Jessie: In Northern New England where the birds are merrily flitting about in the trees!
This month our theme is madness. So, of course, I thought of March Madness and all the sporting fervor that entails. We are also continuing to celebrate Edith’s release yesterday of her latest, A Case for the Ladies. Tell me, ladies, are you a sports fan? If so, what do you love? If not, are there sports lovers in your lives?
Julie: Huge congratulations, Edith! I am so happy that A Case for the Ladies is out in the world. I am a sports fan of sorts. I adore baseball. Especially the Red Sox. I like tennis. I’ll watch basketball and hockey. I don’t mind being in the room when most sports are being played, but baseball is the only game I seek out. Though as a Red Sox fan, this looks like another tough year.
Edith/Maddie: I am an adjunct baseball fan, mostly getting it by osmosis from Hugh, who is an avid Sox fan. I don’t watch any other sports except the Boston Marathon (several years ago we both swore off the madness of professional football with its sanctioned concussions). But with my new book officially out yesterday, I must address the Red Sox in 1926. Dot Henderson spots some men in Red Sox uniforms on the subway platform one morning in A Case for the Ladies, and later in the day she and Amelia Earhart drive by Fenway Park and hear the roar of the crowds. And, yes, I checked the home game schedules for late July that year!
Barb: Congratulations on the release, Edith! I don’t care for sports on TV. I’ll read through games unless something particularly exciting is happening. But I’ll attend almost any kind of game–because I love the spectacle–the stadium or arena, the roar of the crowd, the people-watching, the smells of hot dogs and popcorn. Two favorites are the Red Sox at Fenway Park and the Portland Sea Dogs at Hadlock Field, but really, invite me anywhere, anytime. I love that there is a through line from Amelia Earhart to me on the streets around Fenway Park.
Jessie: Congratulations to you, Edith on the release! As for me, sports are really not an important part of my life. Since I am married to a Brazilian, soccer is acknowledged as existing. Fortunately, we only need to watch any of it every four years when the Brazilian team is playing in the World Cup. For me, the fun is in preparing snacks based on the food cultures of the teams facing off. It can be quite an experience in fusion cooking!
Liz: Congrats on the release, Edith! I am SO not a sports fan. I have no interest whatsoever in watching or going to any games…I know, I’m kind of a wet blanket about this!
Sherry: Edith congratulations. I love how hard you worked on this book! That is so cool that you incorporated Fenway into your book. There’s nothing like watching the Red Sox play at Fenway. My husband is big soccer fan so we watch a lot of soccer.
Edith/Maddie: Thank you, dear Wickeds!
Readers, are you a sports fanatic?
The Wickeds 
I used to be. Love watching the Yankees when Derek Jeter was playing. Love watching basketball when Michael Jordan was playing. Now, not so much. But I’ll watch the Super Bowl for the commercials and half-time show. I’ll watch the Olympics sporadically.
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NOT a March Madness basketball fan at all. In high school, I played basketball. It was “my” sport. But I don’t enjoy watching it.
I bleed black and gold for my Pittsburgh Steelers, although I don’t watch it as much as I used to. Those nailbiter, close games are bad for my heart! And I haven’t followed Pirates baseball since the 70s when Willie Stargell and Roberto Clemente reigned supreme. I guess I’m a fair-weather Pittsburgh sports fan.
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I lost my oomph for football when Tommy left, although I still root for the Patriots. I like being at live games, like softball or my husband’s granddaughters basketball games, but other than that, it’s not a big part of my life.
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Family is the only way I go out to live games!
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Congratulations and continues success on the release of A CASE FOR THE LADIES!
No sport fanatics here. We do on occasion catch some or all of a football game when the Kansas City Chiefs or a baseball game if the Kansas City Royals are playing. Hubby is from just south of Kansas City. 🙂
2clowns at arkansas dot net
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That sounds like my World Cup experience!
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Yes I am a sports fan.
I coached youth league basketball for 25 years. And I keep track of the various teams I like in all sorts of sports both college and pro, men and women.
Basketball, football, baseball. I have never been a huge fan of hockey but I do pay more attention when the Bruins are good and the playoffs get going. I follow college football and basketball as well.
Since I’m not coaching anymore, I will admit that the fire has settled down a bit. I don’t get to watch quite so many games on TV lately but I’m always reading about the teams I follow online and in magazines.
Sports Illustrated’s website is a daily visit at least a couple times a day.
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It does sound like you are a fan, Jay!
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Women’s sports mostly. College & professional. Basketball, softball, WNBA, soccer, professional tennis (women & men). I don’t particularly like watching college tennis bc of the way it covered. I’d watch it live. I don’t attend the events like used to in my younger days.
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I can imagine that the way things are filmed would make a difference in the experience!
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I love basketball and so does my husband. March is a BIG month in our house. I love books that use sports in their stories. Harlan Coben comes to mind.
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You must have a lot of fun together if you are both fans!
