Greater Ottawa Fastball League hosts annual meeting on February 26

The Greater Ottawa Fastball League will be hosting the annual league meeting on February 26 to discuss the upcoming season. The GOFL had seven teams in 2014 and one of the first topics on the agenda will be discussing the application of an eighth team to join the league.

The GOFL is a travel league and the area's best for men's competitive fastpitch softball in eastern Ontario and western Quebec.

If any other teams are interested in joining the GOFL for 2015, they can contact fastball@fitzroyharbour.com for more information.

Softball Competition - Development Coaching Clinic in Toronto

Softball Competition-Development Clinic (East)

Event runs 6 February, 2015 — 12 April, 2015

Toronto, ON

DESCRIPTION

Softball’s Competition - Development Clinic is the workshop that replaces Level 3 Technical in the old NCCP. This context focuses on coaches working with athletes who are in the Train to Train and Train to Compete stages of Softball’s Long-Term Player Development model. These athletes/teams are competing at the U16, U18, U21 and Senior Canadian Championships, at the Canada Summers Games and at Junior World Championships. This context is also the minimum requirement for coaches to apply for National Team coaching positions. The training workshops involve both softball-specific training modules offered over two weekends of training and generic multi-sport modules offered through the designated provincial/territorial organization responsible for NCCP training.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE

Coaches who have the following NCCP training or certification are eligible to participate:

• Level 2 certified or higher in old Levels NCCP in Softball
• Softball Competition – Introduction Trained in new NCCP
• Softball Competition – Introduction Certified in new NCCP

Coaches with no or little prior NCCP training or certification may be eligible to participate. Please contact Lise Jubinville at Softball Canada (contact info below) to discuss prior to applying. The following criteria will be considered:

• Current or former National Team player
• Coaches with extensive coaching experience in elite softball at the national level.
• Player with extensive playing experience at the national level or international level.

APPLICATION

To apply to participate in Softball Canada’s Competition – Development training, please complete the attached application form and email it to Lise Jubinville at Softball Canada (contact info below). Successful applicants will be notified ASAP after receipt of application form.

SOFTBALL-SPECIFIC TRAINING

What:
Softball Canada in partnership with Softball Ontario will host the softball-specific training portion of our Competition – Development context. The softball-specific training for the Competition – Development context consists of two weekends of training. Coaches are required to attend both scheduled weekends of training. Completion of the softball-specific training for the Competition – Development will give the coach an NCCP status of Competition – Development In-Training status. The coach will then need to complete the generic multi-sport modules to receive the Competition – Development Trained status. Participants will be directed on how to complete the evaluation process to receive the Competition – Development Certified status during the training workshop.

When:

• Competition – Development Weekend #1
  • Friday, February 6, 2015 - The clinic will start Friday night at 6:30 pm until 10:00 pm at Sport Alliance Ontario Building (3 Concorde Gate, Toronto, Ontario, M3C 3N7)
  • Saturday, February 7, 2015 -  -  The clinic will start at 9:00 am and go until 5:30 pm at Seneca College
  • Sunday, February 8, 2015 -  – The clinic will start at 9:00 am and go until 5:30 pm at Sport Alliance Ontario Building (3 Concorde Gate, Toronto, Ontario, M3C 3N7)
  • The topics to be covered in the first training weekend are: Performance planning and practice planning, skill analysis, mental preparation, team building, advanced hitting, baserunning, leadership and coaching philosophy, and advanced strategy.
• Competition – Development Weekend #2
  • Friday, April 10, 2015 - The clinic will start Friday night at 6:30 pm until 10:00 pm. Location - TBD
  • Saturday, April 11, 2015 -  The clinic will start at 9:00 am and go until 5:00 pm - Location - TBD
  • Sunday, April 12, 2015 – The clinic will start at 9:00 am and go until 5:00 pm - Location - TBD Location - TBD
  • The topics to be covered in the second training weekend are: Scouting and game plans, throwing, fielding (infielders and outfielders), catching, performance planning and practice planning, player selection and evaluation, pitching, rules, advanced game management, and preparing for a major competition.

Note: Due to availability of facilities, the times listed above are flexible. As well, topics maybe shifted between the two weekends.
Course Fee: $500.00 (covers both weekends of training, coach workbooks, reference material, rulebook and Level 3 Technical Manual).
Note: Coaches should contact Softball Ontario to see if there are any grants or funding available to offset the cost of participation in the Competition – Development clinics.

