I've decided to take a break from the blog for a while. It's gotten to be somewhat of a chore lately and after receiving some criticisms from people about various things I realized that a break is long overdue.
I don't know when I'll start up again, maybe in a week or maybe in a couple months, but I'm sure I will eventually. As for now, i'm just spent.
Rik
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Monday, September 11, 2006
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
What I did on my Italian vacation
Click on photo to enlarge
I visited with my Italian fishing buddy Fausto and his wife Zora. They brought the X Man a huge toy truck. They know the way to the X Man's heart.
I ate pizza at Antonio's. And bresaoula with rucola and grana and olive oil. And Mio Dio was it buono. I had to waddle back to Giampi and Angese's house.
I went fly fishing on the Brenta River in Bassano dal Grappa with Fausto and his friend Andrea. I didn't catch anything but I didn't care, it felt so good to be on the river.
I enjoyed one unbelievable meal after another prepared by Agnese. This one was spaghetti with prawns and gamberi (shrimp) and was indescribably good.
Had dinner with our friend Kevin who is from Worcester, MA and moonlights as an Elvis impersonator. He's really good too, you ought to see him. His website is: www.elvistributeshow.com.
Watched in dismay with Giampi and Kevin as Italy, who had won the World Cup barely two months ago, were held to a 1-1 draw by lowly Lithuania in a Euro 2008 qualifier.
(We did a lot of other stuff too but blogger won't let me upload any more photos right now so I'll leave it here. Next time I'll post what Virginia and the X Man did on their Italian vacation and if we ever get the photos loaded into a photo album I'll post the link...)
I visited with my Italian fishing buddy Fausto and his wife Zora. They brought the X Man a huge toy truck. They know the way to the X Man's heart.
I ate pizza at Antonio's. And bresaoula with rucola and grana and olive oil. And Mio Dio was it buono. I had to waddle back to Giampi and Angese's house.
I went fly fishing on the Brenta River in Bassano dal Grappa with Fausto and his friend Andrea. I didn't catch anything but I didn't care, it felt so good to be on the river. 
I enjoyed one unbelievable meal after another prepared by Agnese. This one was spaghetti with prawns and gamberi (shrimp) and was indescribably good.
Had dinner with our friend Kevin who is from Worcester, MA and moonlights as an Elvis impersonator. He's really good too, you ought to see him. His website is: www.elvistributeshow.com. 
Watched in dismay with Giampi and Kevin as Italy, who had won the World Cup barely two months ago, were held to a 1-1 draw by lowly Lithuania in a Euro 2008 qualifier.(We did a lot of other stuff too but blogger won't let me upload any more photos right now so I'll leave it here. Next time I'll post what Virginia and the X Man did on their Italian vacation and if we ever get the photos loaded into a photo album I'll post the link...)
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Italia! Italia! Italia!
One more day and I'll be on the Autostrada on my way back to Bella Italia for the Labor Day weekend. It promises to be a long drive but I'm really looking forward to it. For one thing the wife and kid have been in Italy for a week now which means fewer stops for bathroom breaks and no whining X Man to contend with. The only thing I have yet to decide is exactly which route to take. I'm pretty sure I'll go around Stuttgart and then down through the Fernpass as I usually do but I'm toying with the idea of going through Switzerland since I'll be driving alone. Both routes are phenomenally gorgeous so I can't go wrong either way. No matter how many times I make the drive through the Alps, they never cease to awe me with their natural beauty and inspiring landscapes.
Anyway, the first thing I will do is stop at the Autogrill once I get to Italy and eat a panini, something I miss dearly. Should I get the Capri or the Positano? Hell, I'll probably get both. And I foresee much pizza in my immediate future, not to mention vino. Pictures will be posted upon my return to Germany on Monday.
Anyway, the first thing I will do is stop at the Autogrill once I get to Italy and eat a panini, something I miss dearly. Should I get the Capri or the Positano? Hell, I'll probably get both. And I foresee much pizza in my immediate future, not to mention vino. Pictures will be posted upon my return to Germany on Monday.
