I signed up to play in a volleyball league in the Marina. Yeah, I know. It doesn't get more yuppie than that. In fact, there's an actual sign by the fields that says "No Volleyball Before 6 PM," a sign I'm sure one doesn't see in the Bayview.

Anyways, now that I'm playing again I once again find myself having to deal with the fact I have some issues with some of the standard team rules of volleyball. The main one being the idea that the person in the center front is the setter. If you get the first hit on the ball, you're supposed to tap it to the setter so they can set it to someone else. And if you're the setter, you have to get the second tapped ball and set it up for somebody else. The problem that I have with the rule is that it seems like a totally stupid rule. Or, let's put it this way, if you're playing on a really good team and everyone can control the ball, it makes sense. Shouldn't it be if you have a reasonable chance of making a good hit across the net shouldn't you take it? Isn't that the whole point of volleyball?

See, if you're playing on a team that either sucks (which I've played on) or was good but not great, it makes no sense. Like on this one team, we had a few people who were lousy setters. Since I was getting harshed on for not hitting it to the setter, I gave up on what would have been totally easy shots over the net and sent it to the setter, only to watch them totally biff the shot. After a few perfect chances were blown by the setter, I stopped hitting it to the setter, which brought shouts from my teammates. "You're supposed to hit it to the setter!" But aren't we supposed to win?

And if you're the setter, you're supposed to go after every second ball. Even if it's all the way to the back corner and way to the left and you're lying on the ground because you've tripped on your shoelaces. So everyone kind of stands around and wait for you to make the move or at least yell "need help!" So yeah, I could yell "need help!" everytime I need help but if I'm facing the wrong direction and the ball is about ten feet over my head and to the side, shouldn't it be obvious that I need help? Do I have to state the obvious?

But the thing I hate most about all this is I seem to be the only who thinks all of this is stupid. Which probably explains a lot of my life, actually.