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As far as sports, I have always enjoyed watching Hawkeye basketball and football. With Iowa native Caitlin Clark playing basketball for the Lady Hawks and breaking scoring records, women’s sports have gotten a lot more attention. She’s a great role model for all the adoring little girls ( and boys) who admire her. I just love the sold out crowds she brings and all the attention to women’s sports.
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How inspiring! You almost have me convinced to attend a game!
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I was always a NASCAR fan and I’ve been following the Iditarod for awhile (just had a winner yesterday). I’ll watch the soccer World Cup when my team plays. I happened to be in the hosting country years back and it’s hard not to get into it, plus we got to see a lot of special attractions dedicated to it that we otherwise wouldn’t have.
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The Iditarod sounds like something that would be fun to watch, at least from the comfort of the couch!
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I used to be a big sports fan. When COVID shut everything down, I realized how less stress I had in my life without sports. With the exception of my beloved Indy 500 and the Tour de France, though. I still love those events!
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I used to be. I loved going to the games and the camaraderie of watching in a group. But I’m tired of having my heart torn out year after year. Of course, every season I say I’m only going to watch from a distance and every year there’s my heart, trampled on the floor.
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Aww, that sounds dreadful!
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Not baseball or football although I was a soccer fan when Miami had a home team (the Toros). I come from a family that loved horses and horse racing. When I lived in Florida, my dad and I went to Gulfstream Park frequently. I haven’t been there since it changed to a casino and racing venue – what was that 20 years ago? Hum. Yes, I know can be a cruel sport, but that’s more on the human intervention than the equine one. When I was in college I exercised race horses at a local training track.. My other favorite sport is another that I only enjoy in person. Open wheel auto racing. Someday I’ll make it to the Indy!
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You sound like an enthusiast!
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Congratulations Edith on the release of A Case for the Ladies!
My husband and I like watching baseball and hockey games live and on television. He cheers for Boston Red Sox and so, I do as well. We both are avid Montreal Canadian fans, we get our hearts broken a lot lately. We travelled to Boston several years ago and took in two tours of Fenway and saw two games as well. WOW! What a ball park! The tours were well done and the guides very knowledgeable. We both enjoyed our visit and the games were great!
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Broken hearts seem to be a theme for sports fans!
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Thanks so much, Rose.
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I will turn on sports on my TV and then “watch” with the sound down while I go about reading or doing whatever I need to do on the internet. It’s nice company. And I’ll check in on the scores every so often.
The only game I go out of my way to attend is the local professional ultimate Frisbee team. I go to at least one game each season. The rest? Not interested enough to pay and fight the crowds to go.
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I can see how it would be lively company, Mark!
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Congratulations, Edith!
I was never a sports fan until about nine years ago. My older adult son had been learning the finer points of baseball from a friend and wanted me to watch games on tv with him. He would explain what was happening, why certain strategies were used, and tell me things about the players. Now I’m a fan of the Washington Nationals.
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What a sweet memory and experience with your son!
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Thank you, Miriam. What a perfect person to learn from!
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Baseball has always been a strong interest for my entire family. I grew up going to Fenway Park with my parents, aunts and uncles. When I was a kid, my parents always took me there because they could not drink their beer in the stadium. My parents would buy me one coke after another because they wanted my paper cups to disguise their beers! By the fourth inning, I was bloated from drinking so much coke!
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What a memory to have!
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I’m a sports fan when it comes to watching my grandsons play soccer. I loved to watch them play on neighborhood club teams when they were in grade school and now they play on their high school team.
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I bet they love your support!
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As long as I have been with Hubby Dearest and before we were married, he loved all kinds of sports and sports watching. In HS, I went to every football because that is what you do in HS, and you get a big mum if you have a date. But I was not really into it. Then I went to the University of Texas for my degree and only went to a couple of games though we got in cheaply and I got to see John Wayne in person at the game when we played USC, and he was filming “The Alamo.” But in 2006, I started watching UT Longhorn football. My husband asked me why and I said I don’t know, but I love it. He said, “Well you picked a good year to do this.” We won that year. And I have been a total college football fan since then and the NFL also. I love football. We also watch golf and Nascar. Sometimes basketball during March madness. But college football is the best. We have always liked boxing and used to go to the Golden Globes boxing matches which were fabulous. We also went to Track and Field and Boxing at the 1996 US Olympics in ATL in person. That was a fabulous experience. My mother loved tennis. Once when we flew into town to be with her, we had to take a taxi to her house because Wimbledon was on, and she would not miss it. She loved Ivan Lendl.
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What a lot of sports in your life!
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And I was never good in any sports. When I went to the University of Texas in Austin, I had to take a swimming test. I took swimming as a child in Harlingen, Texas for several years. But I was no Esther Williams. Anyway, I get in an Olympic size pool which I had never been in before and was told to swim to the other end, swim back on my back with whatever that stroke was and then dog paddle for 5 minutes. She kept asking me if I was okay. I made it. Then I did not have to take swimming. I probably should have taken it anyway so I would look like Esther Williams, but all I could think of was green hair as I am a blonde and chlorine does that.
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