I shall start off by saying that I never had high hopes for the US team in the World Cup. The US men struggle to compete. Their highest finish was 80 years ago, in third place. They reached the quarterfinals in '02. I believe we have the talent to get further and even win, but it's difficult for them to pull it together. This year just seems to be a disaster. The defense keeps falling apart and letting only halfway decent goals through. Right now it's halftime at the Slovenia game, and they're down 2-0. It's all because of defensive breakdowns, and it appears that Onyewu is the main culprit. Talk, people! Tim Howard, I feel sorry for you. You're hurting but playing anyway, and I give you props for that, but you have no support from your back line.
I also have a problem with the team's style. I've watched several teams play this week, and I was blown away by just how beautifully Spain and Italy play. Their passing is just gorgeous! Hardly a stray pass or bad touch - they just link passes together like...I have nothing to compare it to. Then I watch US. Ugh. It's like passing was completely skipped in training. They pass to other teams' players, empty space (with no one there), the sideline. They try to push through with brute force, and, honestly, sometimes it works. They just had ten chances within about four minutes, but none of them found the net. Slovenia actually has a defensive line that acts like they know what they're doing.
I'm not against teams having different styles, but the US isn't making theirs work for them. I give them about ten years before they figure it out. Until then, I'd much prefer watching the US women team. Which reminds me, NEXT YEAR!! :D
(and by that I mean that next year is the FIFA Women's World Cup - hecka yeah)
And now back to the game that USA needs to get back to as well...
Friday, June 18, 2010
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Doses of Optimism
I don't consider myself to be an optimist. Sometimes I am, but it seems that I usually take the glass-half-empty view on things. I found a website yesterday that is amazing. Each little story makes me smile, and many have almost made me cry.
It is often said that humanity is declining, that true human kindness is a very rare thing. I would like to disagree. The world has definitely changed, but so much stays the same. There will always be people who think only of themselves and what others can do for them, but there will also always be people who spend time with a mother who lost her son on Mother's Day, people who treat the handicapped just like anybody else, people who will take time out of their busy schedule to assist someone injured up a flight of stairs, people who will lay down their lives to help those they love. Those people do exist, and we are surrounded by them. We can be those people.
So remember that when you complain about how the world has gone to shit, you can do something about it. Show kindness, exhibit love, give encouragement. We don't do those things enough, and I am completely at fault for not doing my part. This has nothing to do with being righteous or working your way to Heaven - even if you don't believe in God, this applies to you. This is about the pursuit of happiness. Not just your own, but others' as well. Pursue someone else's happiness. Isn't it worth a little embarrassment to see a smile on a stranger's face?
www.givesmehope.com
It is often said that humanity is declining, that true human kindness is a very rare thing. I would like to disagree. The world has definitely changed, but so much stays the same. There will always be people who think only of themselves and what others can do for them, but there will also always be people who spend time with a mother who lost her son on Mother's Day, people who treat the handicapped just like anybody else, people who will take time out of their busy schedule to assist someone injured up a flight of stairs, people who will lay down their lives to help those they love. Those people do exist, and we are surrounded by them. We can be those people.
So remember that when you complain about how the world has gone to shit, you can do something about it. Show kindness, exhibit love, give encouragement. We don't do those things enough, and I am completely at fault for not doing my part. This has nothing to do with being righteous or working your way to Heaven - even if you don't believe in God, this applies to you. This is about the pursuit of happiness. Not just your own, but others' as well. Pursue someone else's happiness. Isn't it worth a little embarrassment to see a smile on a stranger's face?
www.givesmehope.com
Friday, June 11, 2010
Utilizing My Options
I'm liking the new design setup, as you may be able to tell from the new look of my blog. I'm loving the new blue, and I posted a new picture from last January's trip. I believe this is either Dublin or London. One or the other.