Friday, August 25, 2006
O Solo Mio...
Last night the wife and kid flew down to Italy to spend an extra week with Giampi and Agnese before I drive down there next weekend for Labor Day. So now I have a week alone with no wife and kid and the house to myself, which means I'll spend the next week living on vino and doner kebaps, sitting around the house in my underwear watching porn.
Kidding...kidding...
Kidding...kidding...
Thursday, August 24, 2006
The X Man makes pizza. And has spiked hair.
Last weekend we thought it would be fun to buy some ingredients and make pizza with
the X Man. He certainly enjoyed making the pizza, but he didn't want to eat any of it.
Oh yeah, he also has spiked hair.
Freak.
the X Man. He certainly enjoyed making the pizza, but he didn't want to eat any of it.
Oh yeah, he also has spiked hair.
Freak.
Sunday, August 20, 2006
Pronto = Paradise
If you know me or have followed my blog then you can just imagine how much I miss Italy since moving to Germany a few months ago. I do like it here and there's a lot about Germany to love. But It's not Italy. I miss everything from the weather to the landscape to the places I used to spend my time to driving on the Autostrada to...well, just about everything. And if you know Italy well, you can magine how much I especially miss the food and vino. There ae a ton of Italian restaurants here and almost all of them are run by Italian emmigrants which is great because I can usually practice my Italian a little bit and get a small taste of Italy. I've managed to find a couple decent restaurants that have a couple decent Italian dishes but overall it's just not nearly as good and here's the worst part - I have not found a single restaurant or pizzeria up here that produces a pizza even remotely resembling the pizza in Italy. And considering that we usually ate pizza at least once or twice a week down there, that's a big void.
However.
Recently Antonio, an Italian friend of mine (he's from Napoli) who runs the Italian bistro on the base told me about an Italian grocery store right in town and suggested I check it out. Last weekend we did and...wow. It really is an Italian grocery store, complete with just about everything we could get at the supermercato (supermarket) back in Italy! Meats, cheeses, pasta, sauces, seafood, coffee, truffles, you name it, all directly from Italy and alot of them are the exact same products we used to buy in Italy at roughly the same prices.
And the vino! There's a whole separate section for the wine and they have a decent selection from every region in Italy, also at decent prices. In fact, there are a few lesser known wines that I used to like in Italy that I've regretted not stocking up on when we left and believe it or not, I've found them at this place.
The store is officially called "Pronto" but I just call it Paradise. Now if I could just find a decent pizzeria...
(Tried to post photos but Blogger wouldn't cooperate. I'll try again later.)
However.
Recently Antonio, an Italian friend of mine (he's from Napoli) who runs the Italian bistro on the base told me about an Italian grocery store right in town and suggested I check it out. Last weekend we did and...wow. It really is an Italian grocery store, complete with just about everything we could get at the supermercato (supermarket) back in Italy! Meats, cheeses, pasta, sauces, seafood, coffee, truffles, you name it, all directly from Italy and alot of them are the exact same products we used to buy in Italy at roughly the same prices.
And the vino! There's a whole separate section for the wine and they have a decent selection from every region in Italy, also at decent prices. In fact, there are a few lesser known wines that I used to like in Italy that I've regretted not stocking up on when we left and believe it or not, I've found them at this place.
The store is officially called "Pronto" but I just call it Paradise. Now if I could just find a decent pizzeria...
(Tried to post photos but Blogger wouldn't cooperate. I'll try again later.)
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Funny picture of the day
I'm sure there's a 7-11 joke in here somewhere...
In fact, if anyone can come up with a good caption, feel free to leave it in the comments!
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
He is the X Man, Hear Him Roar.
I have no idea what the heck he's doing here but it was too funny not to share...
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
There are no mosquitoes in Germany.
Seriously, I have not been woken up once by a single mosquito buzzing in my ear since I've been in Germany. And I haven't been bitten once since I've been here. In fact the only mosquito I can remember even seeing here was in the elevator this morning and I killed him.