MULTI-SPORT TRAINING

Coaches must complete six generic multi-sport modules which are offered through the Coaches Association of Ontario (www.coachesontario.ca). These modules are generic sport modules and coaches from a variety of sports may be in attendance. These courses are modular and are offered individually. In some cases, there are distance learning and home study options for each of the modules available for coaches who cannot attend the face to face training workshops. The 6 multi-sport modules are:

• Coaching and Leading Effectively (10 hours, 1.5 days)
  • After taking this module you will be able to:
    • Promote a positive image of sport, and model it to athletes and those supporting their performance
    • Deliver clear messages and explanations when communicating with athletes and their supporters;
    • Identify opportunities to interact with all athletes and use feedback to improve and correct performance and behaviour.
• Leading Drug Free Sport (3.5 hours)
  • After taking this module you will be able to:
    • Fully understand and explain the consequences of using banned substances in sport
    • Educate athletes about drug-testing protocols at major competitions;
    • Encourage athletes to safeguard their sport values and take greater responsibility for their personal actions;
    • Apply the NCCP Ethical Decision-Making Model to your coaching as it relates to keeping your sport and athletes drug-free
• Managing Conflict (4.5 hours)
  • The Managing Conflict module will allow you to:
    • Identify common sources of conflict in sport;
    • Determine which individuals or groups are most likely to find themselves in situations involving conflict;
    • Learn important skills that will help you prevent and solve conflict resulting from misinformation, miscommunication or misunderstanding;
    • Develop skills that will empower you to listen and speak effectively in conflict situations while maintaining positive relationships with athletes, parents, officials and other coaches
• Performance Psychology (7 hours)
  • Completing Psychology of Performance will allow you to:
    • Help athletes learn to manage distractions and use visualization techniques to prepare themselves technically and tactically for training and competition;
    • Learn how to work with athletes or teams to identify performance and process goals related to their ability to focus on performance;
    • Learn debriefing skills that can be used to help athletes assess their performance in both training and competition.
• Developing Athletic Abilities (9 hours + 2 hour pre-task)
  • After completing the Developing Athletic Abilities module, you will:
    • Be able to implement general and sport-specific training protocols and methods to effectively develop or maintain the athletic abilities necessary for your sport;
    • Know how to apply training principles and variables to training methods that build fitness, endurance, strength, speed and sport-specific conditioning;
    • Be able to select and adapt testing and training protocols and methods for athletes training from 6 – 9 to 9 – 12 times per week.
• Prevention and Recovery (7.5 hours)
  • After taking Prevention and Recovery you will have the knowledge needed to:
    • Identify common injuries in your sport and develop appropriate prevention and recovery strategies to keep your athletes injury-free during training and competition;
    • Offer valuable information and guidance on hydration, nutrition and sleep as they relate to injury prevention;
    • Choose skills and drills that help athletes perform appropriate warm-ups and cool-downs;
    • Develop functional evaluations for an athlete’s return to play;
    • Implement recovery and regeneration techniques to help an athlete maintain or return to optimal performance post injury.

NOTE: If not already completed through previous NCCP training, the completion of Make Ethical Decisions (MED) training and the associated online evaluation for the Competition – Development context is required for certification.
It is recommended that the multi-sport modules be completed before a coach attends the softball-specific Competition-Development training workshops but it is not required. However, they are required for certification. These elements can be completed at any time and are offered in all provinces/territories. For information on attending a Competition – Development Multi-Sport Module or completing the modules by home study, contact the provincial/territorial organization responsible for coaching education in your respective province/territory.

EVALUATION

To achieve Competition – Development Certified status, a coach will need to successfully complete the evaluation process for Competition Development which will include:

• Softball-Specific Competition – Development Evaluation:
  • Submission of a Coaching Portfolio with completion of various tasks
  • On-Field Evaluation of a practice
  • On-Field Evaluation of a game
  • Completion of the Softball Canada Level 1 Umpire Exam with 70% or better
• On-line evaluations offered by the Coaching Association of Canada of:
  • Make Ethical Decisions for the Competition – Development context
  • Managing Conflict
  • Leading Drug Free Sport

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

For more information or to ask questions about the Softball Competition – Development Clinic pilot, please contact:
Lise Jubinville
Softball Canada
Manager – LTPD & Coaching Services
(B) 613-523-3386, Ext. 3108/(F) 613-523-5761
ljubinville@softball.ca
www.softball.ca

Get in the Game Symposium in Toronto

GET IN THE GAME 2015

TORONTO, ONTARIO – Softball Ontario is proud to welcome back the Get in the Game Symposium on Saturday February 28, 2015 at the Sport Alliance Building in Toronto.  The Symposium is a great opportunity for Softball Associations across Ontario to come together and work towards improving softball in Ontario.

