The other pitch is not greener

I am not a Columbus Crew supporter.

I am a Columbus Crew fan.

I am not, nor have never been a season ticket holder but I have been to a few matches here and there.

I do watch the matches on television, and had Time Warner Cable when it was the only local way to see them. This season though, unless ownership changes its mind, or changes so the team remains in Columbus, I will not be watching any of the Columbus Crew matches.

I have an old, 2009 edition jersey. I got a t-shirt with the latest logo on it for my son.

I am not invested in the team the way many supporters are. They are followers in a way that determines some of their social lives, good for them.

If the team were to leave Columbus, I would not be happy about it and I understand a lot of lives here would be effected by the move. Yet, my life would go on.

If the team were to leave Columbus, my small interest in Major League Soccer would end. Completely.

I am not a supporter of a sports franchise holding a city hostage to get what it wants.

I am not a supporter of a franchise whose owner is a liar and whose league commissioner is complicit in the moving of the team. This is not about Austin, although they should be warned it can happen to them.

This is about honesty, and the ownership of the Columbus Crew is not honest. Nor is upper management of Major League Soccer.

I’m not a supporter, but a casual fan on the couch, who has watched this team for about ten seasons.

Until now.

Keep the Crew in Columbus.

Bandwagonleicester

It is probably the best sports team story I have seen in my lifetime. The rise of Leicester City Football Club from Division One of the English Premier League to the top level, only to barely hang on to their spot last season.

Now, the team is a hair's width from winning the Premier League Championship, which would earn a team with one of the five lowest payrolls in the league hundreds of millions of dollars. If team manager Claudio Ranieri is not Manager of the Century, I do not know what it would take.

So many stories have been written about their rise in the ranks. It's been quite The Struggle, as my friend Graham, who is from Leicester and now calls Columbus home put it this morning. I cannot imagine the joy, the incredible impossibilities that are going through his mind as his boyhood team is so close to winning it all, for the first time ever.

I went to a local brewpub this morning to watch the match, and provide backup support. I had heard members of a Scottish band I like were looking for a place to watch as today was their day off before a Monday night show in town. Even brought a couple bottles of Irn-Bru in case. An offering to boys far from home. They did show up, and were extremely pleased with the gift, the brewpub, the match, and everything I think. As a neutral, I want to see this magic happen and am winning to deal with Everton losing to them next week so they can win the title at home. If chelsea were to beat Tottenham tomorrow, the point is moot, Leicester City win. Game on.

A good birthday walk

Been trying to avoid the news, but it's hard to not see the effects of the tragedy in Charleston. I live in a racist, violent country - ruled by guns. If rooms full of dead children and adults will not make us take a hard look at it, nothing will. The nation is not capable of real change, other than security theater.

So I unplugged yesterday while my wife and her sister went out to do sisterly things and wandered around Glasgow for the day. Took the train into an unknown part of town to me and visited the park where Third Lanark used to play.
An interesting, ghostly experience that was only missing morning mist on the pitch. Since I was there, I strolled past Hampden Park and had no idea it was in such a residential neighborhood, not unlike Wrigley Field.

Managed to get on the right trains at the right time and got back to Central Station intact. I keep getting turned around when in downtown Glasgow, my compass does not work, but once I find the Clyde River I can figure things out. Found an old chip/breakfast shop and smiled my way through a language barrier to get some food.

These people had some very, very thick Glaswegian accents but we were all nice to each other. They asked where I was from and so on. The chips were not good, the fish cooked ok, the tea was excellent as was the patter. Heard some outstanding cursing, great breakfast conversation to overhear.

Was lucky enough to remember to visit the Britannia Panoptican, one of the oldest Music Halls left in the world. It was a thrill to stand on the same stage where sixteen year old Stan Laurel made his theatrical debut, in 1906. The hall is being slowly restored and Judith Bowers is doing amazing work in stewarding the process, mostly on her own.

By then I was ready for a proper drink and headed to the Horseshoe since I missed it on my last visit.

