Bag_or_Tag

Howdy, I'm in a little town about 13 miles north of Lake Tahoe in California. Our Little League season is only about a month long, usually because there's so much snow on the ground that we have to wait until at least May for the fields to melt. I've been umpiring for about 5 years. I did it for three when I was a teenager, then took a break for a while and picked it back up last year. I love being behind the plate and calling the younger kids (Minors/Majors). As my dad (who also umped) said, "the best place to watch a game is behind home plate." I joined the group because I've been having some troubles with my comprehension of the rule book. Last year I came into the season very confident and made a handful of bad calls that challenged that perception. This year I'm entering the season as humbly as possible, since I know that not all calls are going to be the right one for the situation and if you can't confer with another umpire, you just have to own it. I read in a thread that it's beneficial to work with a veteran and I can't agree more; having someone who knows the ins and outs of the game makes me better and gives me the confidence boost necessary to stand tall when all eyes are on me. Despite the chaos of being a plate umpire, it's a pretty zen place for me. But I'm opening up to calling games with field umpires. It's nice to have someone else out there who is prepared to advance the game despite the opinions from the peanut gallery. You can't make everyone happy all the time. Winter hasn't quite decided to let go of us yet. About an hour ago, there were little snow and hail flurries outside. More in the forecast for tonight. Not enough, I don't think, to force the game to be cancelled, but it should make things interesting. If there's one thing I haven't done yet, it's call a game when it's snowing. Hope to engage in some interesting conversations in the future. Yours, Bag Or Tag