2018 in Review!!!!

January

• I get a Head Ref thing right

February

• "I'll apply to this tournament, but I'll never get in."

March

• Another year, another parade

April

• The beginning of Derby Insanity

May

• Sounds like something out of a bad dream, but it's not

June

• "I'll apply to this tournament, but I'll never get in."

July

• "I'll apply to this tournament, but I'll never get in."

August

• Still no idea where I got that simile

September

• Started wearing a mouthguard again

October

• Derby Officiating, the Second Generation

November

• Pockets are not necessarily a good thing

December

• "Profane, abusive, and obscene language is unsporting and degrading to the sport, but should not always be penalized. If said language was audible to the audience or via broadcast, [the Jammer Referee] is penalized."

So yeah!  2018!  Yehaw!  Let's take a look at my goals for this year and see how I did:

• HR a game (I've been told this will happen at least once) Happened five times, in fact, including once at ECDX!
• Go to one of the "bigger" tournaments  Got into a D1 tournament and a Continental Cup!  
• Apply for certification, if it's open Not yet, but soon.  I did get the Recognized NSO thing, though
• Do more NSOing Ten games this year; mostly scorekeeping, though I did do jam timing and liked it a lot
• Learn how to run the scoreboard Tried it for a game at which I was a fan and for half a scrimmage; nothing exploded 

I'd call that a big honkin' success.

Sooooooo......what are my goals for 2019?

• Take a big ol' step back.  I don't need to officiate every game.  I don't need to apply to every tournament.  I have a family and I do like seeing them every once in a while.  This one will be tough.  
• Part II of this: Take as little time off work as possible.  I'm a paralegal who is the only support for a sole practitioner, and while there are other people in our office who can help out if necessary, it's just a lot easier if I'm here. I took a lot of time off this year, and I kinda need to make up for it, so I can....
• 2020 Goal - Officiate a game in Australia.  Aw yiss.
• HR a sanctioned game.  This is more of a second half of 2019 goal; I'm still not 100% confident on HRing yet (though in a scrimmage this past weekend, I tried HRing from the front and I really liked doing it) and while we're encouraged to reach for the stars, I want to make sure I'm not setting myself up for a crash and burn.
• Apply for certification, if it's open.  Durrrrr.
• Be a good teacher/role model/whatever.  I'm Co-Head Referee for the 19th Wardens for 2019, and we have several newer officials who are starting out on skates.  I want to provide them with the support and training and whatnot that I received when I started as an official, because it was top-notch.

So, yeah.  71 games officiated this year (61 SO, 10 NSO) for a grand total of 241 (202 SO, 39 NSO) in my career.

Onward and upward, as they say!

whoops

THIS PAST THURSDAY NIGHT'S SCRIMMAGE:

QUEENIE realizes she has been following the wrong jammer.

QUEENIE: (very loudly) FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK