The Basics of World Cup Soccer

I married into a soccer family.  I thought that I was from a soccer family.  I played from the time I was 10 on and my sister started at 6yrs old. I’d watched World Cup matches and even remember admiring Alexi Lalas and Kobe Jones as America’s hope in the 1990s.  

Alexi Lalas... On the field...

...off the field

But my in-laws...they are real soccer fans.  Like, stay home from work, call each other after every qualifier and friendly and injury update sort of soccer fans.  Not to mention that they are astoundingly skilled player to boot (pun intended.)

Probably the only soccer fans I know who are more dedicated are my sister’s inlaws, who are Brazillian...enough said.  

I’ve assembled a who’s who/ what’s what for myself so I don’t sound like an idiot when watching with my husband and I though I’d share it for anyone who might also need a cheat sheet.  

1. Here is the countries who are playing.  They are divided into 8 groups labeled A-H .  America is in Group G which is also known as the “Group of Death” because both Portugal and Germany usually make it to at least the quarter finals, and Ghana is always a contender too.  

2. “The best soccer player on earth” can refer to any of the following four people:

-Pele- played for Brazil back in the day and is an icon/idol in the futball world.

-Diego Maradona- played for Argentina back in the day and then coached for them last world cup.  Is bat-sh!#$ crazy but some argue better than Pele.

-Christiano Ronaldo- Plays for Portugal and seems to me the Tom Brady of the International Soccer World.  Uggs commercials, supermodels, etc.  Except there is no way that Tom Brady is even close to as conceited as Ronaldo.  (Can you tell he is not my favorite)

-Lionel Messi (he is my favorite)- If you like an underdog you’ll love him.  At 5 foot almost 7 inches he is small, to say the least.  Which is due to a growth plate injury he had as a child.  Amazingly he grew as tall as he is and is faster than lightening (not literally).  The only problem...he plays for Argentina, the bitter political, cultural and athletic enemies of Brazil.  I want him to win...but I don’t want a war to be waged over it. (not kidding).

3. Brazil is the winningest country in the history of the world cup.   They are banking everything on a hometown win. They have tons of ridiculously talented players but the one name you MUST know is Neymar Jr. He is unreal and probably should be added to fact #2 Best players in the world.

4. No, Landon Donovan (probably the one US soccer player you have heard of) was not chosen for the World Cup team by US coach Klinnsmen (Winner of the world cup with Germany in the 1990s...wait, what?!)  I know it’s strange.  I’m not a Donovan fan, I prefer Clint Dempsey to be our poster boy but it is a point of heated controversy and will undoubtedly be beat like a dead horse by the announcers.  

5. The games are called “matches,” the field is called “pitch”, the teams are called “sides.” Oh yeah and the sport, it’s called Football.  

Date night

In theory, my husband and I have no excuse for going so long without a date night.  We have the best neighbors in the world whose kids we can watch one night and then they watch ours another.  This is crucial because the kids are with people we love and trust and we don’t have the expense of a babysitter (I should know,  babysitting was my main source of cash flow from middle school through college.)   These saintly friends even watch our kids when we fail to uphold our end of the date night trade.  

I’m all about the date night because in my mind and according to my definition it is comprised of several things that I love:

1. Routine

2. Deep though-provoking conversation. 

3. My husband 

Some date ideas I always offer as options are:

1. Both reading a book silently and then discussing what we read
2. Reading a book out loud to each other and discussing it
3. Listening to a book on tape and then discussing it. 

However for my free spirited love of my life

I’ve realized even the components that I consider mandatory to make a “successful date night” are not the same as his.  He values:

1. Spontaneity 

2. Laughter

3. Me 

His ideas for date night are usually

1. Watching a movie
2. Go out to eat at a new place
3. Making Rice Krispy treats and then eating them while we watch TV.

Here are the things we both love:

1. Sports

2. Being outdoors

3. Good food

4. Eclectic music

5. Each other

And so I consider our day at Fenway a huge success!  