The 2015 Symposium will feature many valuable sessions, including Softball Association Fundamental Excellence (SAFE) Star Sessions to help you complete your application; tips on managing Volunteers; a discussion on Financial Management; learn about Return to Play Protocols following a concussion, How to Promote your League; How to Plan a Perfect Practice and much more!

The Get in the Game Symposium is a great opportunity for Softball Associations to learn from each other and work together to improve our game throughout the province.

Date:       Saturday February 28, 2015
Time:       9:00 AM – 5:00 PM (Registration and Breakfast begins at  8:00 AM)   
Location:Sport Alliance Building
                3 Concorde Gate
                Toronto, ON
                M3C 3N7
Cost:       $15.00 (+HST) Ticket
                $5.00 (+HST) Parking Voucher (Parking is $12.50/day on the day of the event)
Who Can Attend?  Any Softball Association that had paid the 2014 or 2015 Local Softball Association/House League Service fee to Softball Ontario directly or through the four Member Associations.

Click here to get your 2015 Get in the Game Symposium Ticket!

If you would like to register for the Get in the Game Symposium or you have any questions, contact Joanna Stapleton via telephone at (416) 426-7150 or via email at jstapleton@softballontario.ca.  Let’s make Softball better together!

Hill United wins AAU Men's fastpitch tournament

Hill United ran the table with seven straight wins, defeating Team Marquez from Mexico in the final. Their closest competition was a 2-1 win over the NY Gremlins in the quarter-finals in which all runs were scored on solo shots.

Kanata Storm lost in the round of eight, defeated by Maracaibo from Venezuela. Javier Caballero, a member of Team Cuba, had the win while Mike Noftall and Corey Costello threw for the Storm. Kyle Ezekiel had two homers for Kanata and Ryan Kirk had one as well. Alexis Gonzalez was 4 for 4 with two homers for Maracaibo. They lost to Hill U in the semi-finals.

Kanata Storm:

Back row: Jeremy O'Reilly, Joran Graham, Adam Brown, Tony Macdonald, Mike Noftall, Corey Costello, Jason Smith, Justin Gill, Trevor Power
Front row: Jeff Lane, Ryan Kirk, Chad Costello, Ferg Griffiths, Kyle Ezekiel, Paul Maher, Cory Alkerton
Missing: Chad O'Keefe (team nutritionist)

Saturday results at AAU

At the AAU Men's Fastpitch tournament on Saturday:

Kanata Storm won two games. First off, the Storm beat Puerto Rico 7-0. Mike Noftall had the win and Corey Costello had a 2 run shot.

Kanata then beat Big John's from Buffalo, also by a score of 7-0. Corey Costello had the win. Home runs were hit by Paul Maher, Kyle Ezekiel and Jeremy O'Reilly.


Broker4Tickets won their first game 10-0 over Big Eagle Express from Oklahoma. They lost their next game 7-1 to Team Marquez and were eliminated.
Kanata Storm advance to the quarter-finals with a game Sunday morning against Maracaibo from Venezuela.

The other remaining teams are Hill United vs New York Gremlins, A1 Bombers vs Sopotocientos, and Team Marquez vs The Bar's NAFA Selects.

Saturday at the AAU

Today in the single elim playoff round at the AAU Men's fastball tournament, #12 Broker4Tickets will face the #21 Big Eagle Express, a native team from Oklahoma. #10 Kanata Storm have a game against #23 Puerto Rico.

Both games are scheduled for 11am but some wet weather appears to be pushing back start times to noon.

For a view of the complete bracket, search on Facebook.

AAU tournament update

Today at the AAU tournament in Orlando the Kanata Storm won both of their games.

Kanata beat Sopotociento from Venezuela by a score of 3-1. Mike Noftall started for Kanata and had relief from Corey Costello. Rony Jones threw for Sopoto.

Later in the afternoon, Kanata defeated Lake Simcoe Lightning 10-6. Cory Alkerton got the win in relief of Jason Smith. Chris van Volkenburg took the loss in relief of Kyle Linton. Jeremy O'Reilly had a home run and Ryan Kirk a bases loaded triple for the Storm.

Broker4Tickets lost 3-0 to Big John's Buffalo, and beat Bryan's Blackhawks 7-1.