Saturday, July 29, 2006
The X Man has a bike
And he rides it everywhere. He calls it "my bee-chee-ketta", which is sort of Italian for bicycle (bicicletta). He won't let anyone help him either - if you try to help him he'll yell at you; "No, don't help me!".
Friday, July 21, 2006
Funny things the X Man says
* I'm a big fan of the show "24" and I often exclaim how awesome Jack Bauer is. A couple weeks ago the X Man came up to me and said "Daddy...you Jack Bauer-head!"
* Last night after dinner we stopped in to the local pub for a few pints. It was hot so the wife took the X Man outside in the cool air. As they exited the pub the X Man said "Mommy, let's sit here and watch people...". After they sat down he said "Mommy, I'm great. And you're great too."
* Sometimes when the X Man and I are playing on the couch things get a bit rough and he'll stand up with a serious look on his face, place his hands over his private parts and say "Daddy, don't hit my nuts..."
Friday, July 14, 2006
World Cup Perspective
Thanks to my beer buddy Diz for sending these to me and to my Dutch buddy Mike for hosting them for me...
WHAT THE GERMANS SAW:
WHAT THE FRENCH SAW:
WHAT THE ITALIANS SAW:
WHAT THE AMERICANS SAW:
WHAT THE TABLOIDS SHOWED:
It's all about your perspective...
WHAT THE GERMANS SAW:
WHAT THE FRENCH SAW:
WHAT THE ITALIANS SAW:
WHAT THE AMERICANS SAW:
WHAT THE TABLOIDS SHOWED:
It's all about your perspective...
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
BTW...
As I watched Italy celebrating with the Jules Rimet Trophy, I started wondering what the other 31 teams in the tournament had to be thinking at that moment. I think it was probably something along these lines:
Costa Rica – “At least we scored two goals against Germany.”
Ecuador – “If only we didn’t roll over against Germany we would have won Group A and avoided England”
Poland – “If Klose and Podolski had never left, that would be us holding the third place trophy!”
England – “I can’t believe we lost on penalty kicks AGAIN - and to a team whose best player looks and acts like the lead singer of a boy band.”
Sweden – “Where the hell was Ibrahamovic?!”
Argentina – “Hey, at least Brazil didn’t win either!”
Brazil – “Hey, at least Argentina didn’t win either!”
Serbia & Montenegro – “We’ll do better now that we don’t have Montenegro bogging us down”
Australia – “@#$%^ Italians!”
United States – “Italy, Ghana and the Czech Republic, you’re the new ‘Axis of Evil’; we’ll be invading any day now…”
Switzerland – “Watch out for us in 2008”
Ukraine – “UKRAINE IS NOT WEAK!”
South Korea – “It’s too bad we can’t we play every World Cup in Korea with Hiddink as our coach”
Spain – “Whew, for a minute there I thought we were going to have to play Brazil in the Quarterfinal…”
Togo – “At least now people have heard of us!”
Saudi Arabia – “I think it’s time to raise oil prices on Europe…”
Ivory Coast – “Damn, I knew we should have brought more witch doctors”
Mexico – “At least we’re still the best team in CONCACAF”
Czech Republic – “If Koller and Baros had been healthy, that might be us holding the Jules Rimet”
Japan – “We’re fast but we need to improve our technical abilities if we’re ever going to get better. And we could use some height too.”
Paraguay – “Chilavert should have been coaching us. And probably should have played in net too”
Trinidad and Tobago – “Damn, now we have to go back to our real jobs. At least we did our country proud.”
Ghana – “Why oh why did we have to draw Brazil in the second round?”
Angola – “Sure was nice to get out of Angola for a couple weeks”
Iran – “At least the Great Satan didn’t get further than us”
Portugal – “At least we were voted ‘Most Entertaining Team’, even if it was more for our theatrics than our football…”
Croatia – “If Prso had scored, it might have been us losing to the Italians in the second round instead of the Australians!”
