Camille's first year of cheerleading she was on a competition squad made up of little girls, 3rd-5th grade. Wildflower was the only school in the Antelope Valley to have competition squads so they had to compete in Bakersfield, which was about 90 miles away. There were about 8-10 teams there with which our girls competed. (Wildflower also had an older squad 6th - 8th grades which competed there and usually won.)
We had a dandy coach, lots of parental support** and excited little girls. So most Saturdays from January through April found us in Bakersfield at competitions. Our team was good, they were sharp, and they started winning! But with any competition sport there has to be winners and losers... that's just the way it works.
** Here's the proviso... not ALL of the parents understood that this was a fun sport and that if we didn't win every week it was ok! (You know it's people like these ladies who give cheerleading moms a bad name!)
Towards the end of the season our team lost a competition by a few 100th of a point. We were disappointed, but ok. All except the above unnamed moms... they appeared at school bright and early Monday morning and demanded to see the Principal. She graciously gave them an audience and listened to their ridiculous demands: They wanted the Principal to call the organization and DEMAND that they review their video tape (which they probably didn't have, only parents are that nutty!) to prove that the other team had cheated and award 1st place to our team! I'm not making this up! I worked at the school so I was privy to all of this early morning drama. These moms fumed and fussed the whole day.
In an effort to placate these moms several SANE mothers agreed to watch the video tape. When we disagreed that the other team had NOT substituted older, and therefore more talented, team members in order to cheat and win these moms argued all the more.
Finally in desperation I said to the most vocal of the two, "We've seen the video and there wasn't any swapping. We just have to accept this. You need to just stop."
She turned on me and hollered, "DO YOU WANT TO TAKE THIS OUTSIDE?"
I was momentarily stunned but then, making my best buck-toothed-ferret-face, quipped,
"Don't drive angry, don't drive angry!" 
She stuttered and spluttered, took her VHS tape and stomped out.
4 comments:
Wow! Scary auntie!! You've gotta love those parents that feel the need to protect their kids from everything....disappointments, doing their own homework, and teh consequences of their own mistakes. Hello, they've gotta learn sometime. Might as well be today eh, crazy auntie? ;)
There is not doubt about crazy parents. My son Frankie has played baseball forever. Many parents act like each game is the World Series. Parents have been banned from watching their kids play because of their own bad behavior. Sometimes I have to just laugh.
Mary
I've seen these psycho parents at Frankie's games. I have given Mary permission to slap me if I ever act like that.
How do you GET AWAY with this stuff? I guess your face made her realize just how ridiculous the whole deal was, huh?
Joanie, you are a real corker, know it??
Love Ya!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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