... is one of the last things I heard at the end of my very first indoor refereeing shift of the winter. It has been nothing short of an extremely long fall for me. Between college and high school assignments I've done upwards of 60 games, and honestly there is only so much someone can mentally take. I knew I had no business doing games this weekend considering I am just coming off of the season I had; what ia success it was. I was supposed to work the Big East final, but as UConn was one of the teams I was not able to work it since I did go there. So, instead I got to hang out with good friends all weekend, eat great food, drink good booze, head into the city, and create new memories I will have for the rest of my life. Then I got to work on the America East men's soccer final that Sunday. A couple of high school playoff games later, I figured my season was done, but I got a phone call that they needed me to be on the crew at Brown for their first round NCAA playoff game against Farifield (which, if it wasn't for a class L playoff game Wethersfield v. Wilton it would have been the wackiest game I have ever seen). What an honor it was to get an assignment like that, but then I was given the responsibility of being the referee for one of the 4 regional finals/sectional final/elite 8 matches around the country. After a couple of upsets which made it possible for the games to be in the area, it was Steven Institute of Technology v. Montclair State. Relatively uneventful and without controversy, unlike some of the games the weeks before, my crew and I (pictured above) did a great job. What an honor and pleasure it was to work that game, to know that the work I am doing and the guys like me are doing isn't going unnoticed. It is interesting to see the reactions of people when they feel threatened just because you are new and having success. I can only hope that I NEVER retain that quality from my superiors. It is also interesting to see the "friends" you have that you never knew you had. They seem to come with success, just like a bucket of crabs, the first one who tries to get out will not make it becasue he is getting pulled back by the guy behind him. There are always people out there who want to see you fail because they feel maybe they can do the job better, or just that you shouldn't be doing the job in the first place. We cannot let those people bring us down. Do the right thing no matter who it will make happy or who it will upset. It is going to be an interesting time coming up for me as it is back to school in January and I begin my road to becoming a National Referee. It is time for me to be selfish and look out for me and what I want and what is going to make me happy. Of course, those who really matter to me and who are close to me I will look out for them, but I am the only one who is going be successful, no one is going to do that for me.
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