The teams have been ranked for single elim play on Saturday and Sunday, with the Storm in the 10th seed and Broker the 12 seed.

Kanata Storm and Broker4Tickets both 1-1 after day one

Some results from the AAU Men's fastpitch tournament from Orlando.
New York Gremlins 8 Kanata Storm 1.

Jason Smith pitched 3 1/3 allowing only one run. Joran Graham threw in relief. Andrew Kirkpatrick had the win, allowing 4 hits over 6 innings. Brad Ezekiel had a grand slam for the Gremlins.

Kanata Storm 9 Universidad Nacionale (Argentina) 0.

Corey Costello had the win striking out 13 and allowing only one hit. Alan Orfano took the loss. Kyle Ezekiel had a three run homer for the Storm.

Broker4Tickets lost 2-1 in eight innings against Maracaibos from Venezuela. Bryan Newton took the loss. Broker4Tickets beat Sudbury Relics in their second game 5-2. Brad Pender had a two run homer for Broker.

Stolen: One backstop

The Central Bay Softball Association in New Zealand has a problem - somebody stole their backstop!

Check out the story in the Rotorua Daily Post.

Erie Tournament now has nine teams

Bill Hillhouse has announced the nine teams that have committed to the Erie 2015 Tournament to be held on August 1-2. It's an impressive list, including the Toronto Gators and Scarborough Force.

Also on the list is the new Northeast Drillers squad, which is composed of several players who were with Elkland Thunderbellys last year.

Full story on Al's Fastball.

AAU Tournament Pools updated - Now with SCHEDULE - REVISED AGAIN.

With some teams dropping out, the pools for the AAU Men's Fastpitch tournament in Florida next week have changed. There are now 25 teams, with five in each pool.

Broker4Tickets is now in a pool with Maracaibo of Venezuela, Bryan’s Blackhawks and Buffalo Big John's both from the US, and the Sudbury Relics.

Kanata Storm will face Lake Simcoe Lightning from the Toronto area, Sopotociento of Venezuela, Universidad Nacional de la Mantanza from Argentina...and the NY Gremlins.

Fastpitch West has all the details.

UPDATE: Al's Fastball now has the schedule posted. 

UPDATE 2: The pools are the same, but the schedule has changed - see Al's for the schedule.

I'll be onsite and will post some results here when possible. Also follow on Twitter @fitzroyfastball for updates.

Bellechasse Tournament has five teams

An update on the Bellechasse Tournament to be held June 12-14, from Al's Fastball.

They have five teams (Hill United Chiefs, New York Gremlins, Scarborough Force, Team Quebec and the USA national team) and are looking for three more.

Scott Searle stepping down as uOttawa GeeGees women's fastball coach

Scott Searle, wearer of many hats when it comes to fastball, has decided to step down from the head coaching role of the University of Ottawa GeeGees women's fastball team.

The Ontario Intercollegiate Women's Fastpitch Association (OIWFA) website has all the details.

3Cheers Pub not defending Men's National Championship

The word on Twitter a month ago was that 3Cheers Pub from Newfoundland would not be returning to the Men's Nationals to defend their championship.

There is information now in a St. John's Telegram newspaper article about the ongoing feud between Softball Newfoundland and Labrador and the 3Cheers club. It's quite an interesting story - check it out online for the full details.

Also interesting that a major daily newspaper is actually giving extensive coverage to men's fastball - which probably only would ever happened in Newfoundland.

AAU pools released - SCHEDULE NOW AVAILABLE

The pools have been released for the 28-team AAU Men's Fastpitch tournament January 22 - 25 in Orlando, Florida.

Kanata Storm is in a pool with Maccabi USA and two teams from Venezuela.

Broker4Tickets is with The Bar from Wisconsin, CPI from upstate New York and a Venezuelan team which finished 3rd at last year's event.

Full list of pool assignments on FastpitchWest. Schedule to follow soon.

UPDATE: The pool play schedule has now been released on Al's Fastball.

Gang problem in Fitzroy

Caveman came home yesterday and told us about a new development at his school: the creation of a gang with his Grade 4 "homies".

Caveman: "Daddy, we started a gang at school!"
Me: "Oh, my. Who is in this gang?"
Caveman: "Me, Jack, Hayden, Conner and our leader is Brett." (Brett is about 4'1", 50 lbs soaking wet.)
Me: "Sounds good."
Caveman: "Since Brett is our leader, I decided we should use his nickname. We are the Bretty-Boo Crew."
Mrs Fastball: "Wow, you guys sure sound dangerous."

