all the security breaches they've had? After the last one, I had to change my bank account number and I ordered one of their debit cards to limit my exposure from their ineptness as much as possible.

I don't get paid by ArbiterPay very often, but I move the money to the debit card ASAP and find an excuse to spend it shortly after that. It's bad enough they have my SSN, they aren't getting another bank account number for me for somebody to hack.

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by Altor

You are still a fan after the all the security breaches they've had? After the last one, I had to change my bank account number and I ordered one of their debit cards to limit my exposure from their ineptness as much as possible.

So my initial worries were not unfounded. And I thought that I was just being an old man not wanting change and being afraid of technology.

Have to go now and yell at neighbor kids to get off my front lawn. I may have to turn the hose on them.

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

Those checks also matter when one has a family. A know a lot of guys that use their basketball fees for golf, poker nights, fishing/hunting vacations, sports season/regular tickets, or casinos. One colleague has a separate bank account just for his basketball money, it's his money, not his family's money.

But it was actually the Saturdays and Sundays that kept me away from small college basketball. I couldn't imagine spending an entire weekend day away from the family, and missing my kids participate in basketball, gymnastics, indoor track, drama, or dance, especially after being away most weeknights.

Again at the end of the day, it is personal what you do or what you enjoy. You can do whatever you wish with your time. My point again is if I am going to be away for the same amount of time, I would rather make a much bigger check. Even in a D2 league I work those checks are like 5 times more per game. They were much needed this past season when the COVID situation changed the entire season and I got to work doubleheaders in one league and was gone on a Friday-Saturday. My wife loved those checks.

Also, only Saturdays are really common for college games and those games are much earlier than high school games might typically play. So I will be home in the early evening as opposed to later in the evening on a Saturday. Either way, my family can come with me too, which they have on several occasions. My wife does not mind or make a big deal out of it. Then again I am not working 6 and 7 nights a week like many of my counterparts who seem to never stay home working every level imaginable. That is not me at all. I only work Boys varsity basketball and Men's college. Four nights a week is not unusual and the other days I am home. My wife realized a long time ago that I have a passion for this and feels it is good for my overall mental health to officiate. So I am not fighting these battles at home for what I do in officiating. A good part of the spring and the summer is for them. And even if I officiated then, it gives us some money for other things. It is a win-win.

Peace

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

.. Saturday. Either way, my family can come with me too, which they have on several occasions.

Back before we had kids, unlike many of my colleagues who hated Saturday night high school games, I liked them, and actually let my assigner know that I liked them. My wife would come with me to the games, and we would go out to dinner afterward, enjoying out of town restaurants that we would normally not go to.

Originally Posted by JRutledge

... what you enjoy.

Since my kids graduated from college, with my mortgage, and car, paid off, I no longer officiate for the money. I wouldn't do it for free (because of travel, rush hour traffic, meetings, politics, uniforms, equipment, fees, dues, etc.), but I do it because I have passion for basketball officiating.

With chronic orthopedic problems, I have limited myself to middle school games over the last three seasons, and to prepare for a certain more painful future, I've taken a very active role on my local board's mechanics training committee.

I can see paying annual board dues well into the future, even if my only job is to sell raffle tickets before board meetings, and attending the annual banquet, catching up and shooting the breeze with my colleagues, and yanking their chains (my local colleagues have a reputation as being expert ball busters, if somebody doesn't say something bad about you, they don't like you). I'll stop paying my annual board dues when they pry my raffle tickets, and my banquet open bar gin and tonic, from my cold, dead hands.

How's that for passion?

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

...



Also, only Saturdays are really common for college games and those games are much earlier than high school games might typically play. So I will be home in the early evening as opposed to later in the evening on a Saturday. Either way, my family can come with me too, which they have on several occasions. ...



Peace

Yep, that is the number one reason I always want to work a college game on Saturday rather than a high school game. High schools schedule their Saturday games at night, while almost all of my Saturday college games are in the afternoon.


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