In-Door Sports

With winter weather making it rare when the kids can play outside, the kids need opportunities to be active inside. Thus, I created a simple in-door batting platform where the kids could practice batting a ball. I used duct tape to attach a shelf arm (also known as a shelf support bracket) to the back side of our in-door plastic basketball hoop where the hoop is supported by an adjustable beam attached to a base. With the shelf arm about six feet high and extending out, I tied one end of a thin rope to the shelf arm while the other end of the rope hung free with this end of the rope taped to a light plastic baseball. Now the kids could take their plastic bat and whack away at the plastic baseball attached to the rope.

I thought about just buying the kids some sort of in-door batting toy, but then decided not to, not only to save money, but to teach the kids that "buying things" is not always the choice to make. It is probably true that too many kids in today's culture have developed a "I want-I want" mentality, and that as a society, we have lost the ability for "delayed gratification." At the same time, it is too simplistic to declare "consumerism" the greatest evil in American society. After all, "consumers" who buy things are an integral part of the economy. Consumers who buy make it possible for business to stay in business. Profitable businesses pay taxes that are used to fund government services. Profitable businesses also employ workers. These workers then can pay their bills and feed their families. At the same time, these employed workers are not seeking unemployment assistance which takes away resources from the government. Instead, these employed workers pay taxes that, as mentioned, fund needed government services.

I guess moderation is key when it comes to being a consumer. Buying is an economic activity that can serve the greater economic good, but excessive buying is bad (e.g., real-estate bubbles in the economy and misguided "I want" values in the person) and no buying is also bad (e.g., an economic recession and a "money is so precious I must hoard it" mentality). I guess one needs to be a moderate consumer.

Back to in-door batting. The kids had fun for a while with this new thing. For that, I am grateful.