Certified softball coach training course to be offered

Stittsville Minor Softball Association, in partnership with the Greater Kingston Softball Association and Softball Ontario will be hosting Competition Intro Coaching (certified softball coach) course. 

Competition Introduction – Softball (Coach Certification):  for coaches wanting to become a certified softball coach
 
The National Coaching Certification Program for Competition - Introduction, Softball Clinic includes*;

•        1st Weekend/What to Coach clinic 16 hours
•        2nd Weekend/How to Coach clinic 16 hours
•        Make Ethical Decisions On-Line Evaluation 2 hours (this section is completed independently by the Coach on their own timelines)
•        Preparation Time for the On-Field Evaluation Clinic- 6 hours (this section is completed independently by the Coach on their own timelines prior to submitting their application for the On Field Evaluation Clinic)
•        On-Field Evaluation Clinic-2 hours 

Dates: 
Ottawa: Feb 7th and 8th - 1st Weekend/What to Coach clinic
Location: South Carleton High School, Richmond ON

Kingston: March 28th and 29th  - 2nd Weekend/How to Coach clinic
Location:  Limestone Community Education, 164 Van Order Drive

Onsite Field Evaluation – will be held in both Ottawa and Kingston in April 2015
Cost $435 plus HST
Please contact Kelly@stittsvillesoftball.org to reserve your spot.

Expos History Spotlighted at Algonquin Speaker Series in Pembroke

from Jamie Bramburger

For those of  you interested in baseball history, specifically Montreal Expos history, an interesting speaker is coming to Pembroke

Every once in a while you hit a homerun, and Algonquin College has done that by “plating” ESPN Tonight baseball analyst and New York Times best-selling author, Jonah Keri, for its next Speaker Series presentation.

Keri, who grew up in Montreal, and graduated from Concordia University’s journalism school, has written a book on the history of the Montreal Expos. Entitled, “Up, Up and Away,” after the homerun call coined by long-time team broadcaster, Dave Van Horne, the book tells the story of the Expos unbelievable beginning and the club’s sad demise.

 

It was Montreal Mayor Jean Drapeau’s big dreams that landed his city the World’s Fair in 1967, the Olympic Games in 1976, and Canada’s first professional baseball franchise in 1969. From the beginning, the Expos was a team built with a deck of cards, but despite its ownership, management, stadium, player and financial issues, the team persisted for 35 years before being moved by Major League Baseball in 2005 to Washington, D.C.

The darkest days came in the fall of 1981 when Dodger pinch-hitter Rick Monday crushed Expos fans with a two-run homer in the ninth inning off of Expos ace Steve Rogers in the decisive fifth game of the National League Championship Series.  That homerun prevented the Expos from advancing to their first World Series, but what happened in 1994 was even more devastating.

The Expos had the most talented team in baseball, but a players’ strike in August, wiped out the playoffs and essentially was the beginning of the end for the team.  The following season, the Expos had a fire sale, trading many of their most talented players, and blowing up a club that could have been a dynasty.

As one of North America’s most accomplished baseball columnists, Keri tells the Expos story beautifully, from speaking about the challenges of fielding the first Expos line-up, the struggles to secure a new stadium that never happened, and the rampant drug issues that led to several Expos players never reaching their full potential.

It is a coup to have Keri in Pembroke as part of the Algonquin College’s Speaker Series.  It is one of only three cities he will visit on his Canadian book tour, the others being Toronto and Montreal. Even better, he will be in Pembroke on Monday, April 6^th, opening day for most Major League Baseball teams including the Toronto Blue Jays.

Tickets to hear Jonah Keri are $15 in advance and if seats are still available, $20 at the door. Keri will also have copies of his book available for purchase. For any baseball enthusiast, this Speaker Series is a must attend. Play Ball!

(Jamie Bramburger is the Manager of Community and Student Affairs at Algonquin College’s Waterfront Campus.  For more information on the Algonquin College Speaker Series, you can reach Jamie at brambuj@algonquincollege.com or at 613-735-4700, ext. 2756)               

A tough week

Condolences to former GOFLer Steve Edgerton, who had a very tough week, with the death of his mom on December 30 and his dad on January 6. Thoughts with Edgy and his family at this time.