Tunisia – “We should have beaten Saudi Arabia”
Netherlands – “If Van Nistelroy ever gets his head on straight, we might actually have quite a team”
Germany – “Two minutes…we couldn’t hold on for two more lousy minutes…”
France – “We didn’t win it all because the Italians said some very hurtful things to us in the final. At least we made it all the way through the match without surrendering”
OK, that last one was kind of mean...
Costa Rica – “At least we scored two goals against Germany.”
Ecuador – “If only we didn’t roll over against Germany we would have won Group A and avoided England”
Poland – “If Klose and Podolski had never left, that would be us holding the third place trophy!”
England – “I can’t believe we lost on penalty kicks AGAIN - and to a team whose best player looks and acts like the lead singer of a boy band.”
Sweden – “Where the hell was Ibrahamovic?!”
Argentina – “Hey, at least Brazil didn’t win either!”
Brazil – “Hey, at least Argentina didn’t win either!”
Serbia & Montenegro – “We’ll do better now that we don’t have Montenegro bogging us down”
Australia – “@#$%^ Italians!”
United States – “Italy, Ghana and the Czech Republic, you’re the new ‘Axis of Evil’; we’ll be invading any day now…”
Switzerland – “Watch out for us in 2008”
Ukraine – “UKRAINE IS NOT WEAK!”
South Korea – “It’s too bad we can’t we play every World Cup in Korea with Hiddink as our coach”
Spain – “Whew, for a minute there I thought we were going to have to play Brazil in the Quarterfinal…”
Togo – “At least now people have heard of us!”
Saudi Arabia – “I think it’s time to raise oil prices on Europe…”
Ivory Coast – “Damn, I knew we should have brought more witch doctors”
Mexico – “At least we’re still the best team in CONCACAF”
Czech Republic – “If Koller and Baros had been healthy, that might be us holding the Jules Rimet”
Japan – “We’re fast but we need to improve our technical abilities if we’re ever going to get better. And we could use some height too.”
Paraguay – “Chilavert should have been coaching us. And probably should have played in net too”
Trinidad and Tobago – “Damn, now we have to go back to our real jobs. At least we did our country proud.”
Ghana – “Why oh why did we have to draw Brazil in the second round?”
Angola – “Sure was nice to get out of Angola for a couple weeks”
Iran – “At least the Great Satan didn’t get further than us”
Portugal – “At least we were voted ‘Most Entertaining Team’, even if it was more for our theatrics than our football…”
Croatia – “If Prso had scored, it might have been us losing to the Italians in the second round instead of the Australians!”
Tunisia – “We should have beaten Saudi Arabia”
Netherlands – “If Van Nistelroy ever gets his head on straight, we might actually have quite a team”
Germany – “Two minutes…we couldn’t hold on for two more lousy minutes…”
France – “We didn’t win it all because the Italians said some very hurtful things to us in the final. At least we made it all the way through the match without surrendering”
OK, that last one was kind of mean...
Campioni del Mondo!
Got in late last night from an exhausting 2 day trip to Italy. As you might imagine I'm dead on my feet right now after being up all night celebrating with the Italians but it was totally worth every second. I'll try to get some pictures downloaded and posted when I get home tonight.
FRATELLI D'ITALIA, L'ITALIA S'E DESTA!
.
FRATELLI D'ITALIA, L'ITALIA S'E DESTA!
.
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Italia, I'm coming home!
On Saturday, I'll be getting on a cheap Ryan Air flight from Frankfurt, Germany to Bergamo, Italy. I shall then rent a car and head home to Caldogno where I will be witnessing a dream come true - watching Italy in the World Cup final with my Italian friends. On Monday I'll drive down to Bologna where I'll catch a flight back to Germany. Hopefully by the time I get on the plane in Bologna, Italy will be world champions. Otherwise it's going to be a long, depressing ride home.
FORZA ITALIA!
FORZA ITALIA!
