For the last 14 years, I have traveled thousands of miles. I have traveled to new cities and states. I have met new people. I have stayed in hotels and eaten at restaurants I'd never experienced before. I've had good food, bad food and amazing food. I've met great people and some not so great people. And I'd like to say that it's all with no regrets, but I'd be lying.

For the last 14 years, I have been on lacrosse fields, softball fields, baseball fields, soccer fields, ice rinks and volleyball courts. I have officiated basketball games for kids from kindergarten all the way to seniors in high school. I've seen cities and communities that I will remember for the rest of my life. I have met people that will always put a smile on my face when I run into them somewhere, like a grocery store or a gas station. And I will on occasion run into someone that I'd rather not see again. I'd like to say it's all with no regrets, but I'd be lying.

The 14 years have been an experience — a very good experience on some occasions and a very difficult experience to deal with on other occasion. Unfortunately, the bad experiences didn't always involve people in the community.

The bad experiences didn't always happen because of a mom, a dad, a kid, a coach or someone that works for a school or a baseball field. The bad experience didn't happen because of someone that worked for the facility. When I look back, I have to shake my head, I have to bow my head and I just have to walk away saddened. Because the worst experiences I have dealt with throughout the last 14 years have involved people that should not have been the cause of.

I have to work a full time job. I have a commitment. I need to pay my bills and support my family. And on occasion, my professional good-paying job has interfered with my officiating. My job and my family come first, but you couldn't convince the assignors that. They remove you from games then they delete you from the schedule.

Then when they get stuck, they beg you, send you more games and plead with you to help. Sadly, through the years I've done this because I love officiating, I love being part of the communities and I love being around the kids. But unfortunately, I cannot say the same thing about some of the officials I have worked with.

Politics and backstabbing have been a regular part of my daily routine. Working with guys who will do a tournament on a weekend and officiate 20 games, they can't physically get up and down the court, but it's a high paycheck and the kids don't matter. Nobody monitors these tournaments. The assignors are responsible for filling the games with someone with a heartbeat that can make a call on occasion, blow their whistle, call a ball or a strike for seven or eight games in a day and go through the motions. Thanks to the assignors for the headaches. I won't apologize for having a full-time job. I have to support my family and pay my bills. And I won't bow down to politics and backstabbing. I'd rather have a drama-free life and not worry about the hassles or headaches.

For 14 years, I have worked with a lot of good officials. I have worked with a handful of good assignors who have been respectful, considerate and courteous to me. But unfortunately, I have worked with assignors who enjoy politics, backstabbing, favoritism and playing games.

If you don't work when they want you to, or where they want you to, you'll find yourself on a long list of officials who get the lowest level games, travel the farthest to work and are lucky to fill a quarter of their schedule when others are working five or six days a week. And it's not ever going to stop.

I work for an association that monitors the officials and schools and they make sure the behavior is appropriate, but they don't get involved with the assignors. They have told myself and others "We don't handle the assignors. They are contracted by the schools. They work for the schools. We only handle post-season and tournament assignments."

But they are quick to take your money, charge you insurance rates and make sure they collect your check before you can step on the field, court or on the ice. And when something happens, they aren't there to back the officials up. So what happens? The officials quit.

The politics, backstabbing, favoritism and game playing gets pathetic after awhile. After 14 years, it's forced me to make a decision to give up many of the sports I have enjoyed, for the simple reason that I'm not an immature child like some of these assignors are.

I'm not stabbing anyone in the back. I'm not working 50 games in a month to make a few bucks because I'm too lazy to get a real job. I'm not one of those officials that will lie to someone, cheat someone or talk behind their back to try to get assignments, get a new game, make another buck or three and ruin a friendship they've had for years because they want to do that "next big game." I'm not that guy.

The politics and backstabbing isn't limited to just the officials; it involves the assignors as well. They are quick to talk about other officials, they are quick to blacklist other officials and they are quick to eliminate their game schedules if an official won't kiss their ass.

Sadly, it's a behavior that's continued for at least the 14 years I've been an official. And because the local high school association doesn't monitor the behavior of the assignors, they can play God, treat the officials like dogs, laugh about it, talk smack behind their back and act as they want

I have truly loved being a part of a lot of communities. I've enjoyed being involved with the kids. I've enjoyed meeting new people. I've enjoyed going to new states. I've enjoyed seeing different cities. I've loved eating in restaurants that I may have never seen.

But at the end of the day, unfortunately, there comes a time to walk away from it. It's not a decision that I enjoy making. It's not a choice I want to make. But when it comes to backstabbing officials who I cannot trust to talk to while I work with them, when it comes to dealing with assignors who play favorites, politics and expect you to kiss their ass to make a few bucks, it's time to make that choice.

To all of the potential new officials? I hope you enjoy what you do. I hope you can tolerate the politics, backstabbing and favoritism. I hope you can enjoy working with many officials that will be nice to your face, and talk behind your back. I hope you have the patience, understanding and the positive attitude to deal with assignors who shouldn't be doing what they do.

They put officials on courts, fields and other venues that have no business being there. And they get paid for it all the while. But if you don't do what they want, do it when they want, and don't bow down, kiss their ass and put up with their politics? I hope you have another source of income, another job or another paycheck. Because trust me when I say this: you won't work a game in your life.

Several people I know have registered to be an official and they can't as much as get an email back from an assignor. They don't get their phone calls returned. They've paid their money. They've even attended the meetings. And they haven't had one game scheduled to them. They aren't even on the schedule and people are asking why nobody can find enough officials? They are asking why people don't want to continue to officiate? There's your answer. But nobody wants to ask those questions or have those conversations.

Politics, backstabbing and bullshit is what comes with life of being a sports official. The money is great. The conversations are amazing. The contact is incredible. The trips, journeys and travel will leave you with memories that last forever. But the important question is this: are the headaches and heartaches worth it?