Softball Canada fastpitch bat standards

Updated Softball Canada bat standards as of January 2015 for Men's and Women's Fastpitch:

- Any bat that appears on the ISF approved bat list and has a current ISF certification stamp (2005 only) will be accepted for play at a Softball Canada event or,

- Any bat that appears on the ASA approved bat list and has an ASA 2000 or ASA 2004 certification stamp will also be accepted for play at a Softball Canada event.

- The bat must meet the compression standards outlined by the ISF and can be tested to ensure that are in the proper range.

- The bat must still pass a visual inspection per the current Softball Canada rulebook.

Note: Slopitch bat standards may be different, but we don't care about them on this blog.

Caveman, the connoisseur

We have previously established on this blog that Caveman likes food - a lot.

A few more stories below to further reinforce this point.

Pre-game meal
This past summer, the Caveman was participating in the OASA Mites (U10) provincial tournament in Springbrook. He and Mrs Fastball were staying in Belleville, as Fitzroy Junior and I were at the Squirt (U12) select provincial tournament in Woodbridge. When Fitzroy Junior got beat out of his tournament, we went to join the Caveman in Belleville.

As I went into the hotel room on Saturday night, I asked what they had for supper that night. Mrs Fastball said "Well, your son had pizza" as she nodded to the box pictured below.

He had demolished an entire Domino's medium pepperoni, all on his own. Even for him, keeping in mind that he is nine years old and weighs 80 pounds, that's either impressive or disgusting, depending on your perspective. Perhaps not surprisingly he didn't need breakfast the next day.....

Creative Christmas breakfast 
Our family tradition is that everyone gets to choose their favourite food for breakfast on Christmas morning. Caveman once again chose pre-packaged risotto (broth-cooked creamy Italian rice dish) which for some reason he really likes. The added twist this year was his risotto-delivery system: as I came into the kitchen that morning, Caveman was tucking into a bowl of risotto, using salt and vinegar potato chips to scoop the rice and then putting each salty conglomeration into his mouth.

Rib dinner to remember
Earlier in December, the Caveman's atom house league hockey team went on a road trip to a tournament in Bradford, north of Toronto. It was exciting for the kids, staying over in a hotel, with a pool, and playing some different teams. After winning their first and losing their second, they needed a big win in their third game to have a chance to advance. The boys did indeed come through with a big win, besting their opponents 7-1 with the Caveman netting two goals.

Caveman was pretty excited about the game, and as the team gathered at Montana's Cookhouse for supper, we awaited the news to hear whether they would advance to the next round the following day or not. As the kids were seated all together, the team manager came into the restaurant and announced that they had indeed advanced to the playoff round. There was much jumping up and down on chairs, cheering and hugging by all the boys.

Caveman asked me if he was allowed to get the full-size adult rib dinner with fries. I knew he'd probably be able to eat it, so I said OK.

Not long after the meals came out, Caveman's linemate came over to me at the parents' table and said "Uh, Caveman is in the bathroom puking!" Several of the kids looked worried and many of the parents also expressed concern.

Turns out that he was so excited and scarfed down all his food so fast, it came back up just as quickly. As I went to help him, I was worried that his good day was ruined. But I didn't have to worry - he just wiped off his mouth and said "I feel better now. Can I eat that cookie for dessert?" Fairly decent "puke and rally" if you ask me.

Mmmm dessert
At our dinner table, Fitzroy Junior is a slow deliberate eater, while as you have probably guessed, Caveman is pretty much always done his supper first.

One night a couple of months ago, Caveman was done well before his older brother. He asked his mother if he could have dessert, and she said yes. He took his dishes to the sink and went off to get a frozen treat. He was somewhat quiet for a while (which often spells trouble).

When Fitzroy Junior finished his supper, he too went to get a treat. A few seconds later we hear from Fitzroy Junior "Arghh gross, yuck!" I asked what the problem was and he told me to look for myself.

As I walked over to the laundry room where we keep the freezer, I passed by the bathroom, where sat the Caveman, sitting on the toilet, naked as he will be on occasion, with the door open (as per usual) sucking on a Fudgesicle. He flashed me a big smile: "Hi Daddy!"

I had to agree with Fitzroy Junior's opinion on this one.

AAU 2015 Tournament in Orlando

The AAU Men's Fastpitch Tournament will be held January 22 to 25 at ESPN Wide World of Sports in Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. There will be some local players in attendance, including two local teams participating - Kanata Storm and Broker4Tickets.

Fitzroy Fastball blog will be on hand to report some results as they are available. (Don't tell Mrs Fastball, she thinks I am away for work.)