Flip Flopaholic: Why I like Boston . . .

PJ is often perplexed over why I cheered for the Celtics over the Lakers and then yesterday, for the Red Sox over the Giants. I explained that I was born in New Hampshire (not big enough to have its own sports franchises, but close enough to Boston to cheer for theirs). But he also knows I wasn't there very long . . . not even five years to be exact. So it prompted me to examine why I like Boston (Red Sox shirt not visible in photo below, but it's there along with Red Sox hat).

I cheer for Boston mainly because of pride. I'm proud that Lola (my grandmother) migrated to the US from the Philippines to work as a teacher at the University of New Hampshire. She worked hard (through freezing cold winters among other adversities) and successfully petitioned for my family to come to the US and as a result, I was born in New Hampshire - so cheering for Boston reminds me of her success. I also have an older brother that's a die hard Boston fan. He played sports and was inspiration for me to play sports (even though I wasn't very good at it). He is nine years my senior and was old enough to even coach one my girls basketball teams. While he was at UCLA, he drove in LA traffic to coach a bunch of 11 year olds where it wasn't uncommon to have a game ending score of 12-8 (this is basketball mind you, not baseball). I've seen pictures of him making it to state championships for baseball and even remember watching him in games when we moved to California. Needless to say, I admire my brother tremendously and am proud to cheer for the same teams he grew up liking. And, of course, it's fun to have a little rivalry in the family once in awhile - it keeps things fun, especially in a state full of transplants!