After that it was time to once again hit the Pot Still. Fell in love with this place my last visit and that love only increased. Got into a fine conversation with a gentleman from Northern Ireland, had some good advice from Frank the proprietor and the whiskey was excellent. If there is a better selection of whiskey anywhere in the world, I'd like to see it. After a few my wife and sister showed up at the pre-determined time to get me out of there while I could still walk, but not before I had a Mortlach that was distilled in 1984.

Quieter day today. All continues to be well here.

The Tim Howard Effect

Today marked the official start of the English Premier League season. With MLS in full swing and the World Cup over the anticipation of the new year from abroad was high. My team, Everton, made a very bold and expensive move in signing a genuine permanent striker in Romalu Lukaku, who had been with Chelsea, but who played with Everton last season. Expectation are high for the Toffees, can they break into the lauded top four of the league?

When I walked into Fourth Street Bar and Grill this morning to watch the match with a crowd of people, I had no idea what to expect. There were already fans of Manchester United in barstools as they watched their team lose their match to Swansea. Their fans exited quickly after the final whistle and fans of the other matches began to show up.

There were a few dozen people in the bar at 10AM on a Saturday morning. Truth be known, mostly white men, but we were all trying to be awake, and were quite civil with each other.

In my six years of being a soccer fan, I have never seen a supporter of Sunderland in the flesh. Somehow, there were half a dozen Sunderland fans in Columbus. It was unreal. Also representing were Leicester, Aston Villa, West Ham, and Tottenham (along with the Columbus Crew). Quite a broad number of jerseys that were not the big four of English soccer. People were paying attention to all of the matches, even Hull vs. QPR.

As for the Everton support. At first it was myself and another guy. Which is not surprising. I've only met three people in town who are fans - a guy named Corey and a gal named Rebekah. It's usually Corey who is the only person showing support for Everton in a bar full of people. But then another person showed up, then two more, and another. All told there were eleven people who were there to see Everton, enough to field a team!

So we introduced ourselves, talked about the Ohio Toffees Twitter account, the availability of Kone and Orviedo, the injury to Barkley, which got a horrible update later in the day, and getting older Everton shirts.

The result was not what we wanted, a 2-2 draw with newly promoted Leicester, but we're hopeful for the season. It's only one match, and there are thirty seven more.

Jürgen's Boys

So proud of the U.S. Men's Soccer Team, even after their defeat by Belgium today. They worked hard today, and in every game this World Cup, but even that is not enough.

The team lacked an attack, possession time and timely scoring, which is exactly what Belgium did to win. Tim Howard made a World Cup record 16 saves, which shattered the old record. Without him, the match never would have went to extra time and it would have been a lopsided defeat. Truly a performance in goal for the ages.

This team displayed a lot of grit though, lesser teams would have given up when they were down two goals in extra time, not this one. They fought, got a goal back and nearly pulled out the tying goal late. Not meant to be. Not enough polish to get through. Fair play to Belgium, who seem to have a penchant for late, dramatic goal scoring during their run this tournament. Best of luck to them against Argentina.

As for the U.S. Team something to build on for 2018. Klinsmann and his staff have some tweaking to do. A few players are likely to leave, Tim Howard will most likely step aside for Brad Guzan, and some attack needs to be developed.

No idea if this team, this World Cup is going to increase the interest in soccer here. I've heard all the jokes for the past 12 years about how boring soccer is, they have not changed. The fan base though, is on the upswing. If you were watching this match and not freaking out in joy and the potential of belief during the last ten minutes of this game, you have no soul. How can that not grab your attention and make you want more?

Watch it or do not, choice

For me it happened on my seventh birthday - when you see something for the first time that is much bigger than you thought it was.

The World Cup is in full swing, there have been little tragedies and heroic acts of physical ability in the soccer stadiums of Brazil.

