28 March, 2017

MN Monday #7 - "Goodtime" Softball

I was _never_ good at baseball.  I played T-Ball and Little League for years as a kid and it was just not ever going to work out.  I never swung at the ball when I was up to bat because it was going so fast (!) and I was convinced that if I did swing, the ball would hit me.  And I always played in a boring part of the outfield, so I was more likely to be looking down at a dandelion or bee than looking up to see the infrequent, random pop fly headed my way.  Not a good fit.

But long about middle school, I forget precisely when, softball became an option.  A larger, slower that wasn't nearly so threatening?  Sign me up!  :)  So I played several years of that league and then when I was in high school, I started playing in the church league on my parish team.  Well "playing" is probably a strong word.  I would be at the games and _maybe_ see some field time in Right Field where not much ever happened.  But it was still fun to be on the team and I learned a lot.

Fast forward several years and I arrive in MN in the summer of 1997.  By way of a very random and happy coincidence (another story for another time), I connected with a friend of a friend who played in a softball league here - The Twin Cities Goodtime Softball League (TCGSL) - and joined up for some informal fall-ball which was a lot of fun.  Minneapolis is home to one of the nation's oldest and largest gay softball leagues.  The story is that a team of firefighters and cops challenged a team of the gays to a softball game, only the those wonderful homos won.  So some of them figured, why not start our own league and so they did.  It started in 1979 with just a handful of teams.  Now there are almost 40 teams spread across multiple divisions.  And more than just an athletic outlet.  For all of us it has been the source of support, friendship, love, chosen family, activism, pride and many other intangibles.

I played my first full summer season in 1998.  I put my name on the league's list of players looking for teams and got "picked up" by the Lonestars, but since there were only 3 returning players on that team it was more like reconstitution than anything.  I played on the Lonestars for 10 seasons.  I specialized in Left Field and learned how to be a good one.  I coached the team for a season and didn't enjoy it much so I was happy to let someone else do it.  I put a lot of time into that team and made a few really great friends, but then it dissolved out from under me.

When the Lonestars went under, one of those great friends who had moved on to another team threw me a lifeline.  Larry introduced me to the Slammers and they became more than a new team - a new family.  Because that's the team's specialty - family.  It's a team that's been around for a long time and the motto is "Once a Slammer, Always a Slammer."  Folks all over the league have been part of the team at some point and everyone has a special place in their heart for the team and the love.  Coach TiTi and all the people associated with that team set a high bar for being good to each other.  I adore everyone that I played with.  They come to play fun ball.  And don't let the wigs or heels fool you, they place serious ball.  Dirt in the Skirt.

A couple years ago, the Slammers family had grown to the point that some dividing was necessary.  So one large team and extended family became three - The Slammers, The Flight, and my new team Scorgasm.  Many of the same people plus new friends.  We're having fun and doing our best to play better and harder.  But now I have to get used to being one of if not the oldest person on the team...  :\

So as I get ready to start my 20th season as a member of this league, I can't help but think how much emptier my life would be without the people and experiences I've had as a part of this wonder group of people.  Gay, straight, bi, trans - everyone is represented and welcomed and has a place.  Rank novice to seasoned veteran, teenager still living at home to retired person wanting to be active - there's a spot for you on a team.  The Sunshine Fund to help those going through difficult places in their lives.  And so much much more.

I've been enriched by the efforts of generations of dedicated people who worked to build the rich organization that exists today and I'm proud to be counted a part of it.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Sweet post, and thanks for the shout out! xo

John said...

:*
*hug*