World Cup Excitement and a New Word for Suck

As long as I can remember, I have been a huge sports fan. Adult life and responsibilities have tempered some of my enthusiasm over the years, but I still follow the four major Philly sports teams (Eagles, Phillies, Sizers, Flyers) and their respective leagues. Baseball was my first love growing up, and basketball became the sport I focused on in my teens. Football is my favorite sport to watch and follow, but one of my favorite sporting events in all the world is upon us, and I cannot wait for the games to start. The FIFA World Cup (soccer) starts this Friday, and I can't get enough pre-tourney reading or viewing. I grew up rooting for Italy as a youth (my Dad is from Torre Annunziatta and the U.S. was not a factor), and some of my fondest memories are of watching the matches with my Dad. His meltdowns during frustrating losses (Italy uncannily gets eliminated from every tournament when their tie games go on to penalty kicks - one of the worst ways to determine a winner in any sport) were legendary. He made me laugh last night when he said that if Italy is forced to go to penalty kicks during this Cup, he will turn the tv off and just assume they have lost.

I am very psyched for Fathers Day weekend, as my Dad and I will sit in the air conditioning at my house watching the games. One downer for this year's Cup, the U.S. and Italy are in the same group, and play one another the Saturday before Fathers Day. I will be rooting for a draw.

The World Cup has always appealed to me because of its importance to the rest of the world. Soccer is the world's game. Because the tournament finals are staged only once every four years, the Cup takes on added meaning. The matches shut down entire countries. It has always amazed me how politics always seem to intertwine with the matches. The Cup is truly a spectacle, and I can't get enough of it. In fact, I am in the process of "killing off" a phantom grandparent to cash in some needed bereavement days for early next week (The U.S. and Italy both have matches on Monday).

There is a trendy drink that I have been seeing splashed on restaurant menus and on commercials for the past few weeks, one that I can't remember ever hearing of prior to this spring. The drink is called a Mojito (moe-HEE-toe), and it sucks. There are various flavors for the Mojito, and they all also suck. I do not know much Spanish (three school years of it notwithstanding) but I am certain that mojito means "suck en espagnol. I took a sip of my first mojito and assumed they forgot something. But no, apparently the minty sugar-watery suckiness I experienced is all the rage. Guh. Everything tasted funny after my four sips of mojito. From now on, when something is so extremely awful that there is no word in English that properly sums it up, I will refer to it as mojito.

[Currently Listening: The Police - "So Lonely"]