While this is going on, people of Brazil are being trafficked, exploited and displaced by their government in a corrupt embrace with FIFA, I'm well aware of this. I'm well aware of the tax folly that is Nationwide Arena and the hypocrisy of college athletics. I'm disgusted by the bloodsport that the National Football League is turning into, which is causing many lives to end prematurely. I'm aware of the bread and circuses that happen around me daily.

Trying to be authentic, to not support those who exploit others in any way is next to impossible in this consumer society. This computer I'm using to type this was probably made by wage slaves, on a good day. There's blood on this keyboard and I'm not sure if I still have to hate Ani DeFranco now that Gary Oldman is the latest celebrity target of I do not like him anymore.

When I went up that ramp on that June day in 1971 and saw a blue sky, that huge scoreboard I'd only seen on 19 inches of black and white television screen, the greenest and largest field of grass in the world, I thought.

Loved the game, the sport but when you're small, weak and have glasses that fly off your face at any impact, it was impossible to find a niche. I was horrible at bat, average at best in the field, could run a little. My last softball game was about twenty years ago, when a ball struck me square in the face, I think it cracked my sinus cavity.

So I watch. A lot of football, a good deal of hockey, and some baseball. It took me almost twenty years to attend a major league game in person after the strike of 1994. For a year after I did not read a single box score or watch a game. It's taken me a long time to get over that.

I watch a lot of soccer now. been to a few Columbus Crew matches, even went to a game in Glasgow, which was not the same as here and amazing all at once. The culture of the sport in Europe is completely different, which is why the World Cup is such an incredible event.

And it can be violent, there is no denying that. But it can also be sublime, jaw dropping and incredibly sweet.

At the end of a day, or in the middle of a bad one (or even a good one) sometimes you just need to sit, zone out, and watch the greatest athletes out there do their thing. Do not attempt to guilt trip me into a while this match is going on a few miles away from the coliseum something bad is happening. Because, where I'm typing this, a few hundred yards away, I'm sure something bad is happening too.

And that's why I type this. Because remembering the first time I stepped into Shea Stadium and wanting to keep doing that keeps me going.

While the rest of the country catches on, a morning in Columbus tells another story

I was getting my car repaired this morning. ESPN was on in the waiting area. Some guy whose tire was being fixed said that he did not understand why ESPN was showing so much soccer. I told him the World Cup was going on. He said, "Who cares?" I said, "The World." He then half jokingly said soccer was a communist sport before holding forth on the American sports of baseball and the NBA along with the John Cooper era of Ohio State football. MLS still has this to contend with in Columbus.

Tires rotated and balanced, tested it out by blowing by a truck on I70. I was well over the speed limit and the steering wheel was not shaking like a poor Swiss guy was after his country got their asses beat by France yesterday.

Since before Ross Barkley was born

Yesterday Everton did what they had not done in 21 years, beat Manchester United at Old Trafford. Quite the match, from what I could gather while listening at work. I did warn my coworkers they may be odd growlings and noises my my desk.

The squad has been playing some spirited football this season. New manager Roberto Martinez's attacking style seems to have taken over the room. I was very impressed that the team was fearless yesterday and stood toe to toe with their opponent, trading punches on the road. Win or loss, they were not going to back down from their plan, and it paid off in the 82nd minute.



Bryan Oviedo's goal was all Everton needed in a 1-0 win. Oviedo has taken the place of the injured left back Leighton Baines magnificently, with two goals in two matches.

It does not get easier for fifth place Everton, it's off to the Emirates on Sunday to play first place Arsenal. Win or lose they will attack. They will be prepared. They will not be worried. In less than half a season the culture of the past eleven years has been profoundly changed.

Lowering clouds, rising temperatures

A dramatic day began on the train to Glasgow, where I ended up seasted with two guys on the way to the Celtic match. Each had an open beer, one polished off his pint of Buckfast. To their credit they did put the empties in a bag they brought with them.

There was a fan based protest going on in George Square. Some Celtic supporters think they're being persecuted for making sectarian chants, they probably deserve it. I saw a few hundred people chanting and waving flags. No arrests.

