What To Do When Your Own Family are LA Dodger Fans

I realize I haven't been around these parts in like, two weeks, but since I (unfortunately) feel like that's been the general trend for like the last, two months, let's just skip the re-introduction and get right to it shall we?

I had some family come in from out of town this weekend for the Diamondbacks vs. Dodgers game at Chase Field and it was all kinds of fun. There was family I haven't seen in months, there was baseball, bobble heads, and there were runs. Lots of runs. 18 of them to be exact.

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I'm not mad about it.

The problem is, my family that came in from out of town are...Dodgers fans.

And I'm mad about it. I mean, I'm not mad at them per say, I just...I mean...I just really don't like the Dodgers. So when your own family becomes Dodger fans it feels like the ultimate betrayal of sorts. 

But have no fear, we will overcome. There's a few things I've learned in co-existing with my Dodger-fan family this weekend:

Rule #1: You've heard the cliche "love the sinner hate the sin," this goes for athletic teams too: love the fan, hate the fandom. You love your family cause they're your family and they're awesome and they're super fun, but you're still allowed to hate their fandom, i.e., in this case, the Dodgers. This also permits the use of extensive boo-ing, and singing Steam's Na Na Hey Hey Goodbye song when the starting pitcher gets pulled and/or when other Dodger fans start leaving because the game has clearly been decided. Love the fan, hate the fandom.

Rule #2: Set boundaries on your s**t talking. A good rule of thumb might be no serious jabs unless you're inside the ballpark. This means all s**t talking commences once your ticket has been scanned and you've turned those turn-styles, and it all ceases when you step outside of the gates and those friendly ushers hand you your coupon for a free cookie at Subway. Although this one might be hard to enforce when Nate's in tow cause he's kind of an asshole like that and just never stops talking crap. He wanted me to text my cousin today to let him know the Diamondbacks beat the Dodgers again. I mean, it happened but I wasn't about to rub it in again. That 18 runs is probably still stinging. But for the record, it did happen. We beat them again today. For the record.

Rule #3: When you start to feel bad for them when they're getting pounded 18-7, just remember:

 Poolgate 2013. Never forget. Never feel bad.

 ...Ignore the mer-man with a coconut bra. I don't understand either.

Rule #4: Just remember this is America and we value diversity.

It's easy to dislike LA and the Dodgers for many reasons, but one of the reasons to love it is that it's only a five hour drive away and your family can come out for a weekend of baseball and fun. I miss them already. But not the Dodgers. Just my family. Just wanted to be clear on that.

Go Dbacks!