Play Off Perspective

Whether you have a child playing baseball, soccer, football or lacrosse, this time of year usually entails some sort of Play-Off experience, ultimately ending with the Championship team walking away with a trophy. Below is an article I wrote for the local little league, but many of the principles involved apply to any sports team. Please read it and continue to help me promote mindful and conscious playing out on the ball field/s.

Lisa



"Sometimes a hitter gets a hit, sometimes I strike them out, but in neither case does anyone die." ~ Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez



Anyone walking by the ball field, you can sense the pressure or anxiety that our kids feel during play-off season. Some of it is of their own doing, and some is from the adults! How can we insure that our kids can be kids and just play ball?



Perhaps we have to go back to that old-fashioned Parent Pledge that was created at the Little League National Level. Here it is:



I will teach all children to play fair and do their best.
I will positively support all managers, coaches and players.
I will respect the decisions of the umpires.
I will praise a good effort despite the outcome of the game.



Here's our chance to put into practice what other communities take to heart. Why? Because we want our kids to WANT to return to this beloved sport next year. And... we don't want to have a story like they did in Port Lucie, FL where their local headline read:



"Spectator Bites off Man’s Ear at Youth Baseball Game.”



Why did this happen? The story discussed how a losing ball player began to yell obnoxiously. A fan on the opposing team hit him, and ball player's dad attacked that fan. In doing so, the dad bit the fan's ear! During this event, a nine month old was knocked out of her mother's arms!

Is this what we want our baseball community to be about? I ask because it's happening all around us. Have you ever witnessed a parent getting a little loud? A little too critical?



There was a 1995 report that said 5% of a crowd of parents would become problematic during a sporting event. The percentage increased to 15% five years later! (taken from Nat'l Alliance for Youth Sports). Things are getting a bit out of hand, shall we say! It's only until we realize that when the kids are noticing our behavior, and modeling themselves after what they see, can we begin to make change/s for ourselves...for the better. Let's have our Hermosa sports' community be of the 5%, and not the 15%!



Just for today...let's be thankful that we have an umpire who is willing to call the game, coaches that volunteer their time, and lollipops to use if we can't find anything positive to say!

The Green Idea House is Here Soon!

Below is a an email forwarded to me from friends of mine. They are doing such a great thing for our earth, I just had to share. In lieu of what has happened with the recent BP oil spill, any time we can be green in our efforts to help the earth, I sincerely applaud!

Lisa


Green Idea House is online!
Visit our new website www.GreenIdeaHouse.com and follow every step of our journey as we transform the Fortunato family home in Hermosa Beach, California into a fully net zero energy, zero carbon home.


Connect with us
Be sure to sign up for the RSS Feed or the corresponding Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter pages. That will connect you with the latest progress updates, news about green building and open the dialog with us throughout the planning and construction stages – and beyond.


Our Exciting Challenge
We are 100% committed to researching and implementing “green” building technologies so that our house becomes a practical case study for anyone who wants to replicate the process of cost-effective eco-renovation. As we move forward, we’re learning how to navigate the complexities of redesigning a home that consumes zero energy, emits zero carbon and still includes all the modern standards of human comfort. We’ve taken on this groundbreaking challenge so you don’t have to!


Green Idea House & the Community
The Green Idea House project is also acting as a catalyst in our broader community. The City of Hermosa Beach recently made a commitment to be the first city in Los Angeles County (maybe all of Southern California) to establish a plan and timeline to be a carbon neutral city – the “Green Idea City”. We are working directly with the Mayor and a committed group of local activists to bring the economic and environmental benefits of this action to fruition. You can read more about it at the following links:
Daily Breeze Op Ed
Hermosa Beach Patch


Inspired? Forward Our Website
Feel free to forward the Green Idea House website to anyone you think might be interested and inspired. We’re excited to share the adventure as we move closer to construction in the fall!

Look forward to connecting soon,

Robert and Monica Fortunato