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Andiamo a Berlin!
Best match of the tournament last night. Italy goes into Dortmund where the Germans had never lost and wins the match literally 2 minutes before the final whistle. I went to the pub clad in my Italia jersey as I have for every match except this time I was surrounded by about 500 Germans all dressed in red, gold and black. It was a bit unnerving at times as I got plenty of dirty looks sent my way and feared for my life everytime I got up to go to the bathroom. But overall it was a great atmosphere, at times you couldn't even hear yourself think. However, when Grosso scored in 119th minute, the place got deathly quiet. I had to mute my celebration a bit but inside I was jumping up and down and screaming. After the match I got a celebratory call from Giampietro and Agnese to share in the excitement which made the moment even better. On the way home, as we got to the gate, a handful of drunk German hooligans spotted me and started cursing me and all things Italian in German. I just smiled and said "Ciao, Arrivederci!" as I went through my gate. It was fantastic.
So now it's on to Berlin for the final on Sunday against either France or Portugal. God I wish I was back in Italy...
So now it's on to Berlin for the final on Sunday against either France or Portugal. God I wish I was back in Italy...
Friday, June 30, 2006
Happy Birthday To Me!
I only want one thing for my birthday - a convincing victory by Italy tonight over the Ukraine.
FORZA AZZURI!
FORZA AZZURI!
Thursday, June 29, 2006
World Cup Update: Tensions are High!
We've got a two day breather until the Quarterfinals start so I thought I'd try to squeeze in an update. The World Cup has not disappointed me yet except for one particular aspect - Italy seems to have become the most despised team here due to some questionable calls that have gone in their favor, a sentiment which I feel is grossly undeserved. It started in the Italy-US match a couple weeks ago. It was an extremely physical and brutal match played by both teams. There were three red cards given in the match, 1 to Italy and 2 to the US. All were justified. For sure the first two were and yet American fans who seemingly know nothing about the sport have not stopped whining that they were screwed. I'm sad to say that American fans here have become a bit of a laughing stock to the many Brits and Germans I've been watching the matches with due to their incessant complaining about calls that were proven correct in replays. Anyway, the US came away with a miraculous draw that gave them a great chance to advance to the second round if they had just beaten Ghana in their last match, a match that they ended up losing 2-1.
Italy and Ghana advanced from the real "Group of Death" and Italy drew the surprising Australia team, playing in their first World Cup since 1974. The match was in Kaiserslautern which is only 45 minutes away so my friend Mike and I went there to hang out in the Fan Zone with all the crazy fans and experience the atmosphere. It was an amazingly good time with fans from both teams well represented and in a festive mood. The match was a tight one until the beginning of the second half, the Italian defender Materazzi was given an absurd red card for a tackle in which there was almost no contact at all. So Italy were down to 10 men and Australia were in great shape but Italy went into their customary defensive shell and played some of the best football I've seen them play. The Aussies controlled the ball but they didn't get a single shot on net. Despite playing defensive, Italy even had the better scoring chances. Just when it looked like the games was headed into overtime, Fabio Grosso dribbled the ball into the Aussie box, around Bresciano and Lucas Neill. Neill stupidly slid towards Grosso as he dribbled by him and Grosso stumbled over him. The ref instantly awarded Italy a penalty kick. Every Aussie in the world, as well as most non-Italians, cried BS and claimed that Grosso dove. Did he dive? It sure liked like it. However, the fact remains that Grosso had a clear path to the goal which was impeded by Neill lying on the ground after his tackle, which is called obstruction and when it happens inside the box, it is a penalty kick. So it doesn't matter if he dove or not. Francesco Totti calmly stepped up and buried the kick with no time left on the clock and the Italians escaped with their lives. I honestly feel bad for the Aussies. It was a devastating and terrible way to lose a game in which they played fantastic. But, as can be expected, the whining started right away. A few Aussies started trouble outside the stadium after the match but nothing too bad.
