Old Habits Die Hard

September is right around the corner. It seemed like summer just started yesterday when we went to Sproat for May long. That was almost 3 and a half months ago. Even though summer goes another month, I can't help but always feel like my birthday bookends my summer. I haven't decided whether I'm going to have a party yet or not, but I have decided what I'm doing for my birthday.

I'm heading down to washington for my birthday with a few friends to go camping and see Dave Matthews. It's the same trip I went on last year, but this year my birthday falls on the saturday of the trip. I'm getting pretty excited about it. If it's anything like last year, it'll be an absolute blast.

I found out today that Buzz Aldrin - yes, Apollo 11 Buzz - likes two things in life: space exploration, and hip-hop. Awesome! The clip I watched showed Aldrin jamming with Snoop, soulja boy, and a few others. It was a major sign of the apocalypse. Apparently he has a new single out.

It's kind of a rainy day today, so I thought I'd spend some time on my computer. Catch up on my blog/twitter/facebook/youtube. I email every day now that I coach a soccer team, and I'm sending 30-50 emails a week now. It's kind of weird being the sender, after years of only checking my email for received messages.

Speaking of coaching, I really can't get through to my players, even when I use really blunt terms. Some kids are going to be really dissappointed that they don't make my team, and they have only themselves to blame. I try to give everyone a lot of opportunities to prove themselves and make their presence known on my radar. All the guys that are questionable for making the team, don't show up more than 50% of the time, and then email me to find out their status on the team. 'Well buddy, I don't really see you with a place on my team'. I think that's just it. They think it's their team, and they can come and go as they want. It's not. It's all mine. I make the picks, I run the show. Oh well. Dissapointing kids is the least of my worries I guess. In a week I'll have my team, and we'll be going in the right direction.

That's it. 10 days until my birthday. It's all soccer and work these days. The conference center is ramping up again, and so is the community center.

'Hungry people don't stay hungry for long'

Help, I'm Alive

Strange days.

I'm in full coaching mode, and I've been busy with my u21's trying to make the perfect team. It's difficult with ego's, injuries, etc. I find myself lost sometimes trying to coach these guys. They aren't overly perceptive at taking direction - they talk the talk but can't walk it. The season starts in a month, and I have a lot of work to do before then. I really hope the regular season isn't this stressful.

I also have experienced a number of other quirky abnormalities that have made this week strange. My roommate just got a puppy this week, then took off on vacation and left his sister in charge of the infant animal. Nice. After a difficult evening, I'm now taking care of the puppy. Perfect. I love dogs. But I don't want a dog. I also love sleep. Not getting much of that though.

There's a party at my house tonight, and I won't be anywhere close. I have to work, then rescue the puppy from the mayhem after my shift is done. I totally wish I could just fast forward to tomorrow morning. The thought of living another week in this house like the week I've just had makes me want to kill someone so I could enjoy life in a prison. And that's before tonight even happens. YAY!

Oh pessimism. When all is said, the puppy is super cute, and I'm pretty good with it. I have a soccer game tomorrow morning, and I'm pretty excited to have my boys play better.

'You can't always get what you want'

Can't Run But

I'm loving the PETA vs. Michael Vick saga! I love it when sports transcend sports and tickle the depths of humane issues. It doesn't happen very often that there's a story like this in the sports world that is so important. Very reminiscent of the Mike Tyson rape trial and the Pete Rose gambling circus.

The background facts of the issue are this:

1. Michael Vick was involved in a dog fighting ring where dogs were tortured and killed.

[bias] I like dogs [/bias]

2. Mike was found, charged, and served time for his crime. Regardless of the term served, it was a term decided by the federal court in Virginia.

[bias] I have faith in the justice system, and therefore faith in second chances, rehabilitation, etc. [/bias]

3. Vick was re-signed this week, and reinstated into the NFL, where he'll be a football star again, after being suspended since 2007.

4. Vick is working with local humane societies and with authorities to uncover underground dog fighting rings, and to help stop cruelty to animals.

5. PETA is off their fucking chain about it.

PETA is disappointed that the Philadelphia Eagles have chosen to sign a man who hanged dogs from trees, electrocuted them with jumper cables, held them underwater until they drowned in his swimming pool, and even threw his own family dogs into the fighting pit to be torn to shreds while he laughed. What sort of message does this send to young fans who care about animals and don't want to see them be harmed?

This is super interesting to me. And PETA is super intense imo. It's my opinion that PETA has no faith in the justice system, or in second chances in human beings. They obviously believe in second chances for animals. The kind of message I get from PETA is that they believe in the ethical treatment of animals, not the logical treatment of humans.

The kind of message that I get from Vick is that he's paid the price with his prison term, he made a mistake in his decisions, and he's working hard to make sure other people don't fall into the same pattern of behaviour. I get this message because I'm watching him say it on a live press conference.

Anyway, I'm not going to be a big hater of PETA. A lot of things they do point to stupidity without me having to do it.

Interesting story. That's all.

'Go write your message in the pavement'

Drift and Die

Busy weeks. Things are moving fast now that summer has hit it's peak. Weeks are more or less flying by. It's kind of hard for me to grasp that it's Thursday today. It felt like saturday night last night.

I spent the last week doing tons of really fun things. I had my first game (albeit exhibition) with my U21 boys on friday night, and we crushed our opponents 3-0. I actually didn't have much chance to watch the game, so I didn't really get a chance to give anyone a good look. I was too busy figuring out line changes, talking to parents, and telling guys how to play soccer. Seems straight forward - playing soccer - but guys make it really complicated sometimes. It's my job to dumb it back down to 'soccer'. Run pass shoot score. Win. We won.

I spent Saturday in Qualicum for Nicole's wedding, and it was a blast. Everything went really well, and it was fun to hang out with my friends. Sunday I really don't remember what I did. Monday I went to Campbell River to hang out with Jen and her parents. I checked out the Filberg Festival in Comox, and while I was pretty sceptical about artisan and crafts type stuff, I actually had a pretty good time.

I got back into town yesterday, and it's back to house sitting for a few different people. Which is kind of a nice gig. I don't really need to hang out much, and both places are near my house. My parents took off on a 2-3 week vacation, and I get full reign on their house/food/car. Which is pretty sweet.

I've been keeping crazy busy, and to try to report on everything would take a while. The summer is going really well, and while I'm squeezing in a ton of fun this summer, some of it's repetitive and I wonder if i'll get certain things in. I really want to get out and kayak around, and the weeks just kind of keep ticking by. Hopefully soon. I haven't spent enough time on the water this summer.

Anyway, I'm off to Qualicum again tonight for soccer. Tomorrow is another game with my U21's, and saturday I'm hosting a BBQ. Not a bad way to end a week.

Thanks for reading - comments are always welcome.

'When I was young I knew everything'