Speaking of trips, we just came back from Tacoma and Vancouver. Vancouver was pretty neat. We went to Grouse Mountain and did some ziplining. We missed out on the great views you usually get during that tour because it was so foggy, but it was pretty awesome to see nothing but the line in front of you - making you wonder if you'd be able to see the spring brake you're about to hit. Thankfully, that always came into view in time. There was a little bit of hiking thrown in that tour, but we did some serious hiking Saturday on the Rattlesnake Ledge trail. Gorgeous view once you got to the top; nearly death-to-me hike to get there. I have been jogging and/or speed walking on and off since soccer has been over, but no sprinting. As a result, I nearly died. I was fine for about half of the hike; I was in front and had a pretty quick pace going. Then...we took a break. Which ended up almost breaking me. I swear I was on a sugar rush before or something, because once we began hiking again, all energy was gone. I had nothing. Miracle of miracles, we finally got to the top. I just laid on the ground and died for a minute. Then I was fine. Well, until the next day anyway. Then I felt it.
Speaking of dying, I miss soccer. I've been missing soccer subconsciously for a while...well, ever since I finished up my senior year over a year and half ago. In the past couple of days, though, it seems to have really hit me. It could probably be blamed on the World Cup starting up. I definitely listened to the South Africa-Mexico game online through ESPN.com. I would have watched it if I thought our internet could handle the constant streaming and if I didn't have actual work to do. Listening is so...banal. Fortunately, I did get to see South Africa's goal. GORGEOUS passing! Wow. I was in awe. And it almost started in their back third - I have to give them major credit. Perfect passing all around. For some reason there wasn't video of Mexico's goal. Anyway, back to me missing soccer... I would love to play in an adult soccer league when we get to Memphis. If I have the time, that is. Jackson has one, I do believe, but I thought my time could be better utilized at this point. Now I don't have time, for sure. Work, wedding...nope. I'm kind of afraid to get back in, though, honestly. I had so much trouble with injuries all through college, and my knees feel totally jacked. I don't trust my body to survive. Haha. I would LOVE to be in the shape I was when I played, although I'd rather lose weight than gain any. I'm sure if I don't lift (so many) weights this time around, that'll happen.
Speaking of losing weight, I am completely jealous of my fiance's ability to lose weight. Guys do typically lose and gain weight faster than girls, so it's generally unfair. I do have to be honest and admit that I haven't tried that hard to lose. I had a plan to start working out a couple of weeks ago, then I wrecked my bike. I couldn't walk without a limp, so I really didn't want to attempt running. Monday I got some new shoelaces from Nike (proceeds go to AIDS assistance in Africa) and I plan to put them on my soccer cleats and then put those cleats back to use. I want to just run around the soccer field at Union, messing around with a ball and maybe doing a few sprints. I may run the cross-country track as well.
Speaking of running, I have to do that now.
Speaking of trips, we just came back from Tacoma and Vancouver. Vancouver was pretty neat. We went to Grouse Mountain and did some ziplining. We missed out on the great views you usually get during that tour because it was so foggy, but it was pretty awesome to see nothing but the line in front of you - making you wonder if you'd be able to see the spring brake you're about to hit. Thankfully, that always came into view in time. There was a little bit of hiking thrown in that tour, but we did some serious hiking Saturday on the Rattlesnake Ledge trail. Gorgeous view once you got to the top; nearly death-to-me hike to get there. I have been jogging and/or speed walking on and off since soccer has been over, but no sprinting. As a result, I nearly died. I was fine for about half of the hike; I was in front and had a pretty quick pace going. Then...we took a break. Which ended up almost breaking me. I swear I was on a sugar rush before or something, because once we began hiking again, all energy was gone. I had nothing. Miracle of miracles, we finally got to the top. I just laid on the ground and died for a minute. Then I was fine. Well, until the next day anyway. Then I felt it.