For us, the real trouble was back in Heidelberg, from an American fan no less. We got back home around 10, just in time to watch the second half of the Switzerland-Ukraine match at the pub. There were a few Americans at the table in front of us who apparently didn't like the fact that I was wearing an Italy jersey. One of them made a sarcastic remark under his breath as I walked by on my way to the bathroom. I noticed he was wearing a jersey from a team back home so when he got up I asked him where he was from. Sure enough, he was from the Boston suburb of Somerville (affectionately called "Slum-erville" by the locals). I told him I was from Nashua and said "How 'bout them Sox?". He responded "No, how about that US team." and walked away. Later, when they showed the Italy-Australia highlights, he further showed his maturity by pretend-diving over chairs in the pub. He then proceeded to get up and commiserate with some Aussies seated near our table, complaining in a very loud voiced directed at our table about how the Aussies got F'd by the refs just like they did and how Italy F'ing sucks, etc. We ignored him but when I was walking out I tried to be the bigger man and said "Go Sox" to which he replied "Yeah, keep paying off those refs". I chuckled and held up my fingers in the OK sign and he started taunting me as I was leaving, chastising me for not supporting my own country, blah, blah, blah. He was about my size and I probably could have taken him but I wasn't about to get into a fist fight over a damned soccer match. I was content to just let him make an ass out of himself.
Anyway, we went back the next night for the Brazil-Ghana and France-Spain match and sure enough the three idiots come in with their US national team jerseys on. They shot us dirty looks all night but didn't bother me as I was sitting with a few of my English hooligan friends. I kind of hope they're there tomorrow night when Italy play Ukraine (unless they lose of course...).
So, if you're one of the many Italy haters out there who are convinced that they're paying off the refs, please explain to me why Conrad's shirt pull that should have given Italy a penalty kick near the end of the US match wasn't called? And also explain why Materazzi was given that absurd red card that almost cost them the match against Australia? The point is, in both games that Italy supposedly got all the calls, there was at least one huge call against them that could have cost them the match yet the whiners never mention those. Italians haven't complained about either of them even though they justifiably could have.
As the Italians say, "Calcio e cosi"...Football is like this.
Italy and Ghana advanced from the real "Group of Death" and Italy drew the surprising Australia team, playing in their first World Cup since 1974. The match was in Kaiserslautern which is only 45 minutes away so my friend Mike and I went there to hang out in the Fan Zone with all the crazy fans and experience the atmosphere. It was an amazingly good time with fans from both teams well represented and in a festive mood. The match was a tight one until the beginning of the second half, the Italian defender Materazzi was given an absurd red card for a tackle in which there was almost no contact at all. So Italy were down to 10 men and Australia were in great shape but Italy went into their customary defensive shell and played some of the best football I've seen them play. The Aussies controlled the ball but they didn't get a single shot on net. Despite playing defensive, Italy even had the better scoring chances. Just when it looked like the games was headed into overtime, Fabio Grosso dribbled the ball into the Aussie box, around Bresciano and Lucas Neill. Neill stupidly slid towards Grosso as he dribbled by him and Grosso stumbled over him. The ref instantly awarded Italy a penalty kick. Every Aussie in the world, as well as most non-Italians, cried BS and claimed that Grosso dove. Did he dive? It sure liked like it. However, the fact remains that Grosso had a clear path to the goal which was impeded by Neill lying on the ground after his tackle, which is called obstruction and when it happens inside the box, it is a penalty kick. So it doesn't matter if he dove or not. Francesco Totti calmly stepped up and buried the kick with no time left on the clock and the Italians escaped with their lives. I honestly feel bad for the Aussies. It was a devastating and terrible way to lose a game in which they played fantastic. But, as can be expected, the whining started right away. A few Aussies started trouble outside the stadium after the match but nothing too bad.