Walked from town to the stadium, picked up a greasy bag of chips from the oldest chippie in Glasgow and strolled through The Barras. This is an open air flea market that sells a bit of everything, most of which is legal, some bootleg and questionable. There were also tables of porn DVDs for sale, a good time but best to move on.

The air on the east side smells of vinegar and stale garbage, it has not rained here in about a week. Activity increased on the street as Celtic Park came into view. A place called Kick Ass Burgers was open, as was Pimp My Burger.

Had no problems picking up my ticket and walked over to an area where a crowd had gathered. The bus for Hibs, the opposition had showed up. No one booed. A few minutes later, the home team bus pulled up to applause. A few players waved, some looked more serious than others.

On your ticket, you are given a specific turnstile to enter. There are no ticket takers. You scan your ticket and the gate opens. This is the section where you will stay the entire match. You cannot move to another section or part of the stadium. I bought a Meat Pie and Coke. I did not see Irn-Bru for sale. There is also a Ladbrokes stand. Yes, you can bet on the match inside the stadium. I kept looking for Pete Rose, he would have loved this!

My seat was great. Took pictures. Asked the usher if I was in the right section. Did not see Rod Stewart.

The game itself was a bit of an afterthought, Celtic scored early, led at the half and won it 3-0. Commons had two goals and I was impressed with the play of defender Kelvin Wilson. Got to see Samaras come in off the bench and Paddy McCourt ran around for five minutes.

Watched a large fan made banner of Neil Lennon riding a white horse make its way around the stadium. It got to our section and we passed it along. Did the bounce for about fifteen seconds. This is a movie in which you lock arms with your neighbors, turn your back to the pitch and jump up and down. Good times!

The most exciting thing happened at the half when a woman sitting two rows behind me won fifty thousand pounds in a big drawing. She seemed to be a regular and no one believed her at first. Then her husband's eyes got really big Andy they went to the pitch. I could see her shout with joy as her ticket was confirmed, then she posed at mid field with the big,fake check. Good for her!

A sea of people headed west down London Road when the match ended. Very cool. Very peaceful, for it was a good result, too.

Got a bit lost trying to find a friend's flat and ended up giving up. Went to Caffe Nero to chill and edit poems, then to the 13th Note when I met my wife and her friend who came up from Bristol for the weekend.

Good day in the city, and it still has not rained. Chilling out in Lenzie today. Took a walk, now listening to Everton/Spurs as they do not have enough cable here.

Monday is a trip to the Museum of Transport and a genuine UK Pub Quiz.

Out of right field

The Columbus Blue Jackets find themselves in the unfamiliar position of being in a four game winning streak. In two hours there game two of a home and home series against the Red Wings. Yesterday afternoon, the Blue Jackets spanked them 3-0 in front of a joyous home crowd. It got a bit testy when, late in the game Justin Abdelkader got in a tussle with Vinny Prospal. While skating away Prospal pointed at the scoreboard, and got a deserved ten minute misconduct. After years of getting the crap beaten out of them by the Red Wings, I can understand the reasons for release, even if it was a schoolyard move. Going to be fascinating to see how the Red Wings react on their own ice, with their own crowd of lunatics behind them.

Everton are in a bit of a free fall. After an embarrassing and disgraceful 3-0 defeat at the hands of Wigan at Goodison Park that knocked them out of the FA Cup, I'm wondering how they react next week against Manchester City. The team is in disarray. There's little creativity in mid-field, the defense is woefully thin with the injury to Jagielka and Jelavic has not been effective up front in weeks. Plus you have the off again on again situation with Fellaini wanting to move to a bigger club. He was booed off the pitch yesterday after a passive performance against the Latics. If he continues like that, no one will want his services. Another reason this team is in crisis mode is the uncertainty of manager David Moyes. His contract is up at the end of the season and his stay at Everton will be reviewed at the end of the season. I'm not sure how much Moyes wants to stay in at Everton now. He has had little financial support from management in building a team, but when he does acquire a team, his tactics belie their abilities. He continues to rely on veterans who may be past their prime (Tim Cahill and Phil Neville) ahead of young players who are hungry for a chance to prove themselves. The last third of the season will be very telling. If Everton do not earn play in Europe I think Moyes leaves for another team.

