In which we gripe

I guess there is some world where really really really wanting to go to a tournament is a valid warrant, but I tend to be more of the really really really registering in a timely manner and providing a lot of good judging and following directions and offering to help out if the moment arises as a much more valid warrant overall. I keep sending out messages about Penn (which, as has become perfectly clear, is thriving on the new weekend) and people who are SOL because they registered a few days ago have come at me from all directions begging for non-existent slots. There are a number of things I can’t do. I can’t create more rooms. I can’t play favorites (in either direction; just because I hate your intestines I can’t punish your teams and keep them out). I can’t veer from my process, which is open registration, wait two weeks, let everyone in on an equitable basis, then let in more as more slots arise, which they mostly never do.

I will admit to playing a small game of favorites, but I think it’s a legitimate one. I do favor schools that I consider “friends of the tournament.” If you’ve been sending big contingents year after year, I’m going to try to help you out if at all possible. I’m thinking now of a couple of schools at Princeton; they’re there year after year, and they are, in other words, good customers, and one treats one’s good customers with a little special care. I’m also a little more lenient with newcomers, provided they ask for and accept guidance. I was once a newcomer too, and one needs instruction in conquering the ins and outs of the activity. As a general rule, neither of these modes of favoritism literally results in more slots. It will, however, result in more patience, more explanatory emails, more resolution on my part to help if I can find a way.

As for schools that bring 50 teams from down the street and refuse to provide any judging, even though they have money up the wazoo and a hundred years of alums to draw from, and they expect to be treated like royalty because they’ve been around forever? Oh, yeah. That’s happening.

And no, I can’t take responsibility for your screwing things up. Someone wrote me that their entry had disappeared inexplicably, and what was I going to do about it. What I did was look it up in the log to see that this person had, in fact, deleted that entry. When I pointed this out, the message changed to, oh, I did that by mistake, and what was I going to do about it.

I like the fact that CP has put a lot of shenanigan-tracking tools into the system. I am not an idiot. I wasn’t born yesterday. In fact, I was born so long ago, yesterday hadn’t even been invented.

Oh, well. I just waved the final lap flag at Penn, warning people that fees will be set on Sunday. That always scares up a few of the usual suspects. Hence this post, written after a full dose of bitter pills. What can I say? I’m just reacting here. You would too, if you ran as many tournaments, with as many of the same results. It’s human nature, and even I fall prey to it.

In my next life I’m going to be a cyborg.

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