For us, the real trouble was back in Heidelberg, from an American fan no less. We got back home around 10, just in time to watch the second half of the Switzerland-Ukraine match at the pub. There were a few Americans at the table in front of us who apparently didn't like the fact that I was wearing an Italy jersey. One of them made a sarcastic remark under his breath as I walked by on my way to the bathroom. I noticed he was wearing a jersey from a team back home so when he got up I asked him where he was from. Sure enough, he was from the Boston suburb of Somerville (affectionately called "Slum-erville" by the locals). I told him I was from Nashua and said "How 'bout them Sox?". He responded "No, how about that US team." and walked away. Later, when they showed the Italy-Australia highlights, he further showed his maturity by pretend-diving over chairs in the pub. He then proceeded to get up and commiserate with some Aussies seated near our table, complaining in a very loud voiced directed at our table about how the Aussies got F'd by the refs just like they did and how Italy F'ing sucks, etc. We ignored him but when I was walking out I tried to be the bigger man and said "Go Sox" to which he replied "Yeah, keep paying off those refs". I chuckled and held up my fingers in the OK sign and he started taunting me as I was leaving, chastising me for not supporting my own country, blah, blah, blah. He was about my size and I probably could have taken him but I wasn't about to get into a fist fight over a damned soccer match. I was content to just let him make an ass out of himself.
Anyway, we went back the next night for the Brazil-Ghana and France-Spain match and sure enough the three idiots come in with their US national team jerseys on. They shot us dirty looks all night but didn't bother me as I was sitting with a few of my English hooligan friends. I kind of hope they're there tomorrow night when Italy play Ukraine (unless they lose of course...).
So, if you're one of the many Italy haters out there who are convinced that they're paying off the refs, please explain to me why Conrad's shirt pull that should have given Italy a penalty kick near the end of the US match wasn't called? And also explain why Materazzi was given that absurd red card that almost cost them the match against Australia? The point is, in both games that Italy supposedly got all the calls, there was at least one huge call against them that could have cost them the match yet the whiners never mention those. Italians haven't complained about either of them even though they justifiably could have.
As the Italians say, "Calcio e cosi"...Football is like this.
Friday, June 16, 2006
Death by World Cup
As you may know, the World Cup is going on right now. It's taking place in Germany. The biggest soccer tournament in the world, which only happens every 4 years, is going on right in my backyard. So you can imagine how crazed I am right now. There is no sporting event - in fact, no event period - that I look forward to more than the World Cup. It started on June 9th and finishes on July 9th. For some reason, my building doesn't have German cable so I am forced to watch every match at the pub. In the first round, there are 3 matches a day - 3pm, 6pm, and 9pm. Each match lasts about 2 hours. I've been going to work early so I can get out early so every day I get out, go home, kiss the wife and kid, then head to the pub to catch the end of the first match. I head home after the last match ends around 11, crawl into bed, then get up and do it all over again. Thankfully the first round will be over soon because I'm exhausted. This World Cup might end up killing me. Occasionally the wife and kid come down to the pub with me - ostensibly to watch the matches with me, but they usually end up playing with the X Man's cars while I watch. The wife doesn't care about football but this is pretty much the only way she'll me over the next month...
As far as who I'm supporting...sorry but it's not the US. If you follow this blog then it will come as no surprise to hear that I support Italy. They looked really good in their first match so I'm hopeful. It's going to be tough this Saturday when they play the US though, my loyalties are a really a bit divided.
The best matches to watch are when England play as their fans are far and away the best in the world. Many of them have been teaching me some of their chants and songs. Some of them - especially the anti-German ones - are hilarious. Perhaps I'll post some eventually. Here's me and the X Man with a couple Brits that we watched last night's match with - they made me wear their England hat, which looks a bit ridiculous...
I'm sure you're wondering if I was able to get any tickets. The answer is no and I'm more than a bit pissed off about it. The stupid Germans only released something like one-third of the tickets for public sale. The rest went to corporate sponsors and the like. So the average soccer fan really got screwed in this World Cup. Thanks Germany! I hope you lose badly for what you've done. I've searched for tickets online and such but the cheapest tickets to any decent match is well over 500 bucks and, well, yeah, no thanks. But watching it in the pub surrounded by a bunch of rowdy fans is the next best thing so I don't mind.