Celtic are in first place in the Scottish Premier League, and are likely to be league champions for a second straight year. They were eliminated by the much in form Juventus from Champions League play this week, but gained some experience at top level play. A couple of players are likely to move on at the end of the season. Wanyama and Hooper are said to be moving on to England. Celtic are in the position of bringing in players cheap, then selling them at a good profit after developing them into quality athletes. An easy thing to do when, sadly, you are the only decent team in a poor league.

We're off to Glasgow next month and I have a ticket to the last game of the season against Hibs. I'm very excited to see a match in Celtic Park even though there will be little for the home side to play for.

The Crew have started play with a win and a loss. Still too early to tell what this season will bring.

Baseball's spring training has started. The Mets still do not have an outfield. General Manager Sandy Alderson has my number.

What I have not put in Facebook status updates or tweets.

I was at a Barnes and Noble recently, looking through the magazine rack I noticed about half a dozen soccer magazines, none of which were there when I worked there six years ago. I know print has changed, but you know the subject is gaining in popularity.

During last month's storm, the gutter on the front of my house was partially ripped out and hung there in the snow and ice. No way I was going up there. No way a repairman was going up there. Luckily it hung on until the snow and ice melted and I was pleased to find out it was repaired yesterday afternoon. Yes, I have to pay for it, but it's peace of mind.

This last month has been a struggle. Grief is all around me, and it's hard.



I really do not give a shit about who has and who has not been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame this year.

Hey, we've extended the deadline to apply to read at the 2013 Columbus Arts Festival. Poets, you have until January 28th to submit. You can do that here. It's quick, fun, and free. Showcase your work in one of the coolest venues the city offers you.

2004, repeated?

A quarter of the the games of the current NHL season have been cancelled due to the owner's lockout. The Winter Classic, the All Star Game, heck the whole season is in danger of being called off due to greed and an inability to share.

Yet on the twitters and local media it seems like there is little wrong. The Blue Jackets are updating the Springfield Falcons games as if they are just as important as a real game. They're all mercilessly tweeting every ice related event at Nationwide Arena as if Ryan Johansen had scored a hat trick against the Red Wings.

I'm not buying it. The players and owners are not even talking, not even on the same planet and another season is probably going to be lost.

What is going to bring me back once the inevitable is announced, in another week or two? Nothing. I'll be done with the NHL.

The Everton/Liverpool match was quite the exciting match this morning. The first half was a thrill. Liverpool goes up two goals then Everton roared back to even the score. Players were fighting, hard. I think they ran out of gas because the final 45 minutes was not as passionate. There were a lot of yellow cards, a lot of gnashing of teeth, but no goals. Liverpool had a goal disallowed because of a phantom off sides late in the match. Such is life in a world that is often cruel and unfair.



After a couple years of fits and starts, it is great to finally see the Goodale Park Fountain operating. It looks much better working than dry but I still think the elephants should be firing in opposite directions.

Saturday goings

Ran a few errands today and while driving I saw the price of gas at one station go from $3.10 a gallon to $3.45, within about two hours. This is all Obama's fault, right?

Did a little thrifting, which is always hit or miss for me. Found a couple of interesting things amidst the throngs of people.

This is one of my favorite alcohol advertising icons, and I found a little wooden plaque of it that is now on the dining room wall.



I have no idea why I bought this, but I have to wonder what the heck it was doing on the rack at a thrift store in Whitehall. It cost three bucks, and I could not pass it up.



I mean, who does not need a 2004 Lazio F.C home shirt? Take the Puma logo off, and that is what I now own.

