E, cominci!

While I am the first to admit that I have serious problems with our current governmental system, I am very much an American patriot. You do not have to support every decision made by the people running the country in order to love your homeland. I am an American, and proud to be one. So, Happy Birthday America! Here's hoping the next year brings you closer to what the Founding Fathers had in mind when you were born, instead of the rich-get-richer society subjugated by Big-Business and a "culture" dominated by the comings and goings of celebrities.

As most of you know, my father is from Torre Annuziata, Italy, and while I have never been to my father's homeland (at least not yet), I am very proud of my Italian heritage. The highlight of my 4th of July holiday will not be fireworks, beer or a cookout - but the FIFA World Cup semifinal match between Italy and Germany. My parents and niece will be coming over tomorrow around 2, and while the girls will most likely go up to the pool, I will be riveted to the television with my Dad, rooting like crazy for the Azzurri. Making the game even more exciting is a bet I have going with my uber-good friend of German descent, Herr Maert. He floated the idea of putting national team jerseys on the line for the game. If Italy wins, he has to buy me an XXL Italy jersey, and I will buy him a Germany jersey if they win. This might go down as one of my poorer sports betting decisions, as the Germans (with homefield advantage) are heavily favored. I mis-read one online betting house I visited this morning on which I interpreted Italy as a 1.5-to-1 favorite, temporarily alleviating my fear that I might be on the wrong side of the odds. Oops. And, begin!

The "holiday" weekend was okay on my end. Friday night I played the card game "a$$hole" for the first time in ages. My reputation as a beer pong player is legendary, but my prowess at the a$$hole table is equally potent. I am a vicious bastard when I play that game. I doubt my neighbors will play with me anymore after Friday night. I was very cocky and mean, after quickly ascending from the bottom spot after joining the game late - as I was rocking the baby to sleep. Playing again made me nostalgic for the 7749 and "Westgate" Eras. A$$hole was a staple of our weekends back then, especially when a lot of our crew lived at Westgate. We'd play for a few hours, walk across the street to Maddie's, stay there for a couple hours, come back and play some more. Always a great time.

Speaking of cards and the old Westgate crew, I am very eager for tonight's card game in Berwyn. I haven't played in a little while, and I'm looking forward to sitting down and seeing what I can do. More importantly, I am looking forward to seeing some very good friends that I haven't been able to spend much time with over the last couple of years. I am thankful that I still get invited to card games, and that they haven't written me out of the will (or the fantasy football league) yet.

[Currently Listening - Neil Diamond - "Cracklin' Rosie"]