Swimming in socks

April 15, 2016 12:37 PM

From Joe Posnanski's blog, about his daughter Elizabeth.
posted by dfm500 (17 comments total)

So good.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 1:14 PM on April 15, 2016 [1 favorite]

That's a great story. And good job on Elizabeth for not kicking the sock-putter in the face, as I would have done.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 1:45 PM on April 15, 2016 [2 favorites]

That was pretty much what I needed to end my week on a happy note. Thanks!
posted by iminurmefi at 1:45 PM on April 15, 2016 [2 favorites]

Jesus christ there needs to be some sort of alert system to warn parents that they might start randomly crying at work if they click a link.
posted by teh_boy at 1:55 PM on April 15, 2016 [7 favorites]

Such suspense! Bit weepy now.
posted by Iteki at 1:57 PM on April 15, 2016

That's a great story. I was a swimmer for several years and also didn't ever go to meets for similar reasons, but I got so much out of it. I'm very grateful that I didn't have the type of parents I'd see at practice and meets (I did go to watch and cheer and my sister was an all-star so there was no avoiding them) who pushed so hard and yelled so loud. Some of those kids didn't go home happy after swimming.

This is a great line: It was complete unexpected and completely ridiculous and completely pointless. And she was the hero.
posted by Clinging to the Wreckage at 2:00 PM on April 15, 2016 [3 favorites]

That was a nice read! A little friendly, sporting competition can be good, healthy fun. That's a much nicer story than the one I've got about the parents on the sidelines at my son's soccer game. Poor kid takes after me: no killer instinct at all. My daughter on the other hand will gleefully crush anyone. :)
posted by saulgoodman at 2:02 PM on April 15, 2016

there needs to be some sort of alert system to warn parents that they might start randomly crying at work if they click a link.

I just assume that everything that says "Daughter" or "Son" in the title is going to make me fountain no matter what YMMV.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 2:12 PM on April 15, 2016 [4 favorites]

And good job on Elizabeth for not kicking the sock-putter in the face, as I would have done

I think the sock-put is an Olympic event, isn't it? I swear I remember something like that.
posted by Naberius at 2:21 PM on April 15, 2016 [3 favorites]

That was nice.

It reminded me of a couple who have been good friends of mine since high school. Both parents played varsity basketball in high school and then co-ed softball through their 30's and were on a coed volleyball team with me for a few years before they had kids.

They always encouraged their kids to play sports starting with T-ball, but never pushed it. The son stopped playing sports in junior high so he had more time to fish and hunt. The daughter played varsity softball, volleyball and basketball in high school and they drove her all over the west so she could play those sports. Now she is in college on a basketball/softball scholarship and her parents still drive thousands of miles a year to watch her play.

But they never were the pushy sports parents. The best testament to that was when their daughter was interviewed by a newspaper before her senior year state basketball tournament and said, "I don't score a lot of points because I'm better at setting up other players to make a basket. My parents taught me that it's about the team, not me."
posted by ITravelMontana at 3:01 PM on April 15, 2016 [5 favorites]

That's a great story.

I remember during water polo hell week we had to put on full clothing including shoes and jump in and start swimming. I don't recall any personal triumphs.
posted by Huck500 at 3:07 PM on April 15, 2016 [1 favorite]

I don't know about the Olympics, but apparently the sock-put is an event at llama shows.

I have an 11 year old daughter who loves to swim and this pushed a lot of buttons for me. Can't wait to show it to her.
posted by TedW at 3:39 PM on April 15, 2016

When I saw "Swimming in socks" I visualized someone in a huge container full of stockings, kind of like Uncle Scrooge swimming in his money depository.

Too bad for me; it really meant "swimming while wearing socks". Boring!
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 4:38 PM on April 15, 2016 [1 favorite]

One of my best memories is from summer camp. I was 11 and the girls had a swim meet versus the boys. Somehow we won most of the races in that cold lake, including my race and I so vividly remember what it felt like when all the other girls gathered around me celebrating and laughing and congratulating me. This piece made me relive that all over again.

I bet Elizabeth will always remember the sock race. What a nice piece of writing.
posted by Kangaroo at 5:02 PM on April 15, 2016 [3 favorites]

This guy is awesome and I loved this piece.

That said, I agree with his daughter: why must everything be a competition?! It's why I hated sports as a kid -- and still don't much care for them.
posted by wenestvedt at 5:07 PM on April 15, 2016 [3 favorites]

Poz is probably the best American sportswriter going and I love when he writes about family.
posted by ORthey at 6:13 PM on April 15, 2016 [2 favorites]

So glad to hear that his podcast is finally running regularly. Listening to the 2016 MLB picks episode now and laughing a lot!
posted by wenestvedt at 7:28 PM on April 15, 2016