A long post, mostly sports related

You may remember that we saw the Vice President's limo go by my workplace last week. Turns out, after his speech there were still people outside the building, waving and cheering as his motorcade went down the road. Biden stopped the limo, unexpectedly as the rest of the detail traveled on, got out and shook a bunch of hands.

The Vice President attached himself to one my co-workers, would not let go of her hand as he talked to people, asked for their names. He suggested they take a group shot on the stairs, which produced a wonderful photo that I wish I could post here, but it's not mine to post.

I left about an hour earlier so I do not feel bad about missing him. If it was ten minutes though, I'd be kicking myself for a missed opportunity. It was a great experience for librarians!

The NC$$ issued what it thinks is a severe and unprecedented penalty on Penn State University. In addition to scholarship reductions and losing post season opportunities for four years, the University was also fined sixty million dollars for covering up Jerry Sandusky's being a child rapist.

The one thing the NC$$ did that shocked me was erasing the wins of the team going back to 1998, when the cover up for Sandusky's crimes of child rape began. This wiped out coach Joe Paterno's coaching wins record, and most of his legacy at Penn State. A clear message was sent with this punishment.

A lot of people were expecting the 'death penalty', the team being shut down. However, as the NC$$ explains in its 'rules', the death penalty only goes to teams that deliberately cheated to gain advantage on the field. This is a tragic and unique case. I think the penalties issued are fair, justly harsh. In some ways, even worse than the death penalty, the program is going to be weak for many years. I am surprised that they did not issue a ban on playing, or that the team was not allowed to appear on television. The football culture of the university is going to be difficult to change. I do not think the administration really gets it, not in the theater they used in tearing down Paterno's statue early Sunday morning. Change has to start at the top, where the trouble and cover ups for child rape lie.

Going back to the sixty million dollars though. That is a lot of money. it's supposed to go toward helping sexual abuse survivors. I do hope this is the case, and that helping and healing victims comes from this tragic series of events. That money could go a long way to help.

The horrors of the Colorado theater shooting still resonate. It's still easier to buy weapons online that liquor in this country. Peace to the victims and their families. Strength to all the victims. I do not have any more words for this.

The Blue Jackets finally traded the franchise today, shipping Rick Nash to the Rangers. An expected move. I think Howson got the best deal he could, now and at the trade deadline it would have been about the same. Dubinsky is a solid player. Anisimov is a young scoring center with some upside. Erixson is a young defenseman with a lot of potential. They're very deep and competitive at the blue line. Now they have to address the goaltending situation and hope a bunch of players (especially you, Derek Brassard!) start to establish themselves and put the puck in the net. The double teaming of Nash has stopped. It's time for the potential to get to work.

The Blue Jackets also got a number one draft pick, which gives them three for the next draft.

A lot of people do not think Howson got enough for Nash. I do not think any package would have been enough for a lot of people. I wish Nash well. He had it very easy in Columbus for the ten years he was here. Expectations and pressure will be a lot higher in New York. We'll find out if he's capable of handling them.

News comes that Everton's Tim Cahill has been sold to the New York Red Bulls of the MLS. At his best, Cahill was one of the most passionate players on the pitch. An asset to the club. The Aussie often scored with his head then beat the crap out of the corner flag after doing so. I'll miss seeing him do that. In recent years though, I think his production dropped. Time to move on. He'll do well in America.

Then I found out the yankees traded for Ichiro. If anything can rejuvenate one of the greatest singles hitters in the game, a move to a winning team will.

Meanwhile the Mets relief pitching stinks, Jason Bay is worse and the Crew would rather have a tower than a designated player.

Sports calm me, keep my blood going and give me a sad - sometimes all at once.

All this and a dude with a snake

Wes Anderson's new film, Moonrise Kingdom, oozes with precocious charm. It's everything that is good about a Wes Anderson film - The swirling sets, the alternative universe, foppish human characters. It's also a perfect definition of what people dislike about his films.

