Some soccer newbie from Bosnia enjoys The Beautiful Game alongside Shane Smith, aka Tommy Buzanis. Over the past month or so, I was stricken with an illness. It long went undiagnosed and it's symptoms included waking up ridiculously early, wearing garish color combinations and randomly bursting into cheer after long bouts of silence. Yes, that's right, I caught a small, albeit deadly bout of World Cup Fever. Thankfully I made it through alive, but it got dicey there for a while.
I had always thought soccer was too boring, too English, and too pretentious for my tastes, but over the course of the Cup, I began to revel in the small details of the game that most fans relish and most haters ignore. The different strategies, the art of the perfect pass, the absence of commercial breaks and most of all, the build up and anticipation as a team makes it's way towards a shot on goal. Plus, it gave me an excuse to drink lots of coffee chased with Bloody Marys.
The high point probably came when I went with my buddy Shane (and his whole family) to Cagney's bar, to watch the US take on Ghana. Watching soccer in a communal atmosphere makes all the difference in the world, and would likely even make Glenn Beck seem like less of a d*#k.
Alas, the outcome was not what was hoped for, but I continued to watch the Cup all the way through to the finals (Go Netherlands...uh, I mean Spain?). All the better, it probably saved me from frittering away $60 on a US soccer jersey that I wouldn't break out for another 4 years. I'm beginning to run out of bandwagons to jump on...
Yes. Yes it is. 
No comments:
Post a Comment