We're about a week into it and here are some thoughts on the tournament so far...
* Brazil can be beaten. They did not look sharp in their opening match against Croatia and are not a lock to win the tournament. I would love to see someone beat them as I'm getting really annoyed by al the Brazilian "fans" who are coming out of the woodwork.
* Whenever the World Cup is played in Europe, the European teams usually do well and this year looks no different - the strongest teams so far have been the Czech Republic, Spain, Italy and the Netherlands. Argentina also looked good in their opening match.
* The biggest surprise so far has been Ecuador. They've won their first two matches convincingly (over Poland and Costa Rica) and if they beat Germany in the next match, they will win their group, relegating the hosts to second place. That would be one the biggest upsets ever.
* So far the biggest disappointment would have to be France. They were one of the favorites coming in but looked horrible against Switzerland in a match that featured some of the worst finishing I've ever seen.
* It's been a bad tournament so far for teams that begin with the letter "U". Both the US and the Ukraine turned in performances that were nothing short of embarrassing. The US had the misfortune of receiving one the toughest draws of the tournament but the Ukraine is in a weak group and could still recover.
* Best goal of the tournament so far is probably Torsten Fring's 35 yard laser beam in the opening match for Germany. Truly one of the best ever.
It's been a pretty good tournament so far. It'll get even better if Italy win their group...FORZA AZZURRI!!!!!
As far as who I'm supporting...sorry but it's not the US. If you follow this blog then it will come as no surprise to hear that I support Italy. They looked really good in their first match so I'm hopeful. It's going to be tough this Saturday when they play the US though, my loyalties are a really a bit divided.
The best matches to watch are when England play as their fans are far and away the best in the world. Many of them have been teaching me some of their chants and songs. Some of them - especially the anti-German ones - are hilarious. Perhaps I'll post some eventually. Here's me and the X Man with a couple Brits that we watched last night's match with - they made me wear their England hat, which looks a bit ridiculous...
I'm sure you're wondering if I was able to get any tickets. The answer is no and I'm more than a bit pissed off about it. The stupid Germans only released something like one-third of the tickets for public sale. The rest went to corporate sponsors and the like. So the average soccer fan really got screwed in this World Cup. Thanks Germany! I hope you lose badly for what you've done. I've searched for tickets online and such but the cheapest tickets to any decent match is well over 500 bucks and, well, yeah, no thanks. But watching it in the pub surrounded by a bunch of rowdy fans is the next best thing so I don't mind.
We're about a week into it and here are some thoughts on the tournament so far...
* Brazil can be beaten. They did not look sharp in their opening match against Croatia and are not a lock to win the tournament. I would love to see someone beat them as I'm getting really annoyed by al the Brazilian "fans" who are coming out of the woodwork.
* Whenever the World Cup is played in Europe, the European teams usually do well and this year looks no different - the strongest teams so far have been the Czech Republic, Spain, Italy and the Netherlands. Argentina also looked good in their opening match.
* The biggest surprise so far has been Ecuador. They've won their first two matches convincingly (over Poland and Costa Rica) and if they beat Germany in the next match, they will win their group, relegating the hosts to second place. That would be one the biggest upsets ever.
* So far the biggest disappointment would have to be France. They were one of the favorites coming in but looked horrible against Switzerland in a match that featured some of the worst finishing I've ever seen.
* It's been a bad tournament so far for teams that begin with the letter "U". Both the US and the Ukraine turned in performances that were nothing short of embarrassing. The US had the misfortune of receiving one the toughest draws of the tournament but the Ukraine is in a weak group and could still recover.
* Best goal of the tournament so far is probably Torsten Fring's 35 yard laser beam in the opening match for Germany. Truly one of the best ever.
It's been a pretty good tournament so far. It'll get even better if Italy win their group...FORZA AZZURRI!!!!!
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