I was totally mesmerized by the sets, a child's eye patch that kept sliding down his face as the film went on, and the relationship between Sam and Susy, a pair of 12 year olds who find themselves falling in love on a remote east coast island. There's an escape from a scouting camp, a chain smoking scoutmaster who drinking cognac while recording his daily log, social services, and a classical based soundtrack.

I recently was told that my cousin designed the cover of one of the fictional books that Suzy reads during the film.



Got to see his name in the closing credits too, very cool. I loved the film.

It ended up being a late night, something we're not used to. I crawled out of bed this morning only to find out that my son was not going to swimming today because he was up half the night. He's also been using the iPod at his mother's to watch videos of surveillance video on school buses.

We ended up going to breakfast at Tommy's, where the owner immediately pointed at my shirt when I came in. I was wearing my Everton shirt and he questioned why I was not wearing something from Chelsea, since they won the Champions League. We bantered about a bit and talked about Euro 2012. He said he had to buy three beers watching his Greek team get slaughtered by Germany yesterday. He's also a Liverpool supporter, but that's not going to stop me from going there.

After finding a cocktail shaker, we walked around Comfest for awhile. I still think the party has become too big for the space, even though we walked around easily. . I'll have pictures tomorrow of a mellow afternoon.

Throwing the party at you

Big night in the sports world as Matt Cain pitched the 22nd no hitter in MLB history. Ended up staying up until one in the morning to watch the last inning. Never seen one before. Very exciting.

R.A. Dickey of the Mets has been mowing batters down with his knuckle ball. First pitcher to reach ten wins this season. With some semblance of a middle relief staff, the Mets would be flying high instead of fighting for a wild card spot.

The Rangers FC is no more. Being sold because of tax problems and other issues involving financial malfeasance. What happens next will be another chapter in the soap opera that is Scottish soccer. Does the league vote to put the NewCo, the reorganized Rangers Football Club, in the league this coming season? Or do they vote them out, relegate them to a lower league and make them fight their way back to the top division? Needless to say, opinions are divided. Opponents of relegation say it will cripple the league financially. I say the league is already a financial mess, and with the Old Firm split, it would eventually enhance the fortunes of one or two clubs looking to finish in second place to gain play in European tournaments. Attendance figures may prove lower but I think that is a risk the league could take. The problem is television revenue. Sky may have a provision in their contract that there must be an Old Firm. Going to be very interesting to see what happens.

Last night Writers’ Block held its first qualifying slam for the Individual World Poetry Slam season. Seven poets took to the stage to start the season. I got the six slot in the first round and went with a new poem called Condom Kabuki. It’s based on a scene from a horrible film a dozen or so poets viewed last Saturday called Street Poet. I’ll probably post about the experience in a few days, it’s still sinking in, but the sex scene was excruciating and I cannot unsee it. Hence the poem, which got me the high score of the round so I got to read first in round two. Here I read gaythiest, which got a decent score, but I did not think it was good enough to keep me up top. Rose Smith scorched the stage, Alexis, Ythan, Louise and Vernell all did well. Brandon kicked ass in round one with a poem about gangsta’ Connect Four with a child.

In the end I finished in first, got the three points by .2. Rose came in second, Alexis third. The difference between first and seventh place was 1.6 points. Very tight scoring in a great slam.

Open mic was a blast. The first poet up pulled her poem out of her pack of cigarettes. That’s hardcore! Scott burned the stage with his hosting and a poem. The Suarez family represented. Jon Sands is featuring next Wednesday night. All is well.

Recapping a busy weekend

Saw the Avengers on Friday night. An hour and a half of exposition that leads to an hour of carnage as a good portion of Midtown Manhattan is destroyed. Very entertaining, no wonder it has taken in a billion worldwide already.

Walked around the Short North on Saturday and may have found an object we've been looking for to go into the dining room.

Watched the Crew pay an ugly game on Saturday night, only to come out victorious.

