Fanhood

Casual baseball fans need not apply for citizenship in Red Sox Nation. When it comes to baseball, there are no more educated, dedicated, or passionate fans in the world, as those of Red Sox Nation.

I have always been a Red Sox fan despite long durations away from New England (like most of my life), however, my father was a fan, so I became one too. I've never changed my "fanhood", despite living in NY, NJ, or OH. Being a fan means that you are a fan no matter where you live or how the team is doing.

New intel indicates that my brother-in-law, whom now lives in NYC, is a new Yankees fan (I think formelry an Indians fan). His rationale for choosing the Yankees as a team, despite now living there, is so unfounded that I won't bother to share it. It seems that these days, the new type of fan, will flip flop teams based on how a team is performing or based on liking a paticular player. How else could you explain young kids wearing jerseys and hats of players and teams that are clear across the country.

This mediocre "fanhood" has started me thinking about how I keep my son from flip flopping (also known as "John Kerrying") allegiance or worse yet, becoming a Yankees fan, since we live in NJ. Think of the peer pressure and the ridicule that he could get at school for aligning with Boston. I guess there are several methods that I could implore, including buying him so much Red Sox paraphernalia, that he would just be brainwashed into liking the Sox or threaten to send him to military school if he does not pledge his allegiance to the Sox.

In the end I will just continue to be a good fan, and try to teach my son about the proper type of "fanhood".