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I am already grown there Smitty. ;) I know that nothing changes in my life one way or another because you got offended by what I said to you. Everything in my life is still the same. I do not think I am the person that needs to grow up. You are the one getting upset over what someone on an internet site said to you. ;)

Peace

Pride in the job???
 

I am really glad this post has come to light. Lately I ahve been gorwing more and more agitated at the lack of professionalism some of my partners have shown. You can tell if a guy is going to give a good game usually with a couple of questions. #1 Do you do it because you love the game? Or is it for the money? THe mony guys do not give a s*$@ and it erally affects yor whole game. These are the sam guys that think they need to be getting more VArsity games and worse yet, they should be the REFEREE!!! for the darn games as well. When they do not rotate, do not listen becasue you are younger than them, and or have less years thatn them, it makes for a really long night. Mind you I do keep patent leather shoes and starch my shirts to almost cardboard stiffness, but this is only becasue I take an immense amount of pride in my appearance. This also reflects in how I handle myself on the court, and during the game. If I miss a call a coach is less likely to get on me if I look the part and act the part, than be some slob who may have profound knowledge of the rules.Times are tough ad good referees are hard to come by.

Yabut,didya ever think that maybe the slob with profound knowledge of the rules might actually miss fewer calls than you because he has a profound knowledge of the rules?

You starch your shirts until they're stiff?

Point being made here, though I would almost bet you would not read into this, is that if you look the part and act the part you are more likely to get some slack then if you look like a slob. I starch and iron my shirts, if wrinkles and sloppy appearance are a part of the appearance officials should uphold then I will no longer do so.

Ry

Jurrasic,
I re-read my post. I was not trying to sound like an ***. NO hard feelings!!!

Observations
 

I am over halfway through my first year and have made some observations about what I have seen and heard.My partner, a 5 year man, says " I'm not doing varsity because I won't play the political game" translates into I am a half-a$$er and don't even have time to read this years rule changes. It also means it's beneath me to be doing freshman girls game with you newby but because I don't play politics I don't get varsity games. When my partner starts telling me how per hour rec ball pays and these games actually cost him money, usually a frosh girls game, what it translates into is instead of a pregame i am going to sit around and complain why i am not doing varsity games. i told that particular partner if you are that interested in money quit reffing and become a CPA.
The examples are endless. The belt buckles are my favorites. What are these refs thinking ? I even saw a Varsity ref with the double foul of white T-shirt and belt Buckle. Knowing the rules is important but you have to be able to be in position to apply them. Out of shape refs can't get into position. I scored a 100 on the test this year. I am on this board everyday reading about rules,etc.
Does that qualify me for more than anything other frosh/JV games ? Nope and I am happy that it doesn't. i grew up with a reverence for High School Officials and to be frank about it 40% of the men I have worked with are lazy, whiny,excusemakers or worse yet just don't care except for the money.

Re: Observations
 

That should make it all the easier for you to stand out from the crowd. Keep on doing the right stuff!

When I get my schedule, it contains my partner(s) name, work number, home number, and cell phone number (if they have one). I can also look in our directory if any information is missing. I try to make all of my contacts at the start of the week -- just in case someone turned back a game and I have a new partner. In rare cases, I can email my assignor and see if my partner has "confirmed" their schedule. We are to required to confirm within 24 hours.

Re: Observations
 

Quote:

Originally posted by Chess Ref

Too funny. Got a thing against men do we? How do your female partners rate?

Pretty funny Robmoz. i haven't worked with any females yet. i guess my expectations are high for men beacause of the type of men I grew up around. i could whip out all the cliches "get the job done correctly.". Sack up. Things along those lines. My dad once told me "you only need to be about 10 % better than everybody else and you will seem like a star ". Let me make a sexiest statement here. It seems to me sometime in the last twenty years or so men have watched a little too much Lifetime TV and Oprah. Too much concern about feelings and way too many fannypacks and sandals on the men. i grew up around men who got the job done, very little complaining, no excuses and did the best possible job they could physically and mentally. So let me go back to my cave and watch reruns of Captain Kirk until the next Steven Segal movie comes on.

Well, since you are only halfway through your first year you might want to really pay attention to the second half to see if your observations change at all. Perhaps you will gain some additional perspectives which will allow you to pass judgement on your fellow officials in a brighter light than the darkness of the cave.

What do your partners say about your faults, flaws, shortcomings or deficiencies? How would you describe the other 60% of your partners? Are Kirk and Segal really icons or role models for you?

I spent one winter in Bay City, one winter and I ran back to California. No Kirk and Segal aren't icons or role models I was trying to be facetious.
I have videotaped several of my games so I see that I still am a chicken with my head cut off but i see that and I work on my shortcomings.

I primarily do Frosh/Jv. My shortcomings are I rush when blowing the whistle-which sometimes leaves my partners wondering what the heck i am doing. So I need to slow down. And communicate with my partners.

As trail I fade when the shot goes up so I am working on taking a step towards the action versus a step back.
Still working on my primary areas of coverage. Sometimes i flat out just reach (2-3x game) and i cause me and partner to look rather follish. Though a Varsity ref talked to me about closing in on a long call.
I have pretty bad communication skills with the coaches. At first I thought the solution was to ignore them, now i am working on the three step method of communication. 1. i hear you coach 2. stop sign . 3. T. though I haven't T a coach yet. The other 60 % are motivated and having fun. It is the 40% that I don't understand. I had a Varsity ref offer to do a Jv game with me last week cause he liked my attitude so My EGO exploded. LOL

Darkness?Cave?
 

Rob Moz you spoke of darkness, and the light on a cave. Are we refereing to the Parable of the Cave by Plato? That would really be an intetersting way to show others what officiating is like. Always going into the darkness to free the ignorant to see the light..... maybe I am just getting to excited that someone else is into Ancient History like myself.....

Ry