Went to a newer place in the Arena District, the Three Legged Mare (dislike the name, but it's a festive enough place) on Sunday morning to watch Survival Sunday. Ten Premier League games going at once, seven being televised on U.S. outlets for the first time. A very dramatic morning of sports. I had nothing really at stake, (Everton ended up in seventh, finishing ahead of Liverpool. Yay!) but the race for the championship title came down to a dramatic goal by Sergio Aguero in the final seconds to give Manchester City the edge. It was incredible. A few dozen soccer fans, some of whom were Manchester United supporters all got caught up in the spirit of fair play and all that. Everyone called Joey Barton names. He should be banned, not given just a lengthy suspension.

Came up with an idea yesterday afternoon that had me tearing apart a behemoth of a computer desk, throwing it in the trash and arranging bulk pickup. We put the crap that was on the desk on bookshelves a friend gave us, and pitched out even more stuff. Now there's more wall space, and floor space which is reserved for an item we saw on Saturday. Watch this blog for further developments. It is a bit unsettling turning the corner into the dining room and seeing no desk. You get used to things after nine years.

This Friday I have a mini-feature at Kafe Kerouac. I'm taking part in an all night fund raiser for the Writers' Block poetry slam team to get them some dough for their trip to Charlotte in August. I'm hitting the stage at 10:30PM with some old and new. Going to be a fun night. 

A Matter of Utmost Importance

The end of the EPL season is this Sunday. Who cares about the drama that will unfold. What's more important is who has the coolest hair.

Is it Benoit Assou-Ekotto of Tottenham.

Marouane Fellaini of Everton.

Or David Luiz of Chelsea.

Voting ends Sunday at 10AM.

Nature's Way

Bolton's midfielder Fabrice Muamba remains in critical condition after having a heart attack on Saturday. The soccer world is coming together in support, it's good to see.

In another soccer tragedy over the weekend, after upsetting Celtic in the Scottish League Cup for its first Cup in team history, the Kilmarnock team was celebrating until realizing the father of midfielder Liam Kelly was being treated near the players bench at Hampden. Jack Kelly died of a heart attack, aged 59. Can't imagine what the Kelly family is going though. A massive high then low, and on the UK's Mothers Day.

I missed the match because I wanted to get out of town. Took my wife on an adventure to Hocking Hills State Park. It had been years since I'd been down there.





A lot of fun to slip and slide on the rocks. My wife did not like the tunnels. Very peaceful, and not as crowded as I thought it would be.

We took a nap when we got home. When we woke up, I thought I heard tornado sirens. Turned on the TV and all Hell was breaking loose. It was calm where were were, but up north it was looking a little ominous.



Funnel clouds were spotted, but I do not think there was any serious damage anywhere. A lot of rain, a bit of wind. Looked spooky though.

The Master at Going Faster

After watching Everton play Sunderland to a draw in yesterday morning's FA Cup match I had not counted on watching any more soccer. I was online when the name Fabrice Muamba started trending on Twitter. I admit now not knowing who he was, but I saw that he was a Bolton midfielder, and that he collapsed on the pitch during the match against Tottenham. No one was near him when it happened.

I put Talksport on and listened to the commentary. The announcers were very subdued, emotional and very real in their descriptions of the scenes at White Hart Lane. The match was, rightly, cancelled. The players were gutted. Muamba had CPR administered on the field, the defibrillator was used to get his heart started. Sadly, players have died during matches. I was in Scotland when Phil O'Donnel of Motherwell died. As of now, Muamba remains in critical condition. Hoping the young man can recover.

It was with an odd irony that we had a library copy of Senna to watch. My knowledge of Formula One racing is next to nil, but this film was not really about racing. It was about the life of a man who died before he could fulfill what he wanted to do. I was very impressed with the amount of archival footage, home movies and interviews the film makers found to assemble one of the better documentaries I've seen in years. The film moved like a live action drama at times.

Had no idea Formula One was so dramatic, and not the activity on the track. It was very similar to slam, with all the driving divas, drama and villainry happening. You knew what was going to happen though, and that it would be the worst thing, and it was. What a story though, and what a life.