Speaking of dying, I miss soccer. I've been missing soccer subconsciously for a while...well, ever since I finished up my senior year over a year and half ago. In the past couple of days, though, it seems to have really hit me. It could probably be blamed on the World Cup starting up. I definitely listened to the South Africa-Mexico game online through ESPN.com. I would have watched it if I thought our internet could handle the constant streaming and if I didn't have actual work to do. Listening is so...banal. Fortunately, I did get to see South Africa's goal. GORGEOUS passing! Wow. I was in awe. And it almost started in their back third - I have to give them major credit. Perfect passing all around. For some reason there wasn't video of Mexico's goal. Anyway, back to me missing soccer... I would love to play in an adult soccer league when we get to Memphis. If I have the time, that is. Jackson has one, I do believe, but I thought my time could be better utilized at this point. Now I don't have time, for sure. Work, wedding...nope. I'm kind of afraid to get back in, though, honestly. I had so much trouble with injuries all through college, and my knees feel totally jacked. I don't trust my body to survive. Haha. I would LOVE to be in the shape I was when I played, although I'd rather lose weight than gain any. I'm sure if I don't lift (so many) weights this time around, that'll happen.
Speaking of losing weight, I am completely jealous of my fiance's ability to lose weight. Guys do typically lose and gain weight faster than girls, so it's generally unfair. I do have to be honest and admit that I haven't tried that hard to lose. I had a plan to start working out a couple of weeks ago, then I wrecked my bike. I couldn't walk without a limp, so I really didn't want to attempt running. Monday I got some new shoelaces from Nike (proceeds go to AIDS assistance in Africa) and I plan to put them on my soccer cleats and then put those cleats back to use. I want to just run around the soccer field at Union, messing around with a ball and maybe doing a few sprints. I may run the cross-country track as well.
Speaking of running, I have to do that now.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Living Up to the Name
And by that I mean living up to the name of my blog. Which, if you don't recall or are too lazy to scroll, is Random Daron. Of course, I believe that I have always held up to that name, whether it was purposeful or not. Most of the time my randomness just happens with no conscious effort on my part. I think that's when the best writing happens, anyway - when it's effortless. Often when I try to sit down and write a poem about something in particular, it comes out too forced and I hate it. However, when I just get hit by the inspiration and let it go, it usually works out better.
This week I have been practicing my cursive. That means I have a couple of pages full of random sentences and words written in cursive sitting around my office. When I went to address a few wedding invitation envelopes (for those who were moving soon and I wanted to catch), I discovered that my cursive had become appalling. I have never been a big fan of my cursive; my print was always much neater. My main issues lie in connecting the letters within words. Sometimes my hand seems to take over completely and decide that instead of going from o to o, it should be o to l - or something that just doesn't fit in. I think I'm already improving, although I still haven't decided exactly how beneficial this will be down the road. Besides signing things, when do I ever use cursive writing? And as for signatures, from my experience as a cashier I can tell you that a lot of people just scribble and call it a signature. Sometimes I would just laugh at the stuff people put. One guy used up about four inches for his signature - and it was just one big scribble. No discernible letters at all. How will this prevent fraud? Just throw the pen around a piece of paper, and you have a signature! When I was younger and believed that I had a chance to be a professional singer, I practiced my "official" signature. I wanted to use my entire name, of course, and I was afraid that I would take too long to sign things. I didn't want people to get impatient while waiting in line for my signature! Haha.
Speaking of signatures, I have been asked for mine twice. And it was weird. The last time was when I opened for the guy who won West Tennessee Idol like three years ago at Bethel. Two little girls asked me - so cute! I definitely felt so weird though. I guess you would get used to it after signing a million things like that. Ultimately, though, I wouldn't like all of the attention that comes with being famous. Too many people all in your business and freaking out about what you wear, what you say, where you go, who you're with... Meh!
