How to be a Fan

To become a fan you must first grow several blades all at slight angles so they will cut smoothly through the air. Then you must install a motor and attach yourself to a ceiling. When a slightly hot or mildly muggy day comes along, somebody will turn you on. 

To be a fan of the other type takes a lot more. For me, to be a fan is to really like something so much that you are willing to devote time and energy to it above anything else at a certain time. You can be a fan of really anything, but for my working definition I am going to focus specifically on sports fans.

My dad always used to tell me as a little girl that he was never upset that his first-born child was a girl because he treated me just the same as he would a little boy. While my mom would spend hours in Target and Toys 'R' Us picking out dolls in pink dresses for me, my dad was planning "daddy-daughter dates" that consisted of teaching me how to play street hockey and have a strong handshake. A lot of the time I spent with my dad as a kid consisted of going to sporting events. Luckily for me, growing up in Tampa in the 90s meant that the Tampa Bay Lightning and Tampa Bay Devil Rays (they've since dropped the "Devil" in their name for political correctness) were just horrible enough that lower level season tickets were really affordable. Little did he know, my dad was teaching me how to become a sports fan. He had a few rules that he always reminded me of that determined what made a good fan to him.

1. A good fan always roots for the professional team of the city in which he currently lives.

Sure, you can hold that childish love of the Red Sox games you went to in Fenway as a kid if you grew up in Boston. But, if you've lived in a place longer than a few years and you're planning on staying, you better start loving your local team. You can't have lived in Miami for 10 years and still root for the Giants to win against the Dolphins. 

2. A good fan always loves his team in the best of times and the worst of times. 

This is a basic rule of sports fandom. I'm lookin' at you, bandwagoners. 

3. A good fan never forgets his Alma Mater.

Granted, this rule only applies to the fans that have attended college and those who haven't still have the the right to root for whichever college team has the prettier colors. What really matters is for those of us that have been to college to never ever root against your own team. It doesn't matter where your parents went to school or where your kids are studying. Rivalries are especially important for this rule. You can't root for your rival no matter what. If you went to UF, the word Seminole should make you shudder. If you go to UNC, you should know the correct way to spell dOOk. When you chose your school, you choose your team for life. There is only one exception to this rule: if you have multiple degrees from multiple institutions. Generally, my father always said you should go with undergraduate. 

These are the simple rules my dad taught me for being a good sports fan. They have been really engrained in me, and I even have instilled them in some of my friends. For me simply following these rules is what makes a good sports fan.