1. The Red Sox won
2. We got to walk around Boston before and after the game.
3. We sat beside each other uninterrupted by chores or work for 9 whole innings.
4. Fenway Franks, Hot Pretzels, Corn dogs and Ice Cream...what is not to love?  
5. The time away made us miss our kids and the level of exuberance in their eyes when we came home (and presented them with a new baseball hat) was half ridiculous and mostly priceless.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

          So, I finished it.  For four years Malden Reads has been having one city come together and read one book and for the first year ever I did it!  I read it and I plan to attend the movie viewings, community dinners and book discussions that go along with this fascinating book.  

         The thing about choosing one book for the whole entire city is that it is hard to find something that everyone will be interested in.  And I must admit had it not been for the Malden Reads initiative I probably would not have picked this book off the shelf.  I mean I LOVE the fact that it deals with race relations in the United States both now and during the 1950s and 60s.  I was not so sure I'd be interested in the ethical medical questions such as what should doctors do with tissue that is removed from your body?  

       When I was having my first baby I spent a long, hot evening discussing if I was interested in taking my placenta home from the hospital with me, and although there are very good reasons to do so, I think that debate really satiated my appetite for live tissue disposal.   

       However, it turns out that there are many medical mysteries at play in this book and it is worth the read if you are interested in cancer treatment, medical ethics and/or racial reconciliation.  This book opened my eyes to the complexity of finding a cure for cancer, encouraging medical research while avoiding avarice and to the power of a daughter's love for her mother.  It was an amazing story that was full of twists and turns.

 Luckily for you I  have another copy of the book to give away:)  If you are interested to read this book for free.....

1. Leave a comment stating what intrigues you most about the book and why...

a. The history of race relations in America during the 1950s and 60

        b.The search for a cure for cancer. 

        c. The ethical dilemmas related to experimentation on live cells

2.  like Penned but Not Published's FaceBook page 

https://www.facebook.com/pennedbutnotpublished

Second Breakfast

I am a little like a hobbit.  Well, let’s be honest.. more than a little.  I love to read, stay at home in my cozy chair and putter about by myself.  But the way in which I am most like JRR Tolkien’s imaginary people group is that I LOVE second breakfast.  

All through college I made sure I had time to dash into the dining commons between my 8am classes and the 10am ones because I knew I just couldn’t make it through the morning without second breakfast.  It usually consists entirely of carbs: toast, banana bread, english muffins.  I have carried on the tradition with my children.  We all wake up early so by 9 or 10 am it’s that time...time for second breakfast.  

Now, some of the best parenting advice I got was as a teacher at parent-teacher conference.  The father of a very bright young girl told me that the secret was to give their brains and souls food whenever you give their stomachs food.  That passing remark has changed my life.  

So, at second breakfast we eat muffins or whatever baked goods we have on hand and we also read stories.  We read the stories they send home from Sunday school.  You may know them, some are quite famous, Noah and the Flood, David and Goliath, Adam and Eve.  Surprisingly enough, even with the toddler group my church does memory verses.  More surprising still is my son’s aptitude for rote memorization.  I’ll never forget the day we were enjoying our Pillsbury “home-made” cinnamon buns and I asked him about his verse.  He sat up and recited, “En my beginning God cweated da heavens and da earf.”  Genesis 1:1   I was dumbstruck. 

All this to say, with great circumlocution (as always) that I am not making a 5 point checklist this year with 10 subheadings under each main heading.  I am trying to keep my resolutions simple.  I plan to write...a lot...and I am going to read the Bible.  I started tonight with Genesis 1:1.  My husband bought me the One Year Chronological Bible and I plan to read it.  Even as a religious studies major I don’t pretend that this will be easy.  It will not.  There will be set backs and discouragement and long long genealogies but I am still resolving to do it because in the end, “The Word of God is living and active sharper than any two edged sword piercing to the division of soul and spirit, bones and marrow, discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”  Hebrews 4:12