In case you haven't heard on FB, I wrecked my bicycle Tuesday night. I'm healing fairly well I guess, although I called in sick to work yesterday. I woke up and my entire upper body was insanely sore. I had worked out Monday, and it was like that compounded with the wreck just hit me all at once. Not fun. I'm still sore today, but I do love the fantastic bruise on my leg around my knee. It's intense. Getting good bruises is one of the reasons I loved catching in softball. You get a drop ball bouncing up and hitting the inside of your thigh, and you're bound to have a pretty purple bruise in a day or two. It's fascinating. And something to be proud of. Getting bruises in soccer was also awesome. Go in hard to tackle, come out with a great bruise. Injuries aren't exactly fun, but then they kind of are. I guess it's the true athlete in me that loves having a good injury - a few of which I have at the moment. Scrapes on my elbow, wrist, face, leg... Great.
Another thing about injuries... I am awful about picking at scabs. Always have been. So this is going to be a serious challenge for me. I obviously don't want scars, and these scrapes need to heal quickly. I've got a wedding, people! We were planning on shooting some more engagement pictures this weekend, but after Tuesday's event, that wasn't going to happen. Although we could shoot everything only from my right side and not show my leg...that could work. Meh - too much effort. Remember what I said about effort??
This week I have been practicing my cursive. That means I have a couple of pages full of random sentences and words written in cursive sitting around my office. When I went to address a few wedding invitation envelopes (for those who were moving soon and I wanted to catch), I discovered that my cursive had become appalling. I have never been a big fan of my cursive; my print was always much neater. My main issues lie in connecting the letters within words. Sometimes my hand seems to take over completely and decide that instead of going from o to o, it should be o to l - or something that just doesn't fit in. I think I'm already improving, although I still haven't decided exactly how beneficial this will be down the road. Besides signing things, when do I ever use cursive writing? And as for signatures, from my experience as a cashier I can tell you that a lot of people just scribble and call it a signature. Sometimes I would just laugh at the stuff people put. One guy used up about four inches for his signature - and it was just one big scribble. No discernible letters at all. How will this prevent fraud? Just throw the pen around a piece of paper, and you have a signature! When I was younger and believed that I had a chance to be a professional singer, I practiced my "official" signature. I wanted to use my entire name, of course, and I was afraid that I would take too long to sign things. I didn't want people to get impatient while waiting in line for my signature! Haha.
Speaking of signatures, I have been asked for mine twice. And it was weird. The last time was when I opened for the guy who won West Tennessee Idol like three years ago at Bethel. Two little girls asked me - so cute! I definitely felt so weird though. I guess you would get used to it after signing a million things like that. Ultimately, though, I wouldn't like all of the attention that comes with being famous. Too many people all in your business and freaking out about what you wear, what you say, where you go, who you're with... Meh!
In case you haven't heard on FB, I wrecked my bicycle Tuesday night. I'm healing fairly well I guess, although I called in sick to work yesterday. I woke up and my entire upper body was insanely sore. I had worked out Monday, and it was like that compounded with the wreck just hit me all at once. Not fun. I'm still sore today, but I do love the fantastic bruise on my leg around my knee. It's intense. Getting good bruises is one of the reasons I loved catching in softball. You get a drop ball bouncing up and hitting the inside of your thigh, and you're bound to have a pretty purple bruise in a day or two. It's fascinating. And something to be proud of. Getting bruises in soccer was also awesome. Go in hard to tackle, come out with a great bruise. Injuries aren't exactly fun, but then they kind of are. I guess it's the true athlete in me that loves having a good injury - a few of which I have at the moment. Scrapes on my elbow, wrist, face, leg... Great.
Another thing about injuries... I am awful about picking at scabs. Always have been. So this is going to be a serious challenge for me. I obviously don't want scars, and these scrapes need to heal quickly. I've got a wedding, people! We were planning on shooting some more engagement pictures this weekend, but after Tuesday's event, that wasn't going to happen. Although we could shoot everything only from my right side and not show my leg...that could work. Meh - too